Waterproof Mattress Protection, Specified by Construction
Four barrier constructions, each with its own test documentation, its own laundering behavior and its own right answer. Case packs, institutional sizing, and item numbers you can put straight on a purchase order.
- ASTM F1671 Tested
- 16 CFR 1632 Class A
- ISO 6330 Laundered
- Case Packs of 6
- Hospital Twin Sizing
- Lifetime Limited Warranty
Four barrier constructions
| Construction | What the barrier is | Where it belongs | Published evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Laminated stretch knit | Polyurethane membrane bonded to a knit face fabric. Breathable to water vapor, closed to liquid water | Guest rooms, patient beds, anywhere the cover is the permanent protection and stays on through turnover | ASTM F1671 no penetration, 16 CFR 1632 Class A, OEKO-TEX, SGS PFAS panel all analytes not detected |
| 6-gauge vinyl | Heavy calendered vinyl sheet, zippered or fitted. No membrane, the sheet is the barrier | Corrections, detention, shelters, heavy incontinence, anywhere the cover gets wiped down rather than laundered | Snell Scientifics bed bug evaluation, PVC film chemical safety panel |
| 3-gauge vinyl | The same material at roughly half the thickness. Lighter, quieter, shorter service life | Budget-constrained rollouts and lower-turnover beds where a full 6-gauge spec is more cover than the bed needs | Shares the PVC film chemical safety panel |
| Quilted pad, urethane backed | A comfort layer with a waterproof backing. Sits on top of the mattress, not around it | Over an encasement where housekeeping wants a launderable top layer, or alone where comfort matters more than containment | SGS PFAS panel, pass under California AB 1817 with total organic fluorine not detected |
A pad protects the top surface. An encasement zips around all six sides and is the only construction that contains bed bugs or stops fluid reaching the mattress sides and base. Most commercial programs end up running both: an encasement that stays on the bed for years, and a pad above it that goes through the laundry on a normal cycle.
If you are choosing between them rather than stacking them, the question is what you are protecting against. Fluid from above, a pad will do. Fluid from an incontinent resident, or bed bugs, or a mattress you need to keep in service for eight years, and it has to be the encasement.
What the barrier is actually tested against
Most waterproof bedding is sold on the word alone. Here is what has been measured on the laminated knit, with the report numbers, because a spec writer needs the number and not the adjective.
- ASTM F1671/F1671M-25a, Procedure B. Phi-X174 bacteriophage penetration, the bloodborne pathogen barrier method used to qualify medical protective materials. No penetration on all three specimens, under 1 PFU/ml. SGS report 14SN2600006282, 1 May 2026. This is the strongest barrier evidence Bargoose holds and it is published in full.
- ASTM F1670-08. Resistance to penetration by synthetic blood. The laminated constructions meet it. That documentation is construction-specific and supplied on request rather than posted, so ask for the version covering the exact item number you are specifying.
- 16 CFR 1632, ticking substitution under 1632.6. Classified Class A, the highest classification the standard offers. SGS-CSTC Anji report AJFTS26003352R01, 27 May 2026. CFR 1633 compliant constructions and 16 CFR 1610 testing are both available for solicitations that cite them.
- ISO 6330:2021 with 3759 and 5077, Procedure 4N at 40°C. Shrinkage 0.6 percent lengthwise and 2.1 percent widthwise, color change grade 4 to 5. Report SL42604312776801TX, 12 May 2026.
That ISO 6330 result is a 40°C domestic-equivalent cycle. It is real data and it is published, but it does not speak to a 71°C healthcare disinfection wash, which is the temperature that actually degrades a polyurethane membrane.
So if a vendor tells you their cover survives a specific number of industrial washes, ask which standard, which temperature, and which lab. We are not going to quote a cycle count we have not had measured. Barrier retention after hot laundering is the test worth commissioning and it is on our list; when it exists it will be on this page with the report attached.
