I had a great, solid, fairly firm mattress with a pillowtop, Chatham and Wells, Sabrina model. After 18 years, I need to replace it. All the most enviromentally friendly mattresses don’t feel solid-they feel like futons. I now have a slat frame with headboard. What do you all recommend that is similar to the Chatham and Wells, yet isn’t full 0f toxic chemicals? Thanks so much for your help.
Lizah
Hi lizah,
Welcome to the Mattress Forum!.
Wow … you’ve had your mattress for a very long time 
Unfortunately it’s not possible to make specific suggestions or recommendations for someone else either for a mattress, a manufacturer/retailer, or a combination of materials or type of mattress because the first “rule” of mattress shopping is to always remember that you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress and there are too many unknowns, variables, and personal preferences involved that are unique to each person to use a formula or for anyone to be able to predict or make a specific suggestion or recommendation about which mattress or combination of materials and components or which type of mattress would be the best “match” for you in terms of “comfort” or PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) or how a mattress will “feel” to you based on specs (either yours or a mattress) or “theory at a distance” that can possibly be more accurate than your own careful testing (hopefully using the testing guidelines in step 4 of the tutorial) or if you can’t test a mattress in person then your own personal sleeping experience (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here).
I or some of the more knowledgeable or experienced members of the site can certainly help you to narrow down your options, help you focus on better quality/value choices that are available to you either locally or online, help you identify any lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress you may be considering, act as a fact check, answer many of the specific questions you may have along the way that don’t involve what you will “feel” on a mattress, and help with “how” to choose but only you can decide which specific mattress or combination of materials is the best match for you based on all the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.
There is no specific definition for “environmentally friendly” or “eco friendly” mattresses in the industry and these terms are more commonly used for marketing purposes than as a legitimate description for a mattress.
Having said that … there is more information in post #2 here and the more detailed posts and information it links to about safe, natural, organic, “chemical free”, and “green” mattresses and mattress materials that can help you sort through some of the marketing information and terminology that you will encounter in the industry and can help you differentiate between them and answer “how safe is safe enough for me” or “how natural is natural enough for me” or how “eco friendly is eco friendly enough for me” so you can decide on the types of materials you are most comfortable having in your mattress or on the certifications that may be important to you. These types of issues are complex and are generally specific to each person and their individual sensitivities, circumstances, criteria, beliefs, and lifestyle choices.
Mattress manufacturers generally try to differentiate their mattress from mattresses made by other manufacturers and they don’t generally try to “match” another mattress that is made by a different manufacturer so I really don’t know of another mattress that that is designed to be a “match” your Chatham and Wells Sabrina.
There is more about the different ways that one mattress can “match” or “approximate” another mattress in post #9 here but unless all the materials. layers, and components in two mattresses are the same the only way to know how they will compare in terms of how they “feel” or PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) will be based on your own careful testing or personal experience.
Making durability comparisons is a little bit less subjective because in terms of durability a mattress is only as good as the type and quality of the materials inside it (regardless of the name of the manufacturer on the label) and would involve comparing the quality and durability of the materials and components in each of the mattresses you are considering to make sure that they don’t use any lower quality materials or have any weak links in their design (see this article and the quality/durability guidelines it links to).
Hopefully you’ve already read the mattress shopping tutorial which includes all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that you will need to make the best possible choice … and perhaps more importantly know how and why to avoid the worst ones.
Two of the most important links in the tutorial that I would especially make sure you’ve read are post #2 here which has more about the different ways to choose a suitable mattress (either locally or online) that is the best “match” for you in terms of “comfort” and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) that can help you assess and minimize the risks of making a choice that doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for and post #13 here which has more about the most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase which can help you make more meaningful quality/value comparisons between mattresses in terms of suitability (how well you will sleep), durability (how long you will sleep well), and the overall value of a mattress compared to your other finalists (based on all the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you).
Once you reach step 3 in the tutorial then if you let me know your city or zip code I’d certainly be happy to let you know about any of the better options or possibilities I’m aware of in your area.
Phoenix