Foam by Mail latex & Latex International latex comparison
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I finally got around to taking some photos of my latex. I own a king sized latex bed. Half of it is Latex International [LI] latex and half of it is Foam by Mail [FBM] latex. The LI side consists of: 3" blended talalay 44 ILD 3" blended talalay 36 ILD 2" natural talalay 32 ILD The FBM side consists of: 6" talalay Firm 2" talalay Soft Here are some photos:  FBM on the left and LI on the right. You can see the obvious difference in quality.  FBM core in the cover.  FBM cover cut open.  FBM core brown spots and other inconsistencies.  FBM core random pincore holes, cut side view.  FBM soft topper random hole patterns.  FBM topper short, should be 80" long  FBM core short.  FBM invoice with my personal information covered up.  LI 32 ILD natural talalay topper tag.  LI 36 ILD blended talalay tag.  LI 44 ILD blended talalay tag. In general, my thoughts are: Latex International has very high quality latex. If/when I purchase future latex, I will pony up the extra cash for all LI latex. Unfortunately it was impractical to return my FBM latex. The problems with returning were 1) extremely difficult to package, 2) expensive to ship, 3) after paying return shipping, 25% of the cost is deducted and then the initial FBM shipping cost is deducted, which leaves little value left for the struggle. I don't work for LI, I am a consumer of bedding. I thought sharing my experiences would be helpful to others deciding where to buy their latex. Feel free to ask any questions. |
Re: Foam by Mail latex & Latex International latex comparison
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Jim, Thanks for sharing the differences in the Latex. I only know I had tried a Dunlap latex topper and the quality was not there for that topper. My Latex from FloBeds.com is the quality on the right with the same tags since it is from Latex International. The quality of my Latex 1" topper from Brylane homes also looks like the right side and is very nice. My bed is very comfortable to sleep on but since I am a side sleeper and very petite, I wanted a little bit of cushion but not too much so I could feel the very firm layers of the latex underneath the toppers. Each side has one blended latex Super Firm (44 ILD with one of the cores averaging at 46 ILD like I requested) and two natural Talalay Latex Cores with my Natural Latex Topper over this. I am very chemically sensitive but the blended latex did not bother my allergies at all from Latex International. I had previous had to give away a manmade latex pillow I bought online that bothered my allergies. I sleep on Natural Talalay Latex Standard Pillows from Overstock and they are made well also. You are such an asset to this forum for always sharing what you learn. Thank you. |
Re: Foam by Mail latex & Latex International latex comparison
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My experience with FBM is totally the opposite from Jim's. I'm sorry you have had so much trouble and didn't like the product. Not sure why you didn't raise the kind of issues you are presenting here - with the FBM company. There are ways to get companies to do things if you think you have been dealt a bad hand, or misrepresented. The latex pieces I received are not perfect either. I posted pictures of them and my setup right after I got them. They are not short like yours though. I never really expected to get top quality latex without any imperfections, being that I was paying about half of what other companies were charging. I really thought I was going to get a factory second. I didn't really care what it looked like, within reason. I cared that it did what it was supposed to do and that was to support us and be comfortable. It has done that very well and is without a doubt one of the best deals I have gotten on any product in the last several years. $998 for 8" of latex with a pad thrown in. Please show me 8" of king size latex anywhere near that in price. I can afford to get any mattress I want and after reasearching it thoroughly, and with some encouragement, I went for the good deal and bought the FBM mattress with its few flaws. The flaws affect in no way the performance of the latex mattress. I would do it again tomorrow. My latex bed is without a doubt the best bed I've every owned, and I wasn't born yesterday. Bill |
Re: Foam by Mail latex & Latex International latex comparison
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hi MequonJim, just curious why you ordered foam from two different places...? Was it to compare them, or to get different firmnesses? I've read posts from people who have FBM products, and though there seem to be visible imperfections, they seem genuinely pleased with how the foam feels and supports. I guess i'm just a bit confused now, as i had been planning to order from FBM...probably still will. |
Re: Foam by Mail latex & Latex International latex comparison
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just joined this forum. good info. i've been reading for about a week got a question why do you need a topper why not just the base ? why not buy the base in what you like firm,soft or med. i hope that the foam by mail is a good place thats where i plan on getting my stuff from. |
