I am completely overwhelmed by my mattress shopping adventure! I am moving in with my significant other and we need a bigger bed. This being said, we have gone to several stores and tried out tons of beds. He likes hybrids, I like memory foam. He likes plush, I like medium. After much bickering and several stores, we’ve finally found a mattress that fits both of us and then I looked up the reviews and they’re horrible! :ohmy: The mattress was from Denver Mattress and it was the Green Choice Meditation Mattress (from your post here). I have read everything there is to read on this site and I know you don’t recommend one specific mattress, but I was hoping you could point me in a direction of something very similar to this bed that is better quality. I have a feeling we are going to have to purchase online and I have no clue how to tell if it will feel similar to the Green Choice mattress. The specs are below:
Construction
Quilt Layers:
Double Jacquard Zip Outer Cover
Comfort Layers:
1.5" Gel ViscoElas™ Memory Foam
3" of 3lb ViscoElas™ Memory Foam
Support System:
7.5" ES HybridCore™
1" of 2lb ES Support Foam
We are both primarily side sleepers and sleep hot. He’s 200+ lbs and I’m only 110 lbs. Can anyone help?!
It’s a good thing that you avoided the Green Choice mattress since the 3 lb memory foam is a low quality material that would be a weak link in terms of the durability and useful life of the mattress.
I would keep in mind that 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, 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 your own personal sleeping experience (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here).
I’m assuming that you’ve read the mattress shopping tutorial here 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).
There is more information in post #9 here about the different ways that one mattress can “match” or “approximate” another one but every layer and component in a mattress (including the cover) will affect the feel and performance of every other layer and component and the mattress “as a whole” and mattress manufacturers generally try to differentiate their mattress from the mattresses made by other manufacturers and don’t normally try to “match” another mattress that is made by a different manufacturer.
There are also no “standard” definitions or consensus of opinions for firmness ratings and different manufacturers can rate their mattresses very differently than others so a mattress that one manufacturer rates as being a specific firmness could be rated very differently by another manufacturer. Different people can also have very different perceptions of firmness and softness compared to others as well and a mattress that feels firm for one person can feel like “medium” for someone else or even “soft” for someone else (or vice versa) depending on their body type, sleeping style, physiology, their frame of reference based on what they are used to, and their individual sensitivity and perceptions. There are also different types of firmness and softness that different people may be sensitive to that can affect how they “rate” a mattress as well (see post #15 here) so different people can also have very different opinions on how two mattresses compare in terms of firmness and some people may rate one mattress as being firmer than another and someone else may rate them the other way around. This is all relative and very subjective and is as much an art as a science.
Unless a manufacturer specifically says in their description of a mattress that one of their mattresses in the same general category is designed to “match” or “approximate” another one in terms of firmness or “feel” (or they are very familiar with both mattresses and can provide reliable guidance about how they compare based on the “averages” of a larger group of people) then the only reliable way to know if a mattress will “feel” similar to you would be based on your own personal testing or your actual sleeping experience.
While your own careful testing or personal experience is the most reliable way to know whether any mattress is a good “match” for you in terms of comfort and PPP or how closely it “matches” or “approximates” another 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.
If you are looking at online options then the tutorial includes several links to lists of the better online sources I’m aware of (in the optional online step) that include a wide range of different types and categories of mattresses (including memory foam mattresses) in a wide range of firmness levels and budgets.
If you let me know your city or zip code I’d also be happy to let you know about the better options or possibilities I’m aware of in your area as well.
We know exactly what we want, type we want, firmness we want, we just can’t find a good quality one that won’t break the bank. I know I can’t always trust the reviews when it comes to comfort, but who else can you trust when it comes to quality? Every single mattress retailer is going to make you want to buy their product and will tell you anything you want to hear. Then there are other review sites/blogs that are all being paid to promote their products. This will be a huge purchase for us and both of us have limited time and budgets. This whole process feels like trying to find a needle in a haystack that’s on fire while a sales person is telling you the fire really isn’t a problem. Seems like the only way to go about it is to just throw caution to the wind and hope the one you spend 100’s of dollars on is the one you like and even if you DO like it, there’s a good chance you won’t in 2-3 years.
If you follow all the steps in the tutorial one at a time you will have the best chance of success and finding a suitable, durable, and great “value” mattress … and avoiding all the pitfalls you mentioned.
I would trust knowledgeable and experienced manufacturers or retailers that have your best interests at heart and that are completely transparent about the type and quality/durability of the materials in their mattresses (which would include the members here). Dealing with a knowledgeable and experienced retailer or manufacturer that is completely transparent can be one of the most important parts of a successful mattress purchase.
