Well it is time for a follow up on our mattress adventure. Our Sleep Nation Wazee St. ( their mattresses are named after Denver area streets and blvds) was delivered Monday by Sean, the owner, and an employee.
This mattress, as noted in a post above, has a 6 inch zoned layer of latex that is a nominal 30ILD. It is zoned to be firmer in the hips and softer in the shoulder area. The changes in firmness are accomplished by changing the diameters of the holes in the latex.The support level is a 6 inch 40-42 ILD, also Talalay latex. I don’ t know if this layer is also zoned.The cover is knit cotton and very stretchy. It allows you to really feel the latex below and zips off for washing. When I first lay on the mattress, before making up the bed, it felt very firm. When on my back I could not feel much support in the lumbar area, as if I weren’t sinking in enough. When i laid on my side my shoulder felt too much pressure. So, taking a cue from another post here, I did some walking on the bed, barefoot of course. I spent several minutes stepping firmly on the areas where it seemed too firm. When I laid down again I could feel my hips sinking in further and my lower back getting some support, so I did the same thing to my wife’s side of the bed.
My wife and I both felt comfortable that night and by morning I could feel a significant softening where I was lying. I could confirm this by moving over to the center of the bed, where we had neither lain nor walked. It was firmer there, both to lie on and push on with my hand. I was so pleased with the improvement in comfort that I spent a minute or two walking in the middle area to soften it too. My idea is that I want an even surface so that my hips don’t get twisted if a sleep slightly off my regular sleeping area.
It has been four nights and my wife has declared the mattress “yummy” which happens to be a description of Sleep Nation’s plushest mattress on their website. So far we are pleased and hope the mattress stabilizes about where it is.
After my experience with two latex mattresses I have some thoughts to share. My first mattress which was described as firm by Denver Mattress, turned out to be way too soft and unsupportive after only a few days. I didn’t know if that was due to softening of the latex, the one inch of poly foam on top, the quilting on the top, or a combination of all of these factors. After four days on a mattress that is significantly firmer, with no poly foam, no quilting, and a 30-32 top layer, I am inclined to think that most of the softening occurred in the latex. The firmer, almost all latex mattress softened up at almost exactly the same pace as the poly foam combo.
So, my conclusion is to suggest that anyone who buys a foam mattress that appears to be too firm initially should try walking on it to get it breaking in. A light weight person might not deflect a firm foam enough while sleeping to break it in quickly. Gently walking on it will deflect it much more than sleeping on it. so you might as well get things rolling.
BTW, kudos to Sleep Nation for putting a mattress this firm on their floor and whole-heartedly recommending it. They told me they have had very few comfort returns on this mattress and it is a best seller.