Advice Requested - Choosing between online latex mattresses

Discussions General Mattresses Questions
1

Hi,

My Fiance and I are buying a mattress. We’re currently sleeping on an Ikea mattress that was purchased by my fiance as a cheap temporary solution while he was in grad school, and we’ve since bought a place, it gives him back pains, etc. It’s time to buy something better. I’ve read through the mattress buying tutorial, we’ve field tested mattresses, and generally gotten stuck at making a final decision.

We’re okay with spending a ‘reasonable’ amount on a mattress, but want a good value and tend to balk at anything over 2k. I am also a bit concerned about the weight of the mattress, as we are almost certain to move within the next year, possibly internationally. Despite this, I would rather buy something good and long-lasting. Other than the weight factor, we like the latex mattresses, including the longevity and being able to have a pretty clear idea of what we’re actually buying. I think that getting a latex mattress that has the layers that can be disassembled to make moving easier could work for us. Surprisingly for both of us, we like our mattress to be medium soft. I’m a side sleeper, so having a thick comfort layer is important to me. He’s a back sleeper. He does way more, but only about 30 lbs, we’ve found we tend to like pretty similar softness, with him liking a touch more firm than me.

Mattresses that we particularly liked include the Pure Latex Bliss Nutrition, but the price tag is too steep for us and it doesn’t have the layers. The store with the Nutrition was also steering us towards a Dunlopillo Ambiance, as a good cheaper option and which was really comfortable, but we found looking here that the specs weren’t that great. We’re in Atlanta and paid a visit to Tucker Mattress Company, but they didn’t have much to test out and didn’t seem to make anything that was less than medium firm. We did seem to hit a bad day, where the store owner wasn’t in and the lady working knew very little about options and specifications, but it turned me off from the place.

From all of the above, we’ve basically decided to go with purchasing online latex option. Finalists are the

[ol]
[li]SleepEZ Select Sleep 10000 (3" each layer, choice of dunlop or talalay, each layer can be split) $1,662.50[/li]
[li]SleepEZ Select Sleep 9000 (3" + 3" + 2" layers, choice of dunlop or talalay, each layer can be split) $1,591.25[/li]
[li]Mattresses.net Adjustable Ultra Plush Latex Sleep System (6" talalay core + 3" talalay topper. Only bottom layer split?) $1,280.00[/li]
[li]Mattresses.net Do it yourself option (6" Dunlop core + 3" Talalay topper + cover, no splitting, no returns) $1,085[/li]
[/ol]I like the most expensive option the most, but I’m not sure if I can justify that the differences are large enough to justify the higher cost. However, the 6" cores are a bit of a worry in the case of moving. I considered the do-it-yourself with 3 3" layers which ends up costing $1,223, but I think the risk of no returns is too high for the minimal cost savings compared to the ultra plush.

My questions are:

  1. Does it make sense to spend more money on a latex mattress if we’re just going to move? Or am I being silly and I should just buy another cheap, temporary option that should last a year?
  2. How large of a difference would there be between the 9" and 10" SleepEZ options? Do I really need a 3" top layer since I’m a side sleeper?
  3. How bad is moving a latex mattress? Would the 6" core really be an issue, compared to a 3" layer?
  4. If I call and talk to the company before ordering, is the do it yourself option a bad idea, since we’ve never had a latex bed before? Would it be ok to replace the ‘core’ with 2 layers of 3" topper?
  5. Do you have any advice on how to best replicate the feel of the PLB Nutrition with these layers?

Thanks very much for any advice! We will definitely call and consult the company on the details of each layer with whichever option we decide on. Sorry this is so long, I’ve been debating on all of this for some time!

2

Hi terra_422,

When you can’t test a mattress in person for PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) then the most important part of a purchase decision will be more detailed conversations on the phone with each manufacturer you are considering so they can help “talk you through” which of the options they have available would likely be the best match for you based on their knowledge and experience, the information you provide them about mattresses you have tested and that worked well for you as well as more about your body type and sleeping positions, and the “averages” of other customers that are similar to you. This will help you narrow down your options with each of them to a single choice so you are down to your “finalists”.

There is more about the most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase in post #13 here that can help you make more meaningful comparisons between mattresses.

Once you are down to finalists that are choices between “good and good” and since neither one has any weak links in the materials or construction … if you are confident that both of them would be a good match for you in terms of PPP (either initially or with some rearranging or exchanging layers if necessary) then you are in the fortunate position that either one of them would make a great choice. If at this point there isn’t a clear “winner” between them based on your conversations with each of them then your final choice (see post #2 here) would really be a matter of “informed best judgement” based on all the objective, subjective, and intangible parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you (including of course the prices and the options you have available after a purchase to fine tune the mattress by rearranging or exchanging layers and any costs involved if that becomes necessary).

