Factory Direct Mattresses in the Toronto, ON and GTA area.

Discussions General Mattresses Questions
18

Phoenix,
I wanted to get your feedback about a latex mattress that I tried at nineclouds.ca store in Mississauga in the GTA area.
Here’s the link to that mattress that I tried and really enjoyed. :
http://www.nineclouds.ca/Mattresses/Spring-Air-Mattresses/Prodigy-Latex-Mattress-Set.html
I think it’s made by Spring air. I have a very sensitive neck pain and after trying a mattress for at least 15 mins in the showrrom, I can gauge if it has a chance to fit me by not experiencing neck pain after the trial.

This one was good, but I still want feedback because I’ve had many bad experiences in the past with mattresses which didn’t work out once I brought it home.
Thanks for the help.

19

Hi tekila,

The description of the mattress is a little unclear but if I’m reading it right from bottom to top it has

4.5" of polyfoam
3.5" of firm latex
1" of super soft polyfoam
1" of quiltflex (soft polyfoam in the quilting)
Antimicrobial blend foam (unknown thickness)

This to me is a lot of polyfoam over the latex which would probably be the weak link of the mattress and be subject to more rapid softening.

I would want to know the density of all the polyfoam (except perhaps the quiltflex), the type of latex they are using, and the details and thickness of the “antimicrobial blend foam”.

Just as an aside as well … your neck pain may also be related to the pillow you are using (or the pillow you are using when you test a mattress).

The price for a polyfoam hybrid is also fairly high IMO.

Phoenix

20

Thanks Phoenix, I also saw you mention somewhere that you were going to produce a list of online mattress manufacturers who ship to Canada. Do you mind to post it here again ? Thanks

21

Hi tekila,

I don’t actually have a list of manufacturers or online stores that ship across Canada up to now but there are a few I know of that do.

Canadian manufacturers or retailers …

Memory Foam Comfort Member of The Mattress Underground

CBH Wood Furniture Member of The Mattress Underground

Evrbed Member of The Mattress Underground

Some other sources outside TMU membership include
sleepys.ca They sell a wide range of mattresses and component latex mattresses as well.
Discount Foam Sells mattresses as well as individual polyfoam, memory foam, and latex layers (Western Canada only).
The Foam Store Sells mattresses as well as memory foam and polyfoam.

silkandsnow.com
Dormio.ca

Douglas Bed (from Novosbed). Canadian-only.

US Manufacturers and retailers that ship to Canada across the border …
Arizona Premium Mattress Member of The Mattress Underground
sleepez.com Member of The Mattress Underground
nestbedding.com Member of The Mattress Underground

Some more sources (Non members)
supremecomfort.com

zenhaven.com (Ontario only)
Rocky Mountain Mattress
Casper
halstead.ca
tmasc.ca
Dreamfoam & Brooklyn Bedding
http://www.us-mattress.com/

I would avoid the major brands they carry, make sure you can find out the quality specs of any mattress you are considering here (since many of the manufacturers they carry may not provide them), and confirm the cost involved to ship to the specific province you are in.

As I think of more I’ll add them here. Make sure you call any US manufacturers for Canadian prices, shipping rates, and any taxes or brokerage fees that may apply as well as their return/refund policy for Canada as they will probably vary widely depending on the type of mattress that is being shipped (some may be able to ship UPS or have shipping rates that are discounted and some may require truck freight which is more expensive).

Phoenix

22

I tried the Crescendo Latex mattress in Toronto yesterday. I really liked it. It felt very plush, but with firm support underneath. Would you know how this mattress compares from a construction standpoint with the Simply Natural from Ton Furniture? If they are similar, the Ton Furniture model is considerably less expensive.

I drove to The GTA from London ON (about 2+ hours away), but didn’t get to other mattress manufacturers in the area (other commitments took me to the area). I may have to go back, but its a lot of driving, and I wonder if the extra time and expense is worth it.

Ideal tells me they can make the Crescendo in a two sided version for about 25% more. Two sided seems like good value, but I don’t know if the price is reasonable.

This site has been extremely helpful, by the way. Thanks for helping to demystify an industry no less shady than used car sales.

