Trouble with Sentry 1400 Low Air Loss/ Alternating Air Mattress

[lgelb]

Waterproof covers, of course trap moisture, so...normally I would recommend a bamboo mattress pad under a fitted sheet to reduce moisture, if it is thin enough not to interfere with the mattress action.

Is the cover built into the mattress or separate? What material is the sheet?

Sheepskin itself tends to wrinkle, shed and built up heat. It is more for cushioning than moisture reduction. Wool, as you recall, collects moisture more readily than most materials.

 

[affected]

I'm so glad you have the mattress working!

Are you saying the waterproofing is making her sweat, causing a build up of moisture? My Chris loved sleeping on a lambswool - they are fully machine washable and can go in the tumble dryer.

 

[Katalin]

Thanks, Laurie, Will look into bamboo, thanks for that suggestion...yes she's with a cotton sheet right on top of the waterproof mattress cover that comes with the mattress. Wool is such an amazing material...it does get damp, but it stays sproingy...would love to hear other people's experiences too...if this thread hasn't gotten too unruly! And good to know about lambswool being good for cushioning. I've seen the ankle and elbow covers. She's doing pretty well with her feet...barrier cream between toes, and using styrene bead filled cushion (this one was $10 and was meant for the neck, for travelling, but it wasn't the usual horse-shoe shape)....it was just a nice rectangle, not very full of beads. Super malleable.

And Tillie, I am sure as sugar thrilled that at least one good thing has come out spinning the mattress wheel. IT seems like a small, good miracle. Good to hear your experience about the lambswool mattress cover for Chris---didn't know they were so washable. Quick question, you put the wool on top of the mattress, then the sheet, then a draw-sheet or chuck? I think we're back to that d*mned chuck again, the waterproof one. Various PSWs keep forgetting to use a towel when they change the brief, and I'm having trouble keeping up with the laundry! Wet sheets. I'm not in Mum's apartment all the time, so short of 101 written notes all over the place, "don't forget to take off your dirty, wet, salty boots", etc., and they don't read anything anyway, I think I have to just give in and use the chuck for protecting the mattress. I guess it's a developing story.

Kathy

 

[affected]

We didn't have any bladder or bowel issues, so that needs to be noted.

We always had the lambswool on top and used medical grade. I bought one that ran the full length of Chris's body, so it was 2 lambswools joined together and being medical grade you truly cannot feel the join at all.

 

[Katalin]

Hello all, just an update: my mother wound up with the CFT Pressure Guard mattress, which had cells running lengthwise with a foam overlay, and she was finally comfortable. It did not have an electric motor running the air cells. Instead, it was a pump that you used only once every 6 months (I guess that's the pressure-guard part of the name). It was a god-send. Her palliative team told me that the blue-covered mattresses were never to have additional overlays or mattress topers on them. I don't know if that's true,, but I give the info to you if it's helpful. She was building up a bit of moisture as she would sweat, but it wasn't impossible and she didn't complain.

<Memorial thread here>