Thanks for your feedback Phoenix. It sounds like the Arctic Dreams may still be a good value for lighter folks but probably is not a great long term choice for those of us in a heavier weight class, unless you are on a very tight budget.
With this product still being too new for any long term durability reviews and considering Chuck’s opinion that this mattress is only likely to provide 3-4 years of good performance for me, I think I will go with something a little beefier than the Arctic Dreams. I do appreciate Chuck’s helpfulness and candor and will probably move on to one of the latex models from the Brooklyn Bedding/Dreamfoam family (most likely the BME due to its solid specs and generous return policy).
By the time there are enough reviews to show clear patterns about the durability and useful life of a mattress relative to different body types, weight ranges, and sleeping styles that provide longer term feedback over a period of 5 years or more (less than this wouldn’t be particularly meaningful to provide any meaningful information about the durability of a mattress) … in many cases a mattress is no longer available for purchase anyway or if it is the design and materials may have changed. This is even assuming that the longer term reviews provide clear information about each reviewers body type, weight range, and sleeping style which they usually don’t.
I would agree with you that the Arctic Dreams is a great quality/value choice and uses higher quality and more durable materials than the vast majority of mattresses in it’s budget range (and that are also higher quality and more durable than many mattresses in much higher budget ranges as well).
Having said that … If you can comfortably afford it I would also lean towards a mattress that uses higher quality and more durable materials if I was in your weight range as well.
When you look back on a mattress purchase years from now (assuming that you purchase a good quality and durable mattress) you will remember much more about how well you slept on it and how long you slept well than you will about the price you paid and relatively minor differences in price that have only a small impact on the yearly cost of ownership spread out over the years will probably be much less important to you.
As you know you certainly made a great quality/value choice and I’m looking forward to your comments and feedback once you’ve received it and have had the chance to sleep on it for a bit.
I’ve had a few weeks to sleep on the Arctic Dreams Mattress at this point, and I really do like it. This was my first real mattress “purchase,” as everything I’ve had prior were hand me downs. We moved from a full to a king- and were looking for exceptional value with a small budget. As an FYI, I weigh around 175# and my wife is probably around 140#.
So far, we have really loved the bed. I think we had some growing pains the first few nights, but that may have been also trying new king size pillows- which we’ve now realized we don’t like. Some of it was also no doubt adjusting to the change in size and material of the bed- we’ve both only ever slept on springs. I really do love the slight “sinking” in feeling of the bed- but certainly wouldn’t call it plush by any stretch. In reality, I wish the bed was slightly more plush- and oddly enough my wife wishes it were more firm. This probably tells me we found a good middle ground.
I do notice that belly sleeping seems slightly less comfortable, as I feel like my head is sinking a bit into the bed too much. I’ve found that I’m adapting somewhat (probably small adjustments to my positioning)- and overall the bed seems more comfortable each night. I do sleep on my side, back, and stomach in rotations- so I’ve tried them all- and other than the issue with stomach sleeping I think this is a huge improvement all around over our previous spring Serta.
Of note, we did go on vacation to visit my folks in NC. When my wife and I were there, we shared an older spring bed- and I must say I was SO happy to return to our Arctic Dreams! It made the springs seem so uninviting in comparison.
Thank you for all the other reviews and advice- I like seeing what everyone else thinks.
I just bought the Arctic Dream as well and am really looking forward to it!
I’ll post an update once I’ve had a chance to sleep on it a while!
I’ve been lurking here for a while and this site is an amazing resource of information. I’ve referred the site onto several of my friends who are in the midst of mattress shopping as well.
Here are my thoughts so far after a little over a week sleeping on the new bed:
Firstly, the package arrived in great condition for being a 70+lb box. Before receiving it, I saw some horror story pictures of boxes other people had received (not all from DreamFoam, just in general) and I was happy to see that ours was delivered safely.
It was not difficult at all to unpack, and my order came with the free pillow as well for mentioning the site here. They sent me the shredded latex pillow with the zippered outer cover, and I have to say, for a free pillow, this thing is fantastic.
