I have started reading all the tutorials, but I currently work extremely long hours and have a newborn. So, both my wife and I are extremely short on time.
So, this is basically a plea for help.
I am 45 years old, 6.1" and weight 180 and my wife is 37, 5.9 " and weights 170. We are both suffering from joint pain in our shoulders, hips, neck, back, etc…
We dread going to sleep on our mattress. (it’s a spring mattress)
About six months ago we visited a friend that owns a TEMPUPEDIC, and he let us sleep on his bed during our stay.
Our experience on the TEMPURPEDIC was nothing short of miraculous!! We would wake up every day feeling energized and pain free!!
We would love to experience that again. Unfortunately, we cannot afford a TEMPURPEDIC.
From reading some of the posts on this forum, I know that many people here have experienced the same pain my wife and I are currently enduring. I also know most of you cannot afford a $5000 mattress.
I am looking for a King-size mattress and the most we can spend is $2K.
So, I am asking for your help with the following questions:
Which of the following offers better overall support and pressure-point relief: “Latex” or “Memory-foam”?
Would you kindly suggest, one or two, manufacturers/dealers/retailers/wholesalers,etc… where I can purchase a memory-foam, or latex, mattress, and get the best bang-for-my-buck.
[quote]I have started reading all the tutorials, but I currently work extremely long hours and have a newborn. So, both my wife and I are extremely short on time.
So, this is basically a plea for help.
I am 45 years old, 6.1" and weight 180 and my wife is 37, 5.9 " and weights 170. We are both suffering from joint pain in our shoulders, hips, neck, back, etc…[/quote]
While I can certainly help with “how” to choose … It’s not possible to make specific suggestions or recommendations for either a mattress, manufacturers/retailers, or combinations of materials or components because the first “rule” 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 “match” for you in terms of “comfort”, firmness, or PPP or how a mattress will “feel” to you or compare to another mattress based on specs (either yours or a mattress), sleeping positions, health conditions, or “theory at a distance” that can possibly be more reliable 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).
It’s great to see that you’ve read the tutorial but two of the most important links in the tutorial that I would especially make sure you’ve read are post #2 here which has more about the different ways to choose a suitable mattress (either locally or online) that is the best “match” for you in terms of “comfort” and PPP that can help you assess and minimize the risks of making a choice that doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for and post #13 here which has more about the most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase 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 all the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.
[quote]About six months ago we visited a friend that owns a TEMPUPEDIC, and he let us sleep on his bed during our stay.
Our experience on the TEMPURPEDIC was nothing short of miraculous!! We would wake up every day feeling energized and pain free!!
We would love to experience that again. Unfortunately, we cannot afford a TEMPURPEDIC.[/quote]
I would keep in mind that Tempurpedic makes a wide range of mattresses in different firmness levels and with different designs so you may sleep well on one or even a few of them and some of them may be completely unsuitable for you to sleep on. There is no magic in the name of a manufacturer that makes a mattress because whether a specific mattress is a suitable choice for you in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your own Personal preferences) and that you have confirmed uses good quality and durable materials is always more important than the name of the manufacturer on the label.
[quote]So, I am asking for your help with the following questions:
Which of the following offers better overall support and pressure-point relief: “Latex” or “Memory-foam”?[/quote]
It would depend more on the specific design of a mattress both in terms of comfort/pressure relief and support/alignment than it would on whether a mattress uses memory foam or latex in one or more of the layers.
Assuming that the materials in a mattress you are considering are durable enough for your body type and meet the 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). The best way to know which types of materials or mattresses you tend to prefer in general terms will be based on your own local testing or your own personal experience.
Each mattress category can include hundreds or even thousands of different mattresses with a very wide range of different designs, different “feels”, different characteristics, and different firmness levels. Every individual layer and component in a mattress (including the cover and any quilting material) will affect the feel and response of every other layer and component both above and below it and the mattress “as a whole” so each mattress category will generally include some mattresses that have a design that will be a good “match” for you in terms of “comfort”, firmness, and PPP and others that use the same type of materials and components and are in the same category and may be just as durable but have a different design or firmness level that may be completely unsuitable for you to sleep on … even if it uses the same general type of materials and components.
Having said that … latex and memory foam are very different materials with very different properties but again the choice between them is more of a preference and budget choice than a “better/worse” choice. There is more about some of the differences between memory foam and latex in post #2 here. Some people tend to prefer the faster response and more resilient and “on the mattress” feel of latex and some prefer the slower response and more “in the mattress” feel of memory foam but again the best way to know which type of materials or mattresses or firmness levels you tend to prefer in very general terms would be based on your own careful testing and/or your own personal experience with each material in a range of different firmness levels.
