I’ve spent the past 5-6 hours on this website reviewing information and I think I have come to a conclusion on what I want to purchase however given my size I was hoping I might be able to get some input from these forums before pulling the trigger.
(This will be a bit long-winded)
First off I’d like to say Thank You to this forum for saving me from spending way to much money on a memory foam mattress that appears to be of very lesser quality, primarily Bed in a Box.
My wife and I have decided we want to upgrade our current mattress from a queen to a king. Through our investigating we have decided we’d like to go the memory foam route however we were a little bit intimidated by the price to say the least. Another concern was my size, I ring in at 6’4 350lbs so needless to say I was worried memory foam might not be able to support/handle such a load. My wife is 5’1 140 so her size obviously wasn’t in the concern department.
We started out at a local store here in Columbus, OH called The Original Mattress Factory. They offer a Serenity Foam mattress which you can be seen here. The price point isn’t awful however it doesn’t appear to be up to snuff on the necessary requirements mentioned in the memory foam advice posts. Particularly this part 6" High Density Foam Core ~ 28-32 ILD, 2.15-2.35 lb/ft. Laying on it we found it to be comfortable and the right “firmness” that my wife desires, however we took your advice and didn’t buy a mattress on our first day looking. I immediately began researching online options and almost settled for Bedinabox.com since it appears to be the same quality memory foam but even cheaper than the local store. Once I checked them out on this site though I decided against them as well.
This site has lots of rave reviews about DreamFoam so I headed over to Amazon to check them out. Upon inspection they appear to be a great bargain for the quality your getting, almost so good that it appears to be to good. The Amazon reviews however are great for the mattress and you speak highly of them so I am close to pulling the trigger which leads me to my questions–
Will the Ultimate Dreams 13’’ Memory Foam Mattress(California King) accommodate my size comfortably? Can I expect it to last?
My wife and I prefer a firmer mattress over soft is the DreamFoam mattress more firm than soft?(If no one knows I am sure their customer service can answer for me).
If I can’t expect it to last/accommodate my size does anyone have any recommendations for a memory foam mattress in a similar price point($400-$500 higher is fine as well)?
I am absolutely clueless as to which option to go with as far as a frame/base goes for the new mattress, I have settled on this. Do you have any better recommendations for me in the California King size?
Actually this mattress has very good specs which use similar quality layers to the Tempurpedic HD series with 5 lb memory foam, 8 lb memory foam, and a high quality polyfoam base layer. I would consider all these layers to be good quality. Don’t forget that polyfoam comes in a lower density range than memory foam so the density of each is not comparable.
Just as a comment … the Dreamfoam mattresses are certainly good quality and value but if you are considering the memory foam version I would be very hesitant to use 4 lb memory foams at your weight. latex on the other hand in the right firmness level … particularly if you are looking at the latex versions with more than one layer of latex … would be a much better and more durable choice IMO. At your weight … I would be strongly leaning towards memory foam with a minimum of 5 lb density (like the OMF mattress you tested).
With 4 lb memory foams I would think no. with your weight … I would strongly lean towards higher density memory foams.
They have said that the 13" gel memory foam mattress is just a bit firmer than the Tempurpedic Cloud Luxe which is the softest mattress in the Tempurpedic lineup. In other words … more soft than firm (you could test the Cloud Luxe to get an approximate sense of what this mattress feels like).
I think your budget is too low for the quality of foam and the type of design you will likely need or do best with. Higher density memory foam is more costly than lower density memory foam and the same is true for higher density base layers. I would also think that you may do better with more than just a basic 3" or so of memory foam over a firmer polyfoam base layer and a transition layer in between that uses either memory foam or latex would also be a good idea at your weight. These would both put you in a significantly higher budget in Cal King than the $400 - $500 you are looking at. I just don’ think you will find a suitable memory foam mattress at this price. I would start locally to gain some experience on different types of mattresses (following the steps in post #1 here) and then compare your local “finalists” to online choices to see which direction is the best “match” for your personal value equation. Some of the better options in and around the Columbus area I’m aware of are listed in post #2 here. Some of the better quality/value online memory foam manufacturers or retailers I’m aware of are listed in post #12 here.
I would normally go with the base suggested by the manufacturer you are buying from but in this case I don’t think they have Cal King available on their site). If you do decide to go with the wire grid type of platform like the one you linked … I would tend to use one of the ones with more wires than the one you linked which would provide a more evenly supportive surface … especially with your higher weight. The one you linked would probably be “OK” for a mattress that had a polyfoam base layer but I would tend towards a version that was more evenly supportive. The foundation thread here has more information and links to some good quality and value foundations.
Thanks for the reply Phoenix. I called and had a talk with Chuck at DreamFoam today after trying out the Tempurpedic Cloud Luxe mattress at a local store and realizing it was far to soft.
He implied that the 10’’ Gel they sell would probably be a better option if I was looking for something more firm, he also suggested that with my weight a 13’’ would feel way to much like a sinking feeling in the long run.
That being said after answering all of my questions I went ahead and pulled the trigger on the 10’’ King Gel Foam Mattress. I think it’s priced right as a “starter” memory foam mattress if you will and after double checking with OMF I think it will be comparable to their mattress(Their mattress in store is a 10.5’’ with 4.5’’ of 4lb memory foam and then 6’’ of Polyfoam). The DreamFoam mattress is also priced more than $1000 less than the OMF mattress.
As far as the base goes I am sad to say I did order the one I linked you after reading reviews of people 300#+ stating it was sturdy enough for them. Given I have gone ahead with this would you recommend I reinforce it with some plywood slats or something of the like? I am pleased to hear you think it will be “OK” however I must admit it worries me just a bit!
As far as the price considerations went I meant would there be a better mattress you would recommend for $400-$500 MORE than the DreamFoam mattress not just simply spending $400-$500. Unfortunately I don’t think a Latex was going to be an option as everyone we tried out my wife found to be way to soft.
Thanks again for the reply I appreciate all of the great information you provide here as it really made my buying experience much less stressful.
Just to clarify … the OMF Serenity doesn’t have any 4 lb memory foam. All the memory foam it uses is either 5 lb or 8 lb. You can see more details about its construction in post #2 here and for most people it would feel quite different.
Having said that … you certainly made a good value choice and I’m looking forward to your feedback about how it feels for you when you receive it.
I don’t think any concern I have would be with its strength but with your weight impressing the foam over time into the gaps. Now that you have it though … I would personally leave it as it is because I would tend to prefer a more breathable base under the mattress (you can read more about this in post #10 here).
OK … I completely misunderstood … that makes a lot more sense
You’re very welcome … and congratulations on your new mattress
Just wanted to drop in and say we received our Mattress on Monday(Kudos on the super fast shipping!). After lugging it upstairs and setting up my frame I have now slept 2 nights on it and I must say it is AMAZING!
I’ve never slept on a bed as comfortable as this one and am very happy we decided to go with the 10inch for the extra firmness.
Thanks again Phoenix for this forum and all the great information you offer, for the price we paid my wife and I couldn’t be happier!
