Consumerist
A recent class action claims that Select Comfort Sleep Number beds are nothing more than overactive allergen mills. According to the suit, the bed's faulty air chambers allow moisture to form under the mattress foam, providing a perfect breeding ground for mold spores.
Select Comfort claims to have addressed the rampant mold problem, a claim that provides little solace to allergy sufferers whose beds are already infested with mold:
Margaret of Stanville KY (04/05/08)
Just found black mold growing under the foam top and on top of both of the air chambers. Purchased in October 2002 and notified Select Comfort today by email. I have allergies to mold and have been to Dr.'s concerning this. My husband has been coughing every night when he lays down in the bed. Just read the comments from others and hope we can reconcile this issue. The foam borders are flimsy as well as the bottom material of the top mattress cover. It has shredded and has holes in it.
Terry of New Lenox IL (05/04/07)
After less than 3 years of sleeping on our select comfort bed, we noticed a very bad odor coming from it. We proceeded to take it apart, piece by piece. The sheets were fine, the mattress pad was fine. But when we got down to the zippered comforter, it smelled terrible. Under the comforter, there is a foam pad, which was full of mold and bacteria. It smelled horrible. We are now sleeping on the floor, because we had to discard most of the bed.Mold and bacteria cannot be removed from the foam pad, and the zippered comforter would fall apart if it was washed. We got burned badly on this one!
Lana of Brooklyn MI (9/3/03)
The Select Comfort system allows mold and/or mildew to form on the convoluted foam topper and on the air mattresses. Select Comfort's solution 'use a light bleach solution to clean the mattress.' It's impossible to clean the foam. Their product is unhealthy for people like me who have allergies to mold/mildew.
According to the class action:
Purchasers of the beds are being told by Select Comfort to return the beds, often at a significant cost to the purchaser. The Class Action seeks not only to have Select Comfort provide notice to purchasers of its Sleep Number® bed of the potential for mold infestation, but also to have the class members compensated for their losses, including the costs of shipping they have incurred or will incur to return their beds to Select Comfort.
Do you have a Sleep Number bed? Tell us in the comments if your experience was a 0 or a 100.
Select Comfort Sleep Number Bed Class Action Litigation
Select Comfort - Mold [Consumer Affairs]
Comments
Wow. what a blatant flaw and the company should reimburse the customer 100% of the purchase price, the financing charges, the interest charges and the shipping fees in a nice check that they can go and spend on another brand of bed (anything other than them)
Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.
The company already is having financial problems so this suit will probably wipe it out.
So far no problems with my sleep number bed. I love it.
Tempurpedic ftw! Stuff like the sleep number bed is more than I want to deal with.. more parts to break on something that shouldn't need gizmos inside of it.
Old fashioned mattress and box springs ftw!
This is how I see these beds, correct me if I'm wrong. You adjust it to your perfect sleep number and then never change it. So, why not just shop around and find a mattress that suits your preference and save the extra money?
I had heard great things about these beds and since I'm in the search for a mattress for me and my other half (we both have different preferences in mattresses) I thought that this may be the perfect solution. However, now I know I will not be buying this.
When I went shopping for a mattress a few years ago, the salesman steered me away from Select Comfort because he said that it was very low-quality. I bought a more expensive Sealy Posturepedic instead. I didn't regret it. A few years later, Select Comfort turned into the "Sleep Number." Select Comfort's "sleep number" is little more than a gimmick that allows the company to charge more for the same shoddy product. I will enjoy watching this ship sink!
Ewwwww, redux.
Afraid to look at what might be growing under our sleep number bed.
The bleach fix will not only destroy the mold, but will also eat away the foam pad--not a proper fix.
Our sleep number bed is about 6-7 years old and the foam sides have crumbled and compressed. The mattress cover has stretched.
Select Comforts 20-year (very) limited guarantee is a joke (like most in the mattress industry).
IF the product did not deteriorate so rapidly, it would be good--but I would not recommend Select Comfort Beds to anyone because they do not last--and now this poor handling of the mold problem.
obivous flaw.
What i want to know, is it really that have to make a matteress... The industry as a whole is a big scam, that makes money hand over fist for provided low-quality product at high prices
Just canceled our order of one of these and bought a normal mattress. Probably the right decisions, especially now.
The Bionic Woman is pushing a bad product? I don't believe it!