I don’t have a “top 2” or a “top 5” or a “top 10” or even a “top 100” list because there is no such thing as the “best mattress” or a mattress that has the “best bang for the buck” in general terms … there is only a mattress that is “best for you”, regardless of whether the same mattress may be “best” for anyone else. Every person can have different budget ranges, different needs and preferences, and different criteria that are all important parts of their own personal value equation that can be very different from someone else (including me) and any list that I would put together would only be relevant to me.
While price is certainly important of course … 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.
Again … 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).
If you are considering online options in general then the mattress shopping tutorial includes several links to lists of many of the better online options I’m aware of (in the optional online step) that include many different types and categories of mattresses that use different materials and components in a wide range of designs, budgets, firmness levels, and with different return/exchange policies that may be well worth considering.
If you are interested specifically in latex or latex hybrid mattresses then then this link in the tutorial is to a list of the members here that sell mattresses online and many of them sell latex and latex hybrid mattresses that use different types and blends of latex that have a wide range of different designs, options, features, return and exchange policies, and prices that would be well worth considering.
If you are interested specifically in memory foam mattresses then this link in the tutorial is to a list of some of the better online memory foam options I’m aware of and several of them make memory foam mattresses that they describe as being reasonable approximations of the general firmness of many of the Tempurpedic mattresses. Several of the other retailers or manufacturers that are on the list that don’t specifically describe their mattresses as being similar to one of the Tempurpedic models would probably also be able to give you more information about which of their mattress would be the closest approximation to a specific Tempurpedic mattress that you prefer as well.
When you can’t test a mattress in person then the most reliable source of guidance is always a more detailed phone conversation with a knowledgeable and experienced retailer or manufacturer that has your best interests at heart and who can help “talk you through” the specifics of their mattresses and the properties and “feel” of the materials they are using (fast or slow response, resilience, firmness etc) and the options they have available that may be the best “match” 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 “averages” of other customers that are similar to you. They will know more about “matching” 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.
If you are also interested in local options that you can test in person before a purchase then if you let me know your city or zip code I’d be happy to let you know about the better options or possibilities I’m aware of in your area.
I or some of the more knowledgeable members of the site can 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, act as a fact check, answer many of the specific questions you may have along the way that don’t involve what you will “feel” on a mattress, and help with “how” to choose but only you can decide which specific mattress, manufacturer, or combination of materials is “best for you” regardless of the name of the manufacturer on the label or whether anyone else has the same needs and preferences, criteria, or circumstances or would make the same choice.
In its simplest form choosing the “best possible” mattress for any particular person really comes down to FIRST finding a few knowledgeable and transparent retailers and/or manufacturers (either locally or online) that sell the types of mattresses that you are most interested in that are in a budget range you are comfortable with and that you have confirmed will provide you with the all the information you need about the materials and components inside the mattresses they sell so you will be able to make informed choices and meaningful comparisons between mattresses and then …
Careful testing (hopefully using the testing guidelines in the tutorial) to make sure that a mattress is a good match for you in terms of “comfort”, firmness, and PPP … and/or that you are comfortable with the options you have available to return, exchange, or “fine tune” the mattress and any costs involved if you can’t test a mattress in person or aren’t confident that your mattress is a suitable choice.
Checking to make sure that there are no lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress you are considering relative to your weight range that could compromise the durability and useful life of the mattress.
Comparing your finalists for “value” based on #1 and #2 and all the other parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.
I’m not sure what you mean here but the reason I don’t “play favorites” is because it’s impossible for me to know how a mattress will feel or which mattress will be the best choice for someone else and it has nothing to do with membership here. I point to value wherever I see it.
That certainly makes sense because memory foam in general is among the best pressure relieving materials in the industry and if a memory foam mattress has a design that is suitable for your specific needs and preferences it can certainly provide great pressure relief.
[quote]Again, I am 6.1" and weight 180. My main concern is “pressure point” relief.
As I mentioned earlier, research time for me is non-existent.
If you can help me further to narrow my choices, you would be doing my wife and I an immense service.[/quote]
Unfortunately the time you have available doesn’t change the suggestions I can or can’t make or how I am able to help you.
As I mentioned in my last reply … while I can certainly help with “how” to choose … It’s not possible to make specific suggestions or recommendations for either a mattress, manufacturers/retailers, or combinations of materials or components because the first “rule” 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 “match” for you in terms of “comfort”, firmness, or PPP or how a mattress will “feel” to you or compare to another mattress based on specs (either yours or a mattress), sleeping positions, health conditions, or “theory at a distance” that can possibly be more reliable 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).
As far as narrowing your choices … if you are focusing on memory foam mattresses then there are some very good options (both members and non members) in the memory foam list I linked in my last reply.
