Q&A for How to Inflate an Air Mattress

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Question

How do I know if I have too much air in my air mattress?

Community Answer

The best way to tell is just by feeling and looking at the mattress. If the mattress is rock solid, then you have too much air, as adding any more weight will cause it to pop. Also look to see bulging or stress marks to see if the plastic is stretching. Remember, once you lie down on the mattress, it will feel a little firmer as you displace the air.

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Question

Our air mattress keeps losing air, though we've only had it for a week. We keep re-filling it, and we do lock the valve. What's wrong?

Community Answer

All air mattresses loose air naturally, but if it's going flat in less than a day you probably have a leak and need to patch it.

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Question

How do I know when the air mattress is full?

Community Answer

The mattress is full when it's as firm or soft as you want. To prevent overfilling, most pumps will make a higher-pitched, louder noise when the mattress is full.

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Question

How do I use the foot pump?

Community Answer

Push on the foot press repeatedly. You could get an electric pump and just plug it in.

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Question

How do I make my air mattress not make noise?

Community Answer

You can put a tight fabric cover around it. The cover actually helps with a lot of other important issues, but does minimize the plastic "creaking" noise.

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Question

Does nitrogen air in an air mattress make it stay cold?

Community Answer

Yes, it most likely would make it stay cold.

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Question

Can I use the pump from a Sleep Number bed?

Community Answer

You could, but there are several issues with doing this. First of all, since it's not made for that purpose, there will be a question of fitting everything together to get a tight seal. Also, since Sleep Number bed pumps don't put out the air that a normal air mattress pump does, it will take longer. That being said, if the Sleep Number pump is the only pump you have, it's probably better than nothing, and it's definitely better than trying to blow it up manually. It's unlikely that you'll be able to get the air mattress completely full though.

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Question

Can I use an air compressor to inflate the air mattress?

Community Answer

No. An air mattress is not designed to handle such immense pressure that an air compressor generates. This can damage the seams of the mattress.

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