Building my own latex mattress...

I don’t think that I’ll be happy until I have exactly what I want with the best materials. Through extensive research, I’ve found that I could build my own all latex 12" mattress for a good amount less than what it would cost if I bought a complete and already made one. I am 6’0", 180 pounds, and always a side-sleeper. I like a plush or pillowtop type of mattress.

Here’s what I was thinking, looking for some constructive criticism. I chose to incorporate dunlop into the core as I’ve read that it is firmer which makes for a better base.

3" 100% natural talalay (19 ILD)
3" 100% natural talalay (30 ILD)
6" Dunlop blended core (need help with ILD) Maybe 36?

I was looking to buy the 2 100% natural 3" layers of talalay from SleepEz as I know they are a very reputable source. However I am unsure of where to buy the 6" dunlop core from. I see Mattress247 on eBay, FoamByMail/FoamFactory, and SleepOnLatex. All three of these companies sell a 6" blended dunlop core for around the same price. Are there any other companies that sell the 6" core and are these three companies reputable?

Hi B Feelgood,

If you are attracted to the idea of designing and building your own DIY mattress out of separate components and a separate cover then the first place I would start is by reading option 3 in post #15 here and the posts it links to (and option #1 and #2 as well) so that you have more realistic expectations and that you are comfortable with the learning curve, uncertainty, trial and error, or in some cases the higher costs that may be involved in the DIY process. While it can certainly be a rewarding project … the best approach to a DIY mattress is a “spirit of adventure” where what you learn and the satisfaction that comes from the process itself is more important than any cost savings you may realize (which may or may not happen).

If you decide to take on the challenge then I would either use the specs (if they are available) of a mattress that you have tested and confirmed is a good match for you in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) as a reference point or blueprint and try and “match” every layer and component in your reference mattress (including any springs, any foam layers, and the cover) as closely as possible or use a “bottom up” approach (see post #2 here).

There is also more about primary or “deep” support and secondary or “surface” support and their relationship to firmness and pressure relief and the “roles” of different layers in a mattress in post #2 here and in post #4 here that may also be helpful in clarifying the difference between “support” and “pressure relief” and “feel” that may be useful as well.

The better online options I’m aware of for individual layers and components for building a DIY mattress are listed in the topper and component list in post #4 here.

If you are considering ordering from Foambymail (AKA FBM or Foam Factory and other names as well) then I would read this post and this post and this topic (about their polyfoam and sources) and this post (presumably from a past employee) before buying anything or considering them as a reliable supplier.

Other than FBM … I would consider all of the suppliers you listed to be knowledgeable and reliable and they along with others are all included in the suppliers list I linked.

Phoenix

Thanks for the info my friend :slight_smile:

Unfortunately, I’m not in close proximity to any all latex manufacturers. Therefore, I’m willing to do a little experimentation and like the idea of doing it myself.

As I mentioned in my previous post, the only latex bed that I’ve tried is the Kiss mattress. I absolutely loved the top 1.5" layer 19 ILD of talalay latex but wasn’t thrilled that it was such a thin layer and didn’t like the 1.5" layer of memory foam underneath of it.

I feel pretty comfortable with these two layers. Does this look like a good start? I think that 6" of 19 ILD would be too soft here, correct?
3" 100% natural talalay (19 ILD)
3" 100% natural talalay (30 ILD)

However, I’m unsure of which firmness to order for the bottom dunlop 6" layer.

Can you offer any advice?

Hi B Feelgood,

If you aren’t using a specific all latex mattress that you have tested and confirmed is a good “match” for you as a reference point then I would take a “bottom up” approach rather than a “top down” approach and decide on your base layer first (or in a three layer mattress the bottom two layers … making sure that if anything it would be a little on the “too firm” side) and then choose the thickness and firmness of the layer or layers on top of it according to your sleeping experience on your previous choices (post #2 here and the topper guidelines it links to may also be helpful).

Once you have finalized the thickness and firmness of your layering then you can choose the type of cover you prefer in a suitable thickness.

I would certainly agree that 6" of 19 ILD Talalay would be too thick/soft for most people.

Phoenix

I have a question in regard to king sized layers of talalay and dunlop.

Are there any manufactures that offer either a 3" or 6" slab of talalay or dunlop that is one continuous king sized piece? Through my research, it seems as if they are either glued together in the middle or a manufacturer will sell you 2 separate twin-XL sized pieces unglued to make 1 king sized piece.

I also read something saying that all latex molds are only twin-XL in sized, however I have no idea if that’s true or not.

Hi B Feelgood,

King size Dunlop 3" or 6" cores without any glue seams are certainly available (although you couldn’t ship a single 6" king size Dunlop core through courier because it would be too heavy and it would need to be shipped with a common carrier which is more costly) but the largest continuous piece without glue seams that is available in Talalay is queen size (see post #2 here).

