A latex mattress may suit my preferences.

Discussions General Mattresses Questions
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Hello everyone! I am nearly 50 years old, 5’5" 130lb. (weight has varied 125-155lbs in my adult life) male, side sleeper who sleeps hot, alone and I live in the US. Up until 3 years ago I was a stomach sleeper until I hurt my lower back. I went to bed that night and woke up with knee pain that matched my back pain. It took months for me to learn how to sleep on my side and I still struggle with staying asleep. I toss and turn quite a bit so I need a bed that is responsive. As I continue to age I may eventually end up on my back. My current bed is a nearly 30 year old Stearns and Foster super firm and the springs are killing my shoulders hence the name TossandTurn.

On a non-bed related forum someone suggested to another member that he bought a nice two sided extra firm mattress Mattress & Box Spring Sets - Orthopedic Extra Firm Mattress Set and then added a 2" med. firm Pure Green latex topper. He was happy but his wife was not so they added a 1" soft memory foam topper. It was too hot for him so they picked up a pure green latex 1" soft topper to replace the foam topper. In theory this or something like it sounds like a good idea to me but for that amount of money how would it compare to an all latex mattress or hybrid mattress?

I’ve been down the latex rabbit hole ever since reading that topic. I don’t think we have any latex beds to try locally. I’ve been to three stores and in one she claimed the Beautyrest Black had some latex but the website disagrees. Here are some of the beds I briefly tried and liked if that helps you understand the feel I’m going for.

Beautyrest black C-class Plush pillow top $2,299 set (not paying $2000 for a mattress) https://www.beautyrest.com/black/c-class-plush-pillow-top/?bvstate=pg:2/ct:r

Beautyrest harmony lux carbon series Med. pillow top $1,699 set (also liked the plush) Beautyrest Harmony Lux Mattress

Serta perfectsleeper marietta $679 set biglots (I don’t see the mattress on serta or biglots site.) Perfect Sleeper Innerspring Mattress by Serta

Sealy Golden elegance Gilded Breath $849 set (couldn’t find on serta’s site.) https://www.grandhomefurnishings.com/0251927

I’ve thought about getting Pure Green’s 3" Queen firm, med. and soft toppers and making my own 9" mattress. Or getting a Pure green mattress and if it was too hard then I could always add a topper but the mattress cover would be a different feel than an all latex mattress. Then I saw you can get pocketed coil springs to make you own hybrid mattress. What concerns me about that is not having a layer of something below the springs to protect the cover and above the springs to protect the pricey latex. Finding covers for what you want at a reasonable price seems to be the largest hurdle. I have found some including one that can expand but it’s super pricey. If Pure Green would sell one I would love to try a DIY mattress with their 6" firm base layer with a 3" med and a 1" to 3" soft comfort layer. But would a 6" support layer be overkill for my weight range? Is a 3" base layer enough and how would either thickness base layer affect longevity of the system versus the price increase? I have the same question for a DIY latex hybrid mattress regarding the longevity versus an all latex mattress. I guess I’m wanting to know what would be the best strategy for a DIY latex mattress or a what’s a reasonably priced latex mattress that comes with a zippered cover?

Also, if there is a forum link with a master list of DIY mattress covers please hook me up. If not maybe we can start a topic and I’ll throw in the links I have. Most of the ones I’ve seen do not have handles which is a shame. Maybe they are just too heavy for handles?

I’m also curious if someone sells a latex mattress or toppers that could would qualify as GOLS certified but just aren’t to keep their costs low. I’m wondering the same thing with GOTS certified covers / encasements. That is if they can provide some sort of proof that their mattress or toppers contain 95% of certified organic raw material. I hope that makes sense.

I could probably keep going but that’s enough for now. I’m open to other brands and I’m sure I haven’t even scratched the surface of what’s available. So far Pure Green seems to be a good value and they are GOLS certified which is cool. Cost is a concern as well as longevity. I’m used to sleeping on a rock so I’ll probably be happy with anything that doesn’t swallow me up or sleeps hot. Not a fan of deep, soft memory foam.

