Polyurethane, or molitan, is one of the most well-known foams used for mattresses. Its advantage is its low weight and purchase price. However, it is not the highest quality material on its own, so it is worth looking for a mattress that combines foam with other manufacturing materials to give the mattress the necessary properties.
Polyurethane is a polymer discovered in 1937 by a research group around Otto Bayer. In 1940, industrial production began, but due to World War II and a shortage of raw materials, the market for polyurethanes developed very slowly. Until the end of World War II, they were only used for military purposes, specifically for aircraft construction. From 1952 onwards, all the necessary materials were available and polyurethanes could be further developed and developed.
Polyurethanes are divided according to the production technology into:
Polyurethane foam can be soft or rigid and can be found on the market as foam and barex. Soft foam foam has a wide range of uses. It is used in the manufacture of furniture, but you will also find it in the interior of cars. Hard foams are mainly used for filling car bodies and as insulation in the construction industry.
Thermoplastic polyurethanes are used in moulding, for textile elastic materials or as polyurethane adhesives.
PUR foam or foam is made from polyol (polyunsaturated alcohols) and isocyanate. When water is added, the mixture begins to foam. The intensity of foaming affects the consistency of the resulting foam. Depending on the consistency, PUR material can be used as assembly foam in the construction industry, for shoe soles or for the production of hoses or packaging materials. Flexible PUR foam is used for the production of mattresses – foam mattresses.
Flexible PUR foams are divided into polyether and polyester foams. Polyester is used in the industrial sector and polyether for mattresses. Polyether foams have a higher point elasticity and higher resistance to moisture and heat. Foams are used not only for mattresses but also, for example, for pillows and sofa cushions.
Polyether foams are also produced from polyether foams after adding the necessary substances and mixtures:
The added substances change the properties of the foam.
Choosing a new mattress? If you want to sleep on a high-quality and comfortable foam mattress, choose one that is made of highly durable comfort foam with a density of at least 28 kg/m3. The density of the material is one of the key characteristics that contributes to the durability and longevity of the foam. The higher the number, the better. If you reach for a foam mattress with a low density, expect it to soon become worn out and depreciate. Its lifespan may be as low as around 1 year.
The development of foam is still moving forward, so the material used in today’s mattresses is much higher quality compared to the mattresses you probably slept on as a child. Today’s foam mattresses are better quality and have better features.
Foam mattresses are available in several types of designs:
The foam mattress from the monoblock is only suitable for occasional overnight stays, for example at the cottage. You won’t make a mistake if you put it in a bed where visitors occasionally sleep over.
Sandwich and combination mattresses are suitable for everyday sleeping. They find their place in beds for students, for people who do not have significant problems with the support apparatus or in the cribs of babies.
For a foam crib mattress , the most popular combination is coconut board and foam, or coconut board, foam and coconut board. Foam is generally a softer material, and since crib mattresses tend to be harder mattresses, the combination with coconut board is chosen to give the foam mattress for baby the necessary firmness.
Are you considering a homogeneous foam mattress? Then get to know its pros and cons.
Pros:
Cons:
How do foam mattresses compare to memory, latex and cold foam mattresses?
Memory foam is based on polyurethane foam, which also contains compounds that give it specific properties. Unlike a foam mattress, which has a constant firmness, the firmness of memory foam changes depending on the temperature of the human body. Therefore, it perfectly matches the requirements for comfortable sleep of people who have joint problems. When sleeping, the sleeper’s body seems to be embraced.
In a foam mattress, the sleeper does not “sink” so deeply into the mattress. Compared to a foam mattress, a memory foam mattress is more breathable. High-density memory foam mattresses have a longer lifespan than foam mattresses.
Natural latex is extracted from the rubber tree. Compared to foam, which is purely synthetic, latex has a natural origin (unless we are talking about synthetic latex). Unlike polyurethane, its production is environmentally friendly. A latex mattress is hypoallergenic, so it doesn’t harbor bacteria. It doesn’t soften when heated and the sleeper doesn’t “rub” into it like memory foam, which latex and foam have in common. The big difference between the materials is durability, which is significantly higher with latex than with foam.
These two mattresses are very close to each other. As with memory foam, the cold foam base is based on polyurethane. However, cold foam is much more durable than foam due to the addition of various substances. Thanks to processing technology, it has a higher density (between 30 and 50 kg/m3) and is also more breathable because it has a more open structure. Therefore, sleepers do not sweat in it. In addition to being more breathable, it also wicks moisture better.
Like other mattresses, foam mattresses are available in the most common sizes. The 90 × 200 cm foam mattress is suitable for a classic single bed, while the 80 × 200 cm size is suitable for a smaller single bed. A foam mattress measuring 140 × 200 cm can be used for a larger single bed. Foam mattresses for cots are usually 120 × 60 cm or 140 × 70 cm. At Materasso, however, we can also produce atypical foam mattresses to suit a wide variety of shapes and sizes.
If you want a mattress that gives your spine healthy support, is breathable and will last a long time, reach for a foam mattress in a sandwich or combination design.
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