During a heatwave last summer I seriously considered pulling up a chair by the refrigerator and sleeping with my head in the vegetable crisper That's not a sensible sleep tip but we have another unusual hack for cooling down your mattress... and it does involve the kitchen tiles.
Putting your mattress on the floor – a hardwood or tile floor, to be specific – can help you sleep cooler. The cold surface beneath the bed essentially sucks the heat from your mattress, leaving you comfortably chilled.
As the best mattresses we've tested all benefit from having the right foundation, we recommend taking care when putting a mattress on the floor. And stay away from carpets—but we'll explore all that below.
Floor mattresses can create cooler sleep
If you've ever sought relief in the shade of a tree on a hot day, you can understand how placing your mattress on a cold surface can cool down your bed.
When you put your mattress on a tile or hardwood floor heat from the bed is drawn into the chilled surface beneath. And this heat can continue to ebb away during the night, as the cold floors offer limited insulation.
This quick fix provides immediate cooling on a hot night. For the long-term health of your bed, however, we recommend following some precautions before putting your mattress on the floor.
First, place something between your mattress and the floor. Nothing too thick — you don't want to reintroduce insulation — but a bunkie board or tatami mat will work.
This keeps the underside of the mattress clean; particularly important if you're relocating your bed to a well-used area.
Second, air the mattress during the day. Do this by propping it on its side, allowing air to pass through.
Giving your mattress some breathing space allows moisture to dissipate, preventing the growth of mold or mildew in your bed. (While hardwood floors let heat out, they don't allow moisture to circulate.)
If you don't want to drag your bed around the home searching for a cold spot, consider investing in a Japanese floor mattress.
These thin beds aren't always ideal for long-term comfort but if you're seeking cooler sleep over the summer, they're inexpensive and easy to move from room to room.
But watch out — the wrong floor can have the opposite effect
There's one major caveat to bear in mind before saying goodbye to the bed frame this summer: if you have the wrong flooring, placing your mattress on the ground can actually make it warmer during the night.
Our top tip? If you're using a floor mattress to cool down, avoid carpeted areas.
On a slatted bed frame hot air can leave the mattress from every angle. When you put your mattress on the floor, you limit the air flow, as only the sides and top are left open as escape routes.
This isn't an issue on a tile or hardwood floor. The warmth simply gets sucked into the cooler material beneath.
But a carpeted floor provides insulation, preventing the heat from getting away.
It can't go up (that's where you are), it can't go down (it'll get stuck in the carpet) so with limited room to leave at the sides, excess warmth gets trapped under the covers with you.
So if you only have space to put your mattress on a carpet, stick to the bed frame. But don't worry, there are other ways to cool down your mattress this summer.
Other ways to sleep cooler this summer
If you've ever resorted to imagining glaciers to help you sleep, you'll be willing to try anything to stay cool at night. So when putting your mattress on the floor isn't an option, try these approaches instead:
1. Invest in cooling bedding
Lightweight and breathable bedding allows you to create a cozy sleep setup without the ensuing warmth associated with wrapping yourself up in blankets.
Natural materials such as wool, cotton and bamboo are known for their breathable properties, wicking away warmth to keep you at the perfect temperature for sleep.
Synthetic materials can also be used to keep you chill, although we recommend looking for options with added cooling tech such as Phase Change Material or GlacioTex.
2. Take a warm shower
This might seem counterintuitive but a warm shower can help you sleep cooler.
A warm shower causes your body to heat up while you're under the stream. But once you step out of the bathroom your core temperature drops.
By the time you climb into bed you'll be feeling altogether cooler.
As well as lowering temperatures, a pre-bed shower rinses away any allergens that might be clinging to you from a summer's day outside, helping you avoid the coughing, sneezing and fevers of an allergic reaction.
3. Choose the right mattress
If heat is disrupting your sleep year-round, we recommend upgrading to a cooling mattress. The best cooling mattresses we've tested have helped our sleep experts stay comfortable even in the middle of summer.
Cooling mattresses use a range of methods to combat overheating, from heat-wicking materials to the active cooling of smart technology.
They can be premium buys but if night sweats and hot flashes are disrupting your sleep, it might be worth the investment.
Alternatively, opt for a mattress with a more breathable build. The best hybrid mattresses typically sleep cooler than all-foam alternatives due to the airflow afforded by open springs, while the latex foams and wool used in many of the best organic mattresses are naturally cooling.
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