Mattress Forum

If you want a "cool" bed (literally), a water bed (without a heater) will definitely get you there, from what I've read....

one is the temperature of the room and of course the air around your body, mattresses have small effect on the actual temperature you experience. this has more to do with your thermostat and your choice of bedding (sheets and duvet primarily, mattress pad to a lesser extent).  

high humidity is the other factor that can make the hot feel extra hot, or the cold feel extra cold.  this is where synthetic materials in beds don't work well.  Polyester fabrics and fibres can only absorb perhaps 2~4% of its weight in humidity before feeling damp to the touch.  wool can absorb up to 35% of its weight in moisture before feeling damp to the touch.  this is critical, because regardless of how breathable any mattress claims to be, the spot directly underneath your body is never going to have sufficient enough airflow to actually wick away more moisture than your body produces. so even though high tech sports fabrics can claim to be super breathable they are not suitable for bedding or upholstery because of a lack of airflow that would normally be present as when say one is running outdoors. wool can simply continue to absorb this humidity for much longer before feeling moist, preventing the overheating effect that humidity can have.  obviously some beds breathe better than others and will have a degree of temperature regulation built in, but it is the ability to deal with moisture that you need a mattress to do primarily.

back to the bedding; I have finally broken down and ordered myself linen sheets (100% flax), they are only one week old and really need to get broken in.  but they work wonders at drawing the heat out of your skin and they absolutely never feel damp to the touch, much cooler than cotton, polyester, bamboo, or silk.  I am actually astounded as to how much difference heat wise they have made.  I used to sleep with my window open at night, and I have a king size bed to myself right now.  I used to stay in one spot for maybe 5~10 minutes at a time, and then roll over to the colder section of the bed (cotton sheets).  Now with the linen, even after having a hot shower before bed and with my window closed I just stay in one spot all night, I never get damp one iota.  The sheets eventually do adjust to your temperature so if you want to cool off you just slide your limbs around a little bit.  

your duvet or blankets are what trap the most heat in, lighter blankets and more effective insulators tend to do the job the best.  when it comes to temperature range:

Eiderdown > High Quality Goose Down > Camel Hair, Cashmere, Alpaca > Department store quality Goose Down, High Quality Duck Down > Sheeps wool, silk > polyester far behind the rest.  

The coolest of the bunch are basically Eiderdown because of how ridiculously light weight it is, vented goose down duvets (search climabalance on google), and then probably the animal hair fillings and silk are very good as well because they absorb moisture so well.  Down fills if prepared correctly do not absorb moisture, if they are cleaned properly the down can be rendered hyopallergenic without destroying the natural oil in the down which is an excellent moisture repellent, this allows body vapour to simply pass right through the down, never having a chance to accumulate in bedding in the first place.  If down is not cleaned correctly or it is really high in feather content moisture becomes trapped and unlike animal fills down will feel damp with a small amount of moisture..this is why low quality 'down' or feather fillings are not desirable.  Animal hairs and silks simply absorb a lot of moisture before feeling damp, this is usually diminished throughout the day when the bedding is not being used.  

The Tempurpedic seems to be holding up very well. I have seen some that are roughly 18yrs old and they really didnt look that bad. Only time will tell if they can hold up as long as Latex. It does look like it may hold up as long as latex, but needs to be around a few more years yet to be sure. True Latex is still the longest lasting material in the bedding industry as of now.

The Tempurpedic seems to be holding up very well. I have seen some that are roughly 18yrs old and they really didnt look that bad. Only time will tell if they can hold up as long as Latex. It does look like it may hold up as long as latex, but needs to be around a few more years yet to be sure. True Latex is still the longest lasting material in the bedding industry as of now.

Re: sleeping hot: claiming that the mattress itself is not the culprit -- that it's all about bedding and room temperature -- is utter nonsense.

I have discovered this the hard way.  Just purchased a new mattress (the saga is documented here on several posts), and it is definitely much warmer than my previous mattress or any other mattress I've tried.  In fact, with my old mattress, as long as I didn't use too many covers, I was fine.  It was only when I bought a new, thick mattress cover, that I felt the bed get warmer.  So whatever material was in the mattress cover, it was a problem.

Our new, Stearns and Foster latex plush pillowtop is a whole different deal.  The second I lie down, I feel the mattress heat up -- and it stays that way.  I was told latex would be cool (I avoided Memory Foam).

