"Cushion Firm" Latex?
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I've tested out some mattresses in person, I've decided that I liked firm or cushion firm mattresses best. I am planning on getting a 36ILD latex base, but am very unsure/nervous about what topper to get. I am leaning towards a 2" 32 ILD latex topper, but don't know if that is a good match. I recently stayed at a Courtyard Marriott and slept on a Beautyrest Westbury, and slept horribly. The mattress felt as if it were cradling you like a wet sand feeling which I did not enjoy. I woke up every couple hours feeling "stuck". I'm not sure if a 2" or 1" topper would be ideal (I'm 140lbs), and if a 32 ILD topper on a 36 ILD base would create the firm/cushion firm I am looking for. I plan on first trying just the 36 ILD base, but if that is too firm I am not sure what to try next.... |
Re: "Cushion Firm" Latex?
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A reasonable starting point is to see what FloBed's Firmness Adviser suggests. Some think this doesn't go firm enough, but this may just be a vocal minority. One thing you can do is configure two sides, one "firmer" and one "softer" to give yourself a target range. For latex toppers, you will typically be limited to at most 3 choices, e.g, 24, 32, and 40. 24 is very soft, 40 is very firm. FloBeds and SleepEZ are two companies selling component mattresses which allow you to exchange layers if you want something firmer or softer. This takes the stress out of having to get it right the first time, and it also gives you some flexibility. If you buy a solid core, you have one choice of firmness. These two companies split the 5.6" cores into 2.8" layers and you can pick say a 32 and a 36 which gives you the choice of 32/36 or a firmer feeling 36/32. With either company the top layer is always soft. You don't have a choice of firmness on the top 1.4" or 2". I only know of two companies offering a choice of ILD in a 2" latex topper - FoamSource and TheFoamFactory, although there are undoubtedly others. |
Re: "Cushion Firm" Latex?
| If possible I would go for either a firmer 2" topper or even the 32ILD you mentioned in a 1" topper perhaps. It's all personal preference of course but 32ILD is going to sink - so do you want to sink 1" or 2". |
Re: "Cushion Firm" Latex?
| D3Fi, have you seen any 1" latex toppers? The thinnest I remember seeing is 2". SleepEZ has a 1.4" solid latex layer but only in a 22 ILD. |
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Get the base first. You will know then, if you want a medium or a soft top layer. You might even like sleeping directly on the 36 ILD with no topper. Memoryfoam.com still sells 28 ILD talatech, but only in 3" thick. That might work if you are a side sleeper, but it would probably be too thick for stomach or back sleeping. foambymail.com sells 1", but the manufacturer is unknown. Good luck in your quest. |
Re: "Cushion Firm" Latex?
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jiffy524 wrote: I recently stayed at a Courtyard Marriott and slept on a Beautyrest Westbury, and slept horribly. The mattress felt as if it were cradling you like a wet sand feeling which I did not enjoy. I woke up every couple hours feeling "stuck". Simmons Beautyrest Westbury 450 Plush |
Re: "Cushion Firm" Latex?
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MequonJim wrote: foambymail.com sells 1", but the manufacturer is unknown. FYI, FoamByMail is the same company as TheFoamFactory. Same address and phone number. They offer ILD 20 and ILD 32 in 1", 2", and 3" They say their toppers are talalay and "Made in USA" which should imply Latex International, but in fact does not. I called them a few weeks ago and at first they said their latex was from Latex International, but in a subsequent call was told only that they got their latex from a company in the Southern U.S. I asked if it was a latex manufacturer or a latex distributor. I was told it was a distributer. When asked who manufactured the latex, the lady said "I don't know who manufactures the latex." It has to be either Dunlopillo (U.K.) or Radium (Netherlands.) What's odd about this is "what's the big deal?" OK, so you get your latex from a European company. So what? Maybe it's not quite the quality of LI, but I have no reason whatsoever to believe it isn't of good quality, and it sure is less expensive. FoamSource, which sells only Latex International Talatech talalay, asks $369 for a 2" Cal King. FoamByMail asks $189. FoamByMail sells an entire 6" core of ILD 36 for less then a 3" topper from FoamSource. I called them just now and asked "Are your latex toppers manufactured by Radium or Dunlopillo?" The lady said she had no idea but agreed to ask someone. She came back saying "I'm not allowed to give out that information." It just so happens I need a 2" topper of ILD 32, so I ordered one from FoamByMail even though they couldn't tell me who manufactures the latex. They have a 30 day satisfaction guarantee, so I can return it if the quality isn't up to my standards. I have some 2.8" layers of Latex International Talatech to compare it to. |
Re: "Cushion Firm" Latex?
| haysdb, I'll be interrested in your take on the quality of their latex. I was on track to go that route for my mattress core before going with the MyComfort pocket bed - even knowing that they were not LI. |
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I had an interesting conversation with Shawn at SleepEZ today that ties into this. They carry latex from I think three different, and maybe even four, manufacturers. They carry Vita because that's what their customers from Europe are familiar with. They carry a dunlop process latex. In his words "they are all good." He suggested that just as with innersprings and memory foam, at some point we can probably expect to start getting latex from China, and the quality, as with springs and memory foam, is not going to be top-of-the-line. But as far as he knew, that day was not here yet and all latex was still coming from the U.S., Europe (UK, Netherlands, Belgium), and Sri Lanka, and all was of good quality. When the Latex international factory burned to the ground back in 2001 (?) they bought up extra capacity from factories around the world to be able to continue supplying latex to their customers. Nowhere in my reading have I ever heard that their quality turned to crap when they did that. All that said, yes, I am intently anxious to see how their "cheap" talalay compares with LI Talatech. OT: Something slightly amusing is that it's conceivable I could end up with three layers of three different brands of latex in my own mattress. I talked to Shawn about something maximally supportive for a bottom 2.8 layer and he said a dunlop latex would tend to be a bit more supportive than a talalay (because it gets more dense toward the bottom). But the price is the same as Talatech, and I would probably lean toward the high tech and consistency of the Talatech. But it might be "something to do" to use three different brands of latex just to say I did. And it makes me a lot "smarter" when I'm talking about something I'm actually sleeping on. :-) This message was modified Sep 29, 2007 by haysdb
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Re: "Cushion Firm" Latex?
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D3Fi wrote: If possible I would go for either a firmer 2" topper or even the 32ILD you mentioned in a 1" topper perhaps. It's all personal preference of course but 32ILD <em>is</em> going to sink - so do you want to sink 1" or 2". I have a 32 ILD 1" latex layer on top of my mattress that was originally part of my interior layers. I like it better on top on the outside. Coupled with a 100% cotton down alternative fiber bed, it's just right. Doesn't sink so much that I feel my very firm mattress (now that I've tweaked it appropriately.) Inside are a 44 ILD latex layer, also 1" and a 45 and 55 HR PU foam layer about 3/4 inch. Over the coils with the door skin plywood over those. |
Re: "Cushion Firm" Latex?
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Up until recently many of us purchased a low ILD latex topper from Overstock.com for $39.99 any size. I've bought three of them, all in King. I cut two of them in half. I'm not using any right now, but they're nice, especially if you like a softer comfort layer. They've since run out of them. There were a lot of good reviews on their website. <BR><BR>><BR><SPAN CLASS="quotedmessageheader">haysdb wrote:</SPAN><BR><DIV CLASS="quotedmessage">D3Fi, have you seen any 1&amp;quot; latex toppers? The thinnest I remember seeing is 2&amp;quot;. SleepEZ has a 1.4&amp;quot; solid latex layer but only in a 22 ILD.<quote This message was modified Sep 30, 2007 by BeddyBye
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