Mattress Forum

Mattress feel is very subjective; what one person thinks is soft might feel firm to others.  Hence, it can be difficult to judge from other people's impressions.

I think you need to do more reading about mattress technology.  And visite some local stores that have different kinds of mattresses and try them out.  Some people hate the feel of latex.  Some people don't like memory foam because you sink in much further than with spring/latex.  Pressure relief is more about the compressibilty of the material you are sleeping on.  If you sleep on wood, it's not compressible.  So you have all of your weight on a small area of your body and it's bad.  From everything I have read, memory foam is more pressure relieving than latex.  Memory foam allows you to sink in and you end up with a cusioning over a large area of your body; this spreads out the pressure and you don't get sore shoulders, elbows, knees, etc.  Latex is different and you don't sink in as much.  Hence the pressure on your body is not spread out as evenly.  Your shoulders really want to sink in further than your waist.  Memory foam allows your shoulders to sink in further than your waist.  Latex is not as compressible and your shoulders won't be able to sink in as far.

Also, you should provide some information about yourself and your sleeping habits: height, weight, side/back/front sleeper, injuries, bed size, budget?  This information will help determine minimum mattress thickness so that you don't end up sinking to the harder layers at the base of the mattress.

When it comes to memory foam, Tempurpedic seems to be the best.  Also, people seem to either love or hate memory foam.

Stearns and Foster 'Hearthstone' plush arrived at my house brand new $1115 set w/ tax twin XL.  It had give and cushiness the first days or so.  It was ok.  First half hour or hour laying on it was alright.  After that, and by morning, it sucked.  What I figure is the cheap batting in the quilt and possibly cheap, lighweight foam didn't do it's job for more than a week.

The Tempurpedic came in brand new and was kinda fimer than the store, but I liked it.  I broke in over several days and had a really nice feel to it.  I could actually sleep directly on my right shoulder that's had 2 arthros on it.  The mattress is just this supportive, inviting, comfortable, easy to turn on, just right temperature  bed.  It has a very even feel all over the bed.

I could sleep right on the edge of the Tempurpedic if I wanted and it feel great.  It's like every area of the mattress feels good.  It just works for me and ....

I have no personal interest, nothing to gain from Tempurpedic.  I don't work for a store.  I don't work for TP, nothing.  But, I do like to say something when I've found the best mattress for me.

About the Tempurpedic Cloud.  Yes, there is 2.8" memory foam, then there is 5.2" of 'core foam' underneath.

There seems to be all this skepticism of 'polyurethane foam'.  Could you imagine there are probably many, many different grades and qualities of 'polyurethane foam'. ?   There are many, many different types of foam.  Look at the foam industry.  Look at The Carpenter Co.  They make tons of foam for tons of stuff.

The biggest reason many want latex is that it can be made all natural, from sap of rubber trees.  This is not the case with polyurethane foams which I believe originate from our good ol friend petroleum.

DO NOT assume that core foam is some kind of cheap, hard, low grade, breaks down piece of junk in the Tempurpedic.  Feel the sides of the core foam in the store check it out.  Bring a tape measure.  Does it actually measure out to be 5.2""   Does there seem to be 2.8" memory foam?

In a Tempurpedic, they will give you exactly what they advertise and this is not always true with another brand I can think of.

Like I said before the memory foam and the core foam are engineered to work together.  It is NOT like I sink down through the memory foam, then there's a hard, cheap slab of core foam that I lay on all night staring at the ceiling. NO.    It's a mattress.  It's made to support and be comfortable, and at this 7 weeks point, it is doing that better than any other mattress I have ever slept on.

AND.  I feel the foam is stabilized and not changing at all.  I really do not think the foam will change much.  I've had Tempurpedic pillows and they hold their feel for a long time.  I can't prove this about the mattress, only time will tell, but that's my hunch.

Look around at your major mattress stores.  How many latex beds do you see?  I'm not putting them down, but around here, they are an afterthought. 