In its simplest form … choosing the “best possible” mattress for any particular person really comes down to first finding a few knowledgeable and transparent manufacturers that sell the types of mattresses that you are most interested in (either locally or online) and that can provide you with all the information you need to know to make an informed choice and make meaningful comparisons between mattresses and then …
Careful testing (hopefully using the testing guidelines in the tutorial) to make sure that a mattress is a good match for you in terms of “comfort”, firmness, and PPP … and/or that you are comfortable with the options you have available to return, exchange, or “fine tune” the mattress and any costs involved if you can’t test a mattress in person or aren’t confident that your mattress is a suitable choice.
Checking to make sure that there are no lower quality materials or weak links in the mattress that could compromise the durability and useful life of the mattress.
Comparing your finalists for “value” based on #1 and #2 and all the other parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.
How do you feel about Helix mattresses? Seems they don’t have a lot of reviews yet and they don’t have a lot of their specs published. Any comment on the quality of their materials?
You can see some comments about what I call “simplified choice mattresses” in general in post #1 here and you can see some more specific and detailed comments about Helix along with many of the other “simplified choice” online mattresses in post #2 here in the same topic. A forum search on “Helix” (you can just click the link) will bring up more comments about them as well.
While other people’s comments about the knowledge and service of a particular business can certainly be very helpful … I would be very cautious about about using other people’s experiences or reviews on a specific mattress (either positive or negative) as a reliable source of information or guidance about how you will feel on the same mattress or how suitable or how durable a mattress may be for you and in many if not most cases they can be more misleading than helpful because a mattress that would be a perfect choice for one person or even a larger group of people may be completely unsuitable for someone else to sleep on even if they are in a similar weight range or have similar sleeping positions (see post #13 here).
I have done a forum search and found the information already that you have included. Per your blurb–
“https://www.helixsleep.com/ is another new entry into the simplified choice category that launched in August, 2015. I have talked with the 3 founders and they are working with a well known group of PHD’s and researchers in sleep ergonomics and have designed a rather unique mattress that uses a customizable combination of 3 different comfort/transition layers that includes 2” of blended Dunlop latex in one of three different firmness levels, a 1.5" microcoil, and 2" of 1.8 lb polyfoam also in one of three different firmness levels. They use a questionaire with their customers that takes information such as BMI, body measurements, and sleeping positions into account and use an algorithm to choose the order and firmness of each of the comfort layers that are most suitable for each of their customers. The 3 comfort layers are on top of two layers of 1.5 lb polyfoam with two different firmness levels. They can also build a side to side split with different combinations and firmness levels on each side of the mattress for couples with different needs and preferences. They use good quality materials that would be suitable for most weight ranges in terms of durability but I would add a caution for higher weight ranges (more than about the lower 200’s or so)."
– these materials seem to not be the best quality. Were you able to determine where the materials were manufactured? I am not asking specifically if this bed will work for me, but I want your opinion on the quality of the mattress while disregarding comfort. I am in between Leesa, DreamFoam Ultimate Dreams, and a customized Helix. I already know the comfort I want and don’t need that determined for me. THE ONLY THING I need to know now is the quality of the materials.
I’m not sure what I can add to the information you’ve already read about the quality/durability of the materials in the Helix mattress. They meet the minimum guidelines that are in the quality/durability guidelines here and for most people that aren’t in higher weight ranges there are no obvious weak links in the mattress that would compromise the durability and useful life of the mattress although as you mentioned some of the layers and components also aren’t the highest quality/density materials available either. Of course you also won’t find the highest quality materials in every layer and component in mattresses in these budget ranges and there are always tradeoffs involved when you are looking at a mattress that sells for under $1000.
The Dreamfoam Ultimate Dreams uses 3" of blended Talalay latex (in your choice of firmness level) and a 1.8 lb base foam (which is a little higher quality/density than the Helix sleep) and a cover that is quilted with 1.5" of polyfoam so there are no weak links in this mattress either.
The 2" of 3 lb memory foam in the Leesa is a lower quality/density material than the minimums in the guidelines and I would consider it to be a potential weak link in the mattress (although the 2" of Avena polyfoam above the memory foam would improve the durability of the memory foam somewhat compared to having the same material in the top layer of the mattress)
There is also more detailed information about the many variables that can affect the durability and useful life of a mattress relative to different people in post #4 here