Waterbed Sheets and Bedding Primer Part 2

After settling on which type of waterbed mattress pad to choose, you will need to purchase a set of sheets. For those of you who sleep on a softside waterbed, you will not need to buy waterbed sheets specifically designed for a hardside waterbed. Unless you have a california king sized softside waterbed, you need only use standard size regular bedsheets. These are also known as eastern size sheets, and are available in eastern king, queen, full (aka double), and twin. You may, however, need deep pocket sheets if you have a pillowtop, or high profile mattress. These are readily available, as most high-end mattresses sold today are higher profile.
If you have chosen a hardside, or wood frame waterbed, you will need to buy waterbed sheets. These come in 3 sizes; king, queen and super single. These are all california, or western sizes. They are 6, 5, or 4 Feet wide, respectively, all by 7 foot long. These dimensions were adopted industry wide to make the most efficient use of lumber in their construction. These sheets are often packaged as a set with a top sheet, bottom sheet, and 2 pillowcases. Super single waterbed sheets usually have only one pillowcase. When applied to a properly filled watermattress correctly, these sheets stay put very well. We will explore this further in the next blog.

Waterbed Sheets and Bedding Primer- part 1

On just about every vinyl watermattress manufactured these days, there is usually a tag or sticker that warns that, among other things, a mattress pad should be used to prevent damage from body oils. This damage manifests itself as a hardening of the vinyl, which is uncomfortable and noisy. It can also crack in extreme cases. One such case comes to mind of an old customer who needed me to take a look at his waterbed. It felt like plexiglas, and had a small crack, which leaked when pushed on. After telling him this was in no way like any other problem i had ever encountered, and must be a result of some type of abuse, he finally confessed (in private) that he and his wife enjoyed covering each other in baby oil, and sliding around on the bare water mattress. While this sounds like a lot of fun, it destroyed his bed, so we do not recommend that practice. We do, however, advise that you use a fitted waterbed mattress pad to insulate, protect, and soften a vinyl watermattress. For added comfort and absorbancy you can upgrade to a quilted cotton mattress pad.

Waterbeds and Sex Part 2- Sex and the Softside Waterbed

The softsided waterbed, after having made it's debut in the mid 1980's has surpassed it's hardside, or wood frame counterpart in sales for nearly the last two decades. Many different manufacturers have come and gone, all offering slight variations and innovations in design. Now, just a few strong players remain in production, having distilled their most popular and sucessful models down to three basic design types which we will explore here with relevance to sex; The deepfill (8" depth), The midfill (6" depth), and shallowfill (6" depth).
The deepfill is the softside type that is most akin to a hardside waterbed, as they are about the same depth and can be offered with the same watermattress types, and both require a waterbed heater. Depending which type watermattress is ordered will determine the amount of motion. Some models offer pillowtops, others come with a plushtop. The plushtop is thin, and leaves very little between yourself and the vinyl watermattress, while the pillowtop provides a soft, billowy buffer. Other than that, with regard to sex, the same rules apply as with wood frame waterbeds with one exception; the soft sides are made of foam instead of wood and can be much more forgiving in the event of any accidental impact (giving new meaning to safe sex!).
The midfill and shallowfill softside waterbeds are a hybrid of a waterbed and an innerspring bed (what we like to call a "dead bed"). Because a waterbed needs 8 inches of fluid support, these beds augment this with the use of foam. A midfill will use 6 inches of water, buffered with at least two inches of foam, and a shallowfill will have 4 inches of water, in either tubes or a watermattress, with a minimum of 4 inches of foam above and/or below the water. Heaters are optional on midfill waterbeds, and are NOT recommended on shallowfill waterbeds. All three types can be purchased with a plushtop or pillowtop, and some high-end models offer visco memory foam toppers. These beds are more comparable to regular mattresses because they move less, and allow for better "traction". Instead of using springs for base support, which will compress in the same place nightly from your bodyweight, and eventually sag, they use water, which will resilliently feel the same in 20 years as it does today, topped by a soft and supple foam or pillow top. It really feels great! They all will have some rocking motion, but the shallower the fill, the less action. Tube beds have almost no side-to-side motion, but will still have some head-to-foot motion, so you can still "go with the flow" on all types. (Of course, playing a Barry White cd may enhance your experience.)
I am now confident that, given the information here, you can make an educated and informed choice of which type of waterbed will best suit your needs for practicality, comfort, and fun. Please post any feedback or questions you may have on this or any other relevant subject.

Waterbeds and Sex Part 1- Hardside Waterbeds

The Waterbeds and the Bees

When considering which type of waterbed might best suit your sexual preferences we offer the following primer; If you choose a hardside waterbed with a full motion (aka freeflow) water mattress, you can expect wild, exciting active sex. Alternately, a wood frame waterbed with a reduced motion, or waveless waterbed mattress would allow for a slower, more sensual sex. After having chosen your new indoor playground, (which happens to also be the most comfortable sleeping surface on earth), you may need to make some minor adjustments.
First, feel how the warm water relaxes you and your partner during foreplay. A heated waterbed mattress can stimulate blood circulation, priming your bodies for a sexual encounter.
Next, you may need to modify your technique. Methods that worked well before may no longer be the best approach on a waterbed. As any surfer knows, when it comes to waves, timing is everything. Familiarize yourself with the wave energy and notice the reaction of the bed in response to your movement.
You may need to experiment with a few various positions to see which ones work best for you and your partner. While some find it difficult to to get leverage on a waterbed mattress no matter which partner is on top, others find it to be unecessary and learn to just "go with the flow". Remember, for each movement you make you get two free. Now, all you need is love, tiger!
Next; Sex and the softsided waterbed.

Waterbed Myths Part 3; The Seasickness Myth

Perhaps the most mind boggling and inane comments we quite often hear about in our industry about waterbeds are the ones that perpetuate the seasick myth. This is pure ignorance.
Wikipedia defines seasickness as; "A form of motion sickness characterized by a feeling of nausea and, in extreme cases, vertigo experienced after spending time on a craft on water".
This is usually caused by visual confusion and inner ear imbalance due to loss of horizon and constant pitch and roll of the sea for a long period of time.
That said, let me go on the record as saying nobody has ever gotten seasick on a waterbed, period. Many people think it's just a funny thing to comment when they lay down on a full motion watermattress for the first time. As a salesman, many times I would chuckle to be polite, ever pretending to have heard it for the first time, but quickly changing the subject to waveless waterbeds as a "solution" for that "problem".
The truth is, we sell more full motion mattress than we do ultra waveless waterbed mattresses, which clearly indicates that many people love the gentle rolling motion of flotation sleep. A free flow mattress will rock for about 10-15 seconds after laying down, then it will remain motionless until it is pushed again. Different degrees of wavelessness are achieved by manufacturing watermattresses with more or less wave inhibitor inside. These are known as fiberfill mattresses. The greater the density and volume of fiber inside the mattress determines how much motion is reduced. An ultra waveless usually has 8-10 layers of nylon fiber throughout the entire inside (zero second stop), while an 80% waveless watermattress will have 3-5 layers occupying about two thirds of the interior (3-5 second stop). That is how wave reduction is achieved.
So let's hope this puts yet another waterbed myth to bed. Seasickness is caused by the sea, not by a waterbed!