23

Hi Mel,

I think both of the options you are looking are probably in a “better value range” but to make a more meaningful assessment and comparison between them I would need a little more information about both than is listed on their sites. If you call both of them you should be able to fill in the gaps of the information that is missing.

Crescendo Latex mattress:

I have had several good conversations with the owners at Ideal mattress and they are knowledgeable about their products and helpful with their customers and I think highly of them.

This mattress is basically a Kingsdown mattress with 3" of natural latex (probably Dunlop but I would make sure and also confirm whether it is 100% natural latex or a blend)

It has a zoned pocket coil which appears to be good quality but I would want to know the number of coils and the gauge (or since it is zoned the range of the gauges). This is not a completely accurate way to compare different pocket coil innersprings but at least it provides some basic information and the innersprings of a mattress are not usually the “weak link” of the mattress.

I also believe this may have other layers as well and I would want to know what these are.

The mattress also has other “features” such as “motion separation technology” and their “solo sleep system” which I would want to know the details to see if these provided any extra value that was important to you.

This has an organic cotton tick which is a good quality material but I would also want to know what is in the quilting

Simply Natural:

I have also talked with Tonfurniture and think highly of them as well. They work closely with Dreamstar and are knowledgeable and open about their mattresses as well.

This one has a Talalay latex comfort layer but they don’t specify the thickness (it could just be an inch or so) or the blend (either blended or 100% natural).

It also contains several other polyfoam layers and I would want to know the thickness and density of each of them.

This also has an organic cotton tick and wool in the quilting which is great for controlling humidity and temperature.

The innerspring is a 13 gauge 900 coils which is good quality and lower gauge (thicker) than most pocket coils.

Both of these have a foam surround for edge support and I am not a particular fan of this method of making the edge firmer because of the risk of delamination and foam softening. There are better ways to do this (such as steel reinforcements, firmer coils on the edge, or polyfoam re-inforcements in the coils) and using polyfoam is really just a cost cutting measure that reduces the cost of the steel coils that are used. I would certainly want to know the density of the polyfoam that was used in both cases.

Of course your own personal testing on each of these and how they compare in terms of PPP (Pressure relief, Posture and alignment, and Personal preferences) is just as much a part of their value along with the other services, options, and benefits that are included with each mattress purchase which may also be an important part of your “personal value equation” and can’t be “separated out” from the overall value of each one.

So if you can call both of them and have them provide a more detailed “layer by layer” description it would make a more meaningful comparison between the two of them possible.

Phoenix

24

I’m writing this after putting a small down-payment on the crescendo mattress today. My finacee and I were both in a bit of a rush to get a mattress and I just spent some time reading this website beforehand, we visited a few stores and then went to ideal. I thought this bed fit our basic requirements, as she is mostly an on the side sleeper of a moderate build but curvy and I’m a combo sleeper with an athletic build (wide shoulders, chest heavy).

To add to some of the details regarding the bed:

Quilting panel
1.75" convulated soya foam
1/2" high density foam
40 oz wool blend fiber

Top of innerspring:

3" all natural perforated sri lankan latex
1.5" high density (7) zoned soya foam (2.7 lbs)
2x (1/2" cotton blend)

Coil system:

1118 coil count density (queen)
fabric encased pocket coil system
oven double tempered pocket coil
solo sleep system
motion separation technology
7 turn coil - 13.5 guage dual tempered foam encased side edge guards

Foundation:

high profile semi-flex foundation 3/4" box pad multi-quilted

We got a queen including the box spring for 1300, and have 60 days where we can exchange it for a different mattress (of same price or higher) if we are not happy with it and it comes with a 12 year non pro-rated warranty.

Crossing our fingers that this bed is one we will be happy with. I think I should be having slept on the same bed for 20+ years before this one!

25

Hi loggedout,

Thanks for sharing the results of your research and a latex / innerspring hybrid is certainly a great choice for those who like the “feel” of latex at a little lower cost than an all latex mattress.

