Junk King Blog

Providing you with great articles on Junk Removal!

Extreme Recycle: Mattress Recycling

Posted by Junk King on Jan 4, 2023 5:00:00 AM

extreme-recycle-mattress-recycling

[This article was first published in October 2019 and has been updated and revised.]

It seems that many people get new beds this time of year and that’s a great thing. But when it to disposing of old mattresses, how do you do that responsibly?

So, if you've purchased a new mattress over the holidays and your old one is still around, you need a good mattress disposal solution. But taking it to the dump is not your best - or only - option.

mattress recycling
New Mattresses and Sleep Quality

One major contributing factor to sleep quality is having the right mattress. As most people realize as adults, this can drastically improve your quality of sleep. In fact, a good mattress can help you sleep throughout the night, and studies have shown that the better you sleep, the better you’ll function the following day.

In addition, an article at Healthline.com reported that,

“A review of 15 studies found that people who don't get enough sleep are at far greater risk of heart disease or stroke than those who sleep 7–8 hours per night… Sleeping less than 7–8 hours per night is linked to an increased risk of heart disease and stroke.”

When should you buy that new mattress? Most people tend to wait too long and end up spending many nights needlessly sleeping on broken down and poorly supporting mattresses. In fact, The Better Sleep Council recommends replacing your mattress if it's over seven years old.

Buying a new mattress can be a challenge, too. So many choices, options, sizes and styles can make it a logistical purchasing nightmare for many people.

As an article at The Spruce website notes,

“A new mattress is an important purchase and deserves some thought beforehand. A quality mattress is fairly expensive—on average, around $1,000 for a traditional spring mattress and more than $1200 for memory foam. And a mattress also plays a very important role in your life, not only during nighttime sleeping hours but even while you’re awake.”

Instead of keeping your old mattress until it becomes unbearable, it is actually far more beneficial and healthier to replace your used mattresses regularly. 

According to one vendor, the health benefits of a new mattress include:

  • Reducing allergy symptoms.
  • A new mattress can relieve your stress.
  • A new mattress can ease aches and pains.
  • Better quality of sleep can lead to a number of mental health benefits.

furniture removal guide group 2

Your Old Mattress Removal Can Be Mattress Recycling

The consensus among experts is that periodically upgrading to a new mattress is always a good idea. This is especially true since you likely spend a third of your life sleeping. In addition to poor sleep and the health effects that causes, back pain and insomnia can also result from using a worn-out mattress. And, aside from the purchasing process and the price, getting a new mattress is fairly straightforward.

But how do you get rid of the old one once you get that new mattress?

Many of our homes have old mattresses down in the basement or up in the attic, collecting dust and taking up valuable space. This is because they are difficult to get rid of.

Most charities won’t take old mattresses, usually for sanitary reasons. And disposing of an old mattress at the dump is not a simple task either. Just trying to load a mattress into a truck is cumbersome and difficult.

In fact, the whole process of hauling it off to the local landfill can be a major chore. And many facilities no longer accept them anyway, so this may not be an option.

You can’t just put it on the curb in front of your house and hope someone will take it away. They might, but you can bet the trash company won’t. And arranging for a special pick-up by your local waste disposal management company - if they even offer that service - can be costly, time-consuming, and will still require that you haul the thing out to the curb on the scheduled day.

However, there are options. 

Recycling old mattresses is not an impossibility and, in fact, is becoming more and more common across the country. So, if you do decide to get rid of your old mattress on your own, we have put together this brief checklist guide to help you through the process:

 

Mattress Removal Checklist

And the best part of all this is that not only is your old mattress quite recyclable, but you don't have to haul it somewhere yourself. In fact, no matter how big your mattress is or how much it weighs, a quick call to Junk King means you'll be rid of it quickly, easily, and be assured that it will be disposed of in an environmentally responsible manner. 

the do you really need it checklist

Item for Recycle: Mattress

Despite its size and bulk, the good news is that your old mattress can be recycled. How much of it can be recycled?

Well, according to AmeriSleep:

Most materials in a mattress can be repurposed once a bed is deconstructed (about 85-90%), and enterprising entrepreneurs are constantly developing new ways to use old bedding.

Springs & Coils: Metal can melted and made into new items.

Foams: Mattress foams can be shredded and used in carpet padding , moving pads, and as a fuel source.

Fibers: Cotton and other fibers can be used in filters, insulation or burned for fuel.
Fabrics & Upholstery: Can be reclaimed for use in other items.

Wood: Can be chipped for mulch or burned for fuel.

 

Re-Matt_+Calgary+Mattress+Recycling+(Sleep+On+Latex)[Graphic courtesy of SleepOnLatex]

So, unless your old mattress is a water bed, it's quite likely that most, if not all, of it's components can be recycled.

And keep in mind, too, that in the Mattress Recycling Council has helped to implement a law in California, Connecticut and Rhode Island that allows retailers collect a disposal fee on all new mattress and box spring sales.

Heavy Lifting, Without Moving A Muscle

 

Junk King: Your Mattress Recycle Resource

Junk King provides an efficient, safe and eco-friendly mattress disposal service to make the whole process easy for you. Our experienced mattress removal team will have the manpower to haul off that mattress and bed frame without damaging any of your home on the way out.

We’ll do all the heavy lifting so there is no need for you to carry items out to the curb. And we’ll make sure that the mattress or bed is disposed of at a proper recycling facility so that it doesn’t do any harm to our ecosystem.

Ready to get rid of and recycle your old mattress? It’s can be as simple as 1, 2, 3.

You just make an appointment by booking online above or by calling 1.888.888.JUNK (5865).

Our professional and insured mattress disposal team will show up at your home right away and call you 15 to 30 minutes before we arrive on site and we’ll give you a free estimate based on how much room your items take up in our truck.

You simply point and we haul your items into our junk removal trucks, with no hidden fees.

 

New Call-to-action

Topics: mattress removal, household waste, mattress recycling, recycle mattresses, mattress disposal, get rid of old mattress, recycling old mattresses

Subscribe to Email Updates

Recent Posts

Posts by Topic

see all