Mattresses with high metal (spring) content

Observations suggest that mattresses with high level of presence of metal structures (springs) inside and a relatively thin layer of "over the spring" foam material may be beneficial in reducing the ARS effects.  Two old Soviet-made "innerspring"-type looking mattresses of this kind are being evaluated, as well as a new "pocketed coils" type of mattress manufactured by the Vegas company from the city of Brest in Belarus is being evaluated.  Of interest is the "Modern" lineup of mattresses due to the relatively thin over-the-springs layers and the presence of a mattress cover zipper allowing customization of the over-the-springs layers for better anti-ARS shielding.

"Vegas Modern M1" pocketed coil mattress

The old Soviet-made "innerspring"-type looking mattresses showed limited effectiveness.  The Vegas Modern M1 mattress with honeycomb-style arranged springs 14 cm long and 6 cm in diameter (at a 1200 springs count per 2 meters squared) proved to be much more efficient for anti-ARS shielding. Vegas Modern M1 is a 2-sided mattress with an additional layer of hemp fibers on one side for a firmer feel as can be seen in Fig. 1.  The "Vegas Modern M1" was set to replace the 2 USSR mattresses and as such is 2 times wider.

Experiments performed in Minsk, Belarus using the Vegas Modern M1 "pocketed coils" type of mattress demonstrated a significant reduction in the intensity of many ARS effects felt by the Affected Person in Minsk, Belarus only due to sleeping on the Vegas Modern M1 which seems to make the need for a sleeping station setup in Minsk, Belarus less imminent that it is in the United States.  The latest observations after a few days of using the "pocketed coils" mattress indicate the presence of what is felt like an electrified vibrating cloud above the bed surface (or around the Affected Person after laying on the mattress/falling asleep) in addition to weaker effects of other ARS types.  Past observations suggest that the feeling of electrification is usually felt when the ARS effects cannot be induced at full strength due to some effective shielding in place.

As such one of the first suggested steps in battling the ARS induced discomfort is the use of a "pocketed coils" type of mattress like the Vegas Modern M1.  It is not currently clear if the higher spring count with smaller diameter springs would result in higher efficiency, or what the efficiency of "pocketed coils" type of mattresses sold in the US would be due to the differences in the over-the-springs layered materials used and their thicknesses.

So far the ARS effects experienced at a research site in Minsk, Belarus while sleeping on the "Vegas Modern M1" are weaker than those observed at the now closed primary research site in Hampton, VA 23666 while inside of the now decommissioned Pavilion Sleeping Station.  As such the installation of a "pocketed coils" type of mattress into any sleeping station is considered to be a must-do step.

The shielding efficiency of the "Vegas Modern M1" is stronger than that of the 2 stacked up USSR mattresses even though the USSR mattresses are quite heavy probably because of the thicker steel used in the past.  This observation may suggest that effective anti-ARS shielding benefits more from having a large number of thinner metal structures set up in a grid (i.e. springs in a mattress) rather than bulkier metal structures concentrated at a specific location.  It is also possible that the higher shielding efficiency of the "pocketed coil" type of mattress is due to the electrical isolation of each individual coil placed in an individual pocket made out of synnthetic fabric.

New version of "Vegas Modern M1" is not as good as before for anti-ARS

Resent changes to the structure of the "Vegas Modern M1" introduced by the manufacturer in the Fall of 2025 (hemp fibers removed on one side and thermolatex introduced instead, mattress cover zipper removed on one side, possibly some other changes) appear to have reduced the anti-ARS efficiency of the "Vegas Modern M1" mattress.