I appreciate your feedback … and congratulations on your new mattress :slight_smile:

Phoenix

26

Phoenix, OMG where have you been for the last two months, thank you for the list of stores , I am already planning to visit a few stores tom.Hopefully,I can narrow it down and get your thoughts, I am so ready to buy, I am tired of all the reading , but a necessary deed I get it.Thanks so much.

27

Hi Mattress,

Good luck in your search and of course if you have any comments or questions along the way feel free to post them on the forum.

Phoenix

28

Hi and thanks for the great list of GTA retailers / manufacturers.

wondering if anyone has had any interaction with easy rest canada www.easyrestcanada.com

I noticed that they are having a clearance event this weekend - their website doesn’t have all the info but it isn’t far from my office. Just wanted to know if they are a quality operation or one of the fly by the night operators!

29

Hi Sctubman,

I don’t have any specific information about them but they were incorporated in June 2012 so they are a newer company and their website still seems to be incomplete and their retail store finder isn’t working.

I also don’t see them on the CertiPur list* (the EasyRest they list is in the US) although they say they are using CertiPur certified foams.

ADMIN NOTE: *Removed 404 link|Archived Footprint: certipur.us/pages/for-consumers/find-products/

Like any mattress I would make sure that you know the quality/density of all the materials in any of their mattresses you are considering.

According to this page … they appear to run a cleaning and sanitizing service which may indicate that they are rebuilding mattresses rather than making new ones so I would find out whether this is the case.

Their logo is very similar to Easyrestinc in Portland which are a CertiPur certified manufacturer that makes some good quality/value memory foam mattresses so it’s quite possible that they are part of the same company but I would be a little cautious here to make sure that all your questions about them and their mattresses are answered to your satisfaction.

Phoenix

30

Hi Sctbman,

I did a little bit more checking and talked to EasyRest in Portland and they are owned by members of the same family who started up in Canada a little less than two years ago.

They have the same mattresses and get their foam from Health Care Foam in China so they are CertiPur certified and would certainly be worth considering as long as you know the specifics of any of their mattresses you are looking at and they are a good “match” for you in terms of PPP and the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.

Phoenix

31

Hi Phoenix,

First thank you for this amazing resource. I didn’t realize how many good alternative sources for mattresses (and mattress alternatives) there are.

After absorbing as much Mattress Underground info as I could, I went, as suggested, and tried lots of different configurations to figure out what I like. Came to the conclusion fairly quickly that I prefer latex (specifically Dunlop; found the various Talalay I tried too jiggly, like sleeping on Jello), with a soft comfort layer. I’m both a side and back sleeper, 5’ 10", 170lbs with relatively broad shoulders. Found a number of mattresses comfortable on my back or side but not both.

I went over your Toronto list and after doing some additional searching ended up visiting quite a few locations including Dormio Organic Beds, Ideal, Foamite, Soma Organic, Essentia, Nine Clouds, and National Mattress OUtlet plus my initial trips before finding your site to standards like Sleep Country.

A few notes regarding sites for Mississauga/Toronto:

Quality Rest Mattress unfortunately appears to be out of business.

Ideal Mattress Ltd is now only carrying Kingsdown in addition to their own line. The individual I talked to said they dropped the other brands due to quality issues. Ideal does seem very knowledgeable and accommodating.

Nine Clouds Beds isn’t on your list but they carry some Dreamstar latex (over foam or innerspring) mattresses. Apparently family owned with good reviews online.

National Mattress Outlet also carries some Dreamstar. For anyone considering visiting National, it is literally just a warehouse; a SMALL warehouse. They will let you try out mattresses but with the plastic covers on them (and no pillows). i.e. don’t bother going there if you want to test drive. Suspect their pricing is very good due to very low overhead (and no “sales reps”).

In the end, looks like I’m deciding on an organic mattress from Dormio. An all latex/wool solution is definitely more expensive, but the Dormio mattresses are definitely high quality, should last a long long time, and for me at least, are extremely comfortable. I had that “ahhhhhh” reaction on theirs that I hadn’t really had on any others (except a couple of brand names where I wouldn’t expect the ahhh to last very long). Like the flexibility of their mattresses too, with the option to swap out layers on one side or both to adjust the support/feel. Also Dormio’s in store service is phenomenal. Very patient and knowledgeable.

