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Hi everyone! First post here. My wife and I are seriously in need of a new mattress and after researching and locally investigating sleep number, inner spring, and latex... we have decided to give latex a try. We will be ordering a King size in the next 2 weeks from an online store, probably SleepEZ, Flobeds or Habitat. Though I like the idea of the "stacker" style mattress, my wife is concerned that this will make it more complex & confusing (too many options) to figure out what we are most happy with. Basically that we will be constantly tweaking and second guessing the layer combinations instead of just enjoying and letting ourselves adjust. For this reason I am at least looking into a couple of ready to go "solid" mattresses before deciding which to buy. Habitat appears to make a nice mattress in this style, but they seem overpriced for the thickness of latex and the cover that you get for the money. I guess you are paying for the "organic" factor with them. SleepEZ makes a "factory special" 1 piece 8" mattress that seems to directly compete with the Habitat 8" mattress for $804.00 less in King size. Both appear to be constructed of a combination of organic "Sri-Lankan" Dunlop and Talalay. The SleepEZ has an even more minimalistic cover, but that certainly doesn't justify the huge price difference, right? I mean, I can put a super nice wool cover on it for way less than that. Any experience or thoughts on these mattresses or why the Habitat is worth 800 bucks more? Here are URLs for each product in question. |
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Sleepez is a good product as well, I bought the Sleepez 10000 for my daughter. There are some differences between the Flobeds and the Sleepez that might matter to some, might not matter to others: 1) The Sleepez cover is not nearly as nice as the Flobeds cover. Flobeds = soft knit cotton quilted to wool on all sides of the mattress. Sleepez = woven cotton with wool quilted to only the top. It's servicable and looks like a mattress cover, it's just not as luxurious as the Flobeds cover. 2) Sleepez = 3 layers (well 3 layers on each side). Flobeds = 3 layers (on each side) plus a 2" soft convoluted topper. When my daughter got her Sleepez mattress they recommended a standard soft/medium/firm configuration. It works for her, but IMO 3" of soft is much too soft for most people. It definitely would not have worked for me. I like the Flobeds model better, where you have your three core layers and the soft topper for some cusioning. For all intents and purposes, the Sleepez is really two layers plus a topper. 3) Flobeds charges for delivery, and Sleepez does not. This makes a price difference. 4) Flobeds posts the return and exchange policy on their website as this: unlimited layer exchanges, and full refund (less shipping) within 90 days if not satisfied. Sleepez, last time they looked, posts a return/exchange policy that allows ONE exchange, full refund (less shipping) within 90 days. People have called Sleepez and they have verbally said that more than one exchange is allowed. Just get them to put that in writing to you in an email before you buy. 5) You should know that the Flobeds is easier to set up than the Sleepez. This is because Flobeds individually wraps each latex layer, which makes it easy to carry each compressed layer up to your bedroom, unwrap it, and place it on the bed. These layers are heavy, at 20-30 lbs each. With Sleepez the entire bed comes wrapped together, making it extremely heavy, and when you cut the plastic, whooosh, it all expands, and now you have to carry an expanded latex layer to your bedroom. This is not a dealbreaker, you just need to be aware that the packaging method makes the Sleepez much more awkward than the Flobed. With the Flobed, you are also able to keep the bags the layers are packed in, so if you need to make an exchange, they are easy to put in the bag, compress, and mail back. I kept all my bags, because if we ever move, I will be able to wrap and pack each of the six layers and the topper individually, making the mattress that much easier to move. With the Sleepez, I guess you'd have to find some giant bags, or put the mattress in a mattress cover and move it as one unit. If you need to exchange a layer, this is easy, because Flobeds will mail you the label, you just pack the layer, slap the label on, and drop it off at a UPS store. I'm not sure how easy Sleepez makes it, because I didn't do any layer exchanges with the Sleepez bed my daughter has. |
| By the way, Flobeds recommended a zoned mattress for me too - I'm over 250 lbs. However, I just went with a straight mattress and it's great. If you don't think you need a zoned mattress, you might not. |
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Kimberly is correct (as usual!). I would also recommend that you go with an online dealer for a latex bed. I bought my 100% finished latex bed from a very reputable local mfg company (Gardner Mattress in Salem, MA). The first bed was a "medium" firmness model which felt great in the store but I found that I bottomed out on it while sleeping. I'm about 245 lbs and the mattress was 8.5 inches thick. I used my comfort exchange for a "firm" model and the owner made sure I didn't bottom out this time.....the bed felt like a rock to me! So after spending over $2000 already, I was forced to order another 3 inch medium firm topper from an online company for $400. It's very comfortable now that I have almost 12 inches of latex with a medium layer on top. As Kimberly said, I wish I had the flexibility of a layered mattress from the beginning. Good luck in your hunt for the perfect mattress! |
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Wow Kimberly... that is very helpful... thank you! I read some of that info in other posts but some of it is new to me.
