Bowles mattress

Need help choosing a mattress. I like Bowles Silver kodiak, bronze emerald. I am overwhelmed with all the info. Been doing alot of research. Any concerns with sagging or quality /durability with innerspring design? Info on company, not many reviews.

Hi jgo,

The first place I would start is the tutorial post here which has all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that can help you make the best possible choices … and know how to avoid the worst ones.

You can read some thoughts about Bowles Mattress in post #3 here and a forum search on Bowles (you can just click this) will bring up more information and feedback about them and some of their mattresses as well but I would make sure you know the details of all the layers inside any mattress you are considering because regardless of which manufacturer makes it or the name on a label … outside of how well it matches your needs and preferences in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) a mattress is only as good as its construction and the quality of the materials inside it.

If you can post all the specific layers and components of any mattress you are considering on the forum (from top to bottom) including the density of any memory foam or polyfoam and the type and blend of any latex I’d be happy to make some comments about it or help you identify any potential weak link in the mattress.

Phoenix

Semi Plush; No Flip Construction
11 1/2" Mattress profile
Your choice of 9" or 4" Premium Foundation
Cool Max® Fabric quilted to 1 1/2" Foam;
VLS Visco Lumbar Support
High Density convoluted foam insert
704 Marshall “Zoned” “Pocketed” Foam Encased Coil w/ 3" x 6" High Density Firm Encasement Rails
.5 viscos lumbar support, 2" 1.8 convoluted foam 6" individually wrapped coil., VLS visco lumbar support 3"x6" foam encasment 2"base support pad

Kodiak Plush(above)

Bronze below
Semi Plush; No Flip Construction
11 1/2" Mattress profile
Your choice of 9" or 4" Premium Foundation
Tissue Pick Damask Fabric quilted to 3/4" Foam;
VLS Visco Lumbar Support
High Density convoluted foam insert
3/4" Comfort support layer pad
Insulator pad
Spring barrier
644 Ameri Spring w/ Ameri Guard (Steel Encased)
.5 viscos lumbar support, 2" 1.8 convoluted foam .75 comfort support layer .25 insulator pad 7"continous coil tissue pick damask quilted .75 firm foam

Hi Jgo,

I’ve re-listed the specs to exclude the information I don’t need and to list the specifics of all the layers of the mattress from top to bottom along with some comments.

Here’s what I think I know based on the specs you listed …

Kodiak Plush:

Cover: Cool Max® Fabric which is fine.
1 1/2" 1.5 lb Polyfoam quilted to the cover: This would be “acceptable” if there were no other lower quality foams in the top layers.
.5" 2.5 lb VLS Visco Lumbar Support: this is beginning to take the total amount of lower density foams over the edge although it is a belly band which is only in part of the mattress.
2" High Density convoluted 1.8 lb foam insert: This is at the bottom end of “good quality” polyfoam and the convoluting would make it a little less durable than a solid layer of the same density.
6" 704 Marshall “Zoned” “Pocketed” Foam Encased Coil w/ 3" x 6" High Density Firm Encasement Rails: It would be nice to know the gauge of the coils in each zone although this isn’t likely to be the weak link of the mattress. The foam encasement is very firm (60 ILD) but is also lower density than I would like to see (1.5 lb density) so this isn’t a mattress where I would spend a lot of time sitting on the edge … especially with higher weights.
2" base support pad: This is used to support the coils and it would also be nice to know the density of this layer but it’s also less “essential” because it’s on the bottom of the mattress.

Total layers 11.5" (excluding visco support layer and the effect of the quilting) which adds up to the thickness of the mattress so all the layers are listed

I normally use a guideline of “about an inch or so” of lower quality or unknown materials in the upper layers of a mattress and this one has 2" (the quilting polyfoam and the visco) which is why I would want to know the density of both layers. That plus the fact that the 1.8 lb polyfoam insert is convoluted which is less durable than solid layers adds some risk to the mattress in terms of foam softening and breakdown over time. Assuming that the unknown layers are good quality materials … these are better quality materials than most “mainstream” mattresses but I would make some careful quality comparisons with other mattresses in the same price range. This would probably be fine for average body weights but may be on the low side for higher body weights.

