You are very fastidious? Do you never plan to travel and stay in a hotel bed, for instance?

At any rate, you can see bed bugs. They are kind of like a poppy seed size, so you can always inspect any beds when they are delivered. I think that should be good enough.

Otherwise, you can always buy the matresses they sell at DWR. I bought one, but returned it, and when I asked what they did with it after that, they told me that they just chuck them out. But they do cost over $1000.

Can't comment on bedbugs but I did get the Ikea mattress. It was comfortable for about a year, then it had to go. I couldn't sleep and woke with pain all over. Waste of money. I'm now sleeping on a Tempurpedic--finally took the finacial plunge. Only had for a month but can't remember sleeping better. The Tempurpedic came sealed in plastic so wouldn't have picked up bedbugs from the ride over. Good luck!

Having been surrounded by the bedbug-afflicted for more than two years, I can say that it's really good you're thinking this way. And yes, you can get bedbugs from new mattresses--at least that's what the bed-bug expert exterminator told my boyfriend. the smartest thing to do is to strap that puppy on and drive it home yourself if you can. I'd be very curious to know what kind of answers you'd get by calling around and asking about bb-prevention policies from mattress sellers. But it's sort of like trying to order vegetarian refried beans in a Mexican restaurant--no matter what they tell you, if you really, really care about not eating lard, order the salad.

i keep having auditory-visions of that tv commercial for "almost new" mattresses. maybe that's what they do w/ returned mattresses? sell em at a discount to those big bed warehouses? i have no clue...but it's a good question!! i do know that any mattress you have delivered comes wrapped in plastic (the whole old bed/new bed in the same truck thing would be ok then?) but as for getting a straight-outta-the-factory bed.....who knows! i'm curious though...

Sadly, you can't see bedbugs until they are thriving, full-grown adults and you can't see their eggs at all--they're microscopic. And I would suggest checking hotel mattresses for bedding down for traces of their (sorry) brownish poo or specks of (sorry again) blood from their victims. AND keeping your bags away from the bed. It's creepy and could sound neurotic to the uninitiated, but it's a new bb world.....

It's against the law for them to resell returned mattresses as new. That doesn't mean it doesn't happen, but I think Sleepy's (or someplace big) got busted for this within the last year and it was a big deal.

If you purchase your mattress from a reputable place like Macys or Bloomingdales they will guarantee it - I purchased my spring mattress from Macys. I also purchased a foam/latex mattress which I thoroughly researched before hand (not a Tempurpedic but same quality at a much less expensive rate) - foam/latex mattress are hypoallergenic - dust mites and bed bugs can not get into them because of the density of the material, these mattresses also come with a removable mattress cover which can be tossed in the wash. Both of my mattresses were sealed in airtight plastic. Hope this helps

bklyngal, would you mind telling me where you go your foam/latex mattress?

my first thought was the same as fiona; it is against the law to resell mattresses. that's why they have those tags that have been the subject of so many stand up routines. there was a bedbug story in the times last year about that truck with old and new mattresses.
you can't eliminate the possibility, but it would be a good idea to purchase from a good retailer. i felt, the sleepys and others a little odd in sales and style. i found the mattress department at bloomingdales satisfactory.

For those of you who HAVEN'T read too much about bed bugs, check out a freelance article I wrote last fall for THIS OLD HOUSE entitled "Bed Bugs!" (http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/interiors/gallery/0,25895,1548781,00.html). Lots of good suggestions from experts on the subject... -D

Let me try that link again:

www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/interiors/gallery/0,25895,1548781,00.html

-D

Bed bugs don't have to get into the mattress; they can live in cracks in the frame or the floor or behind pictures on the wall, and venture out after you go to sleep to chow down. That's one of the reasons Mamie Eisenhower used to put cans of kerosene under all four legs of the bed. So you can take all the precautions in the world with your mattress and still be infested -- sorry. But if you buy a mattress from a reputable company that doesn't resell returned mattresses, packaged in plastic, and put a mattress cover on it immediately, then in the event you get bedbugs you at least won't have to toss the mattress because they'll never get inside (whether it is foam or inner spring). A plastic-sealed mattress should be fine on a delivery truck. But that doesn't mean you couldn't bring them home on your clothes after a night out or a suitcase after a trip if you're unlucky. Unless you confine yourself to a sealed room made of porcelain, naked, the risk remains.

My new mattress when it arrived was also completely wrapped in plastic, which probably cuts down on in-truck transfers. I immediately went to Bed Bath and Beyond and bought a hypoallergenic mattress cover - the kind that completely wraps around the mattress and zips up, and haven't had a problem since.

You can find an assortment of them here: http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/stylePage.asp?order_num=-1&RN=561

Of course, getting the mattress into the mattress cover was a bit of a pain, as it's like putting on a pillowcase, only 100 times bigger and unwieldier.

While nothing is 100%, if the mattress shows up with bugs, I don't know how useful it'll be (although a good one should keep them trapped!), but it should help keep them out.

