Dreamfoam vs. Local Factory

Discussions General Mattresses Questions
1

I’ve been sleeping on the same innerspring mattress for the last 15 years or so (got it when I was a kid, 23 years old now) and haven’t been sleeping well lately, so I’m long overdue for a change. I’ve slept on memory foam mattresses before and find that they have ideal firmness and support for me. I’m male, 5’8", 150lbs and primarily a side sleeper. I sleep on my back maybe 5-10% of the time so that’s a consideration, but I’m basing my decision mostly on comfort and support for side sleeping.

I’ve been doing lots of research on this site, and recently went to a local mattress factory to see what I find most comfortable. For materials, they have visco and visco gel memory foam, latex and innerspring. I tried everything out and found the memory foam options the most comfortable. I like the way it sinks in, and is cushy yet firm, while latex was way too springy for my taste.

The demo mattress I found the most comfortable has an 8" high-density base (4lb/cu. ft.) with 3" of gel visco memory foam and 1" of visco memory foam (both 2lb/cu. ft.). The salesman said that, considering my height and weight, I could remove an inch of the base foam and an inch of the memory foam (making it a 7" base with 3" of gel visco) and the mattress would offer essentially the same level of support and comfort for a lower price. He also said the mattresses are priced by the thickness, so the price for a 7" base w/ 3" of gel visco would be the same as a 6" base w/ 4" of gel visco, etc. Would there be a noticeable difference in support with a 6" vs. 7" base?

I’m currently a student, so my ideal budget is around $500 for a queen. I was looking into other options, and these seem to be similar builds in my price range:

Dreamfoam 13" Copper Gel mattress on Amazon (10" base with 3" of gel memory foam) – I couldn’t find info about the densities of this one, and it’s not listed on DB’s website. Anyone have more info?
Dreamfoam Ultimate Dreams 10" (7" 1.8lb base with 3" of 4lb gel memory foam)

These are both attractive deals price-wise, but I’m not sure how the 4lb foam would feel compared to the 2lb at the local factory. I talked to a DB rep on the phone and she said these two would be comparable in terms of firmness and that they might be too firm for a side sleeper.

I’m thinking about giving the Ultimate Dreams 10" a shot since DB has such a good return policy. Anything else I should be considering?

Thanks!

2

Hi nkri,

Welcome to the Mattress Forum! :slight_smile:

I’m glad you found the information on this site to be helpful. And your own personal testing is the best guidance you can have, provided you find out information listed here so you can compare the quality of the materials and components to the durability guidelines here to make sure there are no lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress that would be a cause for concern relative to the durability and useful life of a mattress before making any purchase.

I would double check on your density information, as I think you may have it backwards. It would be more likely that your polyfoam base was 2 lb. density, and that the memory foam layers were 4 lb. density. Using a polyfoam core at 4 lb. density is very rare in a mattress application, and more appropriate for automotive seat cushions or carpet underlay. And 2 lb. memory foam in the comfort layers would be a very low quality material and I would advise you to avoid it.

Changes made to the upper layers of a product will have the most noticeable impact upon comfort. Without know the specifics of the ILD and types of memory foam being used, you’re taking away 25% of the upper comfort layers, so this would probably be a noticeable difference. Taking away 1" of the polyfoam base would be less noticeable, although it would have a slight impact on the overall comfort, but shouldn’t impact your support/alignment too much.

That may be how they price their products to the public, but foams are priced by the quality of the material and the expense of the process to create them. I of course don’t have access to their price lists, but a thicker mattress isn’t necessarily better or more expensive than a thinner one. It comes down to componentry quality.

I don’t have the current specifications of their copper gel mattress, so I’d tell you to contact Dreamfoam directly about that. They’re usually very happy to share their specifications with you.