Phoenix

Evening Phoenix.

Please correct me if I’m wrong. It sounds like no matter where I order a complete bed made of 100% natural talalay or separate pieces to make my own bed, there will be a ton of separate pieces.

EX: 12" total height
3" top layer is actually 2 twinXL pieces either glued or unglued (manufactures choice)
3" middle layer is actually 2 twinXL pieces either glued or unglued (manufactures choice)
6" bottom/core layer is actually 2 twinXL pieces either glued or unglued (manufactures choice)

Therefore I would actually have 6 pieces instead of three solid pieces.

Would the 6" bottom layer be two 3" pieces glued together to make 6" in height or is there an actual 6" continuous solid one piece?

Edit: I was just watching this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1J8oSJHT3Eg
I’m pretty sure I talked with this company at some point in time and they told me that they do not sell any king sized talalay pieces in either 3" or 6" that come in one piece. Everything sold in that size in 100% talalay come in two twinXL unglued pieces. However, in this video they clearly show a solid 1 continuous piece talalay topper being put on at the end?

Hi B Feelgood,

Yes … there would be more than one layer in most latex mattress (outside of some mattresses that only contain a single latex layer … typically 6" thick).

[quote]EX: 12" total height
3" top layer is actually 2 twinXL pieces either glued or unglued (manufactures choice)
3" middle layer is actually 2 twinXL pieces either glued or unglued (manufactures choice)
6" bottom/core layer is actually 2 twinXL pieces either glued or unglued (manufactures choice)[/quote]

Some manufacturers will give you the choice of whether to order glued or unglued layers (you can also glue split layers together yourself and you can also cut solid layers yourself as well).

Most (but not all) Talalay and Dunlop latex molds are about 6" in height so the original core that thinner layers are generally slit from would be 6". Whether the bottom 6" of a mattress was a single 6" core or a combination of thinner layers glued together (such as two 3" layers) would depend on the specific mattress but it’s very common to see solid 6" cores that aren’t two thinner pieces glued together to make up the 6".

Phoenix

Thank you for the insight.

Do you have any opinion of Mountain Top Foam? http://www.mountaintopfoam.com/
Speaking in terms of the quality of materials used and also consistency of finished product?

Are Radium Foam and Latex International manufactures of foam or do they supply raw materials to small USA based mattress companies to produce their own foam in respective factories?

Hi B Feelgood,

Mountaintop Foam makes a range of continuous pour Dunlop latex cores that vary from 100% synthetic to 100% natural and are made with 7 zones in each core. They are all high quality and durable materials regardless of the blend. They also come in softer versions than are typical for most Dunlop manufacturers (comparable to the softest Talalay ILD’s).

There is more about the different types and blends of latex in post #6 here but the choice between different types and blends of latex is generally a preference and budget choice rather than a “better/worse” choice. There is also more about how Dunlop compares to Talalay in general terms in post #7 here. The MTF continuous pour Dunlop is somewhat in between the two but would be closer to the feel of Dunlop (continuous pour is a version of the Dunlop process).

Radium and Talalay Global (formerly Latex International) both manufacture the Talalay latex that is used by mattress manufacturers … they don’t supply either the raw materials or equipment that other companies would need to manufacture latex. They are the only two manufacturers of Talalay latex in the western world.

Phoenix

Thanks Phoenix, enjoying learning about all of this stuff! Have a few more questions.

  1. Specifically speaking about SleepEZ and Arizona Premium Mattress. Do you know if their 3" king sized 100% talalay toppers or raw layers are glued or 2 separate pieces? (I assume these manufacturers would be better to ask but figured I’d ask if you knew first)

  2. I’m going with a 100% natural 6" solid continuous pour dunlop core. It is offered in 24, 32, and 40 ILD. I’m trying to mimic one of two Pure Bliss Latex beds (Beautiful or World’s Best Bed). They start all of their models with a 100% talalay 6" core with a 36 ILD (except pamper which has 40 ILD). It is my understanding that natural dunlop is former than natural talalay. So for example, a 32ILD dunlop would have the firmness roughly equivalent to a 36 ILD talalay. I know that ILD is not always 100% dead on accurate amongst different manufacturers but is this generally correct?

  3. If I like a softer or more plush setup, would I be better off going with the 32 ILD or 40 ILD for my dunlop core? As mentioned before, I plan on using 3" of 100% talalay with an ILD of 19-20 for thr top layer and another 3" layer of 100% talalay with an ILD of 27-29 underneath of that for the middle layer.

Hi B Feelgood,

If they are talalay latex and are a solid king size layer they would have a glue seam. If they are two twin XL layers (two twin XL layers are the same size as king size) then they would be separate pieces.

