S&F with 1" talalay - love it
Jul 29, 2010 8:46 AM
Joined: Jul 29, 2010
Points: 9
I just registered and I am posting this in gratitude to all of you who (unknowingly) helped us make a great mattress decision and to maybe help someone else. 

We were sleeping on a pillowtop mattress that we'd only had four years.  Every morning I would eagerly jump out of bed to escape the aches in my back!  We knew we'd made a mistake getting the pillowtop about one year into that mattress, but we had such a financial commitment to the thing that we suffered three more years.  Stupid.

Just purchased a Stearns & Foster Ultra Firm from the Estate Collection - they're called different things at different stores, as you all know.  At Mattress Warehouse (Cincy) it's called Governor's Park, at Macy's it's Carried Away.  Anyway, in both stores I laid on it a long time, and thought it perfect.  At home, though, another story -  too firm and bordered on uncomfortable, even though my husband and I both noticed our backs no longer hurt in the morning :). 

But we just yesterday added a 1" talalay latex topper (from foambymail) and it is exactly right - we both loved it last night.  Mattress is still very firm, but just that 1" makes a huge difference.  I waffled between ordering the 20 ild and the 32 ild (the only choices from foambymail) and ended up with the 20, figuring if the mattress was already too firm then the 32 might not help much.  It was definitely the right decision.  And I'm happy we got the firmer mattress in the first place - it's easy to add a topper, but can't remove softness (doing "surgery" would not have been for us!).

Also, and just as an fyi, I was a little nervous ordering from foambymail after reading one or two spotty reviews on here, but my experience with them was near perfect.  I had called them twice with information gathering, talking to two different people who were both very helpful.  I ordered online on Monday and we received the topper on Wednesday, which was lightning fast, imo (Michigan to Ohio).  Also, the foam I got looks perfect - off-white or a little cream colored, evenly colored, even holes, fit our king mattress exactly.  Just our experience, but it was an A+ and their price was unbeatable.

Anyway, thanks to all of you who've posted such great info here and I hope my post helps someone else.

 

Re: S&F with 1" talalay - love it
Reply #10 Jul 31, 2010 9:26 AM
Joined: Feb 8, 2010
Points: 72
FBM is, in my experience, pretty niggardly with its samples - several other companies sent me nice 3"x3"x3" hunks of both soft talalay and medium dunlop, but FBM sent me just one little 1" square block of medium, explaining it was all they had at the time for samples. 1" just isn't enough to get a real feel for what it will be like.

mjtx2 wrote:

You know what - you should call foambymail.com and ask them.  Maybe they'd even send you a sample of each so you could feel it before you buy.  If nothing else, they could more accurately advise you as to what the 32 ild is really like. 



Re: S&F with 1" talalay - love it
Reply #11 Jul 31, 2010 10:18 AM
Joined: Nov 17, 2009
Points: 81
ok  iam going for it,  i am ordering 1inch  monday  iam in northern va just outside of washington,dc  so i guess it will take 4 days to get here

Hmmm.  I can only speak to foambymail's 20 ild (they label that "soft").  It is, indeed soft.  You can pinch it down to 1/4 inch pretty easily - I just tested that out for you :)  But the thing about the latex is that it supports you wherever it's not being pushed down by your body.  As I said, I was nervous adding the 32 ild ("medium") to an already very firm mattress.  I was trying to add a little cushion, which the 1" softer 20 ild exactly did.  We've had three nights on it now and it's perfect - not too firm, but not anywhere near too soft, either.  Our backs feel GREAT in the morning.

 

You know what - you should call foambymail.com and ask them.  Maybe they'd even send you a sample of each so you could feel it before you buy.  If nothing else, they could more accurately advise you as to what the 32 ild is really like. 



Re: S&F with 1" talalay - love it
Reply #13 Aug 1, 2010 9:49 PM
Joined: Jul 19, 2010
Points: 10
What are some reputable companies for latex toppers?  I see foambymail being referenced in here a few times, but are there others that are well known?

I just bought a plush/firm coil mattress and its pretty firm, so I'm considering a 1" latex topper just to give it a bit of initial cushion.

Re: S&F with 1" talalay - love it
Reply #14 Aug 2, 2010 11:58 AM
Joined: Oct 8, 2009
Points: 192
why do they say "latex foam"  foam is foam, latex is latex, that has always confused the heck out of me

 

by the way, i bought a one inch foam topper on overstock, have it on my firm sided latex costco bed, and i think i have found my answer...paid under $100 for the foam too and it doesnt sleep hot and all others do, weird.

Re: S&F with 1" talalay - love it
Reply #15 Aug 2, 2010 2:36 PM
Joined: Oct 15, 2009
Points: 966
I think foam is a broad term that includes all kinds of spongy types of materials (see one definition below).  So, latex is a foam, polyurethane can made into a foam, memory foam is a type of polyerethane foam.

Foam:

4. Any of various light, porous, semirigid or spongy materials used for thermal insulation or shock absorption, as in packaging.

Re: S&F with 1" talalay - love it
Reply #16 Aug 2, 2010 2:48 PM
Joined: Feb 8, 2010
Points: 72
There are all sorts of foam rubbers and plastics, like latex, polyurethane, neoprene, all made by blowing bubbles in liquid polymer before it hardens . The bubbles are what makes it soft - without them latex or PU would be as hard as tire rubber. 

PU is by far the most common, so that's what we tend to think of when we hear just "foam", but they are all equally deserving of the name.  

Oh, your topper is almost certainly PU memory foam. Most people don't like it as much as latex, so it's sort of a shame to put it on top of a latex bed, but if it works, great.  

 

randys wrote:

why do they say "latex foam"  foam is foam, latex is latex, that has always confused the heck out of me

 

 

by the way, i bought a one inch foam topper on overstock, have it on my firm sided latex costco bed, and i think i have found my answer...paid under $100 for the foam too and it doesnt sleep hot and all others do, weird.



Re: S&F with 1" talalay - love it
Reply #17 Aug 2, 2010 4:03 PM
Joined: Oct 15, 2009
Points: 966
randys wrote:

why do they say "latex foam"  foam is foam, latex is latex, that has always confused the heck out of me

 

 

by the way, i bought a one inch foam topper on overstock, have it on my firm sided latex costco bed, and i think i have found my answer...paid under $100 for the foam too and it doesnt sleep hot and all others do, weird.


What topper did you buy from overstock?
 

Re: S&F with 1" talalay - love it
Reply #18 Aug 2, 2010 10:24 PM
Ouch
Location: San Jose, CA
Joined: Apr 4, 2010
Points: 143
hellbed wrote:

FBM is, in my experience, pretty niggardly with its samples - 


You must have trouble finding sheets that both fit your bed, and fit comfortably over your head.

Re: S&F with 1" talalay - love it
Reply #19 Aug 2, 2010 10:31 PM
Ouch
Location: San Jose, CA
Joined: Apr 4, 2010
Points: 143
I also bought a 1" latex foam topper (yes. Latex is a type of foam) from FBM. It's was the 20ILD soft latex. And, it is great. It provided the cushy surface I wanted, while retaining the firm support of the TP mattress underneath. The quality was near-perfect. It was not short-sized. The holes were evenly spaced. No missing chunks or irregularities. The only imperfections were two small black scuffs. 

Now that the TP is broken in, I pulled the latex topper off, and will see how things go. I may decide to sell it. But, it is a Twin XL. So, it would only be good for college dorm beds, or half of an Eastern King.