Do I need a “cover” - worried that without a more fitted stretchy zipper cover it will not feel like a cohesive mattress, just a pile of parts, if that makes sense? The allergy cover is loose and not elastic/fitted.
Do latex mattresses even need allergy / mite / bedbug covers like this?
Any obvious improvements where I could save money and/or improve healthy/clean aspects without sacrificing too much comfort?
Welcome to our Mattress Forum and thanks for sharing this build with us!
Honestly, at first glance, it looks really solid.
You’ve got the puddle pad which is also (maybe inadvertenly) a natural fire barrier. The cover you’ve chosen seems fine, although the traditional mattress encasements also do a good job of just tightening everything up - but foams are quite heavy and don’t tend to jostle much. That said, I do wonder if the cover itself will slip a bit off the foam. You can test it out and choose an encasement later, too!
I’d say so, just because our skin cells do a good job of ruining things.
Are you going to make it a floor bed, or is there a base for this mattress?
Fire barrier is a nice bonus, though primarily chosen for a hot sleeper in a hot/humid climate. I have the same wool puddle pad on my personal mattress, directly under cotton sheets and it has been great.
My current plan here is the same:
Foam+Latex inside allergy casing > Felted Wool above, directly under cotton sheets for maximum temp/moisture management.
Floor bed for now, while rolling off / safety is still a concern, will add a platform in a couple years.
I did also just find the sleeponlatex topper, which seems like a good deal for ~$50-80 cheaper than the Arizona options.
and thanks for sharing this build with us!