Canadian Options - Tempur-Flex Alternative (Novosbed/Casper/LoomLeaf)

Good evening everyone,

I am a Canadian who has recently been interested in buying a tempurpedic mattress for back pain and comfort. I discovered the online alternatives while looking at reviews online and have to say I am very excited that these exist and Iā€™m looking to find the best mattress for me.

I am using tempur-pedic as the base, as I have never tried any of these other mattresses. The tempurpedic I preferred the most was actually their tempur-flex models which I believe are hybrids. They only seem to be available at the Brick and the prices are ridiculous. I did try out some of the blue model tempur-pedic mattresses at Sears and these were far too firm for me.

Now looking at the online mattress retailers that deliver to Canada the options that sound most appealing to me after reading and watching a billion reviews on websites and youtube are as follows:
Casper ($1050 CAD)
Loom & Leaf ($1400 CAD + $70CAD delivery) - The prices are in USD and the exchange rate is horrible right now, otherwise this would be cheaper
Novosbed ($1199 CAD)

Now based on what they say on their website and the available options I would pick the Novosbed. It has a good price, the best trial policy and pretty friendly support from my brief talk with them.

Now my problem with this is, it is very easy to find comparison videos for almost all of these online mattress retailers, but Novosbed never seems to be among them. Iā€™m having a difficult time comparing them. The Novosbed also has the least amount of reviews available so while compiling and comparing reviews, the sample size is quite small.

The Loom and Leaf website also makes a big deal about how their mattress doesnā€™t come stuffed in a box. Should this be a deciding factor? What difference does this actually make?

I realize you guys go through a million of these threads, however Iā€™m hoping someone can chime in on my situation. Which of these three would you recommend most, and why? I am not too knowledgeable on the technical details of mattress construction so any tips would be appreciated.

Some brief information:
Me: 29/M/180lbs, generally a side-sleeper
Spouse: 27/F/107lbs, side and back sleeper
We just bought our first house and are looking for a new bed. Currently using a 9 year old Kingsdown spring mattress that is killing my back. Our mattress is currently on the floor, but we are planning on buying an actual bed as soon as we can find one we like.

Question: For those of you who have tried some of these mattresses and can give me a comparable mattress available in store for trial, I would appreciate it. The closest thing I can find is iComfort which is available at Sears.

Another question: I do frequently read sitting up in bed. With a memory foam mattress is this going to cause sagging or issues where I sit?

Thanks in advance. Any additional details required are available.

Hi RandomSanity,

I would keep in mind that there is no specific type or category of mattress that is ā€œbest for back painā€ in general because each personā€™s individual needs and preferences in terms of ā€œcomfortā€, firmness, and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) is unique to them. There is only a mattress that is ā€œbest for your back painā€. The choice between different materials or components in a mattress or types of mattress is always a preference and budget choice rather than a ā€œbetter/worseā€ choice (see this article).

All the different types or categories of mattress (including memory foam mattresses) have hundreds of different options and designs and some of them that work well for some people with back pain may be completely unsuitable for other people with back pain to sleep on even if they have a similar body type and sleeping style. In other words the specific design of a mattress and whether that specific design is a good match for you in terms of PPP (regardless of whether it would be suitable for anyone else) is always more important than the type of materials and components inside the mattress.

Most of the Tempurpedic mattresses use good quality materials but as you know they are in much higher (and mostly unjustifiable) budget ranges and for most people they certainly wouldnā€™t be in the best ā€œvalueā€ range compared to many other smaller manufacturers that use similar (or in some cases better) quality materials that are in much lower budget ranges. You can read more about Tempurpedic in general in posts #1 and #2 here.

Having said that ā€¦ Tempurpedic doesnā€™t disclose the quality/density of the memory foam and polyfoam comfort and transition layers in their Tempur Flex mattresses but I believe the polyfoam layer that they use underneath their memory foam is 1.6 lb density which would be a lower density and less durable material than I would normally like to see in a one sided mattress (see the quality/durability guidelines here) and I would normally avoid any mattress that has more than ā€œabout an inch or soā€ of lower quality or ā€œunknownā€ materials in the upper layers of the mattress (especially in this budget range) because it could reduce and compromise the durability and useful life of the mattress.

