Help Diagnosing New Mattress

[phoenix]

Hi rekstudio,

Thanks for your response. The thickness of the latex in my mattress is 6" Dunlop 30 ILD.

I meant the thickness of the plush 24 ILD comfort layer.

I think you are right about this. How can I tell if I am sinking through the support layers but being supported by 6" core, or if Im sinking through the comfort layers and into the core itself? Is this just an eyeball test?

You can’t because all the layers compress simultaneously and you can’t measure how much each one compresses individually … you can only know how much you sink into a mattress as a whole. The “most probable” cause of sinking in too much would be in the thickness/softness of the comfort layers though.

We do, in fact, have two separate box springs supporting the mattress. Is there a better solution for a foundation that would alleviate this issue? I will put the mattress on the floor and see if it makes a difference.

I don’t know the type or specifics of your foundation so the only way to really know the effect it’s having would be to compare it to sleeping on the floor which is the most rigid and evenly supportive support surface possible. If the floor works better with your mattress and there is a meaningful difference between them then a foundation that has less flex on each side may be a better choice. This could involve a foundation with more slats and less space between the slats, thicker slats, different wood that flexes less, or even something like using T-Slats (see here) that can reduce the flex on each side of the support system. It’s also possible that a stronger bedframe could make a difference. A solid surface foundation would also have less flex but it would also reduce the airflow under the mattress (see post #10 here).

Moving forward, as a starting point, can you suggest a general ILD level for Comfort/Support given our build and sleep position given what I’ve shared?

Does this mattress configuration seem like it may be more appropriate?

Comfort – Padding Layers
•3″ 18 ILD Pure Natural Talalay Latex

Support System
•6″ 33 ILD Pure Dunlop Latex

Cover
•Stretch Knit Plush Cover
•FR Barrier

Unfortunately there are too many unknowns, variables and individual differences between people to use a formula, specs (either for you or a mattress), or “theory at a distance” to accurately predict the design of a mattress that will work best for any individual person and your own careful and objective testing or sleeping experience is the most reliable way to know (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here). I also don’t know enough specifics about the materials in your current mattress such as the thickness of the latex in the comfort layers or the relative softness of the polyfoam layers relative to latex ILD’s (the IFD of polyfoam is only one of several factors that affects how soft it is). Overall though it seems that the comfort layers in this mattress are thinner than your current mattress which puts you closer to the firmer support layer so I think it would be well worth testing as a possibility.

Phoenix