Much appreciate the guidance about the box spring.
My last question for the moment…if you are familiar with it, Healthy Back and a couple of other places are offering a celsion layer for cooling/temperature regulation.
Is this also a natural latex product, and, d\o you have any idea if this actually works? Better than just a top of talalay covered in cotton/wool/bamboo or whatever? If celsion works well enough to consider including it, what thickness would be enough to make a difference? If it works, this would be a real plus for me (and other people who sometimes get hot at night).
Sometimes it takes 2 times before I see a question … oops
Celsion is Talalay latex with a “phase change” material in it which helps to regulate temperature. From all I have seen … it is effective and can slightly add to the temperature regulating properties of a mattress when it is used in the comfort layer. Talalay however is already the most breathable of all foams and it is the least likely to sleep hot.
Part of how hot or cool a mattress sleeps is determined by how open celled the foam is and how deeply you sink into the top layers so even the coolest of foam will sleep slightly warmer than a natural fiber mattress. Certain mattress tickings (such as coolmax and others) are also temperature regulating and can also help with this. Wool used in a mattress pad can also help as it allows air to flow through it and creates a breathable layer between you and the mattress however it can also reduce the ability of some foam to form itself to your body shape and relieve pressure.
All in all … talalay latex sleeping hot isn’t usually an issue for people but it might be worthwhile for those that are particularly sensitive to temperature issues. Its effect would have more to do with how close to you the Celsion was (less or no quilting) than its thickness. It would normally be used instead of an upper layer of regular talalay rather than added to it.
OK, great. It sounds like it is a natural vice petrochemical derivative, then, that could perhaps have some marginal benefit over the talalay. Since from your comments talaley is also not so shabby in managing temps, I’ll go by what sort of premium for the celsion seems to be involved. (also I would guess the celsion would be most effective with a thinner pad/protector over it (?)
If the Healthy Back store has any technogel products, I will provide some impressions on it once I make it over there, sometime in the next 1 - 2 weeks.
Thanks again for all the insight. Still have a lot of checking to do but you have helped me immensely in knowing what to look for and narrowing the choices. I am really looking forward to an improved sleep experience out of this!
I think that with how many of the materials we use are petrochemical derived … we are all pretty much all swimming in a sea of oil anyway … so another drop probably wouldn’t make much difference :).
And yes … a thinner pad would both allow the Celsion to be more temperature effective and pressure relieving.
I’m also looking forward to your Technogel report and I’m hoping that it will show up somewhere nearer me so I can try it as well.
Hi Phoenix: Are there any updates to the original list in this post? We are in Northern VA and are looking to replace a 7 year old mattress, and are looking very seriously at latex.
We visited American Foam Center last week (didn’t speak to Robert, but spoke with another very knowledgeable and helpful employee), but I didn’t know enough to ask about what the layers were in the Dunlop and Talalay mattresses we tried out. Having now read the overviews on the site, I feel a little better equipped to test and ask questions. I do like the idea of going right to the person who is going to assemble my mattress.
We could also get to the Savvy Rest location in Vienna without much difficulty.
I’m 6’1 and and about 200 lbs and my wife is 5’6 and 140. I am a predominately back sleeper but some times on my side, whereas my wife is mostly on her side and sometimes on her back. Just trying to get in the right ballpark in terms of what we could look for and where we can look for it.
Thanks!! This is a great site, and really saved us from making a bad purchase at a chain.
Jim
Not at this point. American Foam Center was the most recent addition to the list and I was quite happy to find a good addition and someone who was knowledgeable about foam and mattress components.
If you do come across an outlet that isn’t on the list though and you want some feedback … feel free to ask.
Savvy Rest has some very high quality mattresses that are great for “testing” various combinations of latex but as you probably know they are not so great value when compared to some of the online manufacturer members here that offer very similar mattresses that use the same materials at prices that are significantly lower.
There are some height/weight guidelines here and some sleeping position guidelines here but personal testing is much more accurate than more “generic” guidelines (what I call “theory at a distance”) that are based more on averages and can’t really take into account the many differences in body types, sleeping positions, sensitivities, and preferences even in people that are otherwise similar in height and weight. They also don’t take into account the many possible differences in mattress construction besides just the foam types and layering so these are more for general guidance than a specific “recommendation” for any particular person.
While I digest all the useful information on this site, I figure I would contribute by saying that the store Mattress Fame in Gaithersburg, MD is no longer there. The website is still up, but the phone number goes nowhere and there is a 7-Eleven in its place now.
