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Okay, I finally found a combination of latex layers that works for me! As noted in another post I started out with a "medium" firm sealed latex mattress from a local retailer (Gardner Mattress in Salem, MA) This was 8 inches of "medium" latex which felt wonderful but caused me to "bottom out" on the foundation it came with. I'm 5' 10" and about 260 lbs. I returned it for a "firm" mattress from the same company and received an 8 inch latex mattress what now felt TOO firm but seemed to solve the bottoming out issue. I kept this mattress and found it okay with a 2 inch memory foam topper, but was still not fully satisfied, since I wanted that plush latex feeling. I just spent my first night on a 3 inch "medium" topper and LOVE my bed now! Nice feel, no bottoming out, and the sheets fit perfectly. For all you HEAVY people out there, here is what works for me: 5.5 inches of 40 ILD core talalay latex (blended I think, from Gardner Mattress) 2.5 inches of 32 ILD blended talalay (From Gardner Mattress) Covered with high quality cotton and wool cover. 3.0 inches of "medium 100% natural talalay 24-28 ILD from Foam Sweet Foam. I don't have any major back issues so don't expect a problem from the fairly soft top layer. This mignt not work if you have major back issues, though it seems quite supportive in the 100% natural latex. Also, I don't see a lot of talk on this forum about "Foam Sweet Foam" but I found them a good company to deal with. I sent a couple of emails for advice and received prompt shipment of exactly what I wanted. If I had it all to do over again, I would probably order the entire mattress from them and buy a foundation locally. Total cost for those who are wondering: $1999. queen mattress and foundation (solid metal framed unit) from Gardner Mattress $400. queen topper from Foam Sweet Foam $2399 total. This total seems comparable to what an online mattress and foundation of this thickness would have cost. I hope I am done now! hahaha |
| Eagle, I kind of figured thats how you read it. It's nice when someone like you already has a platform or surface to put their mattress on without having to pay even more for a "foundation". One of the deciding factors in my buying locally was that I didn't like the idea of assembling a wooden foundation that was shipped in pieces. Somehow this didn't seem as sturdy as what was available locally. BUT, if I had it to do all over again, I would buy the foundation locally and order the mattress in layers from Flobeds or other online dealer. |
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markbnh1 wrote: Eagle, I kind of figured thats how you read it. It's nice when someone like you already has a platform or surface to put their mattress on without having to pay even more for a "foundation". One of the deciding factors in my buying locally was that I didn't like the idea of assembling a wooden foundation that was shipped in pieces. Somehow this didn't seem as sturdy as what was available locally. BUT, if I had it to do all over again, I would buy the foundation locally and order the mattress in layers from Flobeds or other online dealer. Yes Mark I decided that it didn't make any sense to throw away a perfectly good and sturdy foundation, and pay what I feel is a rather high price for something that might not prove to be as good. The thing about a waterbed is that water weighs 8 pounds per gallon and most king-size mattresses utilize at least 100 gallons or more. Since I weigh 210 pounds were looking at over 1000 pounds of weight that have to be supported by the mattress, foundation and metal support base. My support base is very strong as it has a steel perimeter, steel down the middle of the bed length ways, then laterally a steel bar across the center of the bed. And this is setting on nine steel legs. I have always felt that more than likely one of difficulties that some people are experiencing with their latex mattresses, may have to do with their support base flexing too much. The reason I say this is that when you're trying to figure out what firmness you want in six different layers of latex you don't need to throw in the equation a flexing base. There was an excellent post some weeks ago by a member, I can't recall his name now, who went so far as to actually put a jack under his base plus mattress in the middle of his bed and jacket it up 1/8 inch. He said it made all the difference in the world the way his bed felt to him. Interesting! This message was modified Jan 16, 2010 by eagle2
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