Curious about latex mattress sagging stats

I’m having a bit of a mattress nightmare. About 3.5 years ago I spent about $2400 on a latex mattress and foundation from Plushbeds, Inc. It’s an online only store. I read their reviews, inquired as to what the best firmness would be considering I’m slender with spinal stenosis and a herniated disc. It was advertised as an organic 100% latex mattress.

Less than a year later the mattress was sagging over 2 inches. They replaced the entire mattress once they saw the pictures. About a year later the mattress was sagging by 3 inches! They replaced the 2 inch top layer which helped with sagging for about 9 months so I was sent another one which sagged again after 9 months. Again about 3 inches.

They replaced the core layer and this time it started sagging after 6 months (I think about 4 actually). It’s sagging over 3 inches and likely more when I’m in it. It’s affecting my sleep as I’m constantly tossing and turning due to hip pain, back pain, etc…

I would send pictures and ask that the the mattress be replaced again but by now I’m convinced they are selling a defective product. I did ask for my money back at a prorated price but of course no mattress company will do that. I appreciate that they honor their warranty but I wonder how many others have purchased mattresses from them and experience the same thing I have. Eventually you just get tired of going through the process and give up.

I’m leery about shopping online anymore and leery of latex mattresses in general at this point. But everything I read states that latex is the least likely to sag.

Like everyone I’m wanting to find a mattress that will be good for my back and won’t sag for years to come.

I’m reluctant to plop down $2400 for a new mattress again. I’m in the process of reading through the excellent mattress tutorial. .

I live about 2 hours east of the bay area and am looking for a reputable mattress company near me. I’m a bit mobility impaired due to a chronic illness and also a bit limited financially but sleep is critical so I’m willing to do what it takes to find a good quality mattress that works for me.
Is the whole latex thing a big hype or did I just get a bunch of lemon mattresses?

Do you have recommendations as to what type of mattress is the most durable?

I’m going to continue reading through this site. I’m grateful to have discovered it! It seems like a rich resource. In the meantime, I’d be curious about your thoughts?

Thanks so much!

Hi Redhummingbird,

[quote]Less than a year later the mattress was sagging over 2 inches. They replaced the entire mattress once they saw the pictures. About a year later the mattress was sagging by 3 inches! They replaced the 2 inch top layer which helped with sagging for about 9 months so I was sent another one which sagged again after 9 months. Again about 3 inches.

They replaced the core layer and this time it started sagging after 6 months (I think about 4 actually). It’s sagging over 3 inches and likely more when I’m in it. It’s affecting my sleep as I’m constantly tossing and turning due to hip pain, back pain, etc…[/quote]

Your experience is certainly very unusual (almost unheard of) but without more information it’s not really possible to explain what could possibly be happening.

One possibility is that you have been incredibly unfortunate (like winning a lottery in reverse) and have had multiple defective layers in your mattress as unlikely as that may be.

You can check which layer or layers are defective by putting the layers on the floor and using a straight edge or string across the layer and measuring the depth of any impression in the layers to identify which ones are defective and sagging.

Another possibility when you have the same issue with multiple layers or replacements is that your support system isn’t perfectly flat and is sagging underneath the mattress. You can also check this by removing the mattress to make sure the support surface is perfectly flat and that there are no soft spots, sagging areas, or broken slats in the support system and confirming that the support system itself is suitable for a latex mattress and making sure that any slats aren’t more than 3" apart (and preferably less).

Latex in general is the most durable of all the different foam materials (latex foam, polyfoam, memory foam) but firmness is also a durability factor and with any foam material (including latex) very soft layers will also be less durable than firmer layers of the same material … especially in higher weight ranges. 14 ILD latex for example may only hold up for a few years for those that are in higher weight ranges but it doesn’t appear that this is an issue for you.

I am certainly curious about why your experience is so much different from others that have slept on latex mattresses over the course of many decades without experiencing the type of issues you are experiencing. There would be a reason of course but for now the reason is a mystery to me.

