Conditioning Your Waterbed Mattress

An important, albeit often overlooked, final step in filling your water mattress is treating it with waterbed conditioner . While the results of not doing so won't be catastrophic, they can be inconvenient. Having repaired many untreated waterbeds over the years, I can tell you that I immediately notice if the customer did not add conditioner when I enter their house. But maybe they like the smell of low tide. Simply put, untreated water, left stagnant for years, will begin to turn brown and stink. This is accelerated when the water is heated. This is the first of four reasons you should spring for the few extra bucks every year to keep your waterbed in good health. Another advantage to regularly treating your watermattress is that it keeps the vinyl soft on the inside both by keeping algae growth in check, and by the presence of vinyl softeners and preservatives in the conditioner. This is important because as vinyl ages, it gets attacked by fungal growth and excretion, and it will harden. This is never good, as it can lead to tiny cracks. For those with waveless mattresses, it is especially important to add the stuff because the wave inhibitors inside the mattresses, usually made of foam and/or fiber, break down and deteriorate when left untreated. After a few years they will begin to fall apart. This will become a problem when you eventually need to pump out the mattress, as the loose chunks will clog the outlet or get lodged inside the pump and/or hose. I hate when that happens. When choosing conditioner for a waveless mattress, be sure it is a multi-purpose conditioner. When purchasing waterbed conditioner, be sure to get factory-sealed bottles or tablets for tube beds. I have known some unscrupulous dealers who have bottled clorox bleach with dish soap, (bad for vinyl), and sold it to unsuspecting customers as waterbed conditioner. I heartily endorse Blue Magic products which can be found here. Did i also mention that it also helps reduce noisy bubbles? This is by virtue of eliminating carbon dioxide producing algae. These microbes are present in tapwater, and your body is used to dealing with them. But left unchecked, they can become organic. Now, after you pour in the solution, replace the plug and cap, plug in your heater, and get ready for bed. Just make sure you put a mattress pad down first. This will be the topic of the next blog.