Heading there now to make a final decision. Will update with the specs of my purchase.

32

Hi NeedaNuBed,

Thanks for the feedback from the Toronto area … I appreciate it :slight_smile:

Thanks for the heads up. I initially thought that it was just their website that had changed because this website is still working but then I called them and their phone has been disconnected so as you mentioned it seems clear that they are out of business and I’ve removed them from the list.

That’s good to hear although I would still focus on their own mattresses and would tend to avoid the Kingsdown unless there was a compelling reason to do otherwise. I’ve also edited their description in the Toronto list to change “major brands” to “Kingsdown”.

A forum search on nineclouds (you can just click the link) will bring up a few mentions of them but they tend to focus more on mainstream brands and their listed prices for their Dreamstar mattresses are also a little steep. Dreamstar is also on the list so instead of listing every retailer in the Toronto area that carries some of their mattresses (or any of the other wholesale manufacturers) and having a list that was much longer and more difficult to narrow down I would tend to suggest finding the retailers that were closest to someone by emailing or calling Dreamstar.

As you know I think highly of John and Dormio and you are leaning in a great direction. They certainly sell some very high quality and durable mattresses and none of them have any weak links in their design. As you mentioned … how long the “ahhhhh’s” last is just as important as the oohs and ahhs themselves :slight_smile:

I’m looking forward to finding out about your final decision … and thanks again for taking the time to share your updates and feedback.

Phoenix

33

I went to New Dawn (Keele) today and tried out a latex mattress. The woman (Sona I think) didn’t know much about them, but put me on the phone with a man who answered some questions about their latex. All they have is a 3.0lb talalay, all natural latex with a 20-year warranty. They didn’t have the ILD for it, but said that the firmness was “medium”. Their one floor model was a single and was $499 (6"). They said a queen would be $950 and it would take two days to complete.
I live a couple of hours out of the city, so I think I’ll call in the order for the next time I go down. Compared to other places I called, it was considerably cheaper (Factory mattress was going to be ~$1700 for a 7" dunlop queen)

Anyway, I spent a good 15-20 minutes on it, and it felt great. I am 30 and have hip surgery on both hips and usually am a side sleeper but haven’t been able to with my hip issues. I found it to be very forgiving on my hips, but it still felt like I was being supported. It was comfortable on my back as well. It didn’t feel like it was getting any more compressed like cheaper foams can that feel very soft at first but by the end of the night you can feel right through.

Any final thoughts before I pull the trigger? It seems like a great price for all natural talalay, based on what I’ve been reading here.
This site is amazing by the way, as long as you have the patience to wade through all the info.

34

Hi GMH,

What kind of certification confirms you are getting 100% natural talalay?

35

Hi gmh,

If you did some careful testing on the mattress and you are confident that it’s a good match for you in terms of PPP and the materials are accurately described then this would certainly be a good quality/value purchase. If you are buying a floor model then I would expect a significant discount and in most cases there won’t be a warranty on the mattress.

It may be worthwhile asking about the source of their Talalay latex (there are only two companies that make Talalay latex which is Latex International in the US or Radium in Holland) and ask them about the firmness rating of the latex (this will tell you more about who produced the latex and whether it’s blended Talalay or “all natural” Talalay because they would each have a different firmness ratings). You can see the firmness ratings for both Latex International and Radium for their blended and 100% natural Talalay in post #2 here. While both are high quality materials … some manufacturers will confuse blended Talalay with all natural Talalay so asking for the specific firmness rating would be way that you can confirm which one you have.

If the Talalay is 3.0 lb/ft3 then that would be the approximate density of 19 ILD blended Talalay from Latex International and this would be in a soft range not medium. If this was 100% natural in a similar ILD then it would be denser (natural rubber is denser than synthetic rubber) or if it was firmer then it would have a higher density as well (firmer latex has a higher density than softer latex of the same type and blend).

@MFC MemoryFoamComfort

You are certainly correct about this although blended Talalay is a very high quality material and in lower ILD’s can even be more durable than 100% natural Talalay.