[quote]Like everyone I’m wanting to find a mattress that will be good for my back and won’t sag for years to come.

I’m reluctant to plop down $2400 for a new mattress again. I’m in the process of reading through the excellent mattress tutorial. .

I live about 2 hours east of the bay area and am looking for a reputable mattress company near me. I’m a bit mobility impaired due to a chronic illness and also a bit limited financially but sleep is critical so I’m willing to do what it takes to find a good quality mattress that works for me.
Is the whole latex thing a big hype or did I just get a bunch of lemon mattresses?

Do you have recommendations as to what type of mattress is the most durable?[/quote]

A mattress is only as durable as the type and quality of the materials inside it regardless of the type of mattress or the name of the manufacturer on the label.

Assuming that the materials in a mattress you are considering are durable enough for your body type and meet the quality/durability guidelines here relative to your weight range … the choice between different types and combinations of materials and components or different types of mattresses are more of a preference and a budget choice than a “better/worse” choice (see this article).

While there is no way to quantify how long any mattress will last for a specific person or predict exactly when you will decide to replace it because it is no longer suitable or comfortable for you (because this is the only real measure of durability or the useful life of a mattress that really matters) because there are too many unknowns and variables involved that are unique to each person … if a mattress is well inside a suitable comfort/support range and isn’t close to the edge of being too soft when it is new (see post #2 here) and you have confirmed that it meets the minimum quality/durability specs that are suggested in the guidelines here then it would be reasonable to expect a useful lifetime in the range of 7 - 10 years and with higher quality and more durable materials like latex or higher density memory foam or polyfoam (in the comfort layers especially) it would likely be in the higher end of the range or even longer and the chances that you would have additional “bonus time” would be higher as well.

There is also more detailed information about the variables that can affect the durability and useful life of a mattress (and the materials inside it) in post #4 here as well.

The better options or possibilities I’m aware of in and around the San Francisco/San Rafael/Oakland/Berkeley areas (subject to making sure that any mattress you are considering meets the quality/value guidelines here) are listed in post #2 here. You certainly have some good options in the general area.

I don’t know exactly which city you live in but there is also a list for the Modesto/Stockton area in post #7 here and a list for the Sacramento area in post #5 here.

Phoenix

Thank you for your detailed answer. I appreciate it. One of the first things I did was to check the foundation. It’s solid with no broken pieces of wood or bending.

I haven’t taken each piece out and laid it on the floor. I could try that.

This is an odd situation. I think maybe I just got unlucky. With each replaced layer the mattress starts out fine and I feel a sense of relief that the problem was solved but then it sags in the middle of the bed. I’m now sleeping on the edge of the bed but usually end up rolling into the pit.

When I first ordered the mattress there wasn’t any reference to ILD. It was supposed to be medium firm. One of the 2 inch layers that was sent to me was the wrong firmness level. Luckily I had the receipt to prove they’d sent me the wrong layer. They then sent me a medium firm layer.

I’m in Sacramento. It does sound like I have a lot of good options.!

I’d prefer to go to someone that you are familiar with so I don’t have a repeat of this experience. I feel like I threw $2400 down the drain. I’ve thought of trying a completely different bed frame but I think I’d prefer a king size mattress. Their queen size is more the equivalent of a full size mattress.

I was reading about Berkeley Ergonomics and European Sleepworks. It sounds like similar mattresses but there is a big price difference?

If I can find another latex mattress at a good price I’ll go with that again given what you’ve said that they are the most durable.

I forgot to add that the latex layers yellowed quite a bit. When I went to change the layers I was surprised at how yellowed parts of the mattress were already. Maybe that’s normal.

I’m going to continue to read and learn via this site and then try out some mattresses and then come back and post. I want to be really careful this time around. I miss sleeping through the night!

Hi Redhummingbird,

You could also try sleeping on your mattress on the floor because this would rule out whether your support system was an issue. A suitable support system would be similar to the floor in terms of flatness and firmness.

