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I've been researching and I'm not able get a general idea of a 100% natural latex mattress would cost. Price varies too much because some brands don't list their specifications. Some have foam bases, or have a synthetic blend, but they either don't specify or use different terminalogy so I don't know what's in them to compare apples-to-apples.. I'm looking specifically for an all natual Talalay or layered Talalay/Dunlop mattress (twin). PLease let me know what price range to expect in a store and what would be a decent price. |
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budgy wrote: I don't want to nitpick but in the interest of disclosure...you said that synthetic latex is the same chemical compound as natural latex...this is false.
What the mattress industry refers to as synthetic latex is called Styrene Butadiene, natural rubber or natural latex is made of isoprene (methyl butadiene base)...they are two completely different polymer materials with different properties. It may sound like a small difference...but chemistry is complex...consider that two molecules of oxygen binded together gives us oxygen in the form we breathe it in and gives us life. 3 molecules of oxygen gives us ozone and can take your life away. No tires, including nascar tires are pure natural rubber, there are all sorts of other chemicals used that determine the hardness and elasticity of the end product; even in passenger car tires there are different polymer materials used than just NR or SBR, they all give different properties. You would be correct if you mean that the only polymer material that is used in a race cars tires is real natural rubber, ironically for all the complete opposite reasons the mattress industry tells us that synthetic blends are better (durability, consistency) are the reasons that only pure natural rubber is used in race car tires and airplane tires...safety. Natural rubber is actually more stable than any other polymer material around...its only weakness compared to SBR is its resistance to petrochemicals over time...this is the only reason SBR is used in passenger car tires, the long term exposure to gasoline vapours and oils that are in pavement and all over our roads is really hard on natural rubber. These are not issues that a mattress has to deal with thankfully. When it comes to compression set resistance (resistance to hysteresis), overall elasticity and elongation qualities, natural rubber tree milk outperforms other polymer materials dramatically. Where the consistency issues actually come from are mostly out of date manufacturing techniques, or due to being long distance from rubber plantations, perhaps even buying hevea milk from many different regions around the globe and using it all in the same batch; its hard to be consistent making latex this way without using SBR. |
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GuyMakesSense wrote:
And thank you for all of your helpful input and advice on here as well! |
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mkygod wrote: I've been researching and I'm not able get a general idea of a 100% natural latex mattress would cost. Price varies too much because some brands don't list their specifications. Some have foam bases, or have a synthetic blend, but they either don't specify or use different terminalogy so I don't know what's in them to compare apples-to-apples..
I'm looking specifically for an all natual Talalay or layered Talalay/Dunlop mattress (twin). PLease let me know what price range to expect in a store and what would be a decent price. 1" x 18ild, 2" x 24ild, 6" x 30ild.
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Englander makes a 12" natural latex bed with an 8" latex core on a 2" high density soy based poly covered by several layers of cotton with a 1"cotton quilt to an all natural tack n jump cotton cover with a densified latex edge guard that retails in California for about $1000.00 in a queen...I don't know in what areas, that particular model is available in, but I would bet you should be able to get the twin set for about $700 or so. This message was modified Dec 22, 2011 by a moderator
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What is the marketing trick on the "soy" based material? Is all "soy" created equal? What should I be looking for in "soy"? Thanks, Sherry |
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'Soy Foam' is still mostly made out of oil and is still polyurethane foam. If the OP's goal was a natural mattress (not just a mattress containing natural latex) then it doesn't belong in there. Polyurethane foams are by weight made up usually 2/3 by a petro-chemical called TDI (or in some less common cases MDI), the other 1/3rd of the weight is polyol (a form of alcohol acting as a binding agent). And a blowing agent used to aerate the mixture into foam, the blowing agent makes up almost none of the weight but different blowing agents give the foam different properties (memory foam uses different blowing agents than standard polyurethane foams). Soy based, castor based, plant based whatever foam replaces a portion of the polyol content of the foam. Could be as little of 5% of the polyol portion or as much as 50% of the polyol is the highest I have heard of. Even @ 50% of the polyol we are talking about 16~18% of the weight of the foam would be natural in content. |