While there aren’t any certifications that will identify one type of Talalay from the other or the amount of natural rubber in the latex … a manufacturer should be able to provide you with the source of the latex (or at least the country of origin) and the firmness rating that would identify whether it was all natural or blended. Other than this … you would be dependent on the integrity of a manufacturer to provide you with accurate information about the blend of rubber in a Talalay latex layer.

Phoenix

36

Hi Phoenix,

I have a bad history of choosing inappropriate mattresses, so I am hoping you can give me some feedback as I try once more to buy something I truly enjoy sleeping on. Your site has given me courage that I might actually succeed this time!

I am female, 5’5" tall, 132 pounds, 59 years old. I occasionally have mild neck and shoulder pain from desk work. I also have low back pain due to an achy sacro-iliac, again caused by desk work. I don’t have any neurological damage, thank goodness. I sleep on my sides and back.

I do not want a mattress that has any brominated or organophosphate flame retardants in it. I also don’t want a mattress that off-gasses any more harmful VOCs than the level found in typical indoor air. It’s not important to me that the mattress be organic, but I suspect that since I don’t want the flame retardants or the VOCs that means I’ll have to restrict myself to buying an organic mattress?

I live in Toronto, so your list of Toronto manufacturers and retailers has been a big help! I made a few calls. I visited Ideal Mattress Ltd (good products there) and tried out a latex mattress that consisted of 7" of firm (35 ILD) Dunlop latex topped with 3" of soft (15-17 ILD) Dunlop latex, covered with an organic cotton and wool wrap. It supported my body well and I didn’t feel any pressure points. I asked if they could make a pocket coil mattress with a latex comfort layer on top, but the woman I spoke to said you can’t put latex on top of coils because the coils would cut into the latex. That doesn’t sound quite right to me.

I also visited Dormio and was impressed with their constructive sales help. I liked two of their beds. The Marquis has 6" of medium latex topped by 2" of extra soft latex and 1" of organic wool. The Landon has 3" of medium latex topped by 3" of soft and 2" of extra soft latex and 1" of wool. Both beds provided good support and pressure relief, but the Landon had a nicer “kushy” feel to it.

But because I tend to sleep warm, I am a bit concerned that during the summer I may get too hot sleeping on the latex. In the past, I have enjoyed the feel of a pocket coil innerspring and was hoping to find one without the flame retardants and excess VOCs. I noticed that somasleep.ca has some innerspring mattresses, so I will give them a call this week.

If you have any advice for me on how to locate flame retardant-free innerspring mattresses, I would appreciate it.

Thanks!

37

Hi sangen,

Just in case you haven’t read it yet I would make sure you’ve read the mattress shopping tutorial here which includes all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that can help you make the best possible choices … and know how and why to avoid the worst ones…

Post #2 here and the more detailed posts and information it links to have more information 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” so you can decide on the types of materials you are most comfortable having in your mattress. These types of issues are complex and are generally specific to each person and their individual sensitivities, circumstances, criteria, and lifestyle choices.

The previous link also has more information about “safe” fire retardant methods that don’t use chemicals to make them fire retardant.

This would depend on the type of innerspring that is used in the mattress. With innersprings that use helical coils and have lower coil counts you would generally need an insulator layer to prevent the comfort materials from compressing into the innerspring but many fabric encased pocket coils that have higher coil counts would provide a “bed” for the comfort layers above them that would have even enough support for the comfort materials above them to prevent the springs from cutting into the layers above them and don’t need an insulator layer above the coils. There are many pocket coil/latex hybrids that work very well without cutting into the latex comfort layers.

Latex in general is the most breathable of all the foam materials so there would be less chance of sleeping hot on latex than on other types of foam materials that are generally used in comfort layers but the type of mattress cover and the materials that are quilted to it along with the mattress protector you use and your sheets and bedding will also have a very significant effect on temperature regulation because they are closer to your body. Wool is a great temperature regulator (in both directions) and wool quilted covers are often used with latex mattresses both as a fire retardant and as a temperature regulator. There is more about the many variables that can affect sleeping temperature and temperature regulation in post #2 here.

Phoenix