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Hey TossAndTurn,

Welcome to The Mattress Underground :slight_smile: ! Thanks for your question.

Nice meeting you, TossandTurn! Like your user name but wish you hadn’t arrived at it in such a painful way :wink: . It can be truly difficult to “learn” how to sleep in a different position from one that feels natural to you. 30 years time is quite a long while that your Stearns and Foster served you and if you are experiencing shoulder pain from the springs, now is the time to move on. Hopefully once you find the right mattress you will be able find more restful sleep and some relief of your back and knee pain.

Thanks for including links to the mattresses of interest. As you may know from reading other posts, TMU doesn’t make comments on the reliability of specific brands, but rather the durability of the materials relative to your sleeping positions and BMI. The Orthopedic Extra Firm Mattress link doesn’t give much component spec detail, other than the use of 12.75 gauge/ 6 turn knotted offset coils, cotton and foam within its two-sided design. It is rated as 95/100 firmness feel and indeed seems quite firm. So, between the queen mattress ($879), 2" latex topper ($129) and 1" latex topper ($99), they are all-in for around $1,107, give or take a dollar or two? You should be able to find a queen latex hybrid for close to that number, but an all-latex would be more expensive. Price is one of the most important parts of a mattress purchase, and with more research and careful analysis, you should be able to keep costs down without sacrificing comfort and support. If this mattress is a candidate in your line up, check with the showroom and get a spec breakdown by layer, this Phoenix article onmattress specificationswill help you guide the conversation.

Good job on your store visits and comparison research! You have 4 similar models here, each using variations of memory foam and gel foam as comfort materials over pocket coils. After your friend’s “sleeping hot” experience with the memory foam topper, do you have any concerns regarding memory foam’s tendency to sleep warmer?

Thanks for considering a mattress purchase from trusted member Sleep On Latex :slight_smile: ! These are all excellent questions for their experienced team to help out with, they are deeply knowledgeable and experienced in the latex category. You may ask them questions here on the forum or if you prefer, we can help you get in touch with one of their team.

There are many DIYers here on the forum who share their experience regularly and help newbies often (hey @mattrebuild, got your ears on good buddy?). You may try a site search using “DIY mattress” as a topic; also, you may find this post an interesting overview of the process.

This is our Trusted Member Directory and these manufacturers specialize in DIY components and accessories. Perhaps they can shed some light as to why handles are not more common on separate zippered covers.

Both GOTS/ GOLS certifications are related to the entire supply chain, going all the way back to the rubber plantation’s farming standards and forward to how each component material is manufactured and processed. These are complex, expensive, and often difficult certifications to obtain, and many quality mattresses are made with equally safe certifications that protect consumers from harmful chemicals and unsafe manufacturing practices. You can read more about various product certifications in this Phoenix post.

Sleep On Latex will be happy to help you with product questions, do check in with them when you can. From their Contact Us page, they are available by phone, M-F 9AM-5PM CST: 312-487-2865 and by email: [email protected]. Good luck with your research, T-N-T and let us know how things work out :wink: .

Sensei

3

Thanks for your reply and links Sensei. The links were very helpful. Also pardon the delayed reply. I wanted to do more research and make a couple phone calls to Sleep on Latex and Arizona Premium Mattress.

I may have gotten the exact specs wrong but Ken at APM suggested their Queen Adjustable Ultra Plush Latex Sleep System (Blended) with a firmness of soft/soft and with the 3" #19ILD Talalay topper option. I think this would consist of a 2x 6" soft Talalay side by side support layers topped by 3" 19ILD Talalay topper for a total of 9". King or Queen Adjustable Ultra Plush Latex Sleep System (Blended), #1 Selling Latex Mattress- Adjustable Ultra Plush, Latex Mattresses-Talalay and Dunlop, All Products

This would contain blended Talalay latex but they do offer “All Natural Talalay and Dunlop” toppers for the DIYer. No idea what the difference is between the All Natural and blended varieties.

