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Guess what? Englander is no better than the S brands (imho)... As you may know, I bought the Englander (Malibu Firm) only for the springs. I PLANNED to give it a "foam-ectomy", getting rid of the junky cheap foam. But I wanted to see how long it might be comfortable before I did surgery on it. Well, after about 4 nights I determined that it was not good at all for my back. So I did surgery on it tonight.  I'm going to adda link to or post pictures of the surgery in the near future, right here in this thread. I did expect more from Englander... I opened it up and was shocked to see that they had NO - ZERO - ZILCH!!! - good firm foam inside!  What it had was 3 layers of 7/16" very soft, white pu foam on top of the springs. That's ALL! NO firm foam, no support, NO WONDER it was hurting my back, and no wonder if you look around the web you can find dozens of posts about how people's Englander mattresses started hurting their back within a week to a month... just like the "S" brands... On top of the 1 and 5/16 inches of soft junky pu foam, there was the whatchacallit, the top sewn into tufts, whatever they call that thing. (What kind of a mattress expert am I??! I can never remember the name of that top piece!  ) I removed that too because it's just the same cheap junky foam sewn together with a cloth and tufted...(By the way, if you buy the Malibu PLUSH instead of the Malibu FIRM, know what you get? Instead of 1 and 5/16" of junky pu foam, you get about 5" of junky pu foam! That must REALLY hurt people's backs!) This kind of mattress construction - which all the major companies are using, now, STINKS! PU foam = Peee Eww!  So, I took off ALL the foam, and then replaced it with this, from bottom up: 1" of zoned HR foam: top = medium, middle = firm, and bottom = very firm (feet area doesn't really matter, imho) 3/4" of medium-soft latex (Talalay - not certain of the ILD - maybe 24 or 28?) 1" of Venus foam So it's about the same amount of foam as it had - now 2 and 3/4 instead of just 2" - but the main difference is that now I have QUALITY foam on top of the springs, foam that gives SUPPORT as well as softness. Will post more as the experiment progresses... I'll be playing around with this combination, see how it feels. My wife has something very similar to this on top of her Sealy springs, and she likes it pretty well.- P.S. the springs seem to feel pretty good. I can't say for sure though until I've slept on them with good foam for a while This message was modified Sep 5, 2009 by jimsocal
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Jim, Most major retailers will have cards that have at least some of the information you're looking for. Some small shops don't. I have an old one from my shop lying here it says the following: - 782 Sealy Posturetech coils - 7 zone No Toss and Turn inlay with Visco - Latex - Visco pressure relief - Unicased XT edge support - Silk and wool infused top These cards are attached to the headboards of my former shop and are different for each bed. That's about all the detail they go into and are generally more than enough for most consumers. Most of your larger stores and some of your smaller stores should provide at least this much. So far as the names of the beds being different goes. Well, sometimes the beds are genuinely different by retailer. 5 turn vs 7turn coils, etc. For the most part, however, they're not. The manufacturers have given you a way around this though. Each bed belongs in a series. For example, a Sealy Posturepedic spring mattress belongs in one of 3 categories: -Premier -Reserve -Signature. While not all beds within the same series are identical they do share a lot more in common within a category than without. So if you're shopping at Mattressplace X and you find a Sealy Signature Great River Rapids or whatever and you go to the competitor who tries to convince you that the Sealy Reserve Arbor Morning is the same bed, you can be assured that he's full of it. If he instead shows you a Sealy Signature Giant Floating Dragon (all these names made up) you can at least know they share a lot in common. Simmons Beautyrest uses classifications: -Classic -Worldclass -Exceptionale -Black All Simmons spring mattresses will be called one of these regardless of where you shop. Knowing these categories helps you cross shop. -Alex
This message was modified Sep 7, 2009 by Alexander
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Jim: Great post. Your concept of how the major manufacturers of mattresses should try and sell their product, parallels mine exactly. Alex: You did not address Jim's position. You give a very nice mattress store managers perspective on why some salespeople become disillusioned with prospective customers who don’t know what they’re doing when purchasing a mattress. But you failed to answer what Jim is trying to say. Namely, why don’t the major manufacturers of mattresses be honest with the buying public about what their product contains and allow the buying public to price shop the various mattresses in their vicinity? I don’t think you can blame people for blaming mattress companies when it comes to deceptive selling practices. They’ve been at this a very long time, and they’ve made a lot of money doing it. Until the government steps in and makes them do it, I don’t think we’re going to see any change. Now I do not like government intervention anymore than anyone else. But when you get a large financially strong entity opposing people who do not have financial resources to fight them, who is it that can make them behave. The federal government. The only other thing would be if Jimsocial and I were both to win the lottery and become very wealthy, let’s say three quarters of $1 billion. Then we could hire you, with your superior knowledge of mattresses to help us run a company that would produce mattresses with absolute honesty and integrity on a national basis. How long do you think it would take before Sealy manufacturing did everything it could to buy us out and shut us down? This message was modified Sep 7, 2009 by eagle2
