How to Recycle Innerspring Mattresses
Innerspring mattresses are built around a steel coil support system, ranging from a few hundred to over a thousand springs depending on the design (Bonnell, offset, continuous, or individually wrapped pocket coils), topped with foam, cotton, or wool padding and a fabric cover. The steel content makes these mattresses easier to recycle economically than an all-foam mattress, since coils can be separated with a magnet and sold into the scrap steel market, while padding and fabric go through textile recycling or, at some facilities, landfill disposal.
Quick answer
Innerspring mattresses go through the same specialized dismantling process as other mattresses, with recyclers pulling the steel coils, foam, fabric, and wood apart for separate processing. MassDEP estimates about 75% of a typical mattress's components can be recovered this way. As with memory foam mattresses, California, Connecticut, Oregon, and Rhode Island fund no-cost drop-off through a purchase-time fee, while Massachusetts instead bans mattresses from the trash.
- Recyclable
- Yes
- Typical value
- Minimal to none for the mattress owner; the steel coils have scrap value, but that value goes to the recycler processing the mattress, not the person dropping it off.
- Donate / take-back
- Available
- 1Strip all bedding and remove mattress covers