I’m not sure of the specifics of all the latex layers in your mattress but it’s unlikely that all of the layers are defective so you may be able to reuse any layers that are in good condition and only replace the layer that is causing your issues but of course the key is to first identify the reason for your experience.

Both Berkeley Ergonomics and European Sleepworks make some good quality/value mattresses in a range of prices.

While price is certainly one of the more important parts of “value” … the “value” of a mattress purchase is what is most important and price is just one of many factors that can affect the “value” of a mattress purchase. There isn’t a “formula” that can be used to assess or “calculate” the value of a mattress because there are so many different variables and criteria involved that can affect the price of a mattress that can each be more or less important to some people and not to others who may have completely different criteria or definitions of “value”. The “value” of a mattress purchase is also relative to how a mattress compares to the other finalists you are considering or to other mattresses that are available to you in your area (or online if you are also considering online options). There are many reasons that a mattress that may be “good value” for one person or in one area of the country may not be good value for someone else that has very different needs and preferences or that lives in a different area.

There is more about the 3 most important parts of the “value” 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 doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for).

Yes … that’s normal.

I’m looking forward to finding out what you end up decidiing to do.

Phoenix

Your post caught my attention because I am in a similar situation. Mine happened much sooner. After months of research, I finally decided to go the latex route with a 12 inch mattress resting on a wood foundation. After couple of months, I stated having back pain which means I am no longer getting support for my core.
Dear OP, did you figure out what was happening in your situation? Also, dear Admin, I remember reading here once that someone had an issue with kiln fried wood foundation and they had to reinforce it with extra wood, plywood or something and that helped solved their sagging issue. I am trying to search for that post to see what they did but no success finding it. If you come across please forward me that post.

@mendelnewton - Sorry to hear about the problem you’re experiencing. The first thing I’d suggest would be to follow the initial suggestion provided by Phoenix in the post above yours, quoted here for your reference: “You could also try sleeping on your mattress on the floor because this would rule out whether your support system was an issue. A suitable support system would be similar to the floor in terms of flatness and firmness.” Then you would know if it’s an issue with the support system or possibly with the support of the latex itself.

I am in a similar situation except that the latex bed, while fairly comfortable gave me bad back ache immediately. I had a 2" soft latex on 6" firm core. i’m not big ~165-170lbs. At first i found it hard to determine if the mattress was too soft or hard. I think it’s a combo of both with the “softness” or "not keeping me “afloat” enough the bigger issue. I did pop the mattress on the floor and off the bowed slat suspension and it was slightly better. I put a cheap foam topper on top and it also felt slightly better but still had the sinking a bit much issue (though slight less back pain curiously).

I finally gave up and switched the 6" firm foam for pocket coil springs (~1500 coils, ~15 gauge, ~6" in height) and i’ve only been on it for a night but it feels notably better. On my stomach i feel like i sink in less (which is weird because everyone kept telling me the firm latex core would be more supportive and firmer than the coils. I find i’m definitely more “afloat” on the mattress more when the coils are in. One night but less back issues.

I can only describe it as… when the coils are in as the support layer it feels more like a plump fruit with some turgid pressure pushing up into the peel/skin (latex top layer) and when the latex core is in it feels more like dried out fruit inside that while still firm isn’t as “plump” and turgid and seemingly allows more sinkage thus potentially back ache?

For me, i think i’d still like a bit more support and firmness in the coil (thicker gauge maybe) or maybe a firmer topper? It’s not bad and seemingly notably better than the last month so far for me once the coils got popped in.

Hey mendelnewtown,

Thanks for the post. Just as background on the latex mattress sagging. What inch latex mattress did you purchase? If you don’t want to say brand, can you tell us the specifications of the latex? Were all 12 inches latex?

Additionally what wood foundation, specs of the slats? Distance between slats? Style? Brand.

This info helps put your issue in more perspective and helps us see what “may or may not” be causing sagging.

Thanks,
Sensei