While other peopleā€™s comments about the knowledge and service of a particular business can certainly be very helpful ā€¦ I would always keep in mind that you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress and I would be cautious about about using other peopleā€™s experiences or reviews on a mattress (either positive or negative) or review sites in general (with or without videos) as a reliable source of information or guidance about how you will feel on the same mattress or how suitable or how durable a mattress may be for you and in many if not most cases they can be more misleading than helpful because most consumers have little knowledge about mattresses and mattress materials or how to assess the quality of the materials in a mattress and any mattress that would be a perfect choice for one person or even a larger group of people may be completely unsuitable for someone else to sleep on (even if they are in a similar weight range). In other words ā€¦ reviews in general certainly wonā€™t tell you much if anything about the suitability, quality, durability, or ā€œvalueā€ of a mattress for any particular person (see post #13 here).

I would also keep in mind that there are also no ā€œstandardā€ definitions or consensus of opinions for firmness ratings and different manufacturers can rate their mattresses very differently than others so a mattress that one manufacturer rates as being a specific firmness could be rated very differently by another manufacturer. Different people can also have very different perceptions of firmness and softness compared to others as well and a mattress that feels firm for one person can feel like ā€œmediumā€ for someone else or even ā€œsoftā€ for someone else (or vice versa) depending on their body type, sleeping style, physiology, their frame of reference based on what they are used to, and their individual sensitivity and perceptions. There are also different types of firmness and softness that different people may be sensitive to that can affect how they ā€œrateā€ a mattress as well (see post #15 here) so different people can also have very different opinions on how two mattresses compare in terms of firmness and and some people may rate one mattress as being firmer than another and someone else may rate them the other way around. This is all relative and very subjective and is as much an art as a science.

There is also more information in post #9 here about the different ways that one mattress can ā€œmatchā€ or ā€œapproximateā€ another one. Every layer and component in a mattress (including the cover and any quilting materials) will affect the feel and performance of every other layer and component and the mattress ā€œas a wholeā€ so unless you are able to find another mattress that uses exactly the same type of materials, components, cover, layer thicknesses, layer firmnesses, and overall design (which would be very unlikely) then there really isnā€™t a way to match one mattress to another one in terms of ā€œcomfortā€, firmness, and PPP based on the specifications of the mattresses (even assuming that you can find out all the specifications you would need for both mattresses you are comparing).

Mattress manufacturers generally try to differentiate their mattress from the mattresses made by other manufacturers and donā€™t normally try to ā€œmatchā€ another mattress that is made by a different manufacturer so unless a manufacturer specifically says in their description of a mattress that one of their mattresses in the same general category is specifically designed to ā€œmatchā€ or ā€œapproximateā€ another one in terms of firmness or ā€œfeelā€ and PPP and/or they are very familiar with both mattresses and can provide reliable guidance about how they compare based on the ā€œaveragesā€ of a larger group of people that have compared them (different people may have very different opinions about how two mattresses compare) ā€¦ the only reliable way to know for certain how two mattresses would compare for you in terms of how they ā€œfeelā€ or in terms of firmness or PPP would be based on your own careful testing or actual sleeping experience on both of them.

All of the mattresses you are considering are in a completely different category than any of the Tempurpedic Flex mattresses and use very different combinations of materials and components (see this article about the different types and categories of mattresses) so there really isnā€™t a way to make a meaningful comparisons between them because they would each have a very different ā€œfeelā€.

When you canā€™t test a mattress in person then the most reliable source of guidance is always a more detailed conversation with a knowledgeable and experienced retailer or manufacturer that has your best interests at heart and who can help ā€œtalk you throughā€ the specifics of their mattresses and the properties and ā€œfeelā€ of the materials they are using (fast or slow response, resilience, firmness etc) and the options they have available that may be the best ā€œmatchā€ for you based on the information you provide them, any local testing you have done or mattresses you have slept on and liked or other mattresses you are considering that they are familiar with, and the ā€œaveragesā€ of other customers that are similar to you. They will know more about ā€œmatchingā€ their specific mattress designs and firmness levels to different body types, sleeping positions, and preferences (or to other mattresses that they are familiar with) than anyone else.