It's clear to me there is something in the mattress (not my head) that is making it feel this way.  But what?  Latex? Foam in the pillowtop?             Who knows?

It's a given that bedding can affect the temperature.  For that reason, I have rarely slept with a comforter, even during the coldest months. I generally just use a sheet and very light, thin blanket.  And I know that some sheets are cooler than others.  That much is true.  Fabrics matter.

Same with room temperature; I keep my bedroom cool and open a window, even in winter.  And never, ever sleep with the heat on.

But I am beside myself now, trying to figure out how to correct for the "hot" bed.  It seems ridiculous that I now need to spend even more money on "cooling" mattress pads, sheets, etc., just to make the mattress tolerable! 

This over-heating problem is real and it seems to be a symptom of these modern synthetic mattresses.

I with there was a comfortable, affordable mattress that was COOL.  I haven't found it yet.  And I am getting angrier by the moment at the entire industry.

If you have any suggestions, I am all ears.

Thanks!

well for starters, I never said the mattress doesn't make a difference, just that it is generally secondary to the bedding itself.  I only say this because I have vast experience selling memory foam beds and they are notoriously hot, its usually an issue that can be corrected through bedding, in some cases it may not be enough.  

realistically your Stearns and Foster is sleeping hotter because it is made of synthetic materials in the pillowtop, these do not breathe, they trap in the heat and primarily the humidity.  If you do not believe that the bedding makes a difference I ask you a simple question.  What kind of mattress protector are you currently using?  None?  The Water proof 'breathable' plastic ones that everyone recommends?  Try wool on the top, its not overly expensive, atleast less so than replacing the mattress.  This is why I give you alternative suggestions.  

If you want a cooler sleeping mattress its gonna cost you; look for truly all natural beds that really breathe, either all latex with wool on top (no polyfoam, which is likely the biggest source of your current plight), or you can spend even more on luxury foam free beds from brands like Vi-Spring and Hastens, they will breathe even a little better (hard to quantify).  

• Being hot is, as previulosly stated, a combinatino of factors: ambient temp, humidity, mattress materials, linens, etc. including how far you sink into a mattress... the less exposed skin to air immediately changes your response to "heat".
• Remember, the heat is primarily what is reflected back at you while you are in the bed (which is why directly under you is the warmest)
• Stearns does actually use either Silk or Cashmere in their tops to aid in the breathability process
• Latex, by the design process, has hundreds of holes throughout (top to bottom) to help in the circulation and should theoretically help the heat from building up.
• Memory foam (regardless of brand) does have the most amount of surface to skin coverage (although Tempur's claim to "consistent and equal" cell size does seem to hold a better breathability option) so during your first couple of months while you and your mattress condition each other you may experience more heat than usual.
• Anything that provides more loft (squishiness or softness on top) usually provides a deeper pocket for you to fit into while in bed. the more dense material that pocket is created with , usually the warmer you will feel as well.
• Most people when getting into almost ANY new mattress experience the sensation that athletes experience when trying new equipment: they use different muscles or use them differently and experience higher caloric burn while they adjust to the routine. If your last bed sagged, dipped or was too hard and your new one feels (excluding the temp) just right... you WILL experience several weeks of higher temps while your back muscles adjust to the new support, because of the increased blood lfow and deeper sleep (the body is actually working harder when you sleep deeper)... break the bed in, condition it, the more layers of any type of foam still havetiny bubbles that probably still need to be opened. Walk on it if you need to in order to expedite the conditioning period

"Wow, Guy, you are just repeating what most everyone else is saying!" Yes, and no. did you ever wonder why retailers carry from 30 to 200 different mattress, feels and brands? It is because no two of us are the same. We can find similarities between us and some things that work for others work for us too, but the opposite is also ture: some things that work for others don't work for us. Here is my suggestion:

Find the comfortable mattress, find the linen package that works for you. adjust the amount of layers you have (compared to traditional mattress if you are on any type of foam or aternative), change your sleeping attire if necessary. If you go back to shop, ask the consultant any questions you may have, then ask them to leave you alone while you test the ones that you like the best... your body tells you more than your mind will when shopping for a mattress, we just have to listen.

Sleep Well "neiman"!

Buy some bamboo sheets. They'll change your life from a temperature standpoint.