I went over to Hardy’s In Ottawa and ended up liking both the medium Dunlop Latex and the Medium Memory Foam Mattress they have.
Latex Stats: 97% Natural and 3% synthetic. All Dunlop Latex in support and comfort. I could not get the exact ILD’s of the layers from them as they did not have that on hand, but if I came back Saturday a person would be there with that information.
I actually ended up liking the Dunlop Latex mattress (100% Latex in support and comfort) more as I actually liked the springy feel of the mattress, but this mattress was not really their flagship product (i.e the home made memory foam they make) so I did not feel I could get as good a grasp over the quality of the mattress materials as I could on their memory foam product. My question is:
How can I determine the quality of the Latex Mattress I tried out at Hardy’s? It seems easier to determine this for memory foams due to densities and whether it is HR or HD, etc. Do I need to know which company manufactured the Dunlop Latex they carry? Do I need to find more information about the makeup of each layer (although it is all latex, so I guess all I would find out is the ILD’s of the support and comfort).
Q2: If I know I liked Dunlop Latex, would you recommend I try other stores with a different support system (Springs, HD Poly)? Is there a good online source in Canada that would have a mattress very close to the Dunlop Mattress Hardy carries to maybe order online?
This is a good quality material and the ILD’s of the layers are not a quality spec and not that important to know (your testing will tell you more about how good a match a mattress is in terms of PPP than the ILD of the layers).
These are also very good quality materials and there are no weak links in this mattress.
All you need to know is the type and blend of the latex which you already have. You can read more about the different types and blends of latex in post #6 here but this is certainly a good quality material.
No … just the type and blend of the latex.
No … ILD’s are a “comfort spec” and with a local purchase where you can test the mattress in person they aren’t important.
This part is up to you and would depend on whether you wanted to try other types of mattresses that you may like even more. I generally suggest going to at least two different stores or manufacturers so that you have some variety in what you tested and can make better comparisons between mattresses in terms of quality, value, and PPP.
There are some online retailers and manufacturers that ship to Canada (either from the US or Canada) in post #21 here but it can be very difficult to “match” one mattress to another unless you know every detail of the mattress you are trying to match and the online mattress you are considering has the same or very similar type of materials and components in the same layer thicknesses and firmness levels and a very similar cover (see post #9 here about trying to “match” one mattress to another). It can be difficult because even if you did know every detail of the mattress you are trying to match (and some specs are not always available because a manufacturer may want to keep some of the information about their mattresses that don’t reflect on quality proprietary so that others don’t “duplicate” their mattresses) … the online retailers or manufacturers may not have a similar design available.
If you do know the specifics of a local mattress you tested and is a good “match” for you then it’s certainly worth looking at the websites or talking to some of the online retailers or manufacturers to see if they make or sell something that is very similar and to check on their return or exchange policies so you have some recourse if they aren’t as good a match as you hoped.
I personally know Tony, the owner of Hardy’s. He is a man of integrity and will stand 100% behind his products. He has been in business for over 20 years and you can trust him and the information he gave you on his latex mattresses. I recommend buying from him, because if you ever need service on your mattress, he will take very good care to you.
I personally know Tony, the owner of Hardy’s. He is a man of integrity and will stand 100% behind his products. He has been in business for over 20 years and you can trust him and the information he gave you on his latex mattresses. I recommend buying from him, because if you ever need service on your mattress, he will take very good care to you.
Mario
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Hey Mario,
I did meet Tony and he definitely seemed to me just like as you describe - a man of integrity that stands behind his product. Thank you for reassuring this for me.
Funny you responded to this, because I heard great things about your Nature’s Embrace Talalay Latex Mattress. I keep debating if I should take the risk and order the Allegro without having tried a 100% Talalay Latex Mattress, and I don’t know if any places in Ottawa that have 100% talalay in support and comfort for me to have an idea if it is a risk worth taking. I did like Hardy’s Dunlop Latex Mattress, but as I understand Talalay can be made softer generally in the comfort layer, and I would love to know how that would feel like. Could you maybe describe how you think your Allegro Talalay Latex mattress would feel compared to Hardy’s Dunlop Latex mattress?