Bronze Emerald (or more likely the Sapphire):

Tissue Pick Damask Fabric: This is fine
3/4" firm 1.5 lb polyfoam quilted to the cover: This in combination with the .5" Visco Lumbar Support is in the range of about an inch or so of unknown materials so while it would be nice to know the density it isn’t absolutely necessary.
1/2" 2.5 lb VLS Visco Lumbar Support: See comments above
2" 1.8 lb High Density convoluted foam insert: This again is at the bottom end of “good quality” polyfoam and the convoluting would make it a little less durable than a solid layer.
3/4" Comfort support layer pad: I would want to know what type of material this is.
1/4" insulator pad: This is fine
Spring barrier: This is probably fine although they don’t say what type of material it is.
7" 644 Ameri Spring w/ Ameri Guard (Steel Encased) continous coil: They don’t mention the coil gauge but this is a continuous coil which would generally provide firm even support but be less contouring and less costly than the pocket coil in the Kodiak. I would make sure that you are OK with the motion isolation of this mattress because of the continuous coil. Steel edge supports are stronger than polyfoam edge supports. I would also guess that this mattress would be quite different from the Kodiak in terms of PPP.

After excluding the .5" visco which is only in the middle of the mattress (and wasn’t included in the total for the previous mattress) the total layers are 10.75" which is less than the total 13" thickness (not 11.5") of the Bronze Emerald that they mention on their site here. It appears that these may be the specs of the Bronze Sapphire which is 11.5" and the difference between the listed layers and the 11.5" thickness is probably the spring barrier.

This is a lower budget mattress that may not be as “comfortable” as the Kodiak and I would make sure you test it carefully for PPP but my comments about the quality of the foam above the innerspring would be similar to the Kodiak.

I would choose both of these over most mainstream mattresses but I would make some good comparisons with other mattresses that are available to you because they are “on the line” in terms of quality/durability (most mainstream mattresses are well below the line) and I would be cautious with higher than average body weights.

Phoenix

the company email me right away with the info.

1.5015 denstiy quilt foam
1/2"of 2.5 lb adapta flex memory foam
1.5060 density FAAM encasement
Jenny

Hi jgo,

Thanks for the additional specs and I’ve updated the previous post with my comments.

As you can see from my comments and the guidelines … both of these mattresses are somewhat “on the edge” in terms of the amount of lower quality/density materials in the mattress and while they would both make better choices than most mainstream mattresses (that are usually lower quality than both of these) … there may also be some higher quality options available to you in similar price ranges. Overall they would be “acceptable” (which is better than most mainstream mattresses) but not great IMO.

Phoenix

can you recommend better quality materials/ mattress similiar to the kodiac in the same price range? As many of your members i am “over-whelmed” with the information. I like the idea of buying local(indianpolis) but am open to other options.

Hi Jgo,

I don’t have a record or keep track of individual mattresses in any area of the country based on their design or specific materials (which would be more than anyone could keep up with in a constantly changing market) but some of the better options and possibilities in terms or retailers and manufacturers I’m aware of in the Indianapolis area are listed in post #2 here.

The tutorial post includes the steps I would follow and links to the mattress shopping guidelines here which has the guidelines I would use to help you assess any weak links in a mattress. There is also more information in post #4 here that can help you assess and compare the durability and the useful life of a mattress.

Phoenix

Dont get discouraged Jgo everyone goes through it. Just keep asking questions and pheonix will keep pointing you in the right direction. You may have to read through his tutorial a few times like I did and every time you do the picture becomes clearer and clearer. I can reassure you though there isnt a post that he wont respond to.

Good Luck

I spoke to owner of holder in lafayette, in. They make two sided mattresses.
Prestige pillow top: use 14.5 gauge offset coils 660. 12 inch thick mattress, 1.5 inch 1.8 density polyfoam , 2 inch 1.8 foam quilting. two sided. 1/2 inch soft padding, fire padding. No memory foam or latex.
Price is between 900-1000$.
Latex mattresses run $1,800.
Please comment?

Hi Jgo,

I don’t know the specific details of either mattress you are looking at so I can’t make any specific comments but 1.8 lb polyfoam and latex are both good quality durable materials (latex even more than polyfoam) and a two sided mattress would be more durable than a one sided mattress as well (see post #3 here) but I do think highly of Holders in Lafayette and I think it would be well worth the drive to pay them a visit.

Phoenix