Nine years ago my wife and I managed to find the perfect mattress for us. It was a floor model of a 9" Tempur pedic for just $700. Sadly, it recently died and was sagging over an inch in the center.
I had no idea how hard it would be to find another like it.
It had (i think) 3" of dense memory foam over 6" of support. It felt like a brick at first in the winter, until it warmed up, and then it was heavenly. At the time we got it I was seeing a chiropractor regularly for pain which stopped immediately when we got our “sand cloud”.
Fast forward to now.
I am back to seeing a Chiropractor multiple times a week.
I am 5’8" and 215 lb with a “female pattern of weight distribution” i.e. large thighs and butt. I am a side/stomach sleeper.
She is 5’4" and 125 lb and a side/back sleeper.
We are both 40 years old, relatively sedentary with broad shoulders.
After the Tempur Pedic died we bought a Tuft & Needle out of desperation to take advantage of Amazon’s fast shipping. My lower back pain eased slightly but now I am suffering shoulder and neck pain as well.
After 2 weeks with the Tuft & Needle we visited a mattress store, ready to give up and drop $3000 on another “sand cloud”. She preferred all the Tempurpedic Cloud models, I delighted in the Contour models, and none were quite like the one we bought 9 years ago.
So we went home dejected and confused. I spent hours reading and reading, creating spreadsheets and doing comparisons only to realize there is no perfect mattress for us both anymore. So I ordered 2 toppers, both 2" memory foam, one 3 lb and one 5 lb. The 3 lb was too soft for me, so we switched out to the 5 lb which the wife was happy with as well.
The first night was great, then I started getting lower back pain just as bad as ever. We took the topper off again in the hopes I would eventually adjust to the Tuft and Needle but I am not sleeping now, and when I wake from the little sleep I do get, I am in pain, shoulders, neck and lower back.
We really can’t afford to go out and buy 2 single Tempur pedic mattresses but I am getting desperate enough to be strongly considering it.
Any help or advice would be gratefully received, and likely read at 4 am when I wake up in pain again.
Welcome to the Mattress Forum! And I’m sorry to hear about your pain issues.
There were a few older models that you may have purchased. If you have the Tempurpedic Original then it would have 2.8" of their firmer 5.3 lb memory foam over a 5" polyfoam base. If you have the Tempurpedic Classic then it would have the same 2.8" of their 5.3 lb memory foam and another .8" of a softer version of the same density memory foam over this and the same 5" polyfoam base layer.
Both of these have been discontinued and the closest they currently have would be the Contour Supreme which is currently the firmest mattress they make and has 1" of the softer 5.3 lb memory foam over 2.4" of the firmer 5.3 lb memory foam over a 3" + 5.1" polyfoam base layer. They rate this as “firm” but it’s softer than the original was.
The Tempurpedic memory foam is firmer, more temperature sensitive, and slower responding than most of the current memory foam on the market but the closest you would likely come in “general” terms would be about 3" of 5 lb memory foam over a 5" or 6" firm polyfoam base layer, but this would depend to some degree on the specifics of the memory foam that was in the mattress because there are many different types of memory foam even of the same density.
Of course there are some other manufacturers that use similar or better quality/density foams and sell for much less than the Tempurpedic and would be well worth talking to to ask them how their mattresses would compare to the Contour Supreme or which one that was in your budget range may come the closest. For example, site member Christeli offers their Versailles that approximates (is not an exact copy) the comfort of the Contour Supreme. Novosbed also offers a “firm” version of their memory foam bed which they also offer as a comparison to the Contour Supreme. Memory Foam Comfort also specializes in customizable memory foam mattresses. This would be a good few places to start your search should you desire to find something “close” to your old mattress, but at a more competitive price. Those companies are members of this site which means that I think very highly of them and that I believe that they compete well with the best in the industry in terms of their quality, value, service, knowledge, and transparency.
As you’ve already discovered, the Tuft and Needle you purchased is a very different product from your old Tempurpedic, and even with the memory foam topper on it there would be a considerable difference in feel, not only in the T&N mattress but also in the memory foam topper you purchased as compared to the memory foam in your old Tempurpedic product.
If you’re attempting you find something “similar” to your old Tempurpedic, this would be my best advice of places to start looking.
I personally tried the Tuft & Needle and also wasn’t impressed with it either. The custom foam they use is sinky, but doesn’t mold to my body enough for support. it felt like the depression caused by my butt and back pushed the foam down and left my lumbar area unsupported.
that drawing is exaggerated but that’s how it kind of felt for me.
you could certainly add some memory foam like you did to help fill in and support those gaps, but 2" of memory foam on top of 3" of T&N’s sinky foam could definitely cause some uncomfortable hammocking that could hurt your back, which is what I suspect happened.
since you like the memory foam, I’d hold on to the 2" 5lb mem foam topper (and see if you can return the 3lb one and get a refund), and put it on top of a 2" latex topper (I’m guessing 24, or 28 ILD, depending on your BMI and firmness preference), and then put those both on top of a 6" polyfoam core.
if you don’t want to mess with any of that though, all the mattresses Phoenix posted all look like good options. but if you’re on a tighter budget (I was, that’s why I tried the Tuft & Needle) also look into the Addable mattress. It has 2" of 4lb memory foam on top of 2" of 20 ILD 1.8lb transition foam and a high quality 6" 2.0lb core. but if you want to get as close to your old tempurpedic as possible, it’d probably be the Christeli or the Novosbed. The Christeli in particular has a special zoned support core, which is interesting.
(hey phoenix, you should add the Christeli to the bed in a box pinned megathread’s list)
Thank you for the replies and suggestions.
The problem is that the wife doesn’t think those firm options are like our old one. Or at least she doesn’t like them and says they hurt her shoulders now. She wants a much softer mattress now.
Perhaps we need to use half a topper for her side of the bed?
Edit: I agree with the T&N drawing completely.
For interest’s sake, I went out to measure the old tempurpedic (we didn’t make it to the dump yet and nowhere in the area recycles mattresses). It appears to be 3.5" of memory foam over 4.5" of foam with an eggcrate surface. Which means I was wrong about the overall height.
the problem with testing out memory foam mattresses in a store is that you have to lie on them for quite a while before the foam warms up and reaches its true softness. a mattress that seems too firm at first will eventually soften up significantly and conform better. I think I read that when you’re testing out mattresses in stores, especially with high-density memory foam (5lb or above), it was suggested you should spend around 15 minutes on them to see how it really feels after it has truly warmed up.
I’ve found a Tempur-Contour Allura for $1800, (discontinued sale) but because it is discontinued I am having trouble finding much detail, other than it is considered “Medium” and explains why there are no other medium mattresses in any of the tempur lines. Any chance it could be the elusive mattress of our dreams?
The last specifications I had for the Allura are:
2" pillow top TEMPUR-HD® material Comfort Layer (7.2 lb/ft3 density) quilted into cover - Softer formula for enhanced responsiveness
2.8" TEMPUR® material Support Layer (5.3 lb/ft3 density)
4.3" Convoluted HR, AirFlow System™ Base Layer
I don’t know that this is the comfort range you are describing.
And I’m sorry to hear about your pain issues. 