I also asked about a DIY hybrid mattress and he suggested the 6" bolsa coils since they are not “zoned”. Top the coils with a 2" Blended Talalay Latex Mattress Topper med. #28 and a 3" 19ild Blended Talalay Latex Mattress Topper. Then wrap it up in an 11" bambo cover.

I then called SOL and inquired about their medium mattress. She said if it was too firm they could sell me a soft topper at half price. Pure Green Organic Latex Mattress | SleepOnLatex.com

I inquired about the DIY route with their toppers and she suggested getting 3x 3" layers consisting of firm, med. and soft. Pure Green Natural Latex Mattress Topper | SleepOnLatex.com I could wrap it up in their 9" cover. https://sleeponlatex.com/products/organic-cotton-cover-1

I understand comfort is subjective and I’m not asking you to second guess the suggestions but what are your thoughts and/or concerns on these configurations?

I’m leaning towards all natural and/or GOLS certified latex so many combinations are going through my mind like a 3" firm and 3" med. (or softer combo of support layers) from SOLS topped with a 3" or 4" soft all natural Talalay layer from APM.

I’m struggling with the all latex or hybrid options for my small size. If I were to lay those 6" Quantum Edge Elite Bolsa coils on concrete and lay on them on my side would they even conform to my body at my weight range (125lb to 155lbs.)? If I have 5" of latex (2" 28ILD + 3" 19ILD) on the coils like suggested above would my body make an impression on the coils? If they’re not going to contour to my body then going with an all latex bed would be better for me.

Talalay latex comes from only two factories correct? Do both factories make both blended and All Nautural Talalay latex? I assume blended Talalay has synthetic latex but I have yet to here what is in All Natural Talalay latex. I know none of it is 100% organic. I’m seriously considering using it as a comfort layer so any idea as to the ingredients and how healthy it is would be helpful. Also, who carries the good stuff right now at the best prices?

Just playing around with different configurations and pricing (not including cover and accessories).

*SOL DIY all Dunlop latex bed. 3" firm + 3" med. + 3" soft = $707

*SOL DIY all Dunlop latex bed. 3" med. + 3" med. + 3" soft = $657

*SOL and APM DIY all latex bed. 3" firm Dunlop + 3" med. Dunlop + 3" All Natural Talalay = $877

*APM hybrid w/ 2x SOL Dunlop layers. 6" Quantum Edge Elite Bolsa + 3" med. + 3" soft = $707

*Mixed hybrid. 6" Quantum Edge Elite Bolsa + 2" med. Dunlop + 3" (super soft or plush?) All Natural Talalay = $807

Any other suggestions or comments would be appreciated. If anyone has any strategies so money isn’t wasted on layers that would be helpful.

4

So after another phone call I was told I probably wouldn’t compress the pocketed coils much at all. That means I’m going to go with an all latex mattress. After writing down several possible configurations and pricing from various stores I realized I could do this for a month and never purchase anything or understand how latex feels. I decided the best move was to purchase a Sleep on Latex Pure Green medium queen Dunlop topper and see how it feels. I will probably take a few pictures of my spine alignment so I can get suggestions from forum members of what layer I should purchase next. I’ll probably start another thread since this topic contains 2 “intimidating” walls of text of mine so the next topic will be short and to the point.

5

Hey T-N-T,

Thanks for your thorough research notes and purchase updates :slight_smile: !

Good job on the contact calls, sounds as though you received good DIY feedback from expert trusted member Arizona Premium Mattress and trusted member Sleep On Latex. Happy to hear that you are making progress in narrowing choices down further.

Congrats on your topper purchase from Sleep On Latex! Indeed, moving forward with testing latex using a topper first will give you a better idea of how dunlop process latex will feel and perform. Yes, please do start a new topic regarding your experience and document your journey with pics if possible, as posts with supporting images are most helpful for others who are following your research. Looking forward to your next reporting after you have a bit of a sleep adjustment period with your new SOL dunlop latex topper… :wink:

Thanks,
Sensei