Can you tell me what the difference is in the ilds of blended talalay and natural talalay latex?
If I buy a blended mattress with a 6" layer of 36 ild will it feel the same as a 100% natural with the same 6" of 36 or will one of them feel firmer?
Hi Justus2,
There are a few “it depends” in the answer.
First of all I’m assuming that they are made by the same company (either Radium or Latex International) because latex in the same ILD made by both companies may not feel the same or have exactly the same firmness.
It will also depend to some degree on the specific layer because latex isn’t made to a specific ILD and there can be a range of ILD’s between different layers that have the same rating or across the surface of the same layer (seehereforanexample).
It will also depend on your sensitivity because some people are more sensitive to smaller differences than others.
It will also depend on whether you are sleeping directly on the layer or if there are layers on top of the 36 ILD core. If there are layers above it then you would feel more of the differences between the top layers and less of the difference between the deeper layers.
It will also depend on your body type and sleeping positions and how deeply you compress the layer. 100% natural latex is a denser material and has a higher compression modulus (the rate that a material gets firmer as you compress it more deeply) than blended Talalay. ILD ratings are tested at 25% compression so if you compress a layer more than that then because of its higher compression modulus the 100% natural may feel a little firmer.
Having said all that … they are “close enough” that in practical or “real life” terms most people wouldn’t notice much if any difference between them.
There is also more about 100% natural vs blended Talalay in post #2 here.
Phoenix