After researching mattresses for several weeks, I finally decided to go with the Sleep EZ 13000. After initial research, I determined I wanted to try a latex bed. I went to a local mattress shop here in NE Ohio to see if they had any. They did not, but I tried a Tempurapedic with gel phone and thought it may work since it didn’t seem to get hot after about 15 minutes. I then visited the Original Mattress factory and tried out their latex bed. I hated it. Really bouncy with no edge support. So I was done with the latex mattress, so I thought. The following week my son’s high school had a fund raiser selling mattresses. There I tried out Restonic’s latex bed and like it. Completely different from the Original Mattress factory. So after some more research, even considering some hybrids, I settled on Dreamfoam’s All latex mattress. It seemed to have everything I was looking for. I was about to order it, but wanted to double-check with my wife. Our current hybrid mattress is about 13-14", but the Dreamfoam latex is only 10" high as are many of the latex mattresses. While it seemed that the 10" mattress may not have too much of a gap with the headboard on our bed, my wife pointed out that the already high nightstands would be essentially 3" higher. So, now I needed to find a 13 or 14" mattress. I debated with myself between the Dreamfoam Aloe Alexis at 14" and the Sleep EZ 13000. Looks like I’ll need to pay about a $700 premium to get the latex core of the 13000 instead of the polyfoam core in the Aloe Alexis. Is the latex core worth the premium? Can I expect a better experience or longer life with the latex core? Also, should the Sleep EZ core be the blended Talalay or the 100% Dunlop? I thought I’ve read where the blended latex, though not all natural, should last longer. Any thoughts to help me finalize a decision would be great. I’m tired of the research and looking forward to some better sleep. Thanks.
Hi DavidL,
Every category of mattresses including latex or latex hybrid mattresses can include hundreds or even thousands of different mattresses with different designs, different “feels”, different characteristics, and different firmness levels. Any differences in every layer and component in a mattress (such as the type of latex in the layer, the firmness of the layer, or the thickness of the layer) including the cover and any quilting material will affect the feel and response of every other layer both above and below it so each category will generally include some mattresses that you may sleep well on or that matches your specific needs and preferences and other mattresses that use the same type of materials and are in the same category that may be unsuitable for you to sleep on even if the actual materials are the same. While testing local mattresses can give you a sense of how you feel about different materials or different types of mattresses in very general terms … the only way to know whether you like a specific mattress or whether it will be a good “match” for you in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your own Personal preferences) will be based on your own careful testing or your personal experience.
Latex is one of the most costly mattress materials so adding an additional layer of latex just for the sake of adding some additional height would be more costly than necessary. I don’t know your weight and for most people 12" of latex wouldn’t be necessary but it could still be a preference that some people may prefer so that may also be worth taking into consideration. There is more about the effect of additional thickness in post #14 here.
You could also use a foundation under your mattress (either a regular height that was about 8" - 9" tall or a low profile foundation that is generally about 4" to 5" tall) to add some additional height but this would also be more costly if you have a platform bedframe that is already suitable for supporting a latex mattress (with slats that are no more than 3" apart). If you are looking for a lower cost solution you could add some ultra firm polyfoam (as firm as possible so it will have the least possible effect on your mattress) in any thickness you wish under the mattress that would be a much less costly way to provide the additional height you are looking for.
While I can certainly help with “how” to choose … I don’t make specific suggestions or recommendations for either a mattress, manufacturers/retailers, or combinations of materials or components 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 or how a mattress will “feel” to you or compare to another mattress based on specs (either yours or a mattress), sleeping positions, health conditions, or “theory at a distance” that can possibly be more reliable than your own careful testing (hopefully using the testing guidelines in step 4 of the tutorial) or your own personal sleeping experience (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here).
There is more about the 3 most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase in post #13 here 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 suitability, durability, and all the other parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you (including the price of course and the options you have available after a purchase if your choice doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for).
While I can’t speak to how any specific mattress will “feel” for someone else because this is too subjective and relative to different body types, sleeping positions, and individual preferences, sensitivities, and circumstances and you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress … outside of PPP (which is the most important part of “value”) the next most important part of the value of a mattress purchase is durability which is all about how long you will sleep well on a mattress. This is the part of your research that you can’t see or “feel” and assessing the durability and useful life of a mattress depends on knowing the specifics of its construction and the type and quality of the materials inside it regardless of the name of the manufacturer on the label (or how a mattress feels in a showroom or when it is relatively new) so I would always make sure that you find out information listed here so you can compare the materials and components to the quality/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.
All of the mattresses you are considering use high quality materials and there are no lower quality materials or weak links in their design that would compromise the durability or useful life of the mattress or that would be a reason for concern with any of them.
When you sleep on a mattress the upper layers of foam will compress and deflect more than the deeper layers partly because the comfort layers are usually made to be softer than the deeper transition and support layers of a mattress (and firmness/softness is also a factor in the durability of a material) and partly because they are closer to the sleeping surface and subject to direct compression without any layers above them absorbing some of the compression forces first. It’s this constant deflection of the foam materials in the upper layers of the mattress that softens and breaks down the foam and leads to the loss of comfort and support in the mattress. This will also happen more under the heavier parts of the body such as the hips/pelvis than the lighter parts of the body. This is why the quality/durability of the upper layers (the top 3" to 6" of the mattress) are especially important in the durability and useful life of the mattress as a whole because they will usually be the weakest link in the mattress in terms of durability.
Since the top 6" of both the Alexis and the SleepEZ would be latex they would be closely comparable in terms of durability but of course all of the mattresses you mentioned would feel and perform differently from each other because they all have a different design (although if the top 6" of latex were the same in both of them then the differences would be less noticeable to many people although they both have different covers and quilting which would also affect how they feel relative to each other).
There is more information about how the SleepEZ 10000 would compare to the Alexis in this topic that may be helpful and the comparison with the 13000 would be similar except of course it is thicker, contains once more layer than the 10000 (which is more costly), and has more options available with 4 layers to rearrange the layers to fine tune the comfort and support of the mattress.
When you can’t test a mattress in person then the most reliable source of guidance is always a more detailed phone conversation with a knowledgeable and experienced retailer or manufacturer that has your best interests at heart and who can help “talk you through” the specifics of their mattresses and the properties and “feel” of the materials they are using (fast or slow response, resilience, firmness etc) and the options they have available that may be the best “match” for you based on the information you provide them, any local testing you have done or mattresses you have slept on and liked or other mattresses you are considering that they are familiar with, and the “averages” of other customers that are similar to you. They will know more about “matching” their specific mattress designs and firmness levels to different body types, sleeping positions, and preferences (or to other mattresses that they are familiar with) than anyone else.
Once you have narrowed down your options to a list of finalists that are all choices between “good and good” and none of them have any lower quality materials or “weak links” in their design relative to your weight range (which they don’t) and if there are no clear winners between them (which is usually a good indication that you have done some good research) then you are in the fortunate position that any of them would likely be a suitable choice and post #2 here can help you make a final choice based on your local testing or mattresses you have slept well on, your more detailed conversations about each of them, your confidence about PPP and the suitability of each one, their prices, your preferences for different types of materials and components, the options you have after a purchase to fine tune the mattress or exchange or return the mattress or individual layers and any costs involved, any additional extras that are part of each purchase, and on “informed best judgement” based on all the other objective, subjective, and intangible parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.
Phoenix