Hi dee rose,
Dealing with a retailer/manufacturer like this can be a breath of fresh air compared to most of the mainstream industry.
Congratulations on your new mattress 
Would you mind sharing what you ended up buying?
Phoenix
Hi Phoenix,
We ended up going with a Sleepmaker Chiro Ultimate Dream since it was the second most comfortable bed we tested. Other influencing factors were:
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Really wanted to buy with Makin Mattresses due to their superior customer support and double sided mattresses, but unfortunately just did not like the feel of them.
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Ended up with a pocket coil pillow top bed because all the other memory foam mattresses we tried just were not close in comfort to the technogel or the Sleepmaker, our two close contenders.
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the Sleepmaker bed uses talalay latex and 65/40 dunlop viscoflex and a thin (lLess than 2cm) layer of lower density 25 PU as their comfort layer. I know that 80kg memory foam is ideal, but we but the only beds available with that grade of memory foam from where we live were 100% memory foam mattresses to purchase only online or tempur. I just can’t come at buying a mattress without testing it first, especially since the tempur of that grade was nowhere near top of our comfort list.
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Sleepmaker in Australia now owns Dunlop foams. So all dunlop foams used throughout the mattress we chose. We have had only good experiences with dunlop foam products in the past.
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Sleepy’s, the retailer we purchased from is the only outlet in Brisbane apart from Makin Mattresses that offers a comfort exchange. Sleepy’s is a 60 day, Makin Mattresses is an impressive 5 year comfort guarantee. (Yeah just wish we’d fallen in love with one of their beds.)
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Beds in Australia seem to bed more expensive than in the US across the board. Any reasonable quality king size mattress whether from a large company or smaller locally owned business are $3,000 - $4,000.
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My chiropractor said that the “chiro” in this range of beds is genuine not just a rubber stamp. He said that the Chiropractor’s Association of Australia was involved with the development of and 2 years of testing on these beds. He owns one and has found it comfortable and durable.
Lets hope we do too… just waiting for delivery now.
Many thanks
Hi dee rose,
Thanks for letting us know what you ended up buying
I’m not familiar with the Australian market (although there are some links to some of the Australian forum threads and manufacturers in post #2 here) but it sounds to me like you made a good quality and well researched choice.
It would be great if you have the chance to let us know how it works out once you’ve had the chance to sleep on it for a bit.
Phoenix
Have now been sleeping on our new Sleepmaker Chiro Ultimate Dream (Australian made) for about 2 months. I will provide feedback but thought this is probably not the appropriate thread for it since this about the techonogel. See my thread "Sleepmaker Chiro Ultimate Dream ".
Not so great!!! We bought the latest( ? 2014 ) top of the range (?) ‘anatomic’ Technogel mattress and a recommended slatted base 6 weeks ago here in Perth Australia.
We paid over $5000 for the mattress and base. We were both impressed for about 5 days and then the fun (NOT!) began. We turned the mattress as directed and had a few more ok nights sleep but then noticed the gel flattened and the surface become harder followed by a lack of spine support.
Having paid so much (we thought we were buying a very good bed that would last a long time), we were both reluctant to concede the mattress is not good.
I have a bad back but my husband does not and yet BOTH of us are waking up in pain and can’t wait to get out of the bed! For me in particular, the pain is all night long and I’m worse after waking than when I went to bed.
The main issue is that the mattress sinks and we both feel we are sleeping in a hammock. The heavier parts of the body seem to sink so much that the lighter parts are pushed up ie on my back which sinks, my lighter arms and shoulders curl forward causing, thoracic shoulder blade and neck pain. Both of us feel there is no support in the spine what so ever from the mattress now that we have slept on it for 6 weeks. The once buoyant top layer seems to have compressed and is now dense and hard so, many pressure points felt.
I’m so annoyed and have contacted Snooze (the store we bought from) and they have teed up for a rep from technogel to come by tomorrow ‘to assess’ if it is a manufacturers fault or not. The warranty seems short to me upon reading it and says that “body impressions are normal” while the mattress conforms to your body shape “in the first few years”! It comes under the heading of "personal choice and says that this does not constitute a manufacturing fault and therefore, is not covered under the warranty.