It is one solid chunk of Latex. He said his supplier said zoned construction was the next big thing, and he said the product just didn’t last, so he went back to one chunk. All I can say about the cover is that it is Bamboo, I don’t know any more specifics.
The Allegro is the best seller from Natures Embrace. Decades of research and development have gone into perfecting this proprietary construction technique (which is kept secret to protect them from others copying their designs). It is a solid talalay mattress, that is layered with different ILD latex to give you a mattress that gives you great support, but also provides amazing comfort by using softer latex on the top comfort layers of the mattress. It is available in medium, or the best selling medium-firm, and is covered with a Jasper organic cotton cover.
The other option we offer, is getting a 6 inch solid talalay latex core with teddy cover, and then you choose the comfort level you need by purchasing separate 2 inch latex and/or memory foam toppers to create the mattress that suits your needs. This option gives you more choice since you can place the toppers on the core in 4 different combinations(latex/memory foam or vice versa, latex only or memory foam only). This option gives you 4 mattresses into 1, and is the best choice when buying online since you will not be stuck with just 1 mattress. You will be able to find the comfort you want, by tweaking the top layers to find exactly what you want!
As for quality all our foam are high density and made in Canada, so that you can rest assured that you will get your moneys worth with your investment.
Thanks for the info Mario. The mattress looks high quality indeed.
Phoenix: A question about Hardy’s Latex Mattress. He has two options: 6" or 8" for his Natural Dunlop mattress. Which size would I go with? I understand the importance of thickness in memory foam and spring mattresses and stuff, but with just a 100% Natural Mattress, how would I determine the best thickness for me? I am 6"1, 200lbs if it helps. Thanks!
EDIT - I tested out two 100% NR Dunlop mattresses - one Medium firm and one Firm. I actually preferred the medium firm Dunlop, which makes sense since the Firm Dunlop at the comfort layer is generally quite firm and I seem to prefer a bit of a softer feeling in the comfort layer. MY question to you however is, would the Firm 100% NR Dunlop be more durable than a medium Firm (i.e lower ILD Dunlop 100% NR)? If the mattress softens up with time, should I just get the Firm Dunlop in hopes that it will soften up with time? How long can I possibly expect the Medium Firm Dunlop to preserve that "Medium-Firm feel? Thanks Pheonix you have been a huge help to me!
There isn’t a formula to decide on the thickness of a mattress that is best for anyone (no matter what type of mattress) and thickness by itself isn’t really an important spec in any mattress. What is in the mattress matters much more than the thickness. The only reliable way to tell is with your own personal testing for PPP.
Having said that … I would probably lean towards a little thicker at your weight because thicker mattresses have more “room” to use different layers to customize how a mattress feels and performs. There is a little more about the potential benefits of thicker layers and mattresses in post #14 here but I would use careful testing and let your body tell you which one is best for you.
In theory firmer versions of the same material will be more durable than softer versions (there is more about the factors that can affect durability and the useful life of a mattress in post #4 here) but with a 100% natural Dunlop mattress durability wouldn’t be a factor in any suitable firmness level and would be a much less important part of a choice than which one is the best match for you in terms of PPP. Any suitable firmness level would be “very durable”. There would be little benefit to choosing a mattress that would last you say 16 years over another one that would last you say 15 years (in theory only) if you didn’t sleep as well on the mattress that “in theory only” may be slightly more durable. Durability is always relative to how well you continue to sleep well on a mattress.
I wouldn’t “anticipate” foam softening and would choose the mattress that was as close as possible to your current needs and preferences with “just enough” pressure relief in all your sleeping positions and that was the best match for you in terms of PPP. If two mattresses are otherwise “equal” choices and you have no clear preference or can’t decide between them then I would choose the one that was slightly firmer but this would only be if they were otherwise equal and I really couldn’t decide between them and it seems to me that you have a clear preference between the two of them.