I am having difficulty choosing a mattress. I am working with the Elkhart Bedding store which is near me, makes very good quality mattresses and is really good to work with.
I purchased a queen sized Dreammaker III from them but it jiggled when I turned over and they are replacing it. I am trying to decide between the Dreammaker II and another Dreammaker III. They have details including construction details on their website, elkhartbedding.com.
The Dreammaker III they have in their showroom is a king size. I like king size beds but don’t need one for just me, and don’t have any of the sheets etc. for one.
Do king beds sleep, feel differently than queens do?
Do you have any advice? I have slept in both as I have a full size Dreammaker II at home, purchased in 2005 for my daughter who left for college in 2009. She comes to visit but the mattress isn’t used regularly and she is very slim.
I like the softness of the Dreammaker III but it feels a bit , well a little like there are depressions in it when I move. The Dreammaker II feels better in the morning for my back, but I’d probably get a mattress topper or something. It’s firmness is not hard but pretty firm. I guess I’d just like a little softness and don’t know how to get that without a mattress that is too soft…?
If I could talk with someone who was also looking at their website that would be wonderful! I don’t know if you do that. Maybe they offer another mattress I should try.
Hi choices!,
Just in case you haven’t read it yet … the first place I would start is the tutorial post here which has the basic information, steps, and guidelines that can help you make the best possible choices … and know how to avoid the worst ones.
The tutorial post also includes links to the testing guidelines I would suggest that can help you make the best possible choice in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences). This is one of the most important parts of a mattress purchase and research because nobody else can feel what you feel on a mattress and there is no “theory at a distance” that can be more accurate than your own personal testing and experience when it comes to choosing a mattress that is a good “match” for your body type and sleeping position (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here).
Other than testing a mattress for PPP … the next most important part of the “value” of your purchase is making sure that you know the quality of all the layers in your mattress … especially the comfort layers above the innersprings. You can’t “feel” the quality of the materials so knowing the details of all the layers is the best way to make sure that a mattress doesn’t have any obvious weak links in terms of durability and so you can make more meaningful comparisons with other mattresses. Elkhart doesn’t list the density of their foam layers in their descriptions so you would need to ask them to make sure they are within the density guidelines in terms of quality and durability. I wouldn’t worry about the quality of the different innersprings because an innerspring isn’t usually the “weak link” of a mattress and you can use your testing to decide which of the Dreammaker series is the best “match” for you.
Once you have tested the suitability of the mattress and know the quality and durability of the materials … then the other parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you would also be part of choosing which mattress is the “best” choice for you.
If you list the specifics of all the layers in the forum (including the density of all the foam layers) I’d be happy to make some comments about them.
If two mattresses seem to be close to equal in terms of how well they work for you then I would choose the one that was slightly firmer because it’s easier to make a mattress that is too firm a little softer by adding a topper than it is to make a mattress that is too soft firmer because this would involve removing and replacing foam layers that are too thick or soft rather than adding another layer on top of them. They may also be able to make an option for you that is in between the two comfort levels using the same innerspring (many manufacturers are happy to do that).
They should also be able to give you some good guidance and help you choose the mattress that is the best “match” for you.
Some of the other options in your area I’m aware of that may also be worth considering are listed in post #4 here.
Phoenix
Thank you Phoenix,
I’ve done what you suggested above, and am wondering if there is a difference in feel, in the way a mattress sleeps between a king and a queen? I’m trying to decide between the king and queen.
When I tried out the mattresses in the showroom they have the Dreammaker III in king size and it felt better than the Dreammaker II in queen size, but I am actually exchanging the III for a II and am trying to decide whether to get a queen or a king. Any advice?
On the showroom floor if there is a twin to try out but it won’t be the size I purchase does that feel different than a queen or a king?
Thanks again.
P.S.
The store I am working with uses high density foam, and there are generally no returns on a mattress that has been slept in.
Hi choices!
If they are both broken in they should feel the same.
The size of a bed that works best for each person is really a matter of personal preference and individual circumstances (such as whether you sleep alone or with a partner, size of your bedroom etc.). For those who sleep with a partner a king size has the same room for each person as a twin XL. For those who don’t mind sleeping a little closer together and aren’t as affected by the sleeping habits of their partner then a queen is usually fine as well (and is the most popular size). For couples it’s often a good idea to get the largest size that will comfortably fit their bedroom and their budget.
They should also be very close when they are broken in but a twin can sometimes feel a little firmer when it’s new because the cover doesn’t have as much room to stretch and can be a little tighter.
Different manufacturers have a different definition for high density foam so I would make sure you know the actual density of all the foam layers in the mattress. Many manufacturers or retailers have a no return policy and a return policy is built into the cost of the mattress (the people who don’t return a mattress pay for the ones who do). Many stores will have an exchange policy (which is also built into the cost of the mattress where the people who exchange a mattress pay for the ones who don’t) and some manufacturers will also make comfort adjustments to their mattresses which can be the most economical and effective policy of all because it only “wastes” a layer of the mattress and doesn’t lead to a used mattress that has to be disposed of or re-sold at a discount (or in some unfortunate cases re-sold as new).
In any case … careful and objective testing using the testing guidelines is the most effective approach when it comes to choosing the most suitable mattress.
Phoenix