A couple of hotel chains are installing these beds now. That's kind of a creepy thought.
Yeah, the whole sleep number thing is a clever marketing scheme. It is just an airbed with a pump. I have no clue why someone would buy this.
On another advice site, several people have complained about problems with the sleep number bed and other foam mattresses. One woman said the foam in her bed looks like cheese, with a yellow and red crust and blue veining. Foam mattresses soak up and hold everything in the environment, like sleeping on your kitchen sponge. I'll stick to regular mattresses.
If you don't pee in the bed, you don't have this problem.
I saw how scummy Sleep Number is when I stayed at a business hotel in Denver. The bed was really stiff and I couldn't quite figure out how to work the controller, so I logged into the Sleep Number website to check the manual. Unfortunately you have to have a customer ID and password to see the owner manuals!! Three years later I see that nothing has changed. Assholes. On the plus side I did figure out the bed and get it working.
Just bought a Shifman mattress. Hand made with wool and silk. Pricey but so comfortable.
This article makes it sound like all select comfort beds are screwed, but the lawsuit page says between 1997 and 2005.
Those of us with recent models...are we affected?
Waterbeds are the best! No mold problems and we don't have to worry about ever getting bed bugs either. We've had ours for 22 successful years.
We have one and I haven't smelled any mold,but you can bet I'll check.
Overall, I find the bed very comfortable.
The mattress industry is nothing but scams. One of the TV news programs did a story on mattresses a few years back. Many of the major companies have multiple outer covers and names for the same mattresses which they then sell to different retailers. That means you may find Sealy/Serta/whatever at several stores in your town but you can't comparison shop because they look like different lines. They also produce mattresses with lots of small variations so that salesmen have lots of room to get you to upgrade.
The bed in my guest room has the cheapest mattress I could find on it and every person who has spent a night in that bed has raved about how amazingly comfortable it is. I think it's the sheets not the mattress that makes the difference.
I love my Tempurpedic. It took me about 4 months to get used to it (4 miserable months) but now I love it.
There was a problem I heard about where people were getting some serious sagging in their mattress and the company wouldn't stand behind it, but so far I'm good.
I ALMOST bought one of these instead. Phew!
It's called maintenance! I've had my twin sleep number for about 8 years now, and have had no problems. Sure, parts of the foam inside have worn down a little, but what do you expect of something you spend 1/3 of your life in?
Monthly I take it apart, vacuum the inside if necessary (usually don't, dust doesn't get in easily). No problems! In order for the mold to grow, there first has to be some fluid or organic substance inside! I really doubt that even a very high household humidity would be enough to cause this, so it must be coming in from somewhere else. The only other place that is likely is the owners! Covering the mattress properly should stop any fluid from getting in, so it's either really messy people, or it's poor care.
I bought one in 2001 and just checked my bed after reading this post. No mold. I've been pretty happy with it, except that the foam I have is pretty weak and I roll into the middle of the bed sometimes where the foam is between the two chambers.
I do notice from the picture that the cover and the foam between the air chambers are different from what I have. The blue foam pictured looks a bit more "deluxe" - mine is a cheaper charcoal grey. I didn't get the higher model bed (the one where you can see the sleep number). Perhaps the different foam is the problem?
@homerjay: I fell in love with my Tempurpedic instantly and that was over 5 years ago. It's still just as comfy as when I bought it. You MUST have a solid base under it, not normal box springs. (Tempurpedic offers solid box supports) I suspect that is a large part of the "sag" issue.
Radisson has switched all their properties to Sleep Numbers, I disliked them because they tended to feel damp or clammy. Now I know why!
PB
i just got a tempurpedit about 3-4 months ago....was the most expensive bed i have ever purchased, but was worth it 100000 percent. the absolute most comfortable thing i have ever slept on...i litterally look forward to going to bed every single night
edit: tempurpedic
We bought our Sleep number last year on the recommendation of both set of parents, and several others. I spent 5 months trying to find the right mattress that would keep my back from aching at 5 in the morning, after a restless night of sleep. For us it was mainly an economic decision. Yes, the Sleep Number is more expensive than other mattress combinations, but the way that we figured it, we would be saving money because we wouldn't have to buy 5 sets of mattresses with different firmnesses to find the right one that would still be comfortable after 6 hours...Also, we just checked ours and nope, no sign of problems....We are very happy with it.
