The Mattress Firm Sealy Bullsh*t Warranty charleston, South Carolina

These warranties are often legally unenforceable. My law firm is currently assembling a class action against mattress companies that hide behind warranties of legal questionability. Every case is different so we can't always guarantee success, but we have achieved some excellent results in the past. You can check out www.MattressClassAction.com for more info.

Do you still have this Mattress? If so , some good news ! There has been a class action lawsuit re; your Issue. I would contact Sealy direct at;  www.sealy.com and file a direct claim with them ! You must have proof of purchase and bought it new,etc. I work in the bedding Industry and have a letter from the Sr. VP & General Counsel, named Michael Q. Murray stating the stain has to be so bad that the Inspector fears for his/her safety. Ie; Blood Pathogens,body fluids,etc.  

Or, The stain was the  cause of the defect?  or by customer "abuse & Misuse"  That gets a bit grey? In closing, if the stains are just a light sweat mark. You're ok? If it's far worse and the stain is where the defect is, they can refuse it? I would attempt to remove the stain with only light soap & water ( no Heavy Duty rug cleaners ) Take some photos and contact Corp. Direct. As the Mattress Firm will not make it easy !  Good Luck !    

In the comment made by the customer service rep "...Over time, as the salt in your sweat crystallizes, the jagged edges break down the foams from the inside out. ..." I am afraid to say that such statement is not true. I am a polymer chemist scientist, I have worked with these materials. and know much better. Memory foam is a polyurethane (like the one used for most cushions) but with a special property such that it is, well, memory foam (technically it is called glass transition or Tg, and it is just a tad below room temprature, unlike cushion foams with Tg of -40F). The salt crystals do not have jagged edges which will break down the foam. Absolutely not true. At the microscopic level the day-to-day phenomena of cut, abrasion, agglomeration, etc are differently than what we see at the 1 inch or larger scale. Deterioration at the crystals level (100 microns or less) the changes are mechanical in nature (compression set fails due to poor crosslinking of the polyurethane, which is due to improper / incomplete 'cure' of the material, as a typical example)

As it is well known, sweat is mostly water, with small amounts of various salts (mostly sodium chloride, and potassium chloride). The salts are neutral and will not deteriorate the polyurethane chemical of the mattress.

It is a shame that the company rep has the audacity to express and disseminate such misinformation.

I am so sorry that you are experiencing this issues with your mattress, however I'd like to help you understand why your warranty replacement was turned down due to stains.

First, the thing that actually caused your mattress to break down in the first place was your sweat and body oils. The average adult sweats about 1/3c into their mattress every night, and the memory foams that most companies are using in the comfort layers soak that fluid up like a sponge. Over time, as the salt in your sweat crystallizes, the jagged edges break down the foams from the inside out. Here at Mattress Firm we strongly suggest the use of a good waterproof protector to help prevent that build up in your mattress. We sell a brand of mattress protectors called Protect-A-Bed (www.protectabed.com for more information on their full product line). The product is a breathable waterproof protector. The benefit to this brand is if you purchase one with the mattress, and you were to ever see stains having gotten through, Protect-A-Bed will actually attempt to clean the stain out, and if unsuccessful, they will replace your mattress. It might be a good product to look into the next time you are shopping for a mattress.

Second, stains void the manufacturers warranty. Even though Mattress Firm handles their own warranty claims, we are bound by the language that the original manufacturer uses, and every major manufacturer states that stains show a general lack of care for the product and nullify your warranty guarantee. As you can see from my first point, this is actually fairly reasonable on their part. A warranty covers defects that were present when the product was originally made. It does not cover breakdown under normal use.

I hope I was able to clear up why your warranty replacement was turned down. If not, here's an analogy for you: As a mechanic if someone came to you for a new bumper, and a year later asked you to replace it under warranty because they'd been in an accident, that wouldn't be your responsibility. And just like oil changes and regular tune ups can extend the life of your car, so can a good mattress protector.

Keep in mind when the indepent company comes out to inspect your mattress his report also includes the note of stains on your mattress. So when he sent in his report he told the company there were stains present on the mattress. Your saying your pissed at Mattress Firm? They didn't come to you house, they didn't look at your mattress, how did they know you had stains (sorry sweat marks) on your mattress unless someone told them... the inspector. If you read your warranty card that came with your new mattress it explained all that. I feel your pain about this but so many people are quick to be pissed at the company they bought the mattress from... it's not their rule it's the company who made the mattress. Sealy has to take back that mattress if it's defective and from a health stand point sweat or not it's not sanitary. Oh and sweat is the main cause of body impression, which is also in the warranty card, if you used a breathable waterproof mattress cover from day one you wouldn't be going though this now. I spent many years in this business and you just can't understand unless you have been around it. Sorry about your bad luck.