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Eagle, Please see my above post in how to price shop between mattresses. Please also see the same post on the amount of information most retailers and manufacturers do provide. -Alex |
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Alexander wrote: Eagle, Please see my above post in how to price shop between mattresses. Please also see the same post on the amount of information most retailers and manufacturers do provide. -Alex Alex: although the times shown are separated by several min. I did not see your last post that was just before mine, before I posted. Cross posting? Well it's fine to learn all the business about different naming procedures, but wouldn't it be a lot more simple to just keep the same names for the mattresses manufactured for all the different locations? For me this is indefensible, and nothing but subterfuge. I can understand your defensive posture Alex, you're currently living, in large measure I would assume, from the proceeds of 35 years of selling mattresses. It does tend to make one "supportive" of the industry ( no pun intended). It is obvious you do not feel that the manufacturing industry is doing anything wrong. Jim and I, and many others on this forum, believe that this industry has operated, for far two long, in a rather foggy environment. I would like to see something done about it. Alex: I hope I do not appear offensive, but I can't help but be open and frank about how I feel regarding this issue. This message was modified Sep 7, 2009 by eagle2
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The bottom line here is that I understand Alex's perspective but the bottom line is that things need to be changed in the mattress industry. It's simply NOT consumer friendly and actually creates confusion and encourages deceptive practices. Alex says, "Okay you know if it's a Signature it's this and if it's a this, it's that" (paraphrasing is easier than going back and copying and pasting, here). But the bottom line is, this should not be necessary at all. It should just be clear from the stats posted next to the same model name and prices what we are buying. Period. Just like computers at Best Buy: If the customer knows nothing about computers, he goes in and asks the salesman to recommend something based on what he thinks he wants. The salesman then can do as Alex says and point him to what he knows the customer REALLY needs, or let the customer buy what he thinks he wants. But for the rest of us, who do want to learn a little and comparison shop based on facts and research, it should all be laid out as I said above: Springs, foams, types and ILD's of foam on a card next to the mattress. Period. This message was modified Sep 8, 2009 by jimsocal
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Interesting thread. I hope your mattress is sleeping better, Jim! Alex, your posts are also interesting, but since I am also one who has gone through so many beds and ended up with sore back time and again(and have given the beds with as little as three months of use to friends and family who also find them painful), I beg to differ with your assertation that only a few people are dissatisfied with their bed purchase. There just typically is no recourse. I could go through all of my past bed woes but I don't feel like boring you. I did not purchase "low end" beds, but instead, mid-range beds, around $2K each...and still got back pain from the use of the cheap P/U foam. That's why I finally went back to a bed made by an actual person who did what I asked. I'm much improved now. IME when you buy a top of the line bed you are paying for more foam. You rarely sleep anywhere near the springs anymore. So, what is the secret to the comfort of your bed? You must know the layers and springs....how are they different than the others? Kait This message was modified Sep 8, 2009 by Kait
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Kait, You don't have to take my word for it. Pick up a copy of the October 2009 Consumer Reports. They poll 17,000 of their readers. In it you'll find facts such as this: - 78% of those who spent more than $4000 on their mattress said they were "highly satisfied" with it. - 66% of those who spent less than $1000 on their mattress said they were "highly satisfied" with it. - 78% of people who purchased a mattress said a new bed, any new bed, improved their ability to get a good night's sleep. - 42% said that their new mattress "greatly improved" their sleep. There are people out there who have troubles for whatever reason. Usually it's the wrong bed. Sometimes they're a unique case that requires an extensive amount of expertise to narrow in on what (if anything) will solve their problem. For the most part, however, consumers are satisfied with their purchase. Most are even "highly satisfied". So far as my Simmons Black goes it's all about knowing what was right for me. I'm a side sleeper which means the individual coil systems tend to be better. It 230lbs I'm also not a small man which means a thicker gauge coil is needed. I sleep warm but like to burrow into my mattress. This means a cashmere top with Talalay latex is my best option. The Rosalyn has these features ergo I am highly satisfied. - Alex This message was modified Sep 8, 2009 by Alexander