Also, none of the HealthyBacks in the MD area have any Pure Latex Bliss in a firm to try out, but they are currently having a 30% off their floor models if that interests anyone.
Alright, back to researching the perfect mattress.
I think one of the challenges of a site like this is to keep up with all the changes in all the markets around the country and I sure do appreciate the members here adding to the information base
I called Mattress Fame just to make sure that they were gone and I actually reached them. They told me that they have moved. and have a new address and phone number (although the old one still works as well). Their new address is now on their website. Perhaps it just took a while to propagate.
I appreciate this information as well. The Serenity that they list on their site is the firmest of the PLB options but I know that not every Healthy Back store carries all the models that they have on their site. One of them in Lexington for example is apparently owned by Tempurpedic and only carries their mattresses and none of the other manufacturers at all. ADMIN NOTE:Removed 404 page link | Archived Footprint: healthyback.com/products/Healthyback/Healthy-back-bliss-serenity-pure-latex-mattress/813
Thanks again for the feedback and I’m looking forward to hearing about what “your perfect mattress” ends up being
I’ll be visiting some of the suggested retail sites in the DC metro area in the coming week, and will try to share my impressions in the forum afterwards. I do like to reward a firm that goes to the trouble and expense of maintaining a “bricks-and-mortar” presence with my business if I can, especially if I take up their time to demo products and test mattress options. I only wish their price differential, as compared to online and mail-order outlets, could be a little less disparate. In your guide to buying, you stress the importance of “try before you buy,” but if online distribution drives all the quality local retail outlets out of business, we’ll be stuck with nothing but the schlocky national chains, and how then will we ever be able to really test any high-quality mattress options, unless we happen to live near one of the handful of custom manufacturers? I’ll pay a reasonable premium for service and a meaningful warranty, especially for a quality product; of course, the trick is in figuring out what is “reasonable.”
That would be great … thank you. A few others have done the same and this would be very helpful to many others.
I completely agree with your sentiments here and I also believe that a local choice provides a “value premium” compared to an online purchase. I tend to use a difference of about 20% or so as a guideline for what I would consider to be “equivalent value” all other things being equal but of course each person may have their own ideas and a different “risk tolerance” and have a different “value equation”.
There are also many local options (both retailers and manufacturers) that provide great local value and compete very well and even thrive with online competition so it’s not likely to ever happen that online merchants will ever drive these out of business. IMO … online outlets that provide good quality, service and value keep local merchants competitive and help them to do more of what they do best. It’'s also true the other way around because local merchants and manufacturers can also provide options service and guidance that are not possible with online choices. They are just different channels and each can have great “value”. It’s also true that there are many local options that don’t provide the kind of value that they could and the same is true of many online merchants as well. They are all part of a larger market and each has advantages and disadvantages that will appeal to different groups of people (there is more in this thread).
As you mention … the key is being able to define “reasonable” and for each person to know how to define their own “personal value equation”. This involves consumers that are more educated, know which retailers and manufacturers to ignore, and which ones to focus on along with manufacturers and retailers that offer exceptional quality, value and service that is available in every area of the country no matter how they may choose to sell their mattresses. There is an important place for both options and one will never replace the other IMO.
More than anything … they both keep each other “honest” and truly competitive
I recently went to the Mattress Fame Outlet in Gaithersburg. I wasn’t impressed. I am not one to let appearances dictate my perception of a store, however, both my wife and i left there a little sketched out and itchy (no bugs found). Just did not feel like a clean store and the salesman was constantly trying to lower the price to make a sale. He did not have information or knowledge of the mattress components either.
I know when I first called them they were “suspicious” about the nature of my questions (because the types of questions I usually ask aren’t the “norm” for most retailers") and told me they would call back on several occasions but never did. Once I was able to talk with someone there though that realized why I was calling they “warmed up” and were more open about their mattresses. I was talking with “John” and he told me that to the degree that their manufacturers supplied the information they would be happy to provide it to their customers.
Hopefully you were unfortunate and were talking to a salesperson that is not typical there but if this is their “norm” and the information that you need to make informed decisions isn’t available at all (either from the salesperson or their boss) then for me that would certainly exclude them from consideration unless I was able to find the information I needed about a specific mattress I was considering and the mattress was so attractive in terms of PPP (Pressure relief, Posture and alignment, and Personal preferences) and price that it justified the effort (and often frustration) of doing what the retailer should be doing for their customers and finding out the information I needed on my own.
