How does latex respond to extreme temperatures? Thinking about for camping...

Mattress Talk General Mattresses Questions
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First off I have a sleepez organic mattress I got last spring, and after changing layers found a setup I really love.

Now I am thinking ahead to potentially building a car camping setup for long road trips- either in an SUV or pickup bed with shell and thinking about mattress options. I know I like talalay latex, and while excessive it would be quite nice either with 3" firm talalay or maybe 2" and 2" med and firm talalay. The nice camping mattresses are not that much cheaper, the extra weight of latex would be the only drawback but it doesn’t seem that bad if I kept it small.

I just do not know how talalay latex responds to wide temperature ranges. I’ve heard memory foam freezes in cold temperatures, and I’ve used an air mattress this summer tent camping often and in the heat during the day/early evening in the desert it becomes very soft and jello-y from the material heating up.

So does anyone know how talalay responds? Is it going to freeze and be super stuff if the temps drop? Is it going to melt in the heat or if it is sitting inside a hot car or truck bed during the day? just wondering if this is a decent idea.

I could also use suggestions off some kind of encasement for just 3" or 4" worth of latex- either split queen size or twin im not sure. I would like something water proof and that would keep sweat, dust and dirt out and be easy to clean, but also not super hot.

Honestly if I found a good encasement and could deal with 6" height I could just take a 3" med and 3" firm talalay half queen layer out of my sleepez if I go camping as long as I had an encasement to protect it and I wasn’t at risk of damaging it… I tried it on the floor and it’s amazing, but prob more than I would need though I wouldn’t have to buy any more latex.

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Hi xone.

Welcome to our Mattress Forum. :slight_smile:

It sounds like quite the adventure you have in mind. Latex is a bit more resilient than memory foam in that it maintains its resilience and support whether the climate is warm or hot. Now, that said, it is still a foam and is going to react to its environment in some capacity and it’s likely that exposure to extreme temperatures will reduces its overall durable lifespan.

But, my understanding is that it will not freeze nor will it melt. I wonder if there is a mattress retailer that would let you take a sample chunk of latex from their showroom to do some fun testing with (like placing it in your freezer, or out in the direct sun on your patio, etc) to get a tangible idea of what you’d be dealing with.

With regards to a 4" mattress encasement, I’m unsure of whether that exists! Potentially that is something you could get custom made - or maybe check to see if RV mattress retailers have their finger on the pulse for something like that?

Sorry I can’t be of more help on that front.

NikkiTMU

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xone:

Normal Talalay latex doesn’t have the viscous properties to it that visco-elastic memory foam does. It can be a good choice for RVs and campers. Keep the layers covered to reduce mechanical stresses/tears, UV and oxidative degradation (just like any other padding materials you’d choose).