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Hello All, About 27 months ago, I bought a Sealy Posturepedic Gray Haven Cushion Firm (twin XL set with box spring) from Art Van. I slept okay for a year or so, but since, I've been waking up after about 5-6 hours from low and middle back pain, and my arms some times fall asleep. Matress does not show visible impressions, but my hips drop when I lay on this matress, and it's killing me. I purchased a 1½" thick Dunlop latex topper from Overstock, and placed it on top of this matress. Overall, I liked the feel, springy and supportive. I kept the topper for about a month, and returned it - still having back trouble. I then tried a 1" thick Latex International 24 ILD Talatech topper from Sleep Like a Bear (great service). I bottomed this out, so I returned this as well. I visited a matress store recently after visiting this forum, and it finally hit me. I was placing denser foam toppers on top of the less dense foam in my matress. This evening, I cut open the Sealy matress (thank you forum for the idea). I took photos, but am having trouble inserting them into this post. Matress construction (if you can call it that) is as follows, from top to bottom: 1. Quilted foam top, foam is fairly dense, overall height is about 1½" 2. 1/2" thick piece of poly foam, very soft 3. 1½" to 2" thick piece of poly foam, egg crate style, very soft 4. 1/2" thick piece of soft memory foam 5. Paper thin piece of fabric on top of innerspring unit 6. 6" thick innerspring unit, appears to have four (4) turns Overall height of matress is about 10½" to 11" high. Me: 42 years old, very fit, 5" - 11", 165-170 lbs. Sleep on my back most of the time, some times on my stomach, but not on my side. I can either purchase another matress from a local matress company (probably innerspring again, but higher quality which can be flipped, with thin, but dense 32-36 ILD, 2.8# PU top layer, and add a latex topper (2" latex @ about 20-24 ILD plus wool). This may work, but will cost about a grand (new matress 600, new box spring 155, new latex/wool topper overlay 240). I like this idea because I can try different toppers, and hopefully fine tune the overall feel of the matress without being stuck. Wife loves me, but says a grand is too much, so I am thinking I'll pull a Colonel Steve Austin, and rebuild this Sealy matress (if it makes sense). I'd like the finished height of the matress to be in the 10" to 11" range, and would prefer to spend less than $ 400. The matress can be covered by an existing king size matress pad (wife's twin XL Sealy sits next to mine). Lots of options to consider. I could: 1. Purchase a 2" thick piece of LI Talalay latex, 32 to 36 ILD, and place on top of my innerspring 2. Place a 1½" thick piece of Overstock dunlop latex or 2" LI latex (24 ILD) on top of the 32-36 ILD piece 3. Cover it with a basic matress cover to hold it together Forum members, I value your input. Could you please share your thoughts? I've purchased about eight (8) new matresses in the last 12 years, and just can seem to find the "one." I have purchased: 1. Air bed (expensive back killer), similar to Select Comfort 2. All Talalay latex bed, another expensive back killer. This bed was not zoned latex, hips dropped, arms fell asleep. Felt like a brick. 3. Kingsdown, looked like a tuffet, I slept well on this, wife did not. Thank God we went to a king bed, (2) twin XL's. My wife is happy with her Sealy. 4. Various other innerspring matresses.
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I think you are on the right track. Your problems are probably due to the junk foam inside the Sealy. I think putting 2" (or possibly even 3") of 32ILD talalay as a base is pretty good. Then you can add 1-2" of 24ILD talalay. If you want to go with dunlop, you might have to adjust these numbers slightly, since dunlop tends to feel firmer for the same ILD. You did specify how firm you want it, but as a back/stomach sleeper I assume you may want it fairly firm? So, the final decisions on what you need come down to your own personal preferences. Most people need some trial and error to get it right. Therefore, working in 1" increments for the top level allow for more fine tuning. 2 1" pieces of 24ILD will allow for more fine tuning, but will cost more as well. I like the 100% natural talalay I bought from Rockymountainmattress. I am not sure what you have in mind for a "mattress cover", but a good idea is a washable wool filled mattress pad. The brands I have read about are Natura, St. Dormier, LL Bean. You can just put that over the latex, and I have found you don't really need anything else to hold it together. Latex stays in place pretty well. Do you know where your Sealy falls in their brand lineup? Signature? Reserve? Preferred? Other? |
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First of all, from the FAQ: A - How to insert pictures: Please go to the trouble, we love to see photos of mattress surgeries! I can add the url to your thread to my highlighted thread at the top of the forum (I think I can...) Anyway, I think you're on the right track. Some thoughts: If you are sleeping on Dunlop you must like a very firm mattress so with Talalay lean towards firmer rather than softer. a 32ILD Dunlop is equivalent to about a 40ILD Talalay, in my estimation. Talalay is MUCH springier so take that into account. Don't worry too much about the height of the mattress unless you or your wife are really sticklers about the way the thing looks for some reason. The way I see it, how many people see your bedroom? and if it one side is a bit lower, what's the big deal? (Unless you're trying to hide the fact that you have seperate twins together.) Liberate yourself from the tyranny of other people's judgment! You may want to even try the Dunlop under a Talalay with higher ILD since Dunlop has a different feel and different support. Experiment. Once you buy the latex you can try various configurations. I recommend buying latex in 1" increments so that you have more flexibility in trying various layers under or above other layers. 2 x 1" = 1 x 2" but the 2 x 1" gives you more options for adjustments. Good luck! (and please post photos!) p.s. which all latex mattress did you try that you hated? and why? Was it natural latex? Dunlop or Talalay? DIY or pre-fab? |
The main thing is to find a mattress that works for you.