My concern is that based on this warranty jargon, they will dismiss my claim for a refund. I have a lawyer friend who has offered to look over the warranty but any advise I can get about handling this would be greatly appreciated.
I will fight this tooth and nail. I am wondering if we should have just stayed clear of spring free mattresses all together as my now 3 experiences with non spring mattresses has not been good re being able to maintain a firm base for the spine. If the spine is not supported, then muscles work overtime to try and adjust the unnatural alignment and this results in back pain that feels like you have been in a boxing ring all night instead of a bed. I’ve been out of bed now for 8 hours and pain in back and neck is still rife. Sadly, I don’t look forward to another round tonight. If anyone can chime in with ideas about to tackle this, I’d be most open to hear and happy for the support…
Hi Steeks,
Thanks for taking the time to share your experience with your Technogel mattress and I’m sorry to hear that it isn’t working out very well for you.
It can be a very risky to assume that mattresses that are in higher budget ranges use better quality and more durable materials … because they often don’t. This is one of the reasons that it’s so important to know the type and quality of all the layers in any mattress you purchase so that you can identify any weak links in the design or the quality/durability of the materials (particularly in the upper layers which are generally the weakest link of a mattress) and so you can make more meaningful comparisons with other mattresses. There is more about the most important parts of a mattress purchase in post #13 here although this won’t be much help in your current circumstances.
I’m not sure of which Technogel mattress you purchased or the specs of the materials inside it but if you look at the specs of the Technogel Deluxe model that are listed in post #13 of this topic as an example you can see that 3.2" out of the top 3.7" of the mattress are low quality materials (less than 4 lb memory foam) that could soften or break down much more quickly than higher quality materials and would be a significant weak link in the mattress.
[quote]I’m so annoyed and have contacted Snooze (the store we bought from) and they have teed up for a rep from technogel to come by tomorrow ‘to assess’ if it is a manufacturers fault or not. The warranty seems short to me upon reading it and says that “body impressions are normal” while the mattress conforms to your body shape “in the first few years”! It comes under the heading of "personal choice and says that this does not constitute a manufacturing fault and therefore, is not covered under the warranty.
My concern is that based on this warranty jargon, they will dismiss my claim for a refund. I have a lawyer friend who has offered to look over the warranty but any advise I can get about handling this would be greatly appreciated.[/quote]
Unfortunately … all warranties in the industry only cover defects in the materials and don’t cover the loss of comfort and support or foam softening that is the most common reason that people would need to replace a mattress. If the visible impressions in a mattress (when there is nobody on the mattress) are less than the warranty exclusion (which I believe is 1.25" in the case of the Technogel warranty) then it’s not considered to be a manufacturing defect … no matter how much the materials under the heavier parts of your body have softened. There is more about mattress warranties in post #174 here but they are certainly not an indication of the useful life of a mattress or how long it may be before you need to replace it.
These types of issues have very little to do with the type of support system in a mattress (innerspring or polyfoam or latex or any other) because the weakest link in a mattress is generally the quality and durability of the materials above the support core. If anything, innerspring mattresses made by most major manufacturers have even worse issues with the quality and durability of the upper layers of the mattress. Regardless of which type of mattress you tend to prefer or the materials and components that are inside it … outside of testing for PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) the most important part of the “value” of a mattress purchase is to make sure that you know the type and quality of all the layers inside the mattress (see this article) so you can make sure there are no weak links in the mattress.
You can’t “feel” the quality or durability of the materials in a mattress because most types of materials have lower quality and less durable versions and higher quality and more durable versions that can feel the same when they are new. The difference is that the lower quality versions don’t maintain their original properties that was the reason you purchased the mattress for nearly as long.
Unfortunately there are no great solutions to “fix” a mattress that has softened or is sagging (virtual or visible impressions) because you would generally need to remove and replace the layers that have softened and are causing the issues but there are some suggestions in post #4 here that may be helpful at least partially or temporarily if your warranty claim isn’t approved.
I hope you have the chance to let us know what happens.
