How to Pack a Mattress When Moving

A mattress is one of the most expensive things in a household and one of the least protected during a move. It is carried through doorways, pressed against truck walls and stood on its edge for hours. Without a cover, it picks up dirt, moisture and sometimes pests; bent the wrong way, a spring mattress can be permanently damaged.

Here is how to pack a mattress properly, and what to watch for with memory foam, hybrids and box springs.

Choose the right mattress bag

A heavy-duty plastic mattress bag is the simplest and most important protection. Buy one sized for your mattress — twin, double, queen or king — because a bag that is too small tears and one that is too large lets the mattress slide around inside. Thicker bags are worth the small difference in price. Box springs need a bag of their own.

Movers usually bring mattress bags; if you are moving yourself, order them with your boxes.

Prepare the mattress

1. Strip the bed — sheets, mattress protector and toppers — and wash everything so it is ready for the first night in the new home.
2. Vacuum both sides and let the mattress air out for a few hours. Packing a damp mattress in plastic invites mildew.
3. Check for pests. Look along the seams and the corners of the box spring. Sealing a mattress in a bag protects it from anything in the truck — and protects the truck and your new home from anything in the mattress.

Bag the mattress

Stand the mattress on its side, slide the bag over it from the top like a pillowcase, then lower it and pull the bag down to the bottom. Fold the open end and seal it with packing tape, going all the way around. Squeeze out excess air as you seal so the bag stays tight against the mattress.

For long-distance moves or storage, add a second layer: a moving blanket wrapped around the bagged mattress and held with stretch wrap. The blanket protects against tears; the plastic keeps out dust and moisture.

Spring mattresses versus memory foam and hybrids

Innerspring and hybrid mattresses must not be folded or rolled. Their coils can bend permanently. Carry them flat or on their edge, and never lay heavy furniture on top of them in the truck.

All-foam and memory foam mattresses are more flexible, but they should not be folded tightly for more than a short time either, and they are heavy for their size. Carry them flat with a person at each end. Some foam mattresses arrive vacuum-rolled from the factory; once opened, they cannot be rolled back tightly without special equipment.

Adjustable beds have motors and wiring; flatten them fully, unplug them and secure the cables before moving.

Box springs and Montreal staircases

Box springs are the classic Montreal moving problem. A queen or king box spring is rigid and does not bend, and many plex staircases — especially the curving outdoor ones — have turns too tight for it. Before moving day, measure the turns and landings against the box spring’s width and length.

If the box spring does not fit, the options are:

• Through a window or over a balcony, lifted or lowered with ropes by an experienced crew, when it is safe to do so.
• A split box spring — two narrower halves — for the new home, if you are replacing it anyway.
• Leaving it behind and replacing it at the new home; many platform beds do not need one.

What does not work is forcing it: that damages the frame of the box spring, the walls and the banister.

Load the mattress correctly

In the truck, a mattress should stand upright on its long edge, against the side wall or between flat pieces of furniture such as a dresser or headboard, and be strapped so it cannot fall. Do not lay it flat under boxes, and do not wedge it at an angle where it can bend. Loaded last, it comes off first — useful when you need a bed on the first night.

Unpacking

At the new home, open the bag in the bedroom rather than outside, so the mattress stays clean. Let foam mattresses breathe for a few hours if they have been compressed. Keep the bag if you are storing the mattress or might move again soon; otherwise recycle it.

Mattresses in storage

If your mattress goes into storage between two moves, bag it and store it flat or on its edge, never with heavy items on top, and away from moisture. A mattress stored damp or compressed for months is hard to recover. See storage for how we store household goods.

Let the movers do it

Our crews bring mattress bags, wrap mattresses and box springs, and know which Montreal staircases will take a box spring through the turn. If you want the whole bedroom handled, see our packing services or get a quote for your move with local moving.