Sleep Train, our biggest chain, 1 line of latex mattresses, Vera Wang

Mancinis - one line of latex Englander, you might see two or three of them in a store.

Tempurpedic, Sealy, Simmons memory foam mattresses are about 5 times or more common than latex,  I'm just saying.

One of the big motivators for people to get latex is that it can be made 'organic' or all natural which is not the case with memory foam, except for the claims of Essentia.

I don't think it's that you necessarilysink in further (that depends on thickness, density,etc...) , it's that good memory foam has an incredible ability to conform and mold precisely to what's in contact with it.  That's what they're trying to show with the hand impression in memory foam - it conforms very well and leaves almost an exact hand print.

If I lay on a realllly plush memory foam mattress (i.e. Revolution which has almost 6" of what seems not very dense memory foam), I sink a lot into it.  I can feel that in the store.

On this Cloud, I sink into it like any, roughly, 'medium' firmness mattress.  Everything feels about right.  Pillow is not too tall when sleeping on side.  My neck feels fine in morning.  Pressure relief and ability to sleep on my right shoulder ... awesome. 

About the 'harder' base layers.  When I feel the core foam of Cloud with my hand, it feels cushy also.  On the mattress, I have no sense of 'sinking through' the memory foam and feeling the core foam, no.  I just works for me.Also, although I might like to have a 'twice the cost' Rhapsody Bed, I do not feel I need a Rhapsody.  What I noticed about the Rhapsody is the HD memory foam conforms even more precisely than the regular or ES memory foam.  Rhapsody would probably work for me, but I'm just fine on regular Cloud Bed.

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Little note about the adjustable base.  I do think the adjustable base has a benefit over the fixed.  Just the ability to adjust it up and be so comfortable on my back was an awesome benefit.  I might purchase another adjustable base in a year or so.  I paid off this mattress, so I'll leave it at that for now.

I kept the latex on a good quality, Stearns and Foster box spring, slept back and forth between the latex and TP.  Although the latex felt ok, I totally felt how if I layed near the edge of the bed, I did not feel stable on the mattress.  I felt like I need to scoot back to the center (it's a twin mind you) of the bed.  I was using a typical, but decent quality mattress pad on it, while the cover also had quilt and wool filling.  I wanted to protect the mattress though.

I didn't like the inconsistency of feel on different areas of that mattress on that box spring. 

Maybe an all natural talalay from Natural Mattress Store would work better, BUT.........

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Last thing ........

Just make sure whatever you buy, have a good return policy.  90 days is good.  Be able to return it with no loss if it doesn't work out.  I don't like returning mattress, the stores hate it, but it happens. 

Don't do an exchange to another mattress at the same store.  That will almost always result in a final sale.  You do not want final sales on mattresses. 

 I have noticed that I sink in more then 2.8 inches on cloud delux mattress when I lay down on it on my back. It is just a guess that I am sinking in more then 2.8 inches.

But since I sleep on my side should I try laying down on my side and have someone measure that but how would they do that? Should i do this with every tempurpedic well may be except the contour series ( since they feel hard) and the cloud (since it is only 8 inches in height too low for me even with the foundation)

What about the cloud supreme? would that be the best fit for me?

The HD tempurpedic starts with rapshody and then goes to allura and grand bed.

What is the difference between allura and Rhapsody? Thanks in advance. Appreciate it. (keep in mind my height of 6 feet 2 inches, weight is 210 pounds now!, Side sleeper, disk herniated induced low back pain)

Thanks 

If you have a very favorite pillow, bring that along.  If the pillow feels low when laying on your side, it might be the mattress is too firm.  If the pillow feels awfully high, good chance the mattress is too soft.

You could pick out a conventional mattress that has a good feel to you whether firm or plush in some brand.  Get a feel for how much your hips and shoulders sink into the mattress.   Look for something in Tempurpedic that gives you about the same amount of sink.