If you want to include local options in your research that you can try in person before a purchase then if you let me know your city or zip code I’d be happy to let you know about the better options or possibilities I’m aware of in your area.
If you are considering online options that you can’t test first in person then the most reliable source of guidance is always a more detailed phone conversation with a knowledgeable and experienced retailer or manufacturer that has your best interests at heart and who can help “talk you through” the specifics of their mattresses and the properties and “feel” of the materials they are using (fast or slow response, resilience, firmness etc) and the options they have available that may be the best “match” 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 “averages” of other customers that are similar to you. They will know more about “matching” 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.
If you are testing mattresses locally then the best way to assess whether a mattress is pressure relieving enough would be based on your own careful testing using the guidelines in the tutorial.
You have already decided on the type of mattress that would likely be the best choice for you in general terms which is a memory foam mattress and I agree that makes perfect sense.
Beyond that though … the manufacturers or retailers that sell them would know much more than I do about helping you choose which of their specific models would have the best chance of success based on a more detailed phone conversation.
I or some of the more knowledgeable members of the site can 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, act as a fact check, answer many of the specific questions you may have along the way that don’t involve what you will “feel” on a mattress, and help with “how” to choose but in the end only you can decide which specific mattress, manufacturer, or combination of materials is “best for you” regardless of the name of the manufacturer on the label or whether anyone else has the same needs and preferences, criteria, or circumstances or would make the same choice.
I’ve started calling around and was hoping you might be able to make some clarifications on the info I have received from several sellers:
One seller, dream foam bedding, said they use “gel foam” to deal with the heat issues related to memory-foam. Unfortunately, when I spoke to other sellers that do not use gel foam, they said that gel-foam is toxic, another said that, yes, it does discipate heat initially, but then you get hot again later. Another seller said they don’t use gel-foam because it does not last very long.
a. is gel-foam toxic
b. How durable is it?
c. does it heat up after a short amount of time?
I spoke with chritelli and they told me that their beds are similar to TEMPUPEDIC. However, when I spoke to other sellers about Chistelli, they said that Christeli uses quilted covers/toper, which kills the whole point of memory-foam. In other words, memory foam should not have very little between the person sleeping on it and the foam.
a. does the quilted cover/topper of Christeli diminish the memory-foam experience?
I spoke with a company called Amerisleep. They claim to use a natural foam called “Bio-pur”. They claim it solves not only the heat issues, but is also safer cause its natural. This all sounds great, but they are also one of the most expensive choices.
a. does Bio-pur keep you cooler?
b. does bio-our work as well as other memory foams?
c. Is Amerisleep legit?
The only reliable way to to assess the “safety” of different materials in more general terms is based on lab tests and the certifications they have for harmful substances and VOCs so that you have some assurance than the VOCs are below the testing limits for the certification (see post #2 here for more information about some of the more reliable “safety” certifications). If the materials in a mattress or the mattress itself has a reliable “safety” certification then for most people they would certainly be “safe enough” … regardless of the type of material or the name of the manufacturer on the label.
All the Dreamfoam mattresses have a reliable safety certification and they are on the CertiPUR list here so there would be no reason for concern with any of their mattresses and the retailer that told you that gel memory foam is toxic is giving you some misleading information.
It would depend on the density of the gel memory foam but the durability of gel memory foam would be closely comparable to the durability of regular memory foam that was the same density. There is more about how to assess the durability and useful life of a mattress relative to your BMI range in the durability guidelines here.
The “hand feel” of most gel memory foams will be noticeably cooler than regular memory foam and they can provide some cooling benefits when you first go to sleep at night but temperatures will tend to equalize over time at which point the insulating properties of the memory foam will become dominant. The amount and type of gel in the foam can affect whether the temperature benefits will last longer or shorter and the cell structure and amount of airflow through foam will also play a very significant role in reducing heat buildup in the material but in general terms … gel memory foam can sleep a little cooler when you are first going to sleep at night but in most cases the benefits of the gel tend to be temporary and don’t normally last over the course of the night.
It’s not really 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 sleeping temperature as the type of foam in a mattress) and on where you are in the “oven to iceberg” range and because there is no standardized testing for temperature regulation with different combinations of materials … 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.
In very general terms … the materials, layers, and components of a sleeping system that are closer to your skin will have a bigger effect on airflow, moisture transport, and temperature regulation than materials, layers, and components that are further away from your skin and softer mattresses or foam toppers will tend to be more “insulating” and for some people can sleep warmer than firmer versions of the same material.