PFAS, stated per product
Results vary by construction, so Bargoose publishes PFAS testing product by product instead of making a catalog-wide claim. Two waterproof items have been through an SGS 725-substance panel referencing EN 17681-1:2025, and they did not come back the same.
| Product | AB 1817 result | What we say about it |
|---|---|---|
| BedBug Solution™ Elite laminated knit | Pass. Total organic fluorine not detected | All 195 reported analytes not detected. Described as no detectable PFAS, citing SGS report SHAHL26025130901 |
| Quilted waterproof mattress pad | Pass. Total organic fluorine not detected at a 20 mg/kg limit against a 100 ppm regulation | Not described as PFAS-free. Three substances were detected below their limits, so the claim is not available for this construction. SGS report SHAHL26025131201 |
Both reports download in full from Test Reports & Lab Results. The second row is the reason this page is built per construction: a supplier who tells you the whole catalog is PFAS-free has either tested one item and generalized, or has not tested.
Read the commercial clause in the warranty
Several consumer-facing protector brands publish a long warranty and then shorten it for commercial buyers. SureGuard's published warranty states, verbatim: "For commercial purchases (non-household purchases) the warranty is reduced from 10 years to 2 years. All conditions and exclusions still apply." That is on their own warranty page and it is easy to miss at the quote stage, when the headline number is what gets compared.
The Bargoose Lifetime Limited Warranty against manufacturing defects does not change because the purchase order came from a property rather than a person. We are a commercial manufacturer, so the commercial terms are the terms.
Sizing and item numbers
Institutional beds are frequently not retail sizes. Hospital Twin at 36 by 75 and Hospital Twin XL at 36 by 84 are both stocked, which most hospitality catalogs do not carry, and both vinyl lines are cut in two depths so the cover fits the mattress you actually have rather than the one the size chart assumes.
Commercial Waterproof Quilted Mattress Pad
| Size | Anchor band | Fitted skirt |
|---|---|---|
| Hospital Twin 36" × 75" | 13010 | — |
| Twin 39" × 75" | 13030 | 14031 |
| Twin XL 39" × 80" | 13040 | 14041 |
| Full 54" × 75" | 13050 | 14051 |
| Long Full 54" × 80" | 13060 | 14061 |
| Queen 60" × 80" | — | 14071 |
| King 78" × 80" | 13080 | 14081 |
| Cal King 72" × 84" | 13090 | 14091 |
Anchor bands go on faster and survive a laundry cart better. Fitted skirts stay put on a bed that gets stripped daily. Housekeeping usually has an opinion, and it is worth asking them before the order rather than after.
Commercial 6-Gauge Vinyl Fitted Mattress Cover
| Size | 9" depth | 16" depth |
|---|---|---|
| Twin 39" × 75" | 2996 | 29966 |
| Hospital Twin XL 36" × 84" | 2996-3 | — |
| Twin XL 39" × 80" | 2996-2 | 29966-1 |
| Full 54" × 75" | 3996 | 39966 |
| Long Full 54" × 80" | 3996-1 | 39966-1 |
| Queen 60" × 80" | 4996 | 49966 |
| King 78" × 80" | 6996 | 69966 |
| Cal King 72" × 84" | 5996 | 59966 |
Mattress-size items ship in commercial case packs of 6. Pillow protectors ship 24 to a case, and the 6-gauge vinyl pillow protector is sold in pairs, so a case is 12 pairs covering 12 beds. Sizes beyond the stocked range, including Duty Bunk and marine berths, are produced to specification. For the full ordering mechanics see Wholesale & Bulk Pricing.
Targeted protection below the full cover
Not every fluid problem needs the whole bed covered. Draw sheets in laminated tricot or stretch polyester knit with a urethane laminate handle the tuck-in zone on clinical beds, and the Bargoose Confidence® washable underpad covers a 17 by 24 inch area and launders on a normal cycle. Both are cheaper to replace than a mattress pad and they take the wear in the place the wear actually happens.
What to send for a quote
- Bed sizes and mattress depth in inches. Depth is the one people leave out and it is the one that decides whether the cover fits.
- Total quantity and number of locations. Drop ship across multiple properties on a single order is normal for us.
- Your laundry process. In-house or contracted, and the wash temperature. This changes the recommendation more than anything else on the list.
- Any compliance clause in the specification. Flame retardancy, fluid barrier, or a domestic-source requirement, quoted from the solicitation rather than paraphrased.
- Whether you want a sample first. Most commercial buyers should. A cover that sounds right on a spec sheet can still be too loud under a guest.
Commercial waterproof FAQ
Waterproof mattress pad or waterproof encasement?
