Deciding on Sleep EZ model

Hello All,

New to the forum and have found a tremendous amount of information that has helped narrow our selection of a new latex mattress to Sleep Ez.

A little background… we currently have a queen Sleep Science 9" natural latex and are looking to upgrade to a king size mattress. Although we are happy with our Sleep Science, the the cost of their king version is greater than we want to spend, thus leading us to find Sleep Ez.

We’re currently trying to decide on the Sleep Ez natural vs. organic 10" latex model (md/md/firm) and have read thoroughly about the differences. In summary, we’ve concluded that we want all layers as talalay to give us a similar feel (hopefully) to our Sleep Science and durability seems equivalent between natural vs. organic, with a slight nod to the natural for lower ILDs. This is an “investment” so the price difference of $200 is not a deciding factor… Our remaining considerations that is difficult to nail down based on our research is “feel/comfort”, smell from off-gassing, and “heat” while sleeping.

We recognize that “feel/comfort” is a personal preference and difficult to translate. We are side to back sleepers so our main comfort attributes are back support and pressure points when on our side - between the 2 of us, we have shoulder and back pains/issues. From those that may have experienced synthetic vs. 100% latex talalay mattress, any opinions on advantages of one vs. the other?

Regarding off-gassing or odor and heat retention, is there a noticeable difference between the natural vs. organic model? The Sleep Science we have is several years old and still has an odor that is still noticeable but we’ve gotten used to it however our preference is no odor. The heat retention is not an issue but was not sure if the organic model sleeps hotter (The Sleep Science is a blended talalay).

Any thoughts and advice is appreciated including any errors in our understanding of the differences…

Thanks

Hi leonoe,

Welcome to the Mattress Forum! :slight_smile:

I’ll try to help a little with the differences between the items you’re considering, and also try to be as specific as I can with the nomenclature so that I’m accurate in my replies.

As you’re only considering Talalay, there is no “organic certified” (Global Organic Latex Standard – GOLS) Talalay. The “organic” in the models you’re considering would refer to the GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) certification of the mattress cover in that line. The Talalay latex would be the 100% Natural (NR) Talalay from Talalay Global.

In the lower Talalay ILDs, partly because of the difficulty of creating a homogenous mixture and partly because of the thinner cell walls, and because the lower ILDs are usually used in the comfort layers which are subject to greater mechanical stress, then the shear forces inside the mattress and the higher elasticity of the NR (allowing the “thinner” material to stretch beyond its tensile limit) may work against it and it could break down faster than a blend. Talalay Global has put out information in the past that their blended is more durable than their natural Talalay, but this would be a small difference and the choice between the two would be more of a personal preference in what you desire in your latex.

There are small differences between synthetic and natural Talalay.

SBR latex (synthetic) is a less dense material with a slightly different chemical structure than natural rubber. It is made from two chemicals which are Styrene and Butadiene while natural rubber is primarily Isoprene. These two polymers (SBR and Isoprene) are similar but not the same. In addition to being primarily Isoprene, natural rubber also contains other compounds in varying amounts including proteins, resins, fatty acids, and sterols. These additional ingredients are mostly missing from synthetic rubber (including synthetic Isoprene).

Natural rubber is more elastic, denser, and less consistent in its structure and particle size. It also softens as it ages (the crosslinks in its chemical structure break over time)

SBR rubber is less elastic, less dense, and more consistent in its particle size and structure. If becomes stiffer as it ages (the crosslinks in its chemical structure increase over time).

Natural rubber has particles of different sizes which tend to “agglomerate” (stick together) so it is thicker and stickier than SBR, which is thinner and has a more consistent particle size. This means that natural rubber is more difficult to work with and “gums up” the machinery more. NR is also more expensive than SBR. This means that natural rubber products including Talalay latex tend to be more expensive than synthetic or blended rubber products including Talalay.

Because natural rubber is a more dense material, it weighs more than SBR and would have a higher compression modulus (gets firmer faster) but because of its elasticity would also be a little more conforming.

NR resists impressions better than SBR but NR will tend to soften more than SBR (although there are other variables here which may affect this)

There are other differences between the two materials as well … some of which come from the different types of rubber itself and some which come from the additional ingredients that are mixed in with the natural rubber which alter how it acts, but all of these are the primary “practical” differences.

In practical terms all of these differences are relatively small in the cured foam and many people would not feel significant differences between the two in side by side testing. Natural would be slightly more “springy or buoyant” and more “supportive” while synthetic would generally feel a little softer and be slightly more pressure relieving (would allow for slightly more sinking in and cradling). The thicker the layers that are being compared the more it may be possible to feel a difference (for example someone may not feel the difference between two 3" layers of each material but they may feel a difference between 9" of each material).

In the higher ILD’s which use more rubber and less air, any differences in durability between them would be negligible. In the lower ILD’s which use less rubber, these differences may be more noticeable. Talalay Global acknowledges that their blended Talalay is more durable than their natural, while Radium has told me that they use a special curing past for their 100% natural in the lower ILD’s which should negate any differences in durability.

So the bottom line is Talalay made from natural rubber is more expensive, comes in a less specific range of ILD’s, is heavier, slightly more elastic and springy, has a higher compression modulus and more supportive, may get softer and develop impressions slightly faster in lower ILD’s, and is more natural. The primary reason that it was introduced (in 2005) is to cater to the “natural” market who are willing to pay more for a product which has a more natural source even though it may not be as durable.

Those who value a more natural product for personal reasons and are willing to pay for it (in price and possibly lower durability), or who can feel a difference and prefer the feel that comes from the greater elasticity and compression modulus of the natural would likely choose the 100% natural Talalay.

Those who value the increased consistency, greater choice of softness/firmness levels, or lower cost of the blend or who can feel a difference in pressure relief, would likely choose the blend.

Both are great choices and in the end the choice between them is part of each person’s individual “value equation”. Both are Oeko-Tex standard 100 certified in terms of harmful substances or VOC’s and offgassing.

Talalay latex is generally the most breathable of all foams, and the wool in the mattress cover you’re considering would also assist with temperature regulation. Regarding odor, the most common comments is that this Talalay has a slightly sweet or vanilla-like smell, which dissipates quite quickly.

The best news is that you are choosing between “good and good”, and in terms of quality it would be difficult to make a mistake.

Every mattress purchase includes more than just the “material value” of the mattress, all part of what I call your personal value equation . There is also more about the most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase in post #13 here but in the end everyone will need to decide what is most important to them and attach a “value” to all the objective, subjective, and intangible factors that are part of any final decision. There is no “best and worst” any longer at this point … only best for YOU.

SleepEZ is extremely knowledgeable about latex and different configurations, and I would not hesitate to contact them with any specific questions that you might have about their Talalay offerings. They are a member of this site which means that I think very highly of them and that I believe that they compete well with the best in the industry in terms of their quality, value, service, knowledge, and transparency.

I hope that information was helpful for you.

Phoenix

Thanks Phoenix for your quick and informative reply!

Hi leonoe,

You’re most welcome! :wink:

Phoenix