Ratcheting straps are much less likely to fail when moving a bulky item like a mattress.
How to secure a mattress to a roof rack.
Your owner s manual should say how much weight you can carry on the roof.
Prepare to secure your load to the roof rack.
Buy sturdy rope nylon or polyester based.
Before securing the load to the roof of your car evaluate the item you will haul.
The wind from the roads or highway can easily rip through the plastic if it is not properly secure.
Secure your mattress to the top of the car.
I am planning to strap the box springs to the roof rack on my rav4 and tie them down with a bunch of rope.
If you purchase a new mattress to take home or are in the process of moving the mattress should be thoroughly tied down to prevent it from flying off the roof of your car and endangering other drivers.
This will stress any knot no matter how securely tied.
There should be enough to secure one end under the front of your car and enough at the other end to secure the second end under the back of your car.
I would say follow a similar process to what ryan said but i would not recommend using rope.
Toss the first long piece of rope over the length of the mattress.
I am going to pickup a queen size mattress and box springs and my dad is going to take the mattress part in his van but the box springs won t fit in his van because they don t bend like a mattress does.
A simple ratchet strap works best.
Any item that exceeds the recommended weight limit choose another hauling option like a trailer.
After the mattress is secure in the plastic place the mattress on the roof.
Put a piece of rope on the roof of the car that goes from back bumper to front bumper.
A ratchet strap ensures that the mattress will not flay away while driving especially if you do not have a roof rack.
Secure the front end of the mattress and then the other end of the mattress.
Place the mattress on the roof making sure it s in the middle.
Center the mattress in the middle and put the rope over the length of the mattress.
With the help of a friend you can quickly and efficiently secure the mattress with a sturdy rope.
Put the mattress on top of the car and rope so that it goes length wise with the length of the car see pics above.