any recommended mattress places for jacksonville, nc (or within a more or less 120 mile range)?

[imawo]

i already saw this old topic in a quick search, but was wondering if there still might be any more recommendations.

i would rather keep it within about an hour’s worth of drive since it’s, of course, easier, but i kind of really wanna try out various latex mattresses and blends and softness/firmness, so if i gotta drive out an hour or so more, oh well. i hope to be able to narrow down choices because i’ll probably buy online in the end.

we recently got two mattress stores in jacksonville, but if the one is like the other i went to, they seem to be more on the commercial side when it comes to brands (serta, tempurpedic, etc).

i actually don’t mind memory foam from what i’ve briefly laid on it, but five minutes is different from, say, seven or eight hours, and i wanna try and explore every option before dropping a nice chunk of change on a new mattress. latex is pretty much the only type of mattress i’ve never had some kind of repeated experience with because it doesn’t seem to be featured as much (if at all) in all the furniture and mattress places i’ve been to in the past – probably because basically all places here are all very much commercialized and brand name forward, but yeah.

i’m going from a queen to a twin xl (because with only me, i don’t need all that extra room… in an already pretty small room). i’m 5’ even at ~160lbs (and losing weight still – not sure if being another 30-40 down will hugely change how i feel about a mattress, but it’s a possibility). i sleep most of the time on my back, though sometimes i side sleep.

online i was looking mainly at mattresses.net, tuft & needle, and casper. i’m a little wary about t&n and casper because they seem to only offer one “type” of mattress, but i’ve read that their return policies are really great and i shouldn’t have any problem returning if i didn’t like it in the end.

thanks in advance for all the help.

[phoenix]

Hi imawo,

I generally keep all the forum lists up to date as I become aware of new information and the Jacksonville/Wilmington, NC list was last edited on August 2nd of this year and is up to date based on the information I’m aware of.

I would also make sure that you’ve read the mattress shopping tutorial here which has all the basic information, steps, and guidelines you will need to make the best possible choices … and know how and why to avoid the worst ones. It also has suggestions about how to tell if you are dealing with a knowledgeable and experienced retailer or manufacturer that is comfortable with talking about the quality of the materials in their mattresses and can help “educate” you about their mattresses or you are dealing with a retailer or manufacturer that is more interested in selling you anything they can convince you to buy based more on “marketing stories” than anything else.

online i was looking mainly at mattresses.net, tuft & needle, and casper. i’m a little wary about t&n and casper because they seem to only offer one “type” of mattress, but i’ve read that their return policies are really great and i shouldn’t have any problem returning if i didn’t like it in the end.

If you are looking at an online purchase then the tutorial post also includes links to some of the better online options I’m aware of. If you are in a lower budget range then posts #3 and #4 here also include the better lower budget latex and latex hybrid options I’m aware of and post #4 here includes some of the other lower budget options other than latex that would also be worth considering.

There is no single mattress or comfort level that is the “best match” for a large percentage of the population so both Casper and Tuft & Needle are “all or nothing” choices where they will either be a good match for you (or at least “good enough”) in terms of PPP or you would have the option to return them because both of them have a very good return policy. With most other manufacturers or retailers (such as mattresses.net) you would have the ability to choose between different designs and firmness options or customize the mattress either before or after a purchase.

Mattresses.net and Tuft & Needle are both members of this site so they also provide a discount to the forum members here.

All of these also use different materials (mattresses.net specializes in all latex, Tuft & Needle is polyfoam which is the material used in most sofas, and Casper has a combination of synthetic latex over memory foam with a polyfoam support core) so a big part of your choice would be the types of mattresses and materials you tend to prefer sleeping on and how big a role durability would play in your choices as well (latex is more durable than other foam materials).

Phoenix

[imawo]

i have a good chunk to play around with, so i’m not necessarily on a tight budget, but at the same time, i wouldn’t necessarily poopoo a cheaper mattress if i’m able to feel comfortable on it like the more expensive one. and if don’t like the ones from t&n/casper, with their return policies, i can get my full back and – since i’d still on keeping the extra money around just in case – go for a mattress that would be suited better.

i did have a big question about foundations, though. i saw in your foundation topic that you mentioned 3" or even less between slats is preferable. i was looking at pjs line and the distance between theirs is the smallest i’ve come across in my visiting links; however, i’ve read on a site or two that they keep theirs more around 2.5" instead for breathability/airflow.

if i do get the pjs one, should i also look into getting one (or two) of the bed rugs you’ve mentioned in a post before? or would the mattress be just fine without it. my room doesn’t ever really sit humid, either.

i also wondered with my metal frame i have, it sits fairly high above the ground (for extra storage), would it make a big difference in anything other than in terms of cosmetics if i get the 4" instead (or even the 2" now that i’m looking at my measuring tape) of their 7" because i don’t really want my mattress sitting up that high from the floor (and if i ordered a foundation from a different site, some may even be an inch or so more than even pjs biggest).

thanks.

[phoenix]

Hi imawo,

i did have a big question about foundations, though. i saw in your foundation topic that you mentioned 3" or even less between slats is preferable. i was looking at pjs line and the distance between theirs is the smallest i’ve come across in my visiting links; however, i’ve read on a site or two that they keep theirs more around 2.5" instead for breathability/airflow.

The 3" guideline generally applies to mattresses that have a latex support core that rests on the foundation and 2.5" is less than this so it would be fine as long as the construction and materials in the foundation are strong enough to support the weight of the mattress and the people sleeping on it and don’t sag under weight. For mattresses that use other materials such as polyfoam in the base layer which is less flexible and “stiffer” than latex then wider gaps than 3" would generally be fine as well (although 3" would still be more supportive than wider gaps).

if i do get the pjs one, should i also look into getting one (or two) of the bed rugs you’ve mentioned in a post before? or would the mattress be just fine without it. my room doesn’t ever really sit humid, either.

If the gaps are less than 3" then you won’t need a bed rug no.

i also wondered with my metal frame i have, it sits fairly high above the ground (for extra storage), would it make a big difference in anything other than in terms of cosmetics if i get the 4" instead (or even the 2" now that i’m looking at my measuring tape) of their 7" because i don’t really want my mattress sitting up that high from the floor (and if i ordered a foundation from a different site, some may even be an inch or so more than even pjs biggest).

If the frame is strong enough to support the weight of the mattress, the foundation, and the people on the mattress, then the height of the frame is only a matter of cosmetics and preference and wouldn’t be a matter of strength.

There are also low profile foundations that are thinner that can also be used to change the height of your sleeping surface and this would also be a matter of cosmetics and preference as well.

Phoenix