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I'm sure I should be diligent and read every post on here, but after a week of doing my research I'm starting to get frustrated. I love forums and this seems to be one of the best for mattresses. With this topic post I am hoping to get a summary of the mattress types and brands that have been spoken of most highly on this forum. I know this topic is like politics, everyone feels strongly about one thing vs another without an overall concensus and I know the typw of mattress depends on the person, but I feel like someone familiar with these forums could maybe narrow down my search and provide some advice. Basically I'm 28, living with my fiancee and thinking about consciously purchasing a mattress for the first time. We have a Sealy Posture Premier (somewhat entry level model) from 2003ish. I have never slept soundly and dream of getting consistent good nights of sleep. I have sporadic neck/shoulder and lower back discomfort but it's usually better after sleeping so I don't think the mattress is necessarily the culprit. After going to a few stores I am leaning towards a slightly firmer mattress and my fiancee towards a softer one (she is very small and light if that makes a difference) but generally I think we both just want comfort. I sleep on my back, her on her side and we both toss and turn. I am a naturally hotter person and can't sleep if I'm hot. If I do turn on my side my shoulder feels jacked up within minutes although the postition feels comfortable. I want to get moving on a new bed but I feel stuck..Everything in the store feels reasonably comfortable, web reviews contradict each other..I just need a starting point, a roadmap. I'm even into an evolutionary approach where I start with something and add on as I go.....I just want a new bed badly and I'm fearful of throwing my money away. Once again, I apologize for asking such a flat out newbie question. I've read the buying guide here and reviews all over the web and I feel less confident than when I started.
Thanks in advance!! -JT |
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Back or stomach sleeper and / or larger person (say over 175 lb.) probably wants a firmer mattress and a heaver gauge wire spring like 2.5 or 12.75 to 13, and stiffer foams. I'd pick offset coils or good old Bonell spring. Side sleeper and lighter weight would probably prefer something like the pocket coil / Marshall coil, the soft foams, and the padded tops like pillow top and Eurotop, etc. So, probably, you are opposites, lol. One thing to consider, and I know from experience, is: Is she a side sleeper due to necessity or preference? When I was married, my husband weighed 300+ pounds, tended to take up 2/3 of the bed himself, and also made it sag to the center. So, the only space left to me was the outer edge, and I had to sleep on my side, to avoid rolling into him all the time. I just thought I'd mention that, because it might make a difference if you get a larger bed and she has more room. Now that I have my own bed, I reverted to back or stomach and taking up the middle. Almost without fail, the major brands are all one side no-flip mattresses. And the majority of the consumer complaints imvolve the padding not the springs. So, there's a rule of thumb here and elsewhere to buy a firm spring, a tight top 2-sided mattress with little or no biult in foam, avoid polyurethane foams in favor of latex if you can afford it, and then add toppers to it to "tune" it. That allows you to replace or change the foam top as desired. Body indentations in mattresses are mainly foam breaking down or compacting. If you just can't agree on one mattress, you might consider two twin size setups on a swing hinge king frame, one headboard, and put one of those spanner pieces in there that hooks the two sides together and also bridges the gap. Oh, and Leggett and Platt supplies most of the innersprings to the USA makers. So, by comparing terminology and coil coint, you can get a more diredt comparison and /or start to rule out anything built on a certain spring platform. This is Lura-Flax but some mattresses (I believe) call it something else. http://www.beddingcomponents.com/lura-flex.asp And this is L&P's spring collection http://www.beddingcomponents.com/ This message was modified Sep 6, 2010 by TC2334
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| I have really given up on all of the major brands, because they are all too much foam piled onto a spring, and are single side, and I want an old fashioned 2 sided innerspring mattress with not frills and years of durabuility. People are ditching their big name sets after only 3 years or less. Complaints abound about Simmons Beautyrest softening up too much within weeks. I'm looking at The Original Mattress Factory, Carlisle Bedding, and Imperial Bedding, because those are the smaller companies in my region. |
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sager66 wrote: |
