The IKEA Sultan Edsele is one I am considering, but also prefer a firm mattress. This one is listed as āfirmā yet you mention how soft it felt. Wondering what the best support is for this particular mattress? Iād like to add a box spring for height, but wonder if wood slats would give better support?
Also, Iām curious if you checked out Savvy Rest and American Foam Center? And can offer any opinion on either? I am in that area. I checked out Savvy Rest once, but did not really have much knowledge as to what to ask/look for.
This forum has been so helpful! Thank you for the wealth of information. My husband and I are about to go ahead and order The Ultimate Dreams 10" mattress. So nervous, but so excited!!! Buying online is scary but I feel quite empowered after looking at this awesome site and hearing everyoneās experiences. Iām also quite sure that anything will be so much better than our super old, caving in mattress that we have now.
Anyhow, I just wanted to weigh in on the Ikea latex Mattresses. We tried those out this weekend.
The Ikea Edsele
This is the one that I pretty much was the most interested in because it was the most ānaturalā. Iām also in the same boat as the others who have weighed in thinking that it was pretty soft. I liked the way it felt laying on my side, but felt like while laying on my back I sunk in too much for my liking. Iām currently 7 months pregnant so maybe the extra weight had something to do with it. My husband also felt like there was not enough support while laying on his back as well.
The Ikea Elfsjord
Honestly I didnāt spend much time on this one because right away I could tell it was way too firm for me. Sleeping on my side in this thing would cause me serious discomfort. My husband on the other hand preferred this one. But I think he mostly tried it out while he was laying on his back. Plus I really didnāt like that it was completely synthetic and so thin.
Iām really interested to see what firmness level we end up getting with the Ultimate Dreams. From reading everyoneās feedback Iām leaning towards a 3.5 or 4. I figure if it does end up too firm we can always add some more talaly latex on top to soften it up. Which may not be such a bad thing.
Iāll report back after we get it, so that there is a point of reference for those who have tried the Ikea mattresses that end up with the Ultimate Dreams as well.
Hi
I have an Ikea Sultan Edselle and like you I thought it felt soft at the store however itās not.
I actually find my so firm I have bought a topper to soften it, and thatās another topic.
IMO the Ikea Edselle is a very good mattress and it does not sag at all. You move and it pops back up to flat immediately unlike a very expensive talalay topper I purchased recently.
The warranty is also excellent, 25 years here in Canada.
Buy it you wonāt be disappointed especially if you want a firmer mattress.
There are a lot of forum members here who know how nerve wracking it can be to buy a mattress online but when you are dealing with a better manufacturer that offers comfort options and you have done some good testing and have good feedback available it can certainly make it easier and improve the odds in your favor.
Iām looking forward to your feedback as well about the comparison between the Edsele and your comfort choice.
As you know from your testing ā¦ latex has an unusual combination of softness and firmness that that responds and adapts differently than other materials and in many cases different people have their own unique perception of what the same mattress feels like ā¦ but every little bit of information helps sometimes for others who follow.
Thanks for sharing your experiences ā¦ and congratulations on your new mattress
Hi,
I bought Ikea latex Elsfjord mattress, it felt good in store but turned out to be way too hard and my shoulders hurt terribly. I wanted firm since our previous expensive mattress (simmons Backcare) was too soft, didnāt provide good support and I had really bad back pain. Elsfjord has support (no lower back pain) but I need more cushion. I am 5ā2 and 130 lb, side sleeper (sometimes stomach). I cannot return the mattress but can exchange to less firm Edsele. Edsele is 85% natural latex and thicker than all synthetic Elsfjord.
Or I could keep Elsfjord and get soft talalay latex topper online. Which would be better option? If I choose topper, should I get 2" or 3"? I tried putting old comforter on Elsfjord, it is better for shoulders (still not good) but now my lower back starts to hurt so I think 3" would be too much sinking. Is Edsele a better option?
You seem to have gone from one extreme to another and somewhat āovercompensatedā for your experience with the Simmons
While I canāt tell you what would be ābestā for you because either of your choices may work and only you can know that ā¦ I can at least tell you the pros and cons of each of your options and how I would choose so that you can make the choice that is best for you.
