Sizes and weights
Typical ranges for what we actually meet in Central London rather than one manufacturer's specification. Measure yours before you rely on them.
| Type | Size | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Single | 90 x 190cm15 to 25kg | 15 to 25kg |
| Small double | 120 x 190cm22 to 35kg | 22 to 35kg |
| Double | 135 x 190cm25 to 40kg | 25 to 40kg |
| King | 150 x 200cm30 to 50kg | 30 to 50kg |
| Super king | 180 x 200cm40 to 60kg | 40 to 60kg |
For reference, a standard UK internal door is 762mm. Older Central London stock is often narrower. Full door and van measurements.
Will it fit?
Will a mattress fit through a standard door?
Every UK mattress size is narrower than its own length, and it goes through a doorway on its long edge. A super king at 180cm wide against a 762mm door sounds impossible and is not, because the dimension clearing the door is the thickness, usually 20 to 35cm. Doors are almost never the problem.
So what is the problem?
The turn. A 200cm mattress on its edge needs somewhere to pivot, and a landing 90cm across does not offer it. Foam mattresses bend round the corner and pocket sprung ones should not, which is why the type matters more than the size on a Central London staircase.
Can a pocket sprung mattress be bent at all?
A gentle flex to get round a corner is survivable. Folding it in half is not, and neither is standing on it to make it turn. Manufacturers void warranties for exactly this. Where the staircase demands a fold we will say so and suggest the window or a different route rather than quietly bending it.
Does a mattress bag help?
It keeps it clean, which matters on a Central London staircase and matters more if it is going into storage. It does nothing for the springs and it makes the mattress slightly more slippery to grip. We bring covers as standard.
How we move a mattress
- Foam and rolled mattresses travel bent where the staircase needs it, sprung ones do not
- Covered before it leaves the room, because a communal staircase is not clean
- Two crew for a king or super king, one for anything smaller with clear access
- In the van it goes flat against the side, strapped, with nothing heavy on top of it
- For disposal it goes to a licensed transfer station and you get the waste transfer note
Disposal, and the paperwork that comes with it
We are a registered waste carrier and a mattress we take away goes to a licensed transfer station, with a waste transfer note issued to you. That note is what proves where your waste went.
It matters because fly tipping is prosecuted against the person whose waste it was as well as the person who dumped it. A mattress with your name on the label found on a side street is traceable. A cheap removal with no paperwork is a risk you are carrying rather than a saving you made.
Delivery from a shop, and the day it arrives
Plenty of this work is collecting from a warehouse or a shop that will only deliver to the kerb, or that gave you a delivery window you cannot be home for. We collect against your order reference and bring it to the room you want it in.
If it is a rolled foam mattress in a box, leave it a good few hours to expand before sleeping on it, and longer in a cold room. That is a manufacturer instruction rather than a superstition and it makes a real difference to how it feels for the first week.
Before we arrive
- Strip it, and put the bedding in a bag rather than leaving it on
- Say whether it is foam, sprung or hybrid, because it decides how it goes round the turn
- Measure the landing where the staircase turns, not the doorway
- For a disposal, tell us if there is more than one so we can price the tip fee properly
What tends to go wrong
A sprung mattress folded to get it upstairs
It is the single most common way a mattress is destroyed during a move, and the damage is invisible until you sleep on it. Pocket springs that have been compressed sideways do not recover. If it will not go round the corner unbent, the answer is a different route rather than more force.
Assuming disposal is free
Transfer stations charge £20 to £40 per mattress because they are difficult to process, and that fee is inside our figure rather than a surprise. A quote for mattress removal that does not mention the tip fee is a quote from someone who is not planning to use a tip.
Buying a super king for a Victorian conversion
At 180 x 200cm a super king is a genuinely awkward object on a period staircase, and it is often bought without anyone checking. A rolled foam mattress in a box is the way round it and it is worth considering before ordering.
Mattress collection: common questions
How much does mattress collection cost in London?
Between £90 and £220 including VAT, most near £120. A single item delivery with a lift or ground floor at both ends is £90 to £120. Disposal is £100 to £165 for one mattress including the transfer station fee, and less per mattress if there are several.
Will a super king mattress fit up my stairs?
The doorway is not the issue: a mattress goes through on its edge and only its thickness has to clear. The landing turn is the issue. A 200cm mattress needs room to pivot, and if it is pocket sprung it should not be folded to make that happen. Measure the landing rather than the door.
Can you bend a pocket sprung mattress?
A gentle flex round a corner is survivable. Folding it in half is not, and it permanently shortens the springs it compresses. Manufacturers void warranties for it. If the staircase demands a fold, we will tell you rather than doing it quietly.
Do you take old mattresses away?
Yes, as a registered waste carrier, to a licensed transfer station, with a waste transfer note issued to you. The tip fee of £20 to £40 per mattress is inside the price rather than added afterwards.
Can you collect a mattress from a shop or warehouse?
Yes, against your order reference. Give us the collection window they have given you. Where a trade counter keeps us waiting, that is inside the quoted figure rather than billed afterwards.
Other single items
Moving more than one thing?
This page is about a mattress on its own. The single item and furniture delivery page covers the service generally, and what a move costs prices a whole flat or house.
Across Central London
We move a mattress anywhere in the 37 areas we cover. What changes between them is the parking and the staircase, which is what decides where in the band you land.