Re: Foam by Mail latex & Latex International latex comparison
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electracat wrote: hi MequonJim, just curious why you ordered foam from two different places...? Was it to compare them, or to get different firmnesses? Hi electracat, I ordered from www.memoryfoam.com originally because I had purchased from Mark before, and I knew he was a straight shooter. Also his prices were reasonable for brand name foams. I ordered the topper from www.foamsource.com because Mark did not carry the 100% natural talalay, and that is what I wanted in contact with my body. After I slept on that half of the bed for a long time, I knew that I liked latex, and I had an idea of what might feel good on the other side. Slightly less firm topper and a firm core. Having read somewhat favorable reviews on this site about FBM, I took the plunge, considering the low prices of FBM for latex. This site is here to educate consumers about purchasing mattresses. I posted my experience with latex to help other people understand what I have learned as a consumer of latex. |
Re: Foam by Mail latex & Latex International latex comparison
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cycomom13 wrote: why do you need a topper why not just the base ? why not buy the base in what you like firm,soft or med In my experience, a firm base is too firm to sleep on without a softer topper. I have had other foam beds which were completely medium and they did not provide adequate support. Meaning, I woke up with back aches. In my experience it is best to layer from soft to medium to firm (top to bottom), which provides the most comfort while maintaining adequate support. |
Re: Foam by Mail latex & Latex International latex comparison
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Great post! It does vary greatly from BillB's experience and his quality looks much better than yours. All the same, it was great to see the difference, and I appreciate your effort in putting together this post. I am 6'5" and definitely need a mattress that is 80" .... I bought a latex topper from Ikea and returned it for a second one ... only to have both SHORT and not WIDE enough ... Will have to consider my options. |
Re: Foam by Mail latex & Latex International latex comparison
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Very interesting. I've never seen irregular latex like that. All the latex I have ever seen was very regular in terms of how the holes are placed. I take it you did not know the piece was short until you'd had it awhile. Otherwise, were it me, I'd have considered making them send me one the right size at their expense. I have some concern as to whether or not that FBM piece is truly Talalay because I have never seen Talalay irregular like that. Looks more like "jungle latex" to me. That said, I once laid on some jungle latex and liked the feel of it better than Talalay... (I use the term "jungle latex" as I've read it here in the past, to signify latex that is all natural and usually comes from Malaysia or India (?) or some exotic country.) |
Re: Foam by Mail latex & Latex International latex comparison
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I just received my FBM foam layers. The foam looked quickly hand-cut. The holes looked uneven like on the core above. Mine did not have brown spots though. I ordered 80" and the 7 pieces (1" thick) I ordered averaged 80.5" Comparing the 20ILD and 32ILD 1" latex toppers I just received from them: - The 20ILD looks homogenous. Not sure why the holes in them aren't perfectly evenly spaced. Functionality isn't affected one bit of course, but it's still weird their molds don't give them evenly spaced holes. -The 32ILD looks like the 20 ILD on top, with a thin and noticeably DENSE layer at the bottom. I guess this is what Dunlop latex looks like? That said, the price was excellent, and I applaud FBM for making a comfortable night's sleep affordable for broke college students like myself. |
Re: Foam by Mail latex & Latex International latex comparison
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Based on this thread I just took a closer look at the FBM latex topper I purchased a few months ago. IMHO they are selling "factory seconds" with their latex. While I believe the defects won't alter the overall performance of the latex, I believe that FBM is not truthfully disclosing the the nature of their products, which would also explain the lower cost of their latex products. The 3" topper I received looks similar to the pics posted here with the irregular pinhole patterns (but no brown spots), mine was sized properly at least! I believe that they are taking the 6" cores and sloppily cutting these down to make their latex toppers. I did just notice that on one area of the topper edge there is a "patched" section comprising a 6" x 2" section of latex (different color) that was glued into the topper to patch a hole that appears to have been made when someone pulled the latex, ripping the edge. Overall, I'm ok with the topper thanks to the price, but there isn't any way they are selling first quality products.... |