(not a paid endorsement)
My sleep number is [icanhascheezburger.com]
I've had mine for almost 10 years now. It was awesome when I got it, and it remains so today.
Omnomnom!
Oh no! The comment monster has eaten my comment!
I just checked and my sleep number mattress is showing signs of mold spores. If you have one of these you'd better push back from the computer and have a look. There is a lot of humidity where I live and this looks like it's going to be a real hassle shipping it back.
@redrocksco: What a stupid, asinine comment. You obviously don't understand the mechanics of the problem. The mold is from moisture within (INSIDE) the mattress, not what comes from the outside, moron.
@C.S.M. Technophile: Somehow, I feel as if I shouldn't have to disassemble my mattress on a monthly basis to prevent its turning into a science fair exhibit. I'm so unreasonable.
I've sent an email confronting Select Comfort with a link to the story - I'll post on whatever response I get...
Stay tuned.
Oh lookie, how handy - this website shows you all the Radisson locations that have select comfort beds so you can avoid getting mold-cancer on your trip! Enjoy!
[www.radisson.com]
Oh lookie, how handy - You can see which Radisson locations have these beds to avoid getting mold-cancer during your stay. Enjoy!
[www.radisson.com]
sorry for the dupe - this site doesn't seem to post comments as quick as I thought...
@redrocksco: Wow, real mature. I guess you're an expert on the subject...
@Jay Slatkin: From what I've read most of the people complaining have purchased the TP base. This isn't happening to me so I have no complaints.
I was freaking out after about 3 months that I spent $3500 on this thing and can't get a good nights sleep. Then one day it clicked.
FWIW, your body gives off 1 pt of moisture during the night; most of it is evaporated, but the rest gets absorbed by your clothes, sheets, and mattress.
I bought my Sleep Number bed in October of 2006, so hopefully after the problem was rectified. I love it. It fixed my back pain.
I already change the number regularly depending on how I feel that day, and I expect the ability to do that will be a godsend if/when I get pregnant and sleeping comfortably becomes a hassle.
One big difference is I bought the one with ONE chamber, not two chambers separated by foam. I haven't regretted that decision once.
@Consumer007
I own two Sleep Number beds. One was purchased in 2000 and the other in 2003. I've never had a problem with mold in either one. Then again, I don't pee in the bed.
@timmus
The UP arrow makes the number go UP.
The DOWN arrow makes the number go down. Simple enough for you?
@Victo
Yes, I am. How many Sleep Number beds do YOU own?
@redrocksco: a) ownership of an item does not make you an expert. i own a car, that doesn't make me a mechanic.
b) if we can take a guess at where you live it's red rocks colorado. colorado's a practical desert in terms of humidity and sunshine. if you lived somewhere that was a swamp before it was developed the chances are things that grow in dank areas will grow in your home is higher. live somewhere where mold is a common occurence and you might have a different expert opinion.
Bought a TempurPedic (Rhapsody mattress) with adjustable base--best bed purchase ever. $5,000 for the queen, but worth every single penny. The adjustable base is much better than putting pillows under my knees all night, and I can sit up to watch television or sit up with my laptop. That action used to mess with my back and neck terribly, with traditional mattresses.
My boyfriend agrees that, should we marry, there will be a split king TempurPedic with adjustable base (meaning that I can have the feet and head where I want them, and he can have his where he wants them).
I also purchased an extra cover for the mattress, to go between the sheets and the mattress. I've spilled things on it before, and just removed the cover to wash. The mattress was without blemish.
One thing to note: a friend of mine bought a TP on my recommendation, and he and his wife noticed a foam odor coming from the mattress for awhile, pretty bad. I never had that problem, so I assume that this comes from the fact that I purchased the extra cover, and my friend did not.
I've always liked my sleep number bed. I live in the south, where humidity is constant, and I have never encountered any mold problems. It could be because of an extra sheet, but I don't know. I think they are great, but I do see how one at a hotel could get kind of gross.
$3,500. $5,000.
Holy crap!!!
Hollow out your old queen size mattress and stick an air bladder in there.
@karmaghost:
Real simple, when you do too much housework/Yard work/excercise or whatever, you change your number to suit you that night.
I know it is time to see the Chiro if it drops under 45 for me.
My wife, she has arthritic joints, specifica