While I can certainly help with ā€œhowā€ to choose ā€¦ itā€™s not possible to make specific suggestions or recommendations for either a mattress, manufacturers/retailers, or combinations of materials or components because the first ā€œruleā€ of mattress shopping is to always remember that you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress and there are too many unknowns, variables, and personal preferences involved that are unique to each person to use a formula or for anyone to be able to predict or make a specific suggestion or recommendation about which mattress or combination of materials and components or which type of mattress would be the best ā€œmatchā€ for you in terms of ā€œcomfortā€ or PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your Personal preferences) or how a mattress will ā€œfeelā€ to you or compare to another mattress based on specs (either yours or a mattress), sleeping positions, health conditions, or ā€œtheory at a distanceā€ that can possibly be more accurate than your own careful testing (hopefully using the testing guidelines in step 4 of the tutorial) or your own personal sleeping experience (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here).

There is more about the 3 most important parts of ā€œvalueā€ of a mattress purchase in post #13 here which can help you make more meaningful quality/value comparisons between mattresses in terms of suitability (how well you will sleep), durability (how long you will sleep well), and the overall value of a mattress compared to your other finalists based on suitability, durability, and all the other parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you (including the price of course and the options you have available after a purchase if your choice doesnā€™t turn out as well as you hoped for).

While I canā€™t speak to how any mattress will ā€œfeelā€ for someone else because this is too subjective and relative to different body types, sleeping positions, and individual preferences, sensitivities, and circumstances ā€¦ outside of PPP the most important part of the value of a mattress purchase is durability which is all about how long you will sleep well on a mattress. This is the part of your research that you canā€™t see or ā€œfeelā€ and assessing the quality/durability and useful life of a mattress depends on knowing the specifics of its construction and the type and quality of the materials inside it regardless of the name of the manufacturer on the label (or how a mattress feels in a showroom or when it is relatively new) so I would always make sure that you find out information listed here so you can compare the materials and components to the quality/durability guidelines here to make sure there are no lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress that would be a cause for concern relative to the durability and useful life of a mattress before making any purchase.

There is more about all three of the mattresses you are considering and many of the other simplified choice mattresses in post #2 here in the simplified choice mattress topic. The first post in the same topic about simplified choice mattresses would be well worth reading as well.

The Casper mattress uses good quality materials that would be a suitable choice in terms of durability for those that are in more ā€œaverageā€ weight ranges (lower 200ā€™s or less). There is also more information about Casper in this topic and in this topic. A forum search on Casper (you can just click the link) will also bring up more comments and feedback about it as well.

There is also more information about the Loom & Leaf in post #5 here and I would be somewhat cautious with the Loom & Leaf because of the convoluted layer of 4 lb memory foam (which is less durable than a solid layer of the same material) in combination with their 1.5 lb base layer which is a lower density and less durable material than I would normally like to see in this budget range.

There is also more information about Novosbedā€™s new mattresses in post #4 here. They are a member of this site which means that I think highly of them and that I believe that they compete well with the best in the industry in terms of their quality, value, knowledge, service, and transparency. They also use good quality materials and there are no lower quality materials or weak links in their mattresses although the medium firmness option would be more suitable for higher weight ranges (more than the lower 200ā€™s or so) in terms of the quality/density and durability of the materials.

I or some of the more knowledgeable members of the site can certainly help you to narrow down your options, help you focus on better quality/value choices that are available to you either locally or online, help you identify any lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress that you may be considering, act as a fact check, answer many of the specific questions you may have along the way that donā€™t involve what you will ā€œfeelā€ on a mattress, and help with ā€œhowā€ to choose but only you can decide which specific mattress, manufacturer, or combination of materials is ā€œbest for youā€ based on all the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.

If you are focusing on online mattresses then some of the better online options Iā€™m aware of that ship across Canada are listed in post #21 here.