"1) The Sleepez cover is not nearly as nice as the Flobeds cover. Flobeds = soft knit cotton quilted to wool on all sides of the mattress. Sleepez = woven cotton with wool quilted to only the top. It's servicable and looks like a mattress cover, it's just not as luxurious as the Flobeds cover." With either mattress I had budgeted to put a Dormier wool protector on top anyway. Hopefully this will be a bit of an equalizer regarding the "niceness" of the SleepEZ cover. "2) Sleepez = 3 layers (well 3 layers on each side). Flobeds = 3 layers (on each side) plus a 2" soft convoluted topper. When my daughter got her Sleepez mattress they recommended a standard soft/medium/firm configuration. It works for her, but IMO 3" of soft is much too soft for most people. It definitely would not have worked for me. I like the Flobeds model better, where you have your three core layers and the soft topper for some cusioning. For all intents and purposes, the Sleepez is really two layers plus a topper." If I was to go with the SleepEZ 10,000, I was thinking I could add a 1" soft Talaylay topper for around 120 bucks if we felt it was necessary... this might get us in the ballpark of the Flobeds 3 cores + convolute arrangement for around 750 less. "3) Flobeds charges for delivery, and Sleepez does not. This makes a price difference." Very good point. "4) Flobeds posts the return and exchange policy on their website as this: unlimited layer exchanges, and full refund (less shipping) within 90 days if not satisfied. Sleepez, last time they looked, posts a return/exchange policy that allows ONE exchange, full refund (less shipping) within 90 days. People have called Sleepez and they have verbally said that more than one exchange is allowed. Just get them to put that in writing to you in an email before you buy." Yeah, definitely one of the Flobed selling points. On split mattresses SleepEZ will actually do 1 exchange per side. Assuming an exchange is necessary, this should give us plenty of combinations to try before deciding which 2 halves to send back. I have yet to read an account of either company leaving a customer dissatisfied because of layer exchange policies so I'm not too worried about it. One offsetting benefit of SleepEZ is that they only send new foam for exchange. Not a big deal to me, but once again the wife has a thing about that. "5) You should know that the Flobeds is easier to set up than the Sleepez. This is because Flobeds individually wraps each latex layer, which makes it easy to carry each compressed layer up to your bedroom, unwrap it, and place it on the bed. These layers are heavy, at 20-30 lbs each. With Sleepez the entire bed comes wrapped together, making it extremely heavy, and when you cut the plastic, whooosh, it all expands, and now you have to carry an expanded latex layer to your bedroom. This is not a dealbreaker, you just need to be aware that the packaging method makes the Sleepez much more awkward than the Flobed. With the Flobed, you are also able to keep the bags the layers are packed in, so if you need to make an exchange, they are easy to put in the bag, compress, and mail back. I kept all my bags, because if we ever move, I will be able to wrap and pack each of the six layers and the topper individually, making the mattress that much easier to move. With the Sleepez, I guess you'd have to find some giant bags, or put the mattress in a mattress cover and move it as one unit. If you need to exchange a layer, this is easy, because Flobeds will mail you the label, you just pack the layer, slap the label on, and drop it off at a UPS store. I'm not sure how easy Sleepez makes it, because I didn't do any layer exchanges with the Sleepez bed my daughter has." Not a big deal to me... heck, for that price differential I would expect Flobeds to include more premium packaging. This message was modified Aug 19, 2010 by Ganderson
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All good points. The Sleepez is a fine quality mattress, and my daughter is happy with hers. I would suggest if you go that route, seeing as you are over 200 lbs, that you order your layers (at least on your side) on the firmer size. Even a very firm latex mattress has some resiliance to provide cushioning against pressure points. My Flobed is three layers of 36 ILD latex (+ the topper). My husband, who weighs ~ 180lbs, has two layers of 36 ILD and one layer of 32 ILD. Also, an important point to be aware of is that Sleepez and Flobeds seem to define "soft," "medium," and "firm" differently. Be sure to look on both websites and note the ILD ranges for the s-m-f designations. What is firm on Flobeds' website is medium on Sleepez, for example (or it might be the other way around). One more anecdote I will share. My first latex bed purchase was actually a premade latex mattress from a local mattress store. I didn't realize what firmness I needed, I was told the floor model was 32 ILD, it was comfortable, and I ordered it. When the mattress came, I was bottoming out. I called them and the mattress they sent was only 28 ILD - waaay too soft for my heavy body. This company offered 30 days of "comfort exchanges," and they wanted to take it back and put a firmer layer inside. However, how was I to know whether the next try would be firm enough? Maybe yes, maybe no. It was going to take them a week to pick the mattress up, change it, and send it back to me. With only a 30 day comfort exchange policy, I would at most have been able to do a few exchanges, and it might never have been right . . .and then $2k wasted, flushed down the toilet. I got them to agree to take the mattress back, turned around and called Flobeds, and have had nothing but exceptional service and a mattress that is exactly the right firmness for my needs. Like I said before, I never did an exchange with Sleepez, but you are correct, I don't think I've heard any complaints about their customer service either. |
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KimberlyH wrote: 1) The Sleepez cover is not nearly as nice as the Flobeds cover. Flobeds = soft knit cotton quilted to wool on all sides of the mattress. Sleepez = woven cotton with wool quilted to only the top. It's servicable and looks like a mattress cover, it's just not as luxurious as the Flobeds cover. The reason I ask is that I've had an opportunity to try out several makes and models of finished latex mattresses (many of them side by side), and the one that felt best was the Royal Pedic with its wonderful, thick quilted cotton/wool cover with a large weave pattern. It may seem like a small detail in the grand scheme of things but none of the other talalay mattresses felt as luxurious despite some otherwise-similar firmness levels. The Royal Pedic seemed nice overall but is very expensive with no comfort guarantees etc, so I'm wondering if any of the stacker brands come with quilted covers that can compare as I think this is an important point for us.
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