I haven’t seen their store (either the new one or the old one) because I am nowhere near VA but even though I don’t pay a lot of attention to a fancy showroom (which often is an indication of higher prices) … I would at least expect it to be clean.
Thanks again for the feedback … I appreciate it.
I live very close to Mattress Fame and I can certainly echo brettwasbtd’s comments. The store is in poor condition and the sales staff is clueless.
I’ve been there on two occasions to check out the Pure Latex Bliss line.
The first visit ended with the salesman offering me a PLB 11" hybrid model, he did not know which model it was but I later inferred it had to be the Vitality. The salesman also tried to play down the “hybrid” aspect of the bed by intimating that it was all latex with just a bit of poly foam for support. The price on the “showroom” floor was $3500. As we began to leave the price was quickly dropped twice to “special deal” $2499. I later discovered that this is very close to MSRP.
My second visit was several weeks later with the hope of finding a better informed salesman. No dice. This time the salesman was a young man who knew next to nothing about their product. He was dressed suspiciously casual, in shorts I believe. He was pleasant enough and tried in vain to call someone who he said would have answers. After 15 minutes I gave up.
BTW - I was able to get someone from Pure Latex Bliss to tell me that the hybrid foam in these models have a 10% latex component. No info was available on the ILD of this foam however. Oddly enough they responded to my e-mail inquiry by requesting that I call them back (on a Saturday to boot). It seems like they really don’t want to go on record with some of these specs.
Just an FYI, I visited American Foam Center today. The employee was very helpful and knowledgeable. I don’t believe their prices are competitive with what you might find at some of the “member” companies on this site, however. The salesman told me that as a 150 pound guy, I shouldn’t really worry about a latex beyond the standard 3 inches with a HD foam core.
Their materials are all good though. 5 lb memory foam, over 2 lb (can’t remember exactly) foam core, and he told me right off the bat I could save ~$200 by choosing dunlop over talalay, but he recommended the latter. He actually told me to steer away from memory foam unless I was really passionate about it, because they get complaints about the heat. For a 6" foam core and 3" of latex, the price was around $1,300 for a King. The Cotton Camilla on the BB site is $900 for the same thing. They do have a 30 day no questions asked return policy.
They are certainly among the better local choices in terms of quality and value and are knowledgeable and transparent about materials as well. Any of the choices there would be also be better quality/value than any of the major brands that used equivalent materials as well but as you mention for those that are comfortable with the added risk of an online purchase … even with the usual 20% local premium that I normally suggest as being “equivalent value” … they are not quite in the same “value range” as some online manufacturers or other local manufacturers in some other areas of the country that make similar mattresses.
The last post here was a few years old. So I thought I would check and see if any new factory direct or recommended mattress sellers in the northern virginia/DC/Maryland area popped up?
I’m probably looking for memory foam or latex options.
I keep the forum lists up to date and edit them as I become aware of new information and the last update to the Northern VA/Washington, DC list was on July 4th, 2016 so it’s still current as far as I’m aware.
Phoenix
PS: Email notifications for topics you are subscribed to are bouncing and it may be a good idea to change the email address in your user profile if you would like the forum software to notify you about any replies.
I am just starting my Mattress purchasing journey. Of the local stores in NOVA region, I was wondering if there were a few that members have had a good experience with? Also interested if there were a top 3 on the recommended internet direct providers as well… There are certainly a lot to choose from. Thank you!
I know you’ve already seen it (but for others looking)…subject to first confirming that any retailer or manufacturer on the list that you wish to visit is completely transparent (see this article ) and to making sure that any mattress you are considering meets the quality/value guidelines here … the better options or possibilities I’m aware of in and around the Northern VA/Washington, DC list are listed here.
If there are any particular businesses in which you have an interest, you may use the forum search tool here to see if anyone has commented upon their experience with that business.
Feel free to post back with any specific questions you may have.
Thank you SO much for ALL your very informative help. I sent an email to [email protected] to see what they have…
I will call Robert at Information – American Foam Center tomorrow since they may
be able to make my size.
Not sure I mentioned that my truck has a cab topper so 3 - 4inches would be awesome so I don’t lose head room…I’m currently on 2" of pads & have maybe 2" left
of clearance while sitting on bed.
I also can’t afford or want to spend a lot of money (up to $200) on a mattress since this is all new to me & not by choice, medical reasons…but I love the outdoors & have been camping now 2 1/2 weeks w/o all necessary items yet & I’m doing great. Plan is very long term.
Thank You as You are AMAZING!
Cheers
Ektar
