It's the kind of email we dread. "Our mattress that we just bought from you last year is already mouldy. You need to replace it for us - this is clearly your fault". We all looked at each other in surprise. We use brand new, high quality foam on every mattress we make. How could one of them be mouldy in less than a year? It seemed impossible. A trip to the boat was definitely in order to see what on earth was going on. Since Shelley had originally sold the mattress to the client, she volunteered to make the 2 hour drive to the boat to check it out. As she lifted the mattress of the berth to get to the zipper, she discovered a pool of water underneath.
"Hey, did you know that your boat is leaking?" she asked the client.
"Yeah, we knew that." they answered.
"Did you know that water is foam's mortal enemy and mould's best friend?"
"Well, yes, but we didn't think it would go mouldy that quickly".
Shelley sighed. "We warranty our mattresses for manufacturing flaws, but we really can't take responsibility for this mattress if you are letting it sit in water like this"
The client looked at his girlfriend ruefully and laughed. "Yeah, we didn't think you would fix it but we figured we would ask. We're selling the boat anyway so we don't really care."
Shelley sighed, and made the 2 hour drive back home, relieved that our quality of product was not in question, but counting the wasted hours in her day.
Water + Foam = Disaster. This is a fact, and unfortunately some older boats (particularly sailboats with hatches) have been known to allow water into the cabin and onto the mattress. If you think you are at risk for leaks (or you like to throw wet foul weather gear on your bed), we recommend the use of a waterproof mattress protector to keep the occasional drip away from the foam. If water is pooling under your mattress, you need to remove it right away and deal with the leak.
In the event that your foam does get wet, take the mattress off the boat and try to expose the foam to the air by opening up the cover and pealing it back to expose the wet spot. Use towels to soak up as much of the water as possible. If possible, leave it in the sun to make sure it dries completely - this can take 8 to 10 hours, so start early and take your time. If it isn't a sunny day you can try using a hair dryer or a fan, but in the end nothing can speed up the drying process and nothing is better than sun. If you mattress did get wet, keep your eye on it in the coming years - check for mould, and if you find some it's time to invest in new mattress.