It’s not hot at all, even though I expected it to sleep a little warm. As far as I can tell, it sleeps the same for me as our previous inner spring mattress. We do keep our bedroom quite chilly because the cold helps us sleep, so that may contribute as well.
There’s not a ton of “sinking in” to this mattress, which is what I prefer. I tried some other memory foam mattresses and it felt like I was sinking into sand after initially laying down. The foam on this mattress is firm enough that my wife and I can sleep right next to each other and it doesn’t feel like we’re in a hole.
Not that this was a huge surprise, but there’s not much in the way of support on the edge of the mattress, so when I sit on the edge before getting into or out of bed, I sink down quite a bit. Like I said though, I kind of expected this, so I can’t really complain.
I guess time will tell as far as how it holds up over time, and for those curious we’re using the UNDREDAL bed frame from IKEA with the LURÖY slatted bed base. It seems very sturdy and we haven’t had any issues with it so far.
I know this is probably a bit of a terrible mindset to have also, but I look at it this way: The mattress is SUPER cheap compared to name brand equivalents so if I have to replace it in a few years, fine by me. It’s not like I dropped $4,000 on a Tempurpedic or anything.
As you know I think you also made a great quality/value choice (especially in its budget range) and I’m also looking forward to any comments and feedback you have the chance to share once you’ve received it and have had the chance to sleep on it for a bit,
Just adding into the conversation, but I have just purchased a Arctic Dreams mattress as well. Should arrive next week, when I’ll post about my first few days’ experience!
Thanks for letting us know what you ended up deciding … and congratulations on your new mattress
As you know you certainly made a great quality/value choice and I’m also looking forward to your comments and feedback once you’ve received it and have had the chance to try it out.
Long time lurker on this wonderful forum. Thanks Phoenix and everyone else for posting about this mattress. I’ve read all the reviews about the Artic Dreams and have decided to pull the trigger. Chuck at DreamFoam Bedding has been great to deal with so far.
I will provide an update once I’ve thoroughly tested it out.
Also, I was about to purchase it through Amazon.com but saw that the direct site is having a 10% off promotion. All in all, it saved me about $15 after tax.
I am heavily considering purchasing the arctic dreams mattress after considering Tuft & Needle first. The thread on this forum has been helpful as I consider so thanks to all who have left more detailed input. I’ve been on the dream foam website and chatted with Chuck at least 3 times. If you have specific questions, use the seller’s chat feature. The only bit of info I wished I had is video of the mattress in use to get a visual idea of responsiveness.
Update: I purchased this mattress a few weeks ago in king size & I’m thrilled. My husband loves it as well. We had a 14 year old spring mattress that was 7 years past being any kind of a good idea. I was having chronic lower back pain, achy joints, and fitful sleep & always woke up sore. I no longer have lower back pain or achy joints and I am getting truly restful sleep. This is my first foam mattress, and it did take my body 4 nights or so to adjust to the feeling of it (even though my pain symptoms literally disappeared overnight it still felt strange to me). There’s no feeling of sinking in this mattress, it’s easy to move around & get up. The foam is pretty responsive and certainly supportive. We are both taller and weigh in the 160 to 180 lbs range. I’ve never tried Tuft & Needle and can’t make a comparison between the two, but I’m perfectly happy with the Arctic Dreams. We couldn’t afford a T&N, and needed to make a change fast. I stumbled on the Arctic Dreams, and saw it being compared to the T&N, & began doing research. It was a little nerve-wracking to buy a mattress-in-a-box, especially one I hadn’t tried before. I’m so glad I did, zero regrets so far. If you need a quality supportive mattress on a small budget this is a great option. Research this mattress & ask the helpful folks at DreamFoam all your questions (the website has a chat feature). You get 10% off by purchasing through the Dreamfoam website & a free latex pillow if you join mattress underground & leave a forum comment (just let them know when you order), making this a really great deal. My mom also just bought herself the same mattress & is loving it too.
