Need a new mattress--help!
Jul 24, 2010 9:54 AM
Joined: Jul 24, 2010
Points: 9
Hi

I am hoping someone can give me guidance about buying a new mattress.  First let me say that I just discovered this forum and am so glad to have found a resource for mattress information.  I would rather buy a used car at this point :)  I am on my 3rd replacement Kingsdown mattress. The first two were body systems in green and had latex toppers. After 6 months or so they developed massive ditches and were labeled defective by Kingsdown. They just sent me my third one, which is a series 800 and it is so firm that I am waking up with my shoulder and arm numb.  I've had it for three days and have yet to have a good night's sleep. The place I bought it at (not Sleepy's) does not carry any other brand, so I either get another Kingsdown or bite the bullet and buy a whole new mattress.  I'm at the point of buying the new mattress.

I am a fairly small woman--5'3 and about 130, yet I have pressure points on my shoulders (side sleeper) and lower back pain if not supported. I like a more cushioned top, but know the dangers of pillowtops and impressions.  Does anyone have suggestions as to the best manufacturers right now, where I will not have to replace the mattress in 6 months?! I have many brands available to me as I live in New Jersey and there are a lot of places to go to.  I am thinking of a Shifman since you can turn them, Sterns and Foster or a latex bed of some kind.  Thoughts? I would appreciate any feedback and so would my aching shoulders and back.

 

Thanks

Amy

Re: Need a new mattress--help!
Reply #1 Jul 24, 2010 10:23 AM
Joined: Oct 8, 2009
Points: 192
In the last 10 months i have owned and returned

 

2 Costcto Foam mattresses by Sleep Science, these are the cheap version of tempurpedic, problem was sleeps way too hot for me (whereever your body contacts the mattress, it is too warm) 

 

2 Tempurpedics, Rhapsody and Bellafina...in both cases too firm, heat issues not as bad but there, just wasnt comfortable

 

2 hotel mattresses (over a year ago) both thru serta, biggest mistake was returning the hampton suites mattress, it was the best

 

right now i have a serta perfect day, $2200 ca king, sleeps warm and starting to get back pain so i am about to return it and keep the costco/sleep science LATEX mattress, as that is the best of all...although i am tempted to get a 4 seasons pillow top, will the insanity never end...

Re: Need a new mattress--help!
Reply #2 Jul 24, 2010 6:29 PM
Joined: Aug 31, 2007
Points: 404
amysue30 wrote:

Hi

 

I'm at the point of buying the new mattress. What about trying a topper before going for a new bed?  2" of 14 ILD Talatech from sleeplikeabear might help (and is returnable if it doesn't work).

I am a fairly small woman--5'3 and about 130, yet I have pressure points on my shoulders (side sleeper) Is the 800 series zoned?  If so, at 5'3", the zones may not be appropriate for your body shape.



Re: Need a new mattress--help!
Reply #3 Jul 24, 2010 7:07 PM
Joined: Jul 24, 2010
Points: 9
I would try a topper, but the mattress is so high as it is that it is almost over my footboard.  I struggle to get in the thing! If I put a topper on it the height would be even worse.  Good question on the zoning--I don't know.  The first two Kingsdown  were very comfortable for me despite their inevitable decline.  They seem to have changed something where the top just does not feel good to me. I will ask someone about the zoning. Thanks.
Re: Need a new mattress--help!
Reply #4 Jul 24, 2010 7:54 PM
Location: Yosemite area
Joined: Sep 10, 2008
Points: 249
I feel for you.  Hard to say what is the best thing to do at this point.  Your mattress is too firm right now, but if it settles and gets softer like the other two did, it could be just right in six months.  Ask the salesman what the actual difference is between the mattresses you had and the one you have now and assess what is likely to happen.

New beds can be firmer than they will become!  My mattress, custom made, was quite a lot firmer when it was brand new than it is now.  I am also a side/back sleeper, 125# woman.  The bed was a lot different than the floor model to me.  However, it did eventually soften to the point it is comfy. 

I did such things as walking on it while twisting my feet(to soften any glues), jumped on it a bit, and finally used some polyfill toppers(not that thick but cushioned enough to side sleep).  Eventually the toppers felt too soft and I was able to sleep on the mattess without them.  The mattess softened while I slept on top of the toppers. 

I'd try that if you were out of options.  It might be a good bed with time if the components are good...

Kait

Re: Need a new mattress--help!
Reply #5 Jul 24, 2010 8:02 PM
Joined: Aug 31, 2007
Points: 404
I'm thinking of ways to save you the trauma and expense of buying a new mattress.  If you determine that the coil system is not zoned inappropriately to your body shape (I'm short-waisted and know all about zoned mattresses not being for everyone), you might want to consider mattress surgery, where you remove the comfort layer materials on top of the coils and substitute a topper more to your liking, thereby not making the mattress any higher than it already is.  You could do a search here under "mattress surgery" because there is an extensive discussion by those here who have done so.  I know it sounds daunting and if $ are not a major concern for you and you are able to sell your current mattress, then maybe starting all over again is your best option.
Re: Need a new mattress--help!
Reply #6 Jul 25, 2010 9:01 AM
Joined: Jul 24, 2010
Points: 9
I spoke to someone about my mattress yesterday and he said that it is a zoned mattress.  The other two were supposed to be zoned as well.  One difference between this one and the others is that it now has a pocket coil system and more latex with a layer of memory foam as well.  Maybe that is the difference that I am feeling.  Perhaps I will check Bed Bath and Beyond for some kind of topper to try, since they are returnable should I decide to ditch this bed.  The money loss does not make me happy, but I think that a good night's sleep is extremely important. That said, how does everyone feel about Shifman? I may go and look at them to see if one is even an option.
Re: Need a new mattress--help!
Reply #7 Jul 30, 2010 10:34 PM
Joined: Sep 8, 2007
Points: 330
I was dismayed to find that my mattress dwarfed the footboard, but still I put a topper on it--two of them, actually. I'm so glad I did. I put one inch of memory foam (purchased from Overstock) on the bed, and then topped that with one inch of latex (also from Overstock). Each topper cost $40 in 2006.

Everything has held up well over the past four years. My mattress (a Lemoyne Sleeper Trizone) still supports my back, and the foam toppers still look and feel like new. When I think back to what came before it (five returned mattresses), it amazes me that I've reached this happy state.

Alisande

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