A latex mattress may suit my preferences.

[Sensei]

Hey TossAndTurn,

Welcome to The Mattress Underground ! Thanks for your question.

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.

Nice meeting you, TossandTurn! Like your user name but wish you hadn’t arrived at it in such a painful way . 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.

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?

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.

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) Beautyrest Black Mattress

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.) Grand Home Furnishings

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?

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?

Thanks for considering a mattress purchase from trusted member Sleep On Latex ! 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.

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?

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.

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?

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.

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.

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.

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.

Sleep On Latex will be happy to help you with product questions, do check in with them when you can. Good luck with your research, T-N-T and let us know how things work out .

Sensei