Hi,
I am considering a bed in the box like leeza or casper but wonder if they have strong chemical smells to them. Also I wondered if you have any side by side comparisons to these types of beds. We can’t afford a natural latex mattress and are looking for a king size. We like the trial periods offered so that there is no risk. We would like to avoid the fire retardant if possible…Thank you for any help you can offer.
Hi Madelyn,
I don’t have any personal experience with the smell of these mattresses so I can’t make any comments about what they smell like to me but hopefully some of the other members here that own one will see your comments and share their experience. It’s important to note that what may smell bad to one person could be totally nondescript to another, and that there can be variations in odor from different batches of foam as well.
There is some information about odors and suggestions for minimizing them in post #3 here if you are sensitive to such things.
There is a section here on the site that discusses some of the “one-size-fits-all” mattresses and the newer breed of compressed shipped products. Right now this part of the forum is experiencing some technical issues, so I will attach a .pdf document that has the information from that post in a form that is easier to read. There are currently over 100 of these types of mattresses – more than I can keep up with on a daily basis!
Many of the members listed in post #21 here offer a wide range of latex mattresses and some are very well-prices, and I believe that all of them compete well with the best in the industry in terms of their quality, value, service, and transparency. If you are on a more restricted budget then post #4 here and the posts it links to also include many of the better lower budget online options I’m aware of as well.
Most online retailers or manufacturers offer some sort of a return/exchange program, so always be sure to inquire about the complete details of such a program with any company from which you are considering making a purchase.
Fire retardant chemicals have never been mandatory. What is required is that a mattress pass the 16 CFR 1632 and 1633 fire regulations with or without the use of fire retardant chemicals (the method of passing the regulations isn’t specified in the regulations). The most common method used to pass the regulations is the use of inherent fire barrier fabrics that are either quilted into the cover or are wrapped around the inner materials of the mattress like a sock. There is more information about fire retardant methods that are commonly used in the industry in post #2 here and in post #4 here.
I hope that information is helpful to you!
Phoenix