Phoenix
Thank you very much for explaining all that. Yes, we fell right into the trap of a salesmans spiel and the in-store experience of trying a seemingly, comfortable mattress. Add to this, the desperation we had for a good nights sleep and it spells… suckered.
I wish I had known there was a way to get the information re the materials used. Most of my previous questions were met with the usual salesman reassurances and their learned rhetoric. My google searches all led me in circles. I wish I’d found this place earlier! It is such a minefield out there!
It sounds like we will be stuck with it as the body impressions part of the warranty will no doubt, give them their ‘out’ and even if they agreed to replace it, we will just get the same again.
I’ll update after tomorrow morns ‘consult’.
I have gone through two mattress from Techno gel. I have a bad back as well and it seems like to bed sinks and definitely gives me more of a back ache. The bed had totally sank in and i contacted them and they said they would have to inspect the bed and it needs to be 1 1/4 sunk in. This is the second time in 5 months the bed has sunk in again. This was totally a bad bed to buy and spend so much money on. I would not suggest anyone to buy this Brand b/c its not a good bed. I am trying to get a new one now and sell it and go buy a new mattress with no gel or tempurpedic. Just wanted to let you know that you are def right and your not the only one.
Best,
Hi millLA,
Thanks for taking the time to share your feedback as well … and I’m also sorry to hear that your mattress didn’t work out well for you either.
This is one of the reasons why its so important to know the type and quality/durability of all the materials and components inside any mattress you purchase because regardless of the brand or the price of a mattress … outside of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) a mattress is only as good as it’s construction and the quality of the materials inside it.
The gel itself is a good quality and durable material but it’s only a relatively thin layer in their mattresses so it’s much more likely that the issues you are having are because of the other materials in your mattress … not from the gel itself. Deciding not to consider gel would be similar to buying an innerspring mattress that softens or breaks down too quickly and someone believing that the reason is the innerspring itself and deciding to never buy another innerspring mattress when in almost all cases the layers above the innerspring are the real source of the issues they are having. There are certainly some good quality mattresses that use a soft solid gel or other foams that infuse gel into the foam in various ways (there is more about different types of gel materials in post #2 here) so looking at the specifics of all the materials in a mattress and making sure there are no weak links in the mattress is usually more reliable approach than ruling out a complete category of materials that would include lower and higher quality versions of the same type of material.
Thank again for taking the time to share your experiences.
Phoenix
Just an update re the Technogel mattress. The rep visited today and agreed the mattress was very soft and sinking. He was very nice and listened without disputing my complaints. He offered to take the mattress away to exchange the too soft core layers for much firmer higher density ones. I agreed and they came today, took the mattress and returned in a few hours. The mattress feels notably firmer so I’m hoping this is going to be the end of any issues. Of course, we expect some softening but hopefully, the more dense layers added will at least, keep our spines from sleeping in hammock type positions as before. I will keep you updated. As far as how the issue was dealt with, I was treated with respect and professionalism. Pheonix, you are a great resource and obviously, a generous and just minded person! Thank you so much for this! It is rare to find such kindness, support and dedication these days.
Thanks missLA. Thanks for sharing. It is always good to know it is not just you alone that have a bad experience and so helpful to everyone here. It is so frustrating. I would encourage you to keep at them and even get a letter from a lawyer sent on your behalf to let them know that you mean business!. There seems to be such a scam going on where mattresses are concerned. They can say what ever they like and really, who knows what is really inside unless you cut it open and have it tested. Perhaps too, you could consult with a local mattress maker to have the bed modified. You could even tell the Techno Gel people you are going to do this for reason of inspection to see if their advertising/sales hype matches what is inside. I have no experience in this but seems to me that we all have the right to kick up if we are sold a dud product. The more people that hold them accountable, the better… as it is a competitive market and in times of social media, a brand could suffer if enough bad reviews were written. They may need you to remind them of this. Sometimes, you have to stand hard and strong for your rights. Goodluck…would love to hear what happens.
Hi Steeks,
Thanks for the update and for sharing the results of your meeting with the Technogel rep.