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Well, you are going to find a lot of opinions here and you are going to have to try some, read about what people say and have found out, and then go in a certain direction. There are a lot of folks here that like latex, some that like memory foam and others who want coil springs and a combination of those here. I think one theme that goes throughout, is that when you go cheap from many mattress stores, you get what you pay for. You can also spend a lot of money and end up uncomfortable too. There are back, stomach and side sleepers....and those all affect what kind of mattress and softness levels. My personal opinion is that you should research latex, and memory foam but this is just my experience. I've had many, and like many here have said, there is no one answer for everyone and a bed can't necessarily fix a medical problem....so keep that in mind. Good luck on your journey. Many of us are still exploring and trying different things but many have sworn off the chain mattress stores and what they sell....I being one since my last mattress lasted about 1 year before it started breaking down and hurting my back more each night. I'm personally on the latex journey and pretty happy with where I am ending up but a little poorer. I might have gone a little cheaper than I would have liked so the more $$ you have you can maybe get the best for you. This message was modified Sep 6, 2010 by Sall
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I think you will find that most of the major brands don't hold up over time (like your current experience) because of the cheap PU foam they use on top. That leaves a few other main options: Tempurpedic (if you like the memory foam feel - most other memory foam beds are lesser quality so beware), High end innerspring (like Royal Pedic), Lesser known local brands (like Gardner or maybe Orginal mattress factory - but make sure they do not use cheap PU foam (ideally none)), Customized latex (sleepez, flobeds, foamsweetfoam) if you like that feel or one that you piece together yourself (sleeplikeabear, foambymail), or mattress surgery (cut off the top of your current mattress or another innerspring take out the cheap PU foam and add a few inches off soft to medium latex (15-32 ILD range) and maybe 1-2" of decent memory foam). If you go the front forum page, you will see "highlighted threads" at the top for some threads on mattress surgergy and other topics. |
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Thanks everyone. Definitely not looking for concensus, more of a summary of the most popular mattress options on this forum, which I got thank you. Sorry if my initial thread was demanding. I'd like to keep my budget within ~$1500, which likely eliminates tempurpedic (worried about heat anyways) and a high end innerspring like Royal Pedic. Mattress surgery sounds like something I'd consider and then bring up to my fiancee who would then flip out.......not ready to go that route yet. So I think either a latex mattress or a decent basic innerspring that we can experiment with using toppers.
We both like the idea of being able to customize our respective sides of the bed, as TC2334 said we are likely opposites (sleep-wise): Seems like sleepez allows for his/her customization plus the ability to exchange layers if we find we don't have the right combination. 8500 is within price range. Can I use current boxspring? Order foundation from sleepez? Put slats across my bedframe? Could also try Ikea latex mattress and add toppers if necessary, but not a lot of reviews about their latex beds. If we go innerspring route, can we use different toppers on each half of bed? Seems like that would be easier with king-size mattress (buy 2 twin size toppers) but we want to stick with queen. What innerspring is popular here for use as a base to add toppers to? (Sorry that may be another complicated question) Forums are awesome! Thanks so much guys, I certainly appreciate folks spending their time to help me. |
| Oooh, looks like Gardner is nearby. I live in central Mass, is this the Gardner Sandman spoke of? http://www.gardnermattress.com/products.asp |
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jtpoulin wrote: Oooh, looks like Gardner is nearby. I live in central Mass, is this the Gardner Sandman spoke of? http://www.gardnermattress.com/products.asp |
| Yes, but Gardner Mattress is not located in Gardner, MA...haha. It's named after the original owner I believe. If you deal with them, go to the main store in Salem, MA! That's where the owner is and they have better prices there also. I got my latex mattress there but they also have several other quality innerspring models. (hint...the owner will negotiate sometimes). Ask for Gardner Sisk. |
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From here: http://www.gardnermattress.com/process.asp seems like all the processes do involve poly foam (except the latex). Maybe it's something you have to specify that you don't want? |