Your mattress may be the most important piece of furniture you own. After all, if you sleep eight hours a night, you’re spending a third of your life in your bed!

During normal bedroom use, you may notice slight body impressions forming on your mattress. Body impressions are not a product defect. They commonly occur because the mattress is adjusting to the contours of your body. Cleaning and turning your mattress frequently will help minimize wear and enable maximum comfort.

MATTRESS CLEANING

Use your vacuum cleaner’s upholstery attachment to remove dust from the surface of your mattress and box spring. Vacuuming is the only recommended method of cleaning a mattress. Using a mattress pad, however, will help protect your bedroom sleep set from most stains. Make sure the pad is washable and easy to remove and replace.

DON’T USE THE HANDLES!

The handles on the sides of the mattress should never be used to support the mattress’s entire weight; they should be used only to position the mattress over the box spring. If improperly used, the handles could eventually pull away from the mattress and damage the fabric.

TURN AND ROTATE

After you’ve vacuumed the top of your mattress, turn it over and swivel it around (move the head to the bottom, and the bottom to the head). Do this once every two weeks during the first two months of bedroom use, and every three months thereafter. It’s also a good idea to rotate the box spring periodically.

REMOVING STAINS

If a tough stain occurs, use upholstery shampoo (following the directions exactly) or mild soap and cold water, and rub lightly with a soft sponge or brush. The bedroom set should never be soaked. To speed drying time, stand the mattress on its side and point an electric fan to blow across the moistened area.

SAFETY INFORMATION

Old mattresses kept in storage in a garage, basement, or attic may become a fire hazard and should be promptly discarded. Also, don’t purchase or keep any mattress made before 1973, the year the Federal Mattress Flammability Standard went into effect.

For more information regarding the Federal Mattress Flammability Standard, visit the Consumer Product Safety Commissions Web site at www.cpsc.gov.