If you let me know your city or postal code Iā€™d also be happy to let you know about the better local options or possibilities Iā€™m aware of in your area.

Phoenix

Hi Phoenix,

Thank you for the very detailed response. I read through many of the posts youā€™ve linked and Iā€™ve started gathering the detailed specs of each of the mattresses Iā€™m considering based on the ā€˜Mattress specifications you need to knowā€™ page.

My postal code is N2L 3G1, if you happen to know of any quality options in my area, but Iā€™m certainly open to the online purchasing. I would just prefer to try a similar type (materials, quality) of mattress before I make a purchase.

How easy are the returns for most of the online retailers if you absolutely canā€™t stand the mattress? They all make it sound like a breeze, but returns are usually a huge pain in the butt for other products so I worry.

Iā€™m surprised to hear that the Loom & Leaf uses lower quality materials. Itā€™s marketed as a luxury mattress and all the direct comparisonā€™s Iā€™ve seen to Casper and other similar retailers rate the Loom & Leaf much higher. Any comments on how the ā€œmedical grade cooling gelā€ helps with heat retention? That was another worry of mine when switching to memory foam.

Thank you for the list of retailers that ship to Canada, I did not realize Brooklyn Bedding was also an option. It is a similar price to the Casper after the US exchange. I didnā€™t find this thread when I searched earlier. Iā€™ve tried a Dormio mattress at a local retailer and loved it, but the price was 3-4x more than what Iā€™m looking at.

From what I can tell, the Casper and Brooklyn Bedding are mostly latex, while the Novosbed and the Loom & Leaf are memory foam and gel foam, respectively. I suppose my best best at this point is to try a latex mattress, a memory foam mattress and a gel foam mattress and decide based on which feels best. If the return policies are really as pain-free as they sound, I can always use the sleep trials afterwards.

Casper, Brooklyn Bedding and Loom & Leaf were all very upfront about the materials used in the bed, while Novosbed support did not give me any details on the material or the density used, they just gave me a few catch phrases like ā€˜ultra denseā€™ and ā€˜highest quality materialsā€™ do you have more detailed specs on this mattress or know somewhere theyā€™re listed? Edit: Scratch that, found them in one of the posts you linked here.

Thanks again!

Hi RandomSanity,

I just realized that I didnā€™t answer one of your questions in your previous post ā€¦

A mattress that can be compressed can lower the cost of shipping and the overall cost of the mattress (a compressed mattress can be shipped via courier which is less costly than shipping a mattress that isnā€™t compressed which requires a common carrier). If the materials in a mattress are suitable for compression then it certainly doesnā€™t do any harm to the mattress if they are only compressed for a few weeks or less but it wouldnā€™t be a deciding factor for me either way.

The better options or possibilities Iā€™m aware of in and around the Cambridge/Kitchener/Waterloo areas (subject to making sure that any mattress you are considering meets the quality/value guidelines here) are listed in post #2 here.

It would depend on the specifics of the return policy and they would be the best source of information about any specific requirements that they may have (such as covering or boxing the mattress) but all of the manufacturers you mentioned have a return policy that picks up the mattress from your home so itā€™s a simple process to return it.

The Loom & Leaf does use some high quality materials (such as the gel and the 5 lb memory foam) but in terms of durability a mattress is only as durable as itā€™s weakest link regardless of whether some of the materials are higher quality.

The top comfort layer is a thin layer of a soft solid gel material that covers the middle section of the mattress and would add some additional firmness and support under the heavier part of the body (hips/pelvis) and would provide ā€œsomeā€ cooling benefits in this area of the mattress as well. Itā€™s a good quality and durable material. There is more about soft solid gel materials in post #2 here and in post #4 here.

While itā€™s not possible to quantify the sleeping temperature of a mattress for any particular person with any real accuracy because there are so many variables involved including the type of mattress protector and the sheets and bedding that you use (which in many cases can have just as significant an effect on temperature as the type of foam in a mattress) and on where you are in the ā€œoven to icebergā€ range and because there is no standardized testing for temperature regulation with different combinations of materials ā€¦ there is more about the many variables that can affect the sleeping temperature of a mattress or sleeping system in post #2 here that can help you choose the types of materials and components that are most likely to keep you in a comfortable temperature range.