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Alexander wrote: Kait, You don't have to take my word for it. Pick up a copy of the October 2009 Consumer Reports. They poll 17,000 of their readers. In it you'll find facts such as this: - 78% of those who spent more than $4000 on their mattress said they were "highly satisfied" with it. - 66% of those who spent less than $1000 on their mattress said they were "highly satisfied" with it. - 78% of people who purchased a mattress said a new bed, any new bed, improved their ability to get a good night's sleep. - 42% said that their new mattress "greatly improved" their sleep. There are people out there who have troubles for whatever reason. Usually it's the wrong bed. Sometimes they're a unique case that requires an extensive amount of expertise to narrow in on what (if anything) will solve their problem. For the most part, however, consumers are satisfied with their purchase. Most are even "highly satisfied". So far as my Simmons Black goes it's all about knowing what was right for me. I'm a side sleeper which means the individual coil systems tend to be better. It 230lbs I'm also not a small man which means a thicker gauge coil is needed. I sleep warm but like to burrow into my mattress. This means a cashmere top with Talalay latex is my best option. The Rosalyn has these features ergo I am highly satisfied. - Alex Alex: I am afraid you are going to think that I am being too critical of you, hopefully that is not the case and I am being fair in my evaluation. However, like most of us, you have your point of view. The question is always," how accurate is that point of view." You are quite happy with your Simmons Rosalyn mattress. I am glad for you. However as seen on this website, while the majority, namely 58%, give this mattress a thumbs-up review,42% give it thumbs down. These reviews can be found at viewpoints.com under Simmons -- beauty rest -- black -- Rosslyn -- mattress. To give these figures more meaning I will quote what they have on their website. Out of 31 reviews... 42% gave it five stars, 16% 4 stars, 0% gave it 3 stars, 10% gave it 2 stars and a whopping 32% gave it 1 star. Or to put it more simply. 18 people gave it a thumbs up and 13 people gave it a thumbs down. You evidently would have given it 5 stars. But according to this limited review, 42% of the people would not have agree with you. One of the principal things that you keep reading is how the mattress breaks down over time and gives some of the people a backache. I have a 10 year old waterbed. It was one of those beds with a waveless fiber piece that did an excellent job for about five years. Oh yes, it is a soft sided waterbed. But over time the fiber began to bunch up on one side of the bed. Also I have noticed with a waterbed, you will lose water over a period of time through some kind of evaporation. My guess is that it loses about 5 to 10 gallons over the course of a year. This is so gradual that you hardly notice. But finally it begins to dawn on you that your mattress is getting softer and it's time to put some water in. What happens to me is that with my bad back if I am mowing the yard or doing something to strain it, then my waterbed, will actually contribute towards more problems with my bad back. This happened recently and is what got me into looking at mattresses again. After I put some water in my bed, move my sleeping positions over the side where the flotation material had decided to lodge I got better. Now I'm wondering "what am I doing trying to spend $3000 of money we can not afford." I don't blame anybody for my situation other than myself. But when I go shopping for a new bed it would be Oh so wonderful to really hear, "the whole complete truth" about the product that I'm looking at. Surely, as a man who was a successful seller of mattresses for 35 years, and cared a great deal about his customers, and knew a great deal about mattresses, you can see and understand the frustration of those of us who just want a good nights sleep. Were willing to pay for that privilege. But we do need assistance in trying to find a product worthy of our money. Thus, sites like this one! This message was modified Sep 8, 2009 by eagle2
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I will read that and get back to you. If I paid $4K for a bed I'd sure say I liked it too...otherwise I'd feel like a fool! Sometimes it takes a bit of time to know if a bed is truly comfortable or not. As you buy bed after bed after bed with no recourse a person gets a bit jaded. I hate to think about how much $ I spent on beds in the last ten years. S & F sent a rep out to look at mine and LIED about the issues on her report. Things like that leave a bad taste. Kait |
