Mattresses: covered, carried flat, and bed rebuilt

A mattress is soft, heavy and absorbent, which makes it easy to damage without anyone noticing: a scuff from a truck wall, dust from a garage, a smear from a strap. A plastic mattress cover keeps it clean from your bedroom to the new one. On a Spartan move, mattress covers are a packing material like boxes and bubble wrap. They cost $15 each, or they are included if you choose the Silver Package.

Count the mattresses and box springs in the house: a king, two queens and a crib mattress is four or more covers. At $15 each that is easy to add up. The Silver Package adds $35 per hour to the whole move and includes mattress covers plus packing materials for bulky fragile items such as TVs, mirrors, large frames and glass tops. With several beds and a TV or two, Silver is often the better deal; with one bed, covers as used are cheaper. You do not have to decide before the move. At the end we compare the two totals and you pay the lower one. Our base rates are $175 per hour for 3 movers and $235 for 4, every day of the week.

Taking a bed frame apart at the old home and rebuilding it at the new one is part of the service, included in the hourly rate. That covers platform beds, sleigh beds, headboards and footboards, bunk beds and adjustable bases that separate. The crew carries the tools; bolts and brackets are bagged and kept with the frame. One exception: a baby crib. We can take a crib apart, but for liability reasons we are not permitted to reassemble it, unless you are present and inspect it, in which case the team can help put it together under your supervision and responsibility.

Foam mattresses bend and sag if they are carried by the middle, so they travel in a cover, flat or on edge, with nothing heavy stacked on top. Adjustable bases have motors and cables; unplug them and tie the remote to the frame. California kings and split kings are standard sizes for us. If a mattress has to go up a narrow staircase or through a tight turn, tell us when you book so the crew plans the route.

• Strip the beds and pack the bedding in a box or a wardrobe box.
• Leave mattresses on the beds; the crew covers them in place.
• Keep one set of sheets and pillows in your car for the first night.
• Tell the foreman which bed should be set up first at the new home.

If an old mattress is not coming with you, tell us when you book. Disposal is separate from the move, and most cities have their own rules for mattress pickup, so check with your city or garbage service. Ask David what the options are for your move.