Mattress Forum

Here in SF Bay Area, Natural Mattress Stores has 3 stores with organic / latex beds.  Told me they use Dunlop cores / talalay tops in their 'Awareness' line.

that video is interesting.

I would think it is most important to get good quality latex from the best suppliers which apparently are LI, Latexco, Latex Green, etc...

That's what I was thinking, that dunlop would last longer.  How long have people been making talalay?   Apparently flobeds used to sell dunlop:

"Originally we could not get our natural latex in Talalay, so we imported natural latex made in the Dunlop process by the container from Sri Lanka. We couldn't help but notice that our Latex International Talalay Latex (blended) kept its shape and resiliency much better than the Dunlop.  As our natural latex mattress sales grew, we kept asking Latex International to consider making a 100% Natural Talalay. Finally in 2005 they did, and FloBeds was first in line. We have never looked back.  In July of 2009, while cleaning out the upper shelves at our Latex Shop, we found some latex cores that had been stored compressed for years. We wondered how dramatic the difference in resiliency would be and wanted to share the study with our customers...even we were surprised at the results."

I'm assuming it ls less expensive to manufacturer talalay, since it uses less latex because of the vacuum process.   I also found out from LI that:

 Most of the latex in the marketplace is a blend. The synthetic or "man-made" rubber is made from SBR or Styrene Butadiene Rubber.  We do produce a natural latex formula although not nearly in the same volumes as our blend.  However, it is generally regarded that the Talalay process creates a more durable latex in terms of resistance to body impressions as well as firmness retention. 

I do wonder if they let that dunlop in the recording sit longer if it would've expanded more.

Lots to consider, plus the fear factor of buying over the internet.   I was reading something by Phoenix last night, and I guess it is time for me to get on the phone and speak to some of these folks.  :-)

What are the main co's that use the good quality latex?     I originally thinking that total dunlop was the way to go, but now I'm wondering about that dunlop core and talalay top.   Sigh.  I know that with some of these products I can return pieces, but I'd really like to get it right the first time if possible.   Plus with mattress.net, it's a one time deal.....but I am wondering if the zipperless mattresses would wear better, or if the convenience of the zipper to exchange pieces would be more practical.   

Mike from LI said that Organic Mattress out of CA or Arizona Premium use their natural talalay.  

Did I mention I'm in Southern NJ?

I just went for the easier price, and more liberal layer swaps and return policy, although I don't want to do any swaps or returns. 

This is my first foray into all latex, stack layers into zippered cover bed.  I will be reporting, but it'll take some time.

I won't sit here and plug for SleepEZ all day, but I'll tell you, they are awfully nice to talk to.  I've talked to Shawn 'bout 3 times and his sister Christina once, and they are very nice.  Also, they did the order right and it came to my doorstep less than 3 days.  'Course that's AZ to CA.

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Do you have another local mattress stores that have any amount of latex in them?  I tried out Serta Vera Wangs latex line for starters, but don't like the prices.  We're lucky to have Natural Mattress Store with 'organic' latex beds.  I've tried some Englander latex beds a bit, but ewww, they don't have that all latex feel. 

Get out there and look and call.  It's all a risk.  Too early for me to call latex beds great.  I like what I felt at Nat. Mat. Store.

:)

Iris wrote:

Welcome!.  I think that it may take more time and more reading for you to feel comfortable with your mattress decision.  I did purchase an all Dumlop 10" Savvy Rest because I don't have sleep issues and felt that exchanging layers would be sufficient and I got a discount.  Otherwise I probably would have purchased a SleepEZ as I wanted organic mattress.  This forum seems to have two types of people who visit here: people who come for some advice on a new purchase, and people who can't seem to find a bed they like and have tried 3 or more mattresses.  If you believe you fall into the first category, then you will problaby not have many issues purchasing over the internet.  I would only purchase from internet company that has acceptable BBB rating and has been in business for several years (as evidenced by posts on this forum).  You shoudl inquire about the cost of actually returning a mattress as well as looking at comfort exchange policy and cost of shipping.

As for Talalay vs Dunlop, I was like you and read a lot of different opinions online.  After a while, it seemed to me that the quality of the latex mattered more than which process you purchased.  These mattress companies are simply resellers of someone's latex with a cover; asking where they source their latex should help you decide.

Perhaps you can do some creative googling to find some local companies that distribute latex, a la Foam By Mail so that you can purchase locally.

I was pretty torn about getting 100% natural latex or not.  There is really a lot of debate about the matter.  Of course places that specialize in all natural / organic beds will say all natural latex is The way to go,    But, I did talk to Latex Intl like you did and I bought the story that the vast majority of their latex is blended.  I went with SleepEZ based on their reputation and policies and they recommended blended.  So we shall see. 

If there is any off-gassing from my mattress, I couldn't tell.  I don't smell a thing.  IIRC, the synthetic stuff is locked into the material during processing and other chemicals are washed off the foam with water. 

I have my receipt of purchase, and warranty card from SleepEZ.  If this thing totally breaks down, it shall be repaired/replaced according to their policy.

 

Go with the mattress that is more comfortable and less money.

Both methods of producing latex are different but the end result is nearly the same. Both are synthetic latex, and will last for years.

You will not sleep hot either.

Personally i do not like how latex feels, I call it the trampoline effect. Too bouncy for me, especially when placed on top of mattress springs.

I don't know what the ILD of the Dunlop piece was -- I got it from Overstock.com, knowing it'd be a crapshoot, but it had good reviews and the price was right, so I tried it. And it was really great for a while... and then it wasn't.

I've had the 32 ILD topper for just a few nights, so I'm not sure if I like it yet. (I'm using these on top of a minimalist, firm, flippable innerspring mattress, bought a few years ago from a local company.) I also had a polyfill fiberbed, about an inch thick, on top of the latex toppers. I just took that off today, because it has also flattened in the hip area over time, and I'm waking up with some lower back pain. (It was a great buy at Kohl's, I think, and it lasted several years, maybe 5 or 6. Everywhere other than the hip area is still nice & cushy.)

Long way of saying: My guess is that Dunlop is fine for a core, but Talalay might be better for a topper. One more data point for you, anyway.

-Catherine

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Edited to add:

Never mind. I have no idea what that Overstock.com latex piece actually was -- could have been some cheap synthetic blend (or all synthetic), rather than natural Dunlop-processed latex. It had no labels of any kind. Natural Dunlop latex probably would not have cratered after a few months.