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eagle2 wrote: Alex: I am afraid you are going to think that I am being too critical of you, hopefully that is not the case and I am being fair in my evaluation. However, like most of us, you have your point of view. The question is always," how accurate is that point of view." You are quite happy with your Simmons Rosalyn mattress. I am glad for you. However as seen on this website, while the majority, namely 52%, give this mattress a thumbs-up review,42% give it thumbs down. These reviews can be found at viewpoints.com under Simmons -- beauty rest -- black -- Rosslyn -- mattress. To give these figures more meaning I will quote what they have on their website. Out of 31 reviews... 42% gave it five stars, 16% 4 stars, 0% gave it 3 stars, 10% gave it 2 stars and a whopping 32% gave it 1 star. Or to put it more simply. 18 people gave it a thumbs up and 13 people gave it a thumbs down. You evidently would have given it 5 stars. But according to this limited review, 42% of the people would not have agree with you. One of the principal things that you keep reading is how the mattress breaks down over time and gives some of the people a backache. I have an 10 year old waterbed. It was one of those beds with a waveless fiber piece that did an excellent job for about five years. Oh yes, it is a soft sided waterbed. But over time the fiber began to bunch up on one side of the bed. Also I have noticed with a waterbed, you will lose water over a period of time through some kind of evaporation. My guess is that it loses about 5 to 10 gallons over the course of a year. This is so gradual that you hardly notice. But finally it begins to dawn on you that your mattress is getting softer and it's time to put some water in. What happens to me is that with my bad back if I am mowing the yard or doing something to strain it, then my waterbed, will actually contribute towards more problems with my bad back. This happened recently and is what got me into looking at mattresses again. After I put some water in my bed, move my sleeping positions over the side where the flotation material had decided to lodge I got better. Now I'm wondering "what am I doing trying to spend $3000 of money we can afford." I don't blame anybody for my situation other than myself. But when I go shopping for a new bed it would be Oh so wonderful to really hear, "the whole complete truth" about the product that I'm looking at. Surely, as a man who was a successful seller of mattresses for 35 years, and cared a great deal about his customers, and knew a great deal about mattresses, you can see and understand the frustration of those of us who just want a good nights sleep. Were willing to pay for that privilege. But we do need assistance in trying to find a product worthy of our money. Thus, sites like this one! Eagle, I understand your frustration and the frustration of others on this board. I'm trying to put it back on the track of giving answers and helping people answer the question of "What's the Best Mattress (For me)?" Villifying the mattress industry doesn't really answer that question or do much of anything productive. The feedback on viewpoints.com is a perfect example of why some people aren't satisfied with their purchase. A bed is not like a television or a microwave. It's more like a shoe. Currently I'm wearing a pair of size 12 reinforced toe black dockers dress shoes. If I took 100 random people and had them walk around in my size 12 reinforced toe black dockers dress shoes for a month many people might come back with negative reviews of the shoe. They might say it hurts their feet or it wasn't supportive. There's nothing wrong with my shoes, it's simply not the right shoe for all of them. It's the right shoe for me and people who have needs similar to mine. My bed is the same way. In a crowd of 20 I bet I could find at least 2 who say the bed is too soft. I bet I can find another 2 who say the bed is too hard. I could find 2 who say the bed completely lacks support. I could find 2 who think it feels amazing. There is no answer for the question "What's the Best Mattress?" But that's okay. This is the wrong question. The correct question is "What's the Best Mattress For Me?" For this reason specific Mattress Reviews are more or less useless. This is why Consumer Reports doesn't do them. You happen to be a consumer who prefers more detail in your purchase. Far finer detail than the average consumer. That's absolutely fine. My advice to you is to find someone who knows what you're asking and purchase from that person. Or use forums such as these to reach a broader audience. I can answer most any question you'd have regarding Tempurpedic, Stearns and Foster, Sealy, Simmons, and Serta as well as general questions regarding coil and foam types and how they may affect your specific needs. If I don't know the answer, I can probably find out via the vendor contacts I've built over time. Does every mattress RSA have access to these tools? No. If this bothers you vote with your wallet and don't purchase from that establishment but understand that the detail with which you're attempting to shop is by far the exception rather than the rule. Most consumers zone out if you try to explain to them that there's more than one type of foam out there. |