You may have some difficulty finding a 6" thick layer of Mountaintop continuous pour Dunlop latex (it would be more common to find 6" layers of 100% natural Dunlop that was made in a mold).

I would also be very cautious about using ILD information to compare different types and blends of latex and this can be very risky because they don’t compare well to each other. If you are using a layer on top of a mattress that will be compressed more deeply and the ILD of both layers was tested in the same way (using a 50 sq in compressor head to compress the core by 25% of its thickness) then it would be reasonable to use a difference of about 4 ILD for comparison. If you only sink into both layers 1.5" then they would be similar at that specific depth of compression but in a top layer you would most likely sink into the layer more than 1.5" and Dunlop has a higher compression modulus than Talalay which means it gets firmer faster than Talalay as you sink in more deeply. In deeper layers how they compare would depend on the firmness and thickness of the layers on top of it and on how deeply you sink into the deeper layers you are comparing. In other words they have a different response curve.

There is more about making ILD comparisons between different types and blends of latex in post #6 here.

Like any other questions that involve how a combination of layers will feel to a specific person … the answer is always “it depends”. If you use a softer support core then you may need to experiment with thinner comfort and/or transition layers and if you use a firmer support core then you may need to experiment with thicker comfort and/or transition layers but the top 3" to 6" of a mattress will have a bigger effect on how a mattress “feels” to different people (depending on their body type, sleeping positions, and sensitivity) than the deeper layers.

Phoenix

Unfortunately I spent the better half my my weekend watching YouTube videos, comparing construction of brand name latex mattresses, and reading forum post after forum post. At the end of all of this, I’m really no better off than when I started, lol. I am however, much more educated with the methods of making latex, which kind works best where, and finding the best places to order from.

I know that I want to use 100% talalay for the top/comfort layers and 100% natural dunlop for the support/core layer. I can exchange/return the top/comfort layers but I cannot exchange the bottom core/support layer and that’s where I’m having the most trouble at. It seems that most already assembled latex mattresses start with a 6" 36 ILD core (which isn’t available to me).

I can get the 100% natural dunlop in either 18, 24, 32 & 40 ILD. It comes in either 3" or 6" slabs. I want to do either a 9" or 12" total height mattress.

I know that you don’t really make suggestions per say but can you steer me in the right direction here? You had said to start with a bottom up approach but I am not sure if I should go with a 6" layer of 32 ILD or 40 ILD or a 3" layer of 32 ILD or 40 ILD to start with for the bottom layer or core.

Hi B Feelgood,

Either one could make a reasonable choice or starting point but the different firmness options would affect the firmness and thickness of the comfort and transition layers that you would likely need on top of the support core. The softer support core would probably need thinner comfort and/or transition layers because it would have a bigger effect on how soft the mattress “feels” than a firmer support core.

It would also depend on whether you are using a differential or a progressive approach (see the putting the layers together section here). For example if you are using a differential two layer approach and you have a softer support core then the upper part of the support core would compress more and you may only need a 2" comfort layer on top of it (because you are using the top part of the support core as part of the comfort layer or “critical zone”) while if you have a firmer support core then you may need a thicker comfort layer to isolate you more from the firmness of the support core and provide a more even transition between the two layers.

If you are using a progressive approach with more than two layers then a firmer support core would be less risky and then you can “fine tune” the thickness and firmness of the transition and comfort layers on top of it based on your own experience. This would involve using a firmer core and then a 2" or 3" transition layer somewhere in a medium range (which could still be too firm) and then you can use your experience on the bottom two layers to help you decide on the thickness and firmness of the top layer that you are most likely to need to complete your mattress (other than choosing a cover).

There are certainly more firmness options available than the ones you listed from the different suppliers on the list. I would also keep in mind that it’s less likely that you would need to return or exchange the deeper support core (as long as it isn’t too soft to keep you in good alignment if you sleep on it by itself) but for deeper layers I would tend to “err” on the side of firmness rather than softness because you can compensate for the firmness of the deeper layers by changing the thickness and firmness of the layers on top of it .

Phoenix

Thanks for the advice.

I’m thinking that it may be better to start with a 3" firm 40 ILD dunlop core instead of getting a 6" core. This way I can build from that instead of getting stuck with a 6" that could possibly be too soft or firm.

What are your thoughts on using dunlop instead of talalay as the transition layer?

Hi B Feelgood,

The choice between different types and blends of latex in any layer of a mattress is more of a preference and a budget choice than a “better/worse” choice. There is more about how Dunlop and Talalay compare in general terms in post #7 here but the best way to know which type of latex you tend to prefer will be based on your own local testing or you own personal experience because different people can have very different preferences.

Phoenix