what to use as portable bedding.?

Question

Hi i work shift work as a firefighter emt and i was wondering what to us as a protable bed type cover. We have beds but alot of people sleep on them and i was looking for something to put on top when i sleep

Answer 1

I would use a sleeping bag if I were you. Some other camping resources include sleeping bag liners...which is simply a sheet sewed up like a sleeping bag, also used by travelling backpackers who stay in hostels (exactly the same concerns as you). Some are plain and some are made of insulators or water resistant materials. Since this is for indoors, you can probably just get away with cotton or cotton poly, or flannel or fleece...made for summer camping or boosting a lightweight sleeping bag to be warmer.

Answer 2

If I were you, I would take my own sleeping bag and my own blanket. That way you can take them home with you when your shifts are over, and you don't have to mess with rubber type covers, etc., to fight off dust mites and who knows what else. May not look the best, but you can make it into a bedroll each morning. Surprised your department does not have some kind of system in place to debug the mattresses on a routine basis. In motels, at least you get clean sheets between stays (hopefully) but you wouldn'[t want to lay or sleep on the bedcover, that is for sure.

Answer 3

A waterproof mattress protector has a terry cotton top layer (like light towel material) and a very thin, yet durable, polyurethane backing material. The cover is 4 way stretch so it is not like sleeping on the much thicker, and inflexible, rubber waterproof covers. It flexes and expands to contour to your body. Yet it will effectively block bed bugs or whatever from getting at you from within the mattress.

Usually a mattress protector prevents organic material from filtering down into the mattress, which stimulates the growth of dust mites. But in your case, it would seal the critters inside the mattress and prevent them from getting at you.

The mattress protector
http://www.myluxurymattress.com/mattress-protectors
works just like a fitted sheet. It has stretchable mesh sides that fit down over the sides of the mattress and an elastic band that pulls it snugly down under the mattress to hold it on. It will accommodate up to a 21 inch mattress.

A mattress PAD is very different item. It is usually made of a cotton / poly blend material with polyester batting quilted into the top layer. It would slow down bed bugs, but would eventually allow them to get to you. The mattress pad is a more common item, but I feel the mattress protector would truly serve your needs better in this case.

Because mattress protectors are very durable, you can wash them hundreds of times without them losing their effectiveness. So you could wash it every night if you wanted, though that might not be necessary in your case. With the mattress protector down on your bed, you would be free to use a sleeping bag or any other type of bedding you wanted, but would not need to wash it every night, like you would without a mattress protector.