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First, thanks to all contributiors for the very helpful information in this forum. Reading through various posts I have been able to approach buying a latex topper from a much more knowledgeable position. Before making a final purchase though, I would like to run by what I have found out. I live in Nicaragua and shipping costs/delays and customs make returning a topper for exchange or refund an expensive and lengthy process. Your advice and suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Background: My wife and I have a 5 year old Queen size mattress that still appears to be in good shape - no dips, bumps or springs poking through and foam topping still seems resilent. It was manufactured by Indufoam (El Salvador for Central American market) and is non-flip, bonnel spring based, foam topped (approx. 1 1/2" of who knows what kind of foam). The mattress was bought as a firm mattress and we have been (until recent months) very happy with it. I think the problem is we are showing our age (59,60) moreso than the mattress. We are 5'11"/5'8" and 185/140 lbs respectively and generally side sleepers. Starting about 10 months ago my wife started feeling hip pain when sleeping and I have recently developed busitis in my hips and am feeling hip pain when sleeping on my side as well. For both of us the pain is sufficient to wake us up and make for a very restless night. When travelling and staying in hotels we have noticed that toppers (foam or foam/feather combo - type unknown) with a thickness of about 1.5"-2" have been very comfortable (ie. no hip pain or greatly reduced). I think a topper of 2" would be right for us and I like the idea expressed by some on this forum to combine 2 one inch layers of different ILDs instead of a single 2" topper (a chance to shuffle layers if not exactly right, important given the difficulty in our case to exchange layers). What I have found out: Lots of vendors out there and thanks to this forum I was able to narrow it down to a few that seemed reputable, knowledgeable and more customer focused than others. SleepEZ - talked with Shaun; very helpful. Recommended a blended Talalay; two 1" layers - one 20 ILD and the other 30 ILD. Said that in 1" stock all they had were 20 and 30 ILD. Sleep Like A Bear - talked with Evelyn; very helpful. Recommended (leaned toward) a blended Talalay (also have 100% Natural Talalay and Celsion Talalay); two 1" layers - one 14 ILD and the other 19 ILD. Liked everthing about SLAB (customer service, price OK, warranty, knowledge, web site, etc) but their recommendation seems to be on the soft side. We like a firm feel in a bed; we just want to relieve pressure points on our hips. foamsource - talked with Casey; helpful, if you have the right questions. Recommended a 100% natural Talalay (also have a 100% natural? Dunlop topper); one 2" layer of 30-34 ILD (only have 2" and 3" toppers in 22-26 soft, 30-34 medium and 38-42 firm). Plushbeds - talked with Michael; helpful, if you have the right questions. Recommended a 100% natural Talalay (only option); one 2" layer of 24-26 ILD (only have 2" and 3" toppers in 18-21 super soft, 24-26 medium and 34-36 firm). Rocky Mountain Mattress - couldn't get past their call center. They only take messages and then RMM returns calls. Since we can only make calls through Skype this doesn't work for us. (email an akward option as well) Your comments, suggestions: Except for SLAB, the general consensus from the above vendors (and others not on my short list for various reasons) for our weight and situation (like firm mattress but want some plushness for pressure point/hip pain relief) seems to be a single, 2" topper in the mid 20s low 30s ILD. For two 1" toppers it seems to be one in the 18-21 ILD range and the other in the 28-32 ILD range. Some of these recommendations could be restricted by limited stock. I liked Sleep Like A Bear. They had the widest selection of stock however the suggested ILDs seemed on the soft side compared to what othes in this forum have experienced and the recommendations of other vendors. Your thoughts and suggestions would be appreciated. Also, for shipping purposes, I've been told that the shipping weight and dimensions for 2" of Queen topper (or 2 1" toppers combined) range from 20lbs and 5"x18"x24" (SLAB) to 30-40lbs and 17"x17"x38" (SleepEZ). Friends from the US are visiting us and said they would deliver the toppers as one of their checked luggage items. As long as the weight is less than 50lbs its OK. The maximum dimension (without an oversize charge) is 62" (length + width + height). SLAB is the only one that qualifies on dimension but their package seems very small compared to nearly everybody else who are more in SleepEZ's range. Your experience with shipping dimensions and weight would also be appreciated. Thanks for taking a look at my post. I hope that through it and your replies it will add to the collection of helpful info in this forum. I'll be sure to post my decision and also to follow up with updates on how the toppers are working out. This message was modified Apr 2, 2011 by Morpheus
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Just to close this thread out. We have had the toppers for about a month. The results have been fantastic. I used to wake up several times a night due to pain in my hips and try to find a comfortable position. This rarely happens now and when it does its a relatively minor level of discomfort. The improvement for my wife is even greater. She used to wake up almost in tears and for the last month nada, waking up well rested and ready for the day. Even after the first few nights we slept much better. I did change the ILDs of the toppers though and went with the 19 and 24 one inch Talalay toppers from Sleep Like A Bear. I just had a gut feeling that the 14-19 combo would be too soft. In fact when I first opened the packages and squeezed the toppers between my fingers I thought oops, screwed this up and should have gone even firmer. However, on the bed with the 19 over the 24, it worked very well--no pressure points on hips and shoulders and yet when lying on our sides there was also support for the rib area, thighs and lower legs. The toppers were comfortably supportive over our whole body length and even though a tiny bit "cradling" do not feel overly plush. Similarly, sleeping on our backs, the support is great, with no sagging (swaybacking) under the center of our backs. All in all, the original mattress was still in good condition except that the top foam layer had probably deteriorated (as had our joints as well). The toppers replaced the function of the original foam layer or, rather, exceeded/excelled in the function of top foam layer. And, if it wasn't for the fact that it was practically impossible for me to return the toppers (live in Nicaragua) I would probably have gone with the 14-19 ILD combo, for a more "plush" feel. But, then again, the 19-24 combo did the trick and we're happy. A final note. We are very happy with the toppers from Sleep Like A Bear. Evelyn, the customer service rep with whom I dealt with was very helpful. Even when UPS was screwing up the delivery she got onto them about the urgency of getting our particular shipment delivered (after 12 days in transit somewhere in south western US, our friend had to track down the UPS truck in a mall parking lot on her way to the airport to catch her flight to visit us, and deliver the toppers). |
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Morpheus, so glad the soft toppers helped. I never had cushion or toppers over my firm mattresses in the past until I bought my first latex bed in 2007 and I love having a soft topper with firmness underneath that really makes for a good night's sleep. Thanks for the update and so glad it worked out for you and your wife. Eating dinner as I wait for my next client. I love happy endings. |