I don’t know whether it would make sense for you or not since each person may have a different opinion about this but since they are component mattresses where you can pack up each individual layer so you don’t have to move the whole mattress as a unit and outside of the cost involved (depending on how you are moving it) and the time and labor involved in packaging it up … transporting the mattress shouldn’t be a significant issue. The 6" core is split in half so it would be about the same weight as a 3" core of the same firmness that wasn’t split. There are also some suggestions in post #5 here about compressing the individual layers and components that can make them easier to move. If it was me I would rather sleep on a more suitable mattress for a year and them move it than buy a temporary mattress that may be less suitable but others may feel differently.

There would certainly be “some” difference that most people would notice but there is no way to quantify how much difference there would be for any individual person because each person could have a very different opinion about how they compared. Some people that aren’t very sensitive and are more on the “I can sleep on anything” end of the scale or that don’t seem to notice much difference between mattresses that others would find very different may not notice much difference at all while others that are more on the “princess and the pea” end of the scale that seem to be much more sensitive to smaller differences between mattresses could notice a significant difference. I very general terms … if you spend time sleeping on your side the a thicker comfort layer may be a good idea but this would certainly be something that I would include in your discussion with SleepEZ who will know more about “matching” their own mattresses to different body types, sleeping positions, and preferences than anyone else and will be your best source of guidance about which of their designs and options would have the best chance of success.

There are many people who are very happy with their component mattress purchase so if this is what you mean then it certainly isn’t a “bad idea” no. One of the advantages of a component mattress with a zip cover that has individual layers is that you have good options after a purchase to change the comfort or support of the mattress or even to replace a single layers without replacing the complete mattress if your needs and preferences change over time or one of the layers softens or breaks down sooner than the others (which would usually be the softer upper layer).

If you are asking about an actual DIY mattress where you buy the individual layers and the cover separately rather than as a kit then there may be some additional risks involved and I would read option 3 in post #15 here to make sure you are comfortable with the learning curve and trial and error or in some cases the additional costs that may be involved (if you purchase a layer that doesn’t work well and you can’t exchange it) before deciding to go in this direction.

You can read more about the pros and cons of a single 6" core vs two 3" layers in post #2 here.

There is more about the different ways that one mattress can “match” another one in post #9 here but if there are any differences between the two mattress designs including the type of latex and the thickness and firmness of any of the individual layers and components or the type of cover it uses then the difference can sometimes be surprising and the only way to know how two mattress compare to each other for you would be based on your own personal testing or sleeping experience. If either of the manufacturers you are considering is familiar with the Nature then they may have a better idea of how any of the individual options they have available compare to it.

You are certainly looking at some great options and I’m looking forward to finding out what you end up deciding. :slight_smile:

Phoenix

3

Thanks so much for the prompt reply and lots too think about. With the holidays, the mattress shopping got put on hold for a bit. We’re back on it now!

From your previous advice, I decided we were definitely not ready for the build your own option, and was leaning toward SleepEZ. However, we went to Massachusetts to see family for the holidays, and took the opportunity to stop by Spindle Mattress. I realized we should be able to swing by spindle, and that they were offering all natural talalay in addition to the dunlop option, which I was more interested in than dunlop.

Since I’m happy with the specs and we were able to test out the mattresses for ourself, we’re pretty much decided on going with Spindle. Now we just have to make a final decision on dunlop versus talalay. Unfortunately, they did not have floor models of the talalay to try, so now I’m torn. I was able to test the dunlop and liked it, but from reading had preferred talalay. Spindle also has all natural talalay, while what I’ve tried in store was blended. We’re getting a soft mattress, so the durability of all natural talalay is a little bit of concern.

Any words of advice on selecting? I’ve reviewed the differences again and I know I pretty much just have to decide for myself… but maybe you’ll have more words of wisdom! And as you say, I’m down to multiple good options, so the hard part is done.

Thanks!

4

Hi terra_422,

Just in case it’s helpful … there isn’t a lot of difference between the “feel” of blended and 100% natural Talalay and most people wouldn’t notice much if any difference between them.

There is also more about the difference between 100% natural and blended Talalay in post #2 here but Spindle is using Radium Talalay so there also shouldn’t be any significant difference between them in terms of durability either.

I don’t think you could go far wrong either way :slight_smile:

Phoenix