Again, I would double-check your density information from your local factory. It doesn’t sound correct. Regarding applicability to your sleeping style, I would trust the opinions and guidance of an experienced retailer or manufacturer, as they are best able to help you find a product in their line-up that they feel will best suit your particular needs based upon their experience with customers with situations similar to yours and their extensive knowledge of their own products. You would also want to inquire at that time about any potential return/exchange options, just in case your purchase didn’t turn out as well as you had expected. Dreamfoam is a site member here, which means that I think highly of them, their products and their knowledge.

As you are on a more restricted budget, you may also want to look at post #4 here and the posts it links to, as it includes many of the better lower budget online options I’m aware of.

I’ll look forward to any other questions you might have, or decisions you may make.

Phoenix

3

Thanks Phoenix! You’re a great resource!

I emailed back and forth with DB today and they said the Copper Gel 13" is soft, most similar to the Ultimate Dreams 13". The rep didn’t specify the exact densities, but I’m thinking I might order the Ultimate Dreams Supreme 12" since that’s the closest to what I tried at the local factory and the price is right. She said the 12" is similar to the Tempurpedic Cloud Supreme, so I’m planning to go to a commercial mattress store this week to try one out before placing an order with DB.

You raised a good point about the densities of the foam at the local place. The salesman emailed those specs to me, but it’s possible he accidentally mixed them up. I haven’t followed up with him about it, but in any case, DB’s prices and return/exchange policy are better, so I feel more comfortable ordering from them.

Thanks for the guidance and I’ll report back with my experiences after I’ve made a decision!

Dan

4

Hi nkri,

You’re very welcome - thank you for the kind words.

Thank you for the update. I’ll be interested in learning about your testing experience and any decisions you make.

Phoenix

5

Just pulled the trigger on an Ultimate Dreams Supreme 12".

I tried a few Tempurpedic models at a store nearby, and liked the Tempur-Flex Supreme and the Cloud Supreme. The Flex felt a bit firmer and more elastic, while the Cloud was softer and less responsive, as expected. Both mattresses had great support for back and side sleeping, though, so it was a tossup between them. Since DB doesn’t have an equivalent hybrid model to the Flex, I went with the Supreme. I’ll report back with my experience after it arrives and I’ve adjusted to it!

Dan

6

Hi nkri,

Thanks for taking the time to follow-up on your progress, and congratulations on your new mattress purchase! :cheer: You did make a good quality/value choice.

I’ll look forward to your future updates.

Phoenix

7

Just wanted to follow up on this.

I’ve had the mattress for a month and a half or so, and I’m very happy with my purchase! The mattress provides excellent support for both back and side sleeping, and this is the best sleep I’ve had in years!

Compared to the Tempurpedic Cloud Supreme, I’d say the foam in the Ultimate Dreams Supreme isn’t quite as dense so it responds faster to changes in position and doesn’t take as long to conform to my body when I first lay down. That’s not to say that the DB foam feels like it lacks density—it feels like very high quality foam that will last for years to come—but I wanted to draw a direct comparison with the Tempurpedic so others might be able to make a more informed decision when testing in commercial stores.

When I tested it in a nearby store, the Tempurpedic took several minutes to fully adjust and conform when first laying down, and ~60 seconds to adjust when changing positions. The DB mattress takes a couple minutes when first laying down and maybe 20-30 seconds when changing positions. Even so, the DB foam still has the characteristic feeling of memory foam slowly sinking in, so this is a good option if you like that feeling.

The memory foam pillows they included are comfortable, but they’re a bit soft for my taste and I find I prefer firmer support, so these will be good for when I have guests. In any case, they were free, so I can’t argue with that! The microfiber sheets are great! Very soft, and they make the bed feel that much more luxurious!

Thanks for the abundance of information on this forum and best of luck to anyone else choosing a mattress!

Dan

8

Reply to nkri,

Thank you for taking the time to provide such a detailed commentary on your new Ultimate Dreams mattress. I’m happy that the mattress is working out well for you so far.

I’m hoping that you’ll be able to provide more updates as time goes on regarding your new mattress.

Phoenix

9

Just curious…a year and some later I am wondering how the mattress is doing for you. I am looking to purchase the same one, and would appreciate your feedback. Thanks