What is the best type of bed frame: wood or metal or both? What is the minimum warranty or guarantee should one expect? How about the beds? Can you get a well-constructed bed for $200? Or is it better to go with Simmons, Sealy,etc. or an alterntive, such as Nature's Rest or Tempurepedic, which I'm sure you know are very expensive. I'm single and about 5'9'' and up in age and work in the field of education. G.

Thank you for the excellent question. When you say bed frame I assume you mean the actual frame that a boxspring and mattress sit on? The best type of bed frame is metal with a center metal rail and wood slats. For a queen size bed you shouldn't pay more than $40 - $75.

And when you say "bed" I assume you mean "mattress"? If so, then no, you cannot get a well-constructed mattress for $200 unless someone is going out of business and getting rid of inventory. The cost of the raw materials alone for a good mattress runs a couple hundred dollars.

Here is my take on mattresses. You spend almost a third of your life on it, eight hours each day. More than you do in your car, more than your chair at work. This is not the place to be scrimping or looking for a deal. Beg or borrow the money you need or take on an extra job but spend the money to get a good mattress and you will enjoy the other 16 hours of the day much better.

Many people who spend the day in agony over a crick in their neck, or a tightness in their back, or leg cramps or headaches or any number of other weird muscle induced anomalies, do so because their mattress is fighting them all night long. I know it sounds melodramatic, but being in the business has allowed me to try dozens of mattresses before I finally splurged and bought a top of the line set . I can attest that it makes a difference.

I know you want to know which brand I bought, but that wouldn’t be fair because each brand has a distinct "feel" to them and you need to go in the store and try them out before you make that plunge.

As far as the alternative beds, I have talked with dozens of salespeople who tell me that the return rate on the beds from dissatisfied customers is very high. The initial "aaaah" feel you get when you are in a store and lay in them is very high, but after they get in the home, for a variety of reasons, consumers are wanting their traditional mattresses back. However, manufacturers are responding to the consumers and making adjustments. For example, when foam mattresses first came out they were hard as rocks, difficult to adjust to, and either too hot or too cold. The latest versions are hybrid combinations of foam with traditional fiber cushion tops.

When pricing your mattress you have to use extra diligence. When a store claims 30%, 40% or even more percent OFF take it with a grain of salt. Percent off means nothing because it could be 50% off a price that was inflated 150%!. The only true indication of savings is when they say they are a certain percentage UP from the wholesale, the way car dealers do. Unfortunately you won’t get this information from a national chain store because the sales rep probably doesn’t know.

In my humble opinion, no matter what your income level, even if you save and scrimp or get a temporary second job, you should not spend less than $600 for a queen size mattress. I recommend about $800 - $900 from a discount store.

Check out the manufacturer’s website as well. They have gotten very sophisticated and informative in their attempt to win you away from competitors. It is highly unlikely you will find a name on the manufacturer’s website that matches anything in the stores, you have to go by general categories.

Hope this helps and please let me know, down the road, what you decide to do.