I also have to say that if they took away your mattress and returned with a new one in only a few hours that that has to be one of the fastest and most “painless” exchange processes I’ve seen and you didn’t even miss a night of sleep between the pickup of your old mattress and the delivery of your new one
I hope that your new mattress with the higher quality and firmer materials will end up being a more suitable and more long lasting experience than your first one and I hope you have the chance to provide an additional update over the course of the next few weeks and/or months.
Phoenix
I have owned an estasi + king for about 2 years. One word terrible.
It was great at first but now it is really saggy under my bottom. I have to stick pillows under me to get any support.
If I had to do it over again I would have bought another tempurpedic or something else.
I tried reading through their 30 page warranty it is very complicated and specifically states that getting softer is not covered.
“changes in softness (which may take place over the years), which are natural and do not affect the characteristics of the mattress;”
I can only imagine the disappointment if someone bigger owned this brand as I am only 138# and cant get any support.
Hi sghokie,
I’m sorry to hear about your experience with the Technogel Estasi + but unfortunately because of the quality of the materials in the upper layers it’s also not surprising (see post #32 here).
[quote]I tried reading through their 30 page warranty it is very complicated and specifically states that getting softer is not covered.
“changes in softness (which may take place over the years), which are natural and do not affect the characteristics of the mattress;”[/quote]
This is also a warranty criteria that is standard in the industry and would be the same with all manufacturers. Warranties only cover defects in a mattress and not the gradual (or more rapid) loss of comfort and support that comes from the softening or breakdown of lower quality materials and they aren’t an indication of the useful life of a mattress or how long it may be before you may need to replace it (see post #174 here). This is one of the reasons why it’s so important to know the quality/durability of the materials in any mattress you are considering (see this article) so you can make sure that it doesn’t have any weak links and so you can make more meaningful comparisons with other mattresses.
While there are no great solutions for a mattress that has started sagging or developed soft spots (visible or virtual impressions) … there are some suggestions in post #4 here that may be helpful.
Thanks for taking the time to share your comments and feedback … I appreciate it.
Phoenix
Steeks, any update on how the new mattress is working out?
I contacted them it took a few days to get back to me. Then they had to schedule a mattress inspector to come out and check for the tag. Sort of like Fletch but in real life.
The inspector agreed it wasn’t good.
That was almost 1 week ago.
Still waiting for info from them.
I have given up sleeping on it and moved into my guest room with my 17-18 year old tempurpedic.
I will probably try and call them in a few days if I don’t hear anything.
A while back they gave me a replacement. It is much better that the old one.
Hi sghokie,
Thanks for the update … and I’m glad to hear that you were able to replace your mattress with one that is working better for you.
Phoenix
DO NOT BUY THIS MATTRESS. I have owned an Estasi King for 2 years now (purchased through The Healthy Back Store) and the last year on this mattress has been awful. Lower back pain will not go away and I wake up almost every night with numbness in my hands from pressure points. I’ve been trying to get someone from Techno Gel to return my call to address the warranty.
The sagging from my DH’s side of the bed is really bad and I end up rolling into it. My side doesn’t sag but it harder than when I purchased it and very uncomfortable.
I don’t want any type of replacement of this bed or anything from Techno Gel …
Hi mich40,
I’m sorry to hear that you aren’t sleeping well on your mattress. It may be a better idea to contact the retailer that you purchased from if you believe that you have a warranty claim. They will normally be able to expedite a warranty claim.
You can see the terms of the Technogel warranty here. Warranties don’t cover comfort or support issues (a mattress that is suitable or comfortable for one person may be unsuitable or uncomfortable for someone else or vice versa) but if your mattress has a visible impression that is deeper than 1" and meets all the other warranty criteria then you would most likely have a valid warranty claim.
Unfortunately this isn’t a choice you will have because warranty claims will only replace your mattress … not provide you with a refund to purchase a mattress from a different manufacturer.
Phoenix
The replacement mattress they gave me is giving out now too.
I only weigh like 140# and it is very saggy. I only have had the new one for about 10 months and only actually used it for about 9 months. It was really good for the first 7-8 months.