Memory foam or to a slightly lesser degree gel memory foam in general will tend to sleep warmer than other types of foam materials such as polyfoam and latex and all foam materials will tend to sleep warmer than natural fibers such as wool or cotton but there are many different formulations of memory foam and gel memory foam that are being used in the industry that can vary in terms of airflow and temperature regulation. There is more information and comments about some of the different methods or formulations that can be used to help cool down the tendency of any memory foam to sleep warmer for some people in post #6 here but memory foam manufacturers don’t disclose their specific chemical formulations and there are so many variables involved in temperature regulation other than the memory foam formulation itself that the only way to know whether any memory foam mattress in combination with all the other variables that can affect temperature regulation will be “temperature regulating enough” for you will be based on your own personal experience.
Using a more resilient quilting material on top of memory foam can change the “feel” of a mattress compared to sleeping directly on memory foam so the quilting layer would result in a somewhat different “feel” from a similar Tempurpedic mattress even if the mattress was in a similar firmness range. For some people it would be an improvement, for some it would be “neutral” in terms of which one they liked better, and for some it would be worse because this would be a preference choice rather than a “better/worse” choice and would be somewhat subjective and relative to different people’s preferences.
Some memory foam mattresses are more motion restricting which means it can be a little more difficult to change positions because of the slower response of memory foam and having a more resilient layer on top of the memory foam can result in easier movement and can also add a little bit more breathability but it can also reduce the “feel” of the memory foam underneath it to some degree.
You can read more about Amerisleep and their sister companies and their so called “expert sites” that pose as being independent review sites in post #2 here and the posts it links to. A forum search on Amerisleep (you can just click the link) will bring up will bring up all the forum posts that mention them as well.
None of their mattresses use natural materials because the polyfoam and memory foam that they use (like all polyfoam and memory foam) are synthetic materials made primarily from petrochemicals.
There are many foam manufacturers that replace a relatively small percentage of one of the two main petrochemicals that are used to manufacture the foam (the polyol) with a plant based derivative but this certainly doesn’t make it natural and calling it that is greenwashing at its finest. There is more about so called “soy foams” or other “plant based” or “bio based” foams in post #2 here.
It would depend on how breathable the foam was compared to other similar foam materials so they could be cooler than some and warmer than others but most of the memory foam producers are making more open cell memory foam than they were several years ago (which is also less temperature sensitive and faster responding than the older generations of memory foam) so their foams aren’t particularly unusual compared to many other memory foams.
It would be similar to other memory foams that use a similar formulation but once again there is nothing particularly special about it either positive or negative.
It depends on how you define legit because they have been in business for quite a number or years (their website came online in 2005) but I would consider some of what they are saying to be misleading and they certainly wouldn’t be my first choice. Their mattresses also use some lower quality/density materials than I would normally suggest in the durability guidelines … especially for their budget range.
does open cell memory foam retain all the desirable qualities of regular foam, including "pressure point’ relief?
Open cell is also less temperature sensitive and faster responding than the older generations of memory foam, so i get theses benefits without drawbacks?
if so, can you tell me which are the sellers that offer " open cell"?
All memory foam has open cells and all of them are very good to excellent at pressure relief but again I would keep in mind that not all memory foam mattresses will be pressure relieving enough for you because the overall design and firmness level of the mattress is more important than whether it contains memory foam.
The pros and cons of different memory foam formulations would be preference choices and what one person would call a “drawback” someone else would call a “benefit” but for the most part I think that more people probably prefer less temperature sensitive and faster responding memory foam than the other way around because they have less of the “stuck in sand” feeling that was typical of many of the older memory foam formulations.
Again all memory foam has open cells. While some may have more airflow than others … this isn’t the type of information that manufacturers will generally provide to their customers because by itself it would have little meaning and because this would also be only one of many variables involved in how well any specific mattress keeps you in a comfortable temperature range over the course of the night. I should also mention that if a Tempurpedic mattress was “temperature regulating enough” for you then it’s also more likely that most other memory foam mattresses that have a similar firmness level will be temperature regulating enough as well.
While knowing the specs that can affect the quality and durability of the layers and components in a mattress is always important … unless you have a great deal of knowledge and experience with different types of mattress materials and components and their specs and different layering combinations and mattress designs and how they combine together and can translate them into your own “real life” experience that can be unique to you (which would generally be a very small percentage of people) … I would tend to avoid using complex specifications to try and predict how a mattress will feel or perform for you. When you try and choose a mattress based on complex combinations of specs that you may not fully understand or only based on specs for single layers or components that may not be as relevant or meaningful as you believe it is then the most common outcome is “information overload” and “paralysis by analysis”.
Again … I would always keep in mind that the only way to know for certain whether any mattress will be “pressure relieving enough” or “temperature regulating enough” will be based on your own personal experience.