Find a conventional bed whose firmness feels about right.  Sit near the edge and middle, see how that feels.  The right Tempurpedic should feel roughly the same when you sit on the edge and middle.  If you sink down in a lot more than a favorite conventional, I think that might be too soft.
 

True, the Cloud series is labeled as a soft feel because of the ES (Extra Soft) memory foam at top layer. 

I don't know if a Cloud Supreme would be a best fit for you.  I hope you can find a caring salesperson who could give you good assistance to find the right firmness.

I'll try to describe the iComfort Revolution and how it didn't work for me.  When I sat on the iComfort, I could tell my butt would sink down more than a typical conventional bed I would choose.  My pillow felt unusally tall when side sleeping.  I tried 4 or 5 pillows but my neck was out of whack after a couple weeks.   

Paula

• Foam is all about bubbles (called foam cells) when they are new mattreses, there wil always be a "conditioning" or break-in process... give yourselves anywhere from 3-6 weeks regardless of latex or memory foam.
• Latex, while still derived from the sap of a rubber tree (unless it is a blend which is chemically the same thing, just manufactured, not natural)
• When lying on your side, you typically have a hip and shoulder depression that will sink farther than your waist, head and knees
• If your body "sinks" in all the right places to make your spine rest in a relatively "straight" line (assuming your pillow is the proper pillow for that mattress)
• I have been teaching people for over 5 years that the spine is about 80% on the bed and about 20% on a pillow.... the right combination is crucial
• Also, if you are buying because someone "told" you this bed or that bed was good, you are doing yourself a disservice
• Ultimately if you are buying a reputable brand (do the research on the brand), it feels comfortable when you first get in (Initial Comfort), it feels good after about 12-15 minutes (long enough to let your back muscles recognize support), you have no mental fears or concerns and it is in the price range you are able to work with.... YOU FOUND THE PERFECT BED!
• If one of those four areas is falling short somehow, see if you can find a bed with similar physical repsonses but at a better price point (for example) then you can still find the right bed for you... price does not determine comfort, but you do get what you pay for (up to  point... after that, you are just payihg for luxury/excess items or features)

Now, the next part is Latex has been used in Europe for over 200 years so it is not "new"  when it comes to beds. What is new is how we Americans like "bigger, softer, better and typically expect higher prices without actually getting a better product.

Latex is derived from the sap of a rubber plant, (but memory foam is derived from petroleum) both need to have their bubbles (foam cells) conditioned in order to feel they way they were designed to feel. If, when you test the bed, it feels too firm... DON'T buy it! If it feels too soft... DON'T buy it! You need to feel comfortable when you test your bed and you need to be comfortable for the entire 12-15 minutes you try it with either your favorite pillow or the one the consultant has helped you find to be the best for your sleep position... if they can't do this... FIND another sleep center.

DO NOT LET SOMEONE TELL YOU WHAT IS COMFORTABLE... let your back (the one who yells at you when you wake up feeling like crap) tell you when it is comfortable.

I hope this has helped and that you Sleep Well "joed"!

Go to the next biggest retailer, Manicini's, they carry Englander latex.  I haven't been impressed or convinced lying on them.

Sears, Penneys and Macys, our major department stores virtually carry no latex models.  Yes, Sears has a Laura Ashley they carry, but it is a convolution of a bit of latex and a bunch of other suspect foams.

btw, the Vera Wangs latex never felt all that good to me in the $1600 price range.  Felt too firm and lot of pushback.

So, I bought a Tempurpedic Cloud at $1450 twin XL set.  Am I taking a risk with it being petroleum based and having a slight odor for quite some time?  Yes I am.  But I needed a mattress I can sleep on both sides on including a shoulder that will never be quite the same.  And this Tempurpedic is all around better than 4 other brand new mattress tried in home this year.  I won't be returning it and I see it lasting for quite a few years.  That's my testimony to Tempurpedic.