Phoenix

So Iā€™ve contacted several more of the companies that ship to Canada and Iā€™ve narrowed down my choices.

Brooklyn Bedding is unfortunately outā€¦ their product sounds really great but their shipping is absolutely outrageous! They want $455 CAD to ship the mattress, compared to the other companyā€™s $68 or even free in several cases.

Casper is also out I think, as all the initial reviews are great, but 75% of the follow up reviews a few months later are all very negative. I suppose I could try it for the trial period, but all the negative reviews still worry me.

Novosbed sounds good, but I have a lot of worries about this company. Theyā€™ve been around for 7 years making these mattresses but there are very very few reviews online, compared to the relatively newer Casper and other companies that have been in business for only 2-3 years and have hundreds/thousands of reviews. Aside from this, searching around on The Mattress Underground I see that there have been several negative comments about them that have been removed or edited by administrators. Phoenix, youā€™ve always adamantly defended them in these cases and it sounds as though your opinion may be biased (sorry!) because you are friends with the owner.

If anyone else has owned a Novosbed, I would really appreciate some opinions before I deal with them, as I would like to try their sleep trial but Iā€™m still skeptical.

Loom and Leaf was my number one choice, but theyā€™re quite a bit more expensive (due to the CAD-USD exchange, for the most part) and the issues you raised regarding the foam have me worried regarding the durability. How is the convoluted foam different from the ā€˜airflow channelsā€™ used in the novosbed mattresses? Would these not also decrease the durability considerably?

Iā€™m also going to visit Waterloo Mattress locally which you listed in the local thread you linked me to. If their prices are reasonable I may give them a shot. They also carry Zedbed mattresses which sound interesting. Thank you for bringing them to my attention.

Hi RandomSanity,

Thanks for the update on your search.

[quote]Novosbed sounds good, but I have a lot of worries about this company. Theyā€™ve been around for 7 years making these mattresses but there are very very few reviews online, compared to the relatively newer Casper and other companies that have been in business for only 2-3 years and have hundreds/thousands of reviews. Aside from this, searching around on The Mattress Underground I see that there have been several negative comments about them that have been removed or edited by administrators. Phoenix, youā€™ve always adamantly defended them in these cases and it sounds as though your opinion may be biased (sorry!) because you are friends with the owner.

If anyone else has owned a Novosbed, I would really appreciate some opinions before I deal with them, as I would like to try their sleep trial but Iā€™m still skeptical.[/quote]

Hopefully some of the members here that own a Novosbed will see your post and share some comments but I would always keep in mind that you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress and I would be cautious about about using other peopleā€™s experiences or reviews on a mattress (either positive or negative) or review sites in general as a reliable source of information or guidance about how you will feel on the same mattress or how suitable or how durable a mattress may be for you and in many if not most cases they can be more misleading than helpful because most consumers have little knowledge about mattresses and mattress materials or how to assess the quality of the materials in a mattress and any mattress that would be a perfect choice for one person or even a larger group of people may be completely unsuitable for someone else to sleep on (even if they are in a similar weight range). In other words ā€¦ reviews in general certainly wonā€™t tell you much if anything about the suitability, quality, durability, or ā€œvalueā€ of a mattress for any particular person (see post #13 here). Reading reviews is among the worst says to choose a good quality/value mattress.

When I first started this site about 5 years ago now (with less than 10 members) I was determined that I would never become a ā€œreview siteā€ which was providing misleading and inaccurate information and/or promoting specific mattresses based primarily on the referral fees they received regardless of the quality or value of the mattress and that donā€™t provide the type of more objective information that can help people to learn more meaningful ways to differentiate between the quality, durability, and value of the many options that are available in the market.