A pad protects the top surface and launders easily. An encasement zips around all six sides and is the only construction that keeps fluid off the mattress sides and base, and the only one that contains bed bugs.
Most commercial programs run both: an encasement that stays on the bed for years, and a launderable pad above it that goes through the wash on turnover. If you are picking one, pick the encasement anywhere you have incontinence risk, bed bug exposure, or a mattress you need to keep in service past five years.
Is the waterproof barrier breathable, or will guests feel plastic?
It depends on which construction you specify, and this is the most common source of complaints when the wrong one goes in.
The laminated stretch knit uses a polyurethane membrane that passes water vapor and body heat while blocking liquid water, so it is silent and guests do not notice it. Vinyl is a solid sheet. It is a better barrier and it lasts longer under abuse, but it does not breathe and it makes noise. Vinyl belongs in corrections, shelters and heavy incontinence settings. It does not belong under a paying hotel guest.
Will these survive commercial laundering?
The laminated knit has been tested to ISO 6330:2021 Procedure 4N at 40°C with tumble dry low, returning 0.6 percent shrinkage lengthwise, 2.1 percent widthwise and color change grade 4 to 5, under report SL42604312776801TX. That is a domestic-equivalent cycle and it is what we currently have measured.
We have not had barrier retention tested after repeated 71°C healthcare disinfection washing, so we do not publish a wash-cycle number. If a competitor gives you one, ask for the standard, the temperature and the lab before you put it in a specification. Practical guidance either way: no bleach, which degrades a polyurethane membrane, and no fabric softener, which leaves a film that reduces breathability.
Are your waterproof products PFAS-free?
The BedBug Solution Elite laminated knit is. SGS tested it against a 725-substance panel referencing EN 17681-1:2025 and no PFAS were detected in any of the 195 reported analytes, with total organic fluorine not detected under ASTM D7359-23.
The quilted waterproof mattress pad is a different construction and a different answer. It passes California AB 1817 with total organic fluorine not detected, but three substances were detected below their regulatory limits, so we do not describe that pad as PFAS-free. Both reports are published in full at Test Reports & Lab Results. Ask us per item number rather than accepting a catalog-wide claim from anyone, including us.
What is the difference between 3-gauge and 6-gauge vinyl?
Gauge is thickness. 6-gauge is roughly twice the material of 3-gauge, so it resists puncture and tearing for longer and costs more per unit. In a high-abuse environment the 6-gauge is cheaper over the life of the bed because you replace it less often.
3-gauge makes sense on lower-turnover beds, in budget-constrained rollouts, and where the cover is a precaution rather than daily protection. Both are available zippered, which is six-sided, or fitted, which is not.
Do you carry Hospital Twin and other institutional sizes?
Yes. Hospital Twin at 36" × 75" and Hospital Twin XL at 36" × 84" are stocked, alongside Twin, Twin XL, Full, Long Full, Queen, King and Cal King. The vinyl lines are cut in 9" and 16" depths.
Duty Bunk sizing, marine berths, bariatric beds and non-standard institutional frames are produced to specification. Send dimensions including depth.
What is the case pack?
Mattress-size items ship in commercial case packs of 6. Pillow protectors ship 24 to a case. The 6-gauge vinyl pillow protector is sold in pairs, so one case is 12 pairs and covers 12 beds.
Volume pricing, purchase order and tax-exempt ordering, samples and drop ship across multiple locations are all handled at Wholesale & Bulk Pricing.
Can I get documentation for a bid or RFP?
The library is published in full at Test Reports & Lab Results with no request form, and reports can be attached to a bid package directly. That covers ASTM F1671, 16 CFR 1632, ISO 6330, the SGS PFAS panels, OEKO-TEX and the Snell Scientifics bed bug evaluation.
ASTM F1670-08 documentation is construction-specific and supplied on request. For federal purchasing routes, UEI and CAGE, see Government & GSA Procurement. For diverse spend reporting, see Supplier Diversity.
Send us the beds
Sizes, depths, quantities, your wash temperature, and any clause you have to meet. We will come back with a construction recommendation, item numbers and case pack pricing.
Request Bulk Pricing →Mon–Fri, 8:30 AM–4:30 PM ET · Bargoose Home Textiles, Inc. · Lynbrook, NY