I strongly recommend that you drive your car to Sleepcare, a factory in Freeport, on Long Island. It's a three-minute walk from the LIRR station if you want to check out their factory-floor showroom first.

They make mattresses that are supplied to luxury hotels, and are much less expensive than the leading distributors. They even tie the mattress onto the top of your car for free.

I rent a furnished room to boarders, and thus ordered a mattress with a cleanable nylon-suedey material. Perhaps that bedbug-proofs it???? Ask them. Anyway, with a machine-washable mattress pad on top, the plasticity isn't awful.

The only downside is that they're only open M-F daytimes.

http://www.sleepcare.com/

P.S. -- this is also a great source for custom-sized mattresses, which you'd need for antique beds; and for replacement mattresses for Murphy beds.

In that regard, here's the link to an Oct. '05 press release from the NYC Dept of Consumer Affairs stating that Sleepy's faced "the largest amount of violations and face more than $100,000 in fines" for, among other citations, "selling used mattresses as new."

http://home2.nyc.gov/html/dca/html/pr2005/pr_102705.shtml

Why can't I get that link to work correctly? OK, three's a charm...

http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/interiors/gallery/0,25895,1548781,00.html

Please don't be fooled by mattresses wrapped in plastic. That is absolutely no guarantee of anything because some disreputable mattress sellers just seal used mattresses in new plastic. It's not that hard to do and get away with.

elizabeth in AL I initially saw the foam/latex mattress on display at BedBath and Beyond in NYC but they didn't have the size I needed so I searched it on the internet. I found it on a website (www.livingincomfort.com) They have several models you can choose from. I chose the 10 inch visco elastic from BodyZone because of the removable mattress cover for my son who is very allergic and asthmatic. We've had it for about 2 years and he's very happy with it. Hope this helps.

PS they delivered within a week - it comes rolled up and compressed in a plastic bag within a box.

Hehe, dot's image of "confining yourself to a sealed room made of porcelain, naked" is reminding me of some of the terrifying all-white entries in the Smallest Coolest Contest.

This whole concern strikes me as similar to worries about signals from cell phones giving you cancer, or genetically modified food giving you Frankenstein syndrome, or whatever. I'm not saying it won't happen, but really, what are you going to do about it? You have to live in the world. I'd rather take normal-level precautions (like, don't buy a mattress off Craigslist) and not spend all my time stressing out.

I actually thought about designing a porcelain home...or at least a bug resistant one.

We've got the Clean Rest mattress cover from the Bed Bath and Beyond link posted above. It's really good. I also got paranoid about Bed Bugs and that's what made me buy it, but it came in so handy after we got our dog. We just wash the bedding and it feels like a brand new bed.

get basil plants in your bedroom. bedbugs hate the smell. and fresh basil does put a fairly acrid smell, so take heed.

also they don't like lavender supposedly.

Daniel, great link. I don't have bedbugs (although a friend does), but after reading that article I feel competent to handle it if we ever get them. The thermapure method is especially interesting. I'm forwarding all the links here to my friend.

I've had the same question on my mind as Deborah has brought up here. It eases my mind to know that getting a mattress cover and taping up the zipper would solve a potential problem. I have also found that an essential plant oil spray is effective on other bugs (roaches and ants, in my experience). I have a product called Biorganic. I ordered it online years ago; I bet you could find it in stores here in New York now. It's a mix of essential plant oils that's deadly to insects, and non-toxic to humans. It just smells minty when you spray it. I bet it would work on bedbugs.

I just realized I misspelled the product - it's Bioganic (no r).

Thanks so much for all the replies. Some of the responses got me thinking about why I am so hung up on this particular issue, and I think it has to do with control, or lack thereof, of one's environment. Maxwell's book and this website seem to me to be about consciously bringing order, beauty, personality, and functionality to our living spaces. Bedbugs are the complete antithesis of that, and it's true that no matter what you do, you can still get them. That drives me insane!

So, I view being careful when buying a mattress like any precaution--fastening your seatbelt, not eating tons of fried food every day. You can still get hurt in a car accident or have a heart attack, but at least you've lowered your risk.

Until M designs that porcelain house and puts it on the market, I'll check out the Macy's, Bloomingdales, and Long Island mattress company suggestions, along with encasing anything in a cover. And basil, wow! I never knew about that. Thanks again to everyone.

I just got my mattress form this new company called keetsa.com. They had a memory foam bed that was just like a Tempurpedic but no where close to the price and it didn't smell like a chemical factory. It came packed in a box and was vacuumed sealed. No way a bed bug could get in there. They don't sell used beds and you can take them home with you that night. The best sleep I had in years.

I bought my mattress from Overstock. I know that's kind of risky because you can't be sure how it will feel, but mine got almost all positive reviews and I've been really happy with it. They also don't allow returns so that ensures you'll be the first owner. It's memory foam too, which is supposed to be more bug-resistant.