I have always defended (and will continue to defend) good manufacturers from the type of unreasonable criticism that is common with reviews that are posted by many consumers that often have no idea about the quality or value of the mattress they purchased or that have unreasonable expectations about the mattress they purchased or the company they purchased from. My defense or criticisms of both consumer reviews and manufacturers or retailers are based on objective and factual information and on ā€œpreponderance of the evidenceā€ that is the result of thousands of hours of research that comes from working 16 hours a day, 7 days a week, for over 5 years and the knowledge and experience of many people that have been involved in all areas of the industry for decades. In other words the information here has nothing to do with the ownership of a company, how I feel about them, or whether I even know them because the information that I share on the forum and on the site is self evident once you you have learned what to look for. The majority of the mattresses that are purchased as a result of the information on this site are from manufacturers and retailers that arenā€™t members of this site and that in many cases may not even know they are discussed here.

Making a choice or excluding a choice based on whether ā€œsomeone knows someoneā€ or is ā€œfriendsā€ with someone would certainly make absolutely no sense.

While I do recommend the members here ā€œas a groupā€ because I believe that they compete well with the best in the industry in terms of their quality, value, service, knowledge, and transparency ā€¦ there are also many other sources of good quality/value mattresses as well that arenā€™t members of this site (at least yet). Most of the manufacturers and retailers that ask to become members donā€™t even qualify for membership (you can see some of the criteria here)

In the case of Novosbed they have only been a member of this site for a couple of weeks since they launched their new mattress but like many other manufacturers that arenā€™t members of the site they have been making high quality and good value mattresses that would be well worth considering for years.

I should also mention that I donā€™t edit memberā€™s posts unless they are against the rules of the forum.

Hopefully you are here to learn "howā€™ to choose a good quality/value mattress based on more objective and meaningful criteria that have nothing to do with any specific mattress that anyone else (including me) may ā€œrecommendā€ (although I never recommend specific manufacturers or mattresses). It may also be worth reading post #2 here and some of the other posts it links to which goes into much more detail about comments that are similar to your own that some of the members here have made over the years.

In any case you are always free to use whatever information that you find valuable on this or any other site (and of course ignore any information that you donā€™t find valuable) but there is a great deal of information available here that can certainly help you make the ā€œbest possibleā€ choice regardless of any specific criteria that are important to you.

Convoluted foam removes a much larger percentage of the material (almost half) in the layer than the air channels (which would have little effect on durability) and the convoluted foam in the Loom & Leaf is also only one of the lower quality materials in their mattress (the quilting foam and the lower density base foam are the others) so the combined effect would be greater.

Phoenix

Hi Phoenix,

Thanks again for the detailed response. I want to clarify that when I say Iā€™m basing on reviews, Iā€™m not speaking of subjective reviews based on the comfort of the mattress, Iā€™m talking about reviews of the material used in the mattress and the quality of the mattress itself, as well as reviews of the customer service and the company that manufactures the mattress. There are some interesting ā€˜tear downā€™ videos of most of these mattresses on youtube where they rip them apart and compare the materials used.

Hi RandomSanity,

I would certainly agree that reviews about the customer service of a retailer or manufacturer can certainly be helpful but it would be very rare that any review includes any ā€œobjectiveā€ or meaningful information about the type and quality/durability of all the materials and components in a mattress (particularly about foam densities) that would help you identify any lower quality materials or weak links in the mattress in terms of durability.

Most ā€œtear downā€ videos also donā€™t provide any objective or meaningful information about the type and quality/durability of the materials and components (again particularly about foam densities) in a mattress (although there may be some that do).

What a foam material ā€œlooks likeā€ or ā€œfeels likeā€ will tell you very little about the quality or durability of the foam.

Phoenix

Just heard that Leesa also started shipping to Canada as of today and is offering a $150 discount for a launch promotion so that is now another option.

Hi RandomSanity,

You can see some comments about the Leesa mattress and many of the other "simplified choice online mattresses in post #2 here in the simplified mattress topic.

I would be cautious here because the 2" of 3 lb memory foam in the Leesa is a lower quality/density material than the minimums I would generally suggest in the guidelines here and I would consider it to be a potential weak link in the mattress (although the 2" of Avena polyfoam above the memory foam would improve the durability of the memory foam somewhat compared to having the same lower density memory foam in the top layer of the mattress).

Phoenix