All-talalay latex mattress

Does anyone know anything about a 6" talalay latex mattress made by Restopedic in Bethany, CT. It has a 20 yr. warranty, and is being sold as “Dream 6” in a furniture store in So. Windham, CT.

Hi Fran,

I have talked with Restopedic on several occasions and think highly of them and the quality and value of the mattresses they make (they sell factory direct at their location). A forum search on Restopedic (you can just click this) will bring up more comments and feedback about them.

Latex in any thickness latex mattress can be a very good quality choice but I would make sure you test it carefully for PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) because a 6" latex mattress like the Dream 6 doesn’t usually have a softer comfort layer which many people prefer … especially side sleepers.

Phoenix

I saw Phoenix can’t recommend manufacturers but if you look at like SleepEZ.com you can get a 9 inch queen blended talalay mattress with most likely the same manufacturer of latex for $1,750 with a 20 year warranty or a 9 inch 100% all natural no synthetic latex queen mattress for $1,700 from foamsweetfoam.com and they have a 30 year warranty. Those are a couple of the manufacturers I’ve seen mentioned here there are more and maybe cheaper and those each have 3 3" customizable layers that you can exchange if you don’t like the firmness.

Hi flyby123,

The manufacturers I “officially” recommend are the members here which of course includes SleepEZ.

they are all among the best quality/value available but there are also many other manufacturers across the country that I think highly of (including Foam Sweet Foam and Restopedic) and that also have great quality and value.

I also recommend a specific set of steps (in post #1 here) which can lead to the best quality and value choices based on the specific criteria of each person and these include starting with local testing first whenever possible to become familiar with the types of mattresses and materials you tend to prefer. There is some great local value available in many areas of the country. The online manufacturers make a great “value reference point” so that you have some good value reference points available to make meaningful comparisons with any local “finalists” so you can make the best possible final choice.

Phoenix

I’m looking for a 6" twin mattress, and I’m trying to decide between one that’s all talalay, and one that’s all Dunlop. I tried the talalay one; the Dunlop I would have to order online without trying it first, and I wonder if it would be considerably firmer . than the talalay. I was only able to find one store that actually has a latex mattress. This is confusing and frustrating. Also: will an all-talalay hold up as well as all Dunlop?

Hi Fran,

Both Talalay and Dunlop come in a range of firmness/softness levels. Firm Dunlop would be firmer than softer Talalay and Firm Talalay would be firmer than softer Dunlop. In the same ILD (firmness level) then Dunlop would feel a little firmer for most people because it is a denser form of latex and gets firmer faster as you sink into it.

They have a different “feel” and the choice between them would be a personal preference not a “better or worse” choice. You can read a little more about the difference in “feel” between them in post #7 here.

Both Talalay and Dunlop are very durable materials and roughly equivalent so I wouldn’t make durability an issue in your choice between them.

Phoenix

If I bought the 6" Dunlop and it was too firm, would it work ok to put a 2" comfort layer on top? Would there be any problems with this (e.g., shifting?)

We considered doing that. We found a store that had a firm bed and a tester topper. I felt too smothered by the topper and the bed still felt too firm. The slightly softer bed was the better decision for us.

The 6" Dunlop bed has an ILD of 26. Is this considered quite firm?

Hi Fran,

You can certainly add a topper to improve pressure relief if a mattress is too firm and it doesn’t have any dips or soft spots but it can sometimes be almost as difficult choosing the best thickness and softness of topper as it can to choose a mattress so can be less risky to choose a mattress that already is as close as possible to what you need and prefer in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, pressure relief, and Personal preferences) and use a topper as a “backup plan” if the mattress ends up being too firm and you can’t exchange layers. In most cases toppers can’t be returned if you make a less than ideal choice.

There are some guidelines in post #2 here and the posts it links to that can help with making the best possible topper choice based on your sleeping experience on a mattress.

26 ILD would be fairly firm as a comfort layer if you were sleeping directly on it but it’s on the soft side for a latex support core even with Dunlop. Latex support cores can go well over 40 ILD for extra firm support but of course most people would need a softer layer on top of this for pressure relief and comfort. Dunlop will “act” a little firmer than Talalay because it gets firmer more quickly as it compresses so 26 will be a little firmer than Talalay in the same ILD.

Phoenix

Does this mean that overall this mattress would not provide sufficient support?

Hi Fran,

Only your own testing or sleeping experience can answer that (See mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here about making comfort and design choices). It’s softer than many other support layers but for some people it would be fine and for others it may be too soft to provide good alignment. How evenly you sink into a mattress depends on your body type and sleeping positions and how all the layers of a mattress interact. The best way to know would be by testing a mattress that used similar layers but when you are making an online purchase that you can’t test ahead of time you are dependent on the knowledge and experience of the manufacturer in matching their customers to a mattress, on the options they have available with the firmness and softness of their comfort and support layers, and on any recourse you have available if your mattress choice is less than ideal.

Phoenix

I read somewhere that talalay will hold up better than Dunlop and that Dunlop will shift and bunch up in time…true???
There is so much confusing and contradictory information out there.
Also - what do you think of Gold Bond as a company, and specifically, of their Cirrus latex mattress? It is way too high for my bed, but I was wondering, since I have a slatted bed, if I could forego both the bottom layer of 2-3/4" “high resiliency foam” (wonder what that is?) and the box spring; i.e., if they would sell it that way.

Hi Fran,

In a word … no to both questions. You can read a little more about all the different types of latex in this article (which has a video of a 50 year old Dunlop latex mattress) and in post #6 here. There is a lot of misinformation about the different types of latex either online or from some retailers that sell one type and not another and overpromote what they are selling.

You can see my thoughts about Gold bond in post #4 here and the posts it links to.

The Cirrus uses all high quality materials and there are no obvious weak links in the mattress. The quilting layer has under an inch of polyfoam which is within the guidelines I suggest of “around an inch or so” or less. The base layer of HR polyfoam is probably high quality polyfoam (they don’t specifically mention the density) and wouldn’t be an issue in terms of durability. If it really is HR polyfoam (2.5 lbs or higher) then this is the highest grade of polyfoam. Of course it would still be important to make sure the design was suitable for you in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) regardless of the quality or value of the mattress.

If you removed the bottom layer of polyfoam it would change the feel and performance of the mattress to some degree but you could always ask them.

Phoenix

Would there be off-gassing from polyfoam?

Hi Fran,

All materials … memory foam, polyfoam, latex and even fruits and vegetables have offgassing. The real question is whether the offgassing is harmful.

If the polyfoam has been CertiPur certified or if it’s made in North America (see post #12 here) … then by most people’s standards it would generally be considered to be safe but each person may also have a different answer to the question of “how safe is safe enough for me?”. There is more about this in post #2 here and the other posts and information it links to although this will take you down a rabbit hole of conflicting information with answers that are not always clear or depend on specific circumstances or the different sensitivities, circumstances, or beliefs of different people.

Phoenix