Once upon a really crappy mattress...

February 28, 2012 5:35 AM

We just got a new mattress to replace our king-sized memory foam mattress. I bought the old mattress a little too cheaply, and its not suited for further use on a bed. What are some creative ways to reuse the foam?

After being used since 8/09, the old mattress has two body-shaped caverns with a mountain in between them. Sleeping in the caverns basically meant that we were sleeping on the wood slats of our platform bed. The mattress really sucks (and I learned my lesson about cheap mattresses).

Now mefi, I know I'm going to reupholster my dining room chairs and could make use of some foam for that project. What other projects could help use 12" x 76" x 80" of foam? The top 5" is memory foam; the rest is a urethane foam. I saw an idea for a dog bed online, but I need more! If worst comes to worst, family and friends will be receiving homemade pillows as gifts from us for years to come!

(As an additional question, could I just cut the mattress in little pieces and use it to supplement the cellulose insulation in our attic? That is probably not a good idea, but I'm not sure why.)

posted by Kronur to Home & Garden (5 answers total)

Best answer: I'd use the foam (memory or urethane) to rejuvenate our couch cushions. I priced out some new foam and it isn't particularly cheap. Know anyone with an old couch that needs new cushions? Perfect usage.
posted by empyrean at 5:50 AM on February 28, 2012

Best answer: get a cheap little table, furniture fabric, and some staples and use the form to make a nice stiff ottoman that can double as a coffee table.

I also saw this store that sold giant bean bag chairs but instead of polystyrene for beans it used shredded foam and I want one SO bad! I just don't know if your mattress will yield enough foam for an adult sized chair like that. I'd be pretty confident that it would be enough for a child sized one though.
posted by VTX at 6:23 AM on February 28, 2012

Best answer: Before she sold it on craiglist, my roommate considered using the old mattress as a giant pinboard. She put a solid color fitted sheet on it and just stood it up against the wall. It's a setup that would be great if you have an office or craft space.
posted by f_panda at 7:38 AM on February 28, 2012

Not the foam, but my husband has been using the wire interior frames for gardening. Arced or vertical, they make good frames for beans and curcubits to climb, which then provides good shades for lettuces.
posted by pickypicky at 7:58 AM on February 28, 2012

One caution on reusing the foam. I've had terrible allergic reactions to some sort of crud that had accumulated in some old chair cushioning. It might be best not to reuse it.

Aside from possible allergy issues, giving people pillows made with your old bedding might not be the most welcome gift for other reasons. You might find yourself running low on friends before you manage to get rid of the foam.
posted by yohko at 3:19 PM on February 28, 2012