How to look for and find the best mattress ... for YOU! ***READ FIRST***

[phoenix]

Hi LuckEnuff,

Hopefully you have already read this but just in case the first post of this thread is the best place to start with your mattress research.

So the first question is are deeper mattresses suitable for the use and wear and tear of being on an adjustable bed and is there a point that the “inches” become a bad idea for an adjustable bed?

It depends on the type of foam in the mattress and how well it conforms to the adjustable. Latex for example is much more elastic and “bendable” than polyfoam so a thicker latex mattress would be more conforming then the same thickness of polyfoam. As long as it comforms well then it would be fine (and the manufacturer or retailer will tell you if it’s suitable for an adjustable). More than about 12" or so may not conform as well.

Unfortunately, the iComfort and similar other major mattress manufacturers for adjustable beds do not rate very highly these days so obviously quality has changed and I would not consider them for a replacement.

You are certainly right that quality has generally gone down in the mainstream part of the industry.

2. I still am an old dinosaur that likes the idea of being able to flip the mattress and there aren’t very many manufacturers that make these anymore. I did find an innerspring one on Adustamatt.com that has a tight top on one side and a latex pillowtop on the other and that seems about it. (11 1/2" Sleeplab 660 Coil Dual Comfort Innerspring with Latex). There doesn’t seem to be anything to compare this to otherwise. Any ideas for a small manufacturer that might entertain doing this also?

There are many smaller local or regional manufacturers that are sold factory direct or through better sleep shops that still make two sided mattresses and these types of manufacturers are usually the best quality and value as well. it’s really only the mainstream brands that stopped making them (and as you probably know I would avoid these anyway).

If you let me know your city or zip I’d be happy to let you know of any options I’m aware of that are close to you.

3. But to get into the 21st century as far as mattress options, if I flip to Brooklyn Bedding site and look at their latex mattresses, the 10" Total Latex, 12" Bamboo Bliss and 14" Aloe Alexis all seem interesting but it still goes back to besides inches, how do these significantly differ from one another.

They have different designs, different combinations of materials, and different options for customizing both before and after a purchase. The Bamboo Bliss has a single latex layer, the Aloe Alexis has two latex layers, and the Total latex Mattress is all latex (support core and comfort layer). You can read a little more about a latex hybrid vs an all latex mattress in post #2 here. Latex is a much higher quality and higher performance material than polyfoam.

Both the SleepLab above and these at Brooklyn Bedding all come in at around $1000 to $1300 range for a xlong twin so the price point is not the issue.

The total price of a mattress is not a meaningful way to make comparisons. The only way to make meaningful comparisons is to know the details of all the layers and components in each mattress you are considering so you can make apples to apples comparisons based on the quality of the materials inside each mattress. The Sleep Lab mattress doesn’t list any of the details about what is inside it (type, quality, and thickness of all the layers) and you would need to find this out to compare them to any other mattresses.

The Sleeplab however did have a 20 year warranty and these (as well as others generally have significantly less, like 10 year warranties.

Beyond the first few years (when manufacturing defects which is what warranties cover) a warranty is not nearly as important as knowing the quality/durability of the materials inside your mattress. Post #174 here has more about mattress warranties.Don’t forget that warranties don’t cover the loss of comfort and support that goes with the softening of the materials in your mattress (which is not a manufacturing defect) which is the main reason you would need to replace your mattress. Warranties have little to do with how long a mattress will last.

4. My biggest problem these days is hip pain so obviously the existing mattress no longer gives the support needed to that pressure point. I prefer being a side sleeper with stomach being next and then back. I do pretty well when on a Westin Heavenly bed so what say you about the comparison to other mattresses with the same specs of that one? Anybody got the specifics to compare to these others I’ve mentioned? I’m open to any and all comments.

This could be a support issue but it’s more likely to be a pressure relief issue (the comfort layers have probably softened and are no longer providing the pressure relief you need).

It’s generally not a good idea to choose a mattress based on your subjective memory of another mattress and your own more objective testing using a common set of criteria is usually much more effective (see post #4 here). Like major brand mattresses (The Westin is made by Simmons) … hotel mattresses are usually made of relatively cheap materials and are not a good “target” for a mattress either in terms of quality or value. Even low quality materials like lower density polyfoam can feel good for a while (you can’t feel the quality of a mattress) … they just don’t last nearly as long as higher quality materials. &They also don’t provide any meaningful information about what is in their mattresses. You can read more about hotel mattresses at the end of post #2 here and the links to other posts about hotel mattresses it includes.

Your best odds of finding the “best” mattress for you would be to start with reading the basic information, steps, and guidelines in the first post of this thread and then follow the steps and guidelines one by one.

Phoenix