Now that you have some experience sleeping on the Elsfjord ā¦ I think you would be in a good position to evaluate any difference in the Edsele with personal testing and the first thing I would do is test the Edsele carefully and as objectively as you can using the testing guidelines in post #1 here (and making sure that you spent at least 15 minutes on it after you have reached a āpre sleepā state of relaxation). I would make sure that you listen carefully to the more subtle cues from your body for any hint of āfamiliarityā about a mattress that is too firm for you in term of pressure relief.
If you are confident that the Edsele is suitable for you in terms of PPP (Pressure relief, Posture and alignment, and Personal preferences) then I would lean towards an exchange because the Edsele is a much higher quality and higher performance mattress than the Elsfjord and then you wouldnāt need a topper at all (although you would still have that option if it turned out to be too firm as well).
The other alternative as you mentioned is adding a topper to the Elsfjord and in this case I would use the topper guidelines that are in post #2 here and the posts it links to (especially post #8 here).
I donāt think a comforter would be a good indication of how a latex or foam topper would work for you (they would be completely different) but based on your description and on your body type I think a 2" topper would probably have the best odds for you (especially if this seems to agree with your experience about needing a ālittle to a fair bitā)
The advantage of this option is that if you choose a topper that doesnāt work well then you could just exchange the topper for another one (assuming that it can be returned) and the risk would be lower than if you exchanged for the Edsele and for some reason it turned out to be too soft for you (which isnāt likely) because itās not really possible to āfixā a mattress that is too soft because you would need to remove some of the excess softness rather than just adding a topper.
So I would make my decision based on your level of confidence in testing the Edsele. I would lean in that direction if you were confident it would work because you would end up with a much higher quality mattress which had about 1.5" more of a higher quality latex (roughly the thickness of a topper you would be adding anyway to the Elsfjord) and a higher quality cover that includes wool.
If you were still uncertain from your testing ā¦ then the topper direction would give you more options and making a change from your initial topper choice would only involve exchanging for another topper. You could choose the replacement topper based on your actual experiences on the Elsfjord / topper combination which would probably give you a very good indication of what a replacement topper should be if your first choice isnāt suitable. This way ā¦ if you buy a topper that can be exchanged ā¦ you would only be out the cost of returning it and would still have more options available.
Hi mattress shoppers. Latex specials today on aisle 3. Look for the flashing light. The IKEA experience.
I was near my local IKEA today and stopped in to look at this mattress, as after my bad luck with all foam mattresses I am curious about springs with latex. I am not a fan of IKEA. It took me 15 minutes wandering around that maze to find the mattresses. That being said, I found this one interesting. It is quite firm, but not what I would call hard. It was very supportive when I lay on my back , had good motion control and seemed nicely finished. After having two latex mattress break down quickly I am curious if a mattress like this, with very little foam in it, is going to soften less than an all foam mattress.
I donāt know what the durability is like on IKEA innerspring mattresses, but if it is good this might be a basis for a bed with topper.
I also got to see the Sultan Laxeby slats in person. If I remember, Phoenix said they wouldnāt work on a platform bed, but it looked to me like that is what it is designed for, as it has frame around it that would lift it off of the platform, allowing it to flex and also allowing the mattress to breath. Am I right on that?
IKEAās trade only policy is also limiting. You can use it for credit elsewhere in the store, but if they donāt have another mattress that works, you are stuck spending a bunch of money on cheap Swedish furnitureā¦ They do have some great dark chocolate at IKEA, but I donāt think I could eat a grandās worth of chocolate, even with my wifeās help. :lol:
I will be curious to see what feedback we get on this new IKEA design, as there seems to be a dearth of reasonably priced mattress with inner springs and latex. Lew
Based on the quality of the materials ā¦ especially in the comfort layers ā¦ the durability āshouldā be good but in your case I would be scared to say that anything would be durable based on your experiences :dry:
Itās designed to be used on any one of their their bedframes which all have a ledge on the side that it fits on and the side rails would prevent it from sliding. All their bedframes can use any of their slat systems (see page 15 here).
It would probably also work on a bedframe like this or something similar (either on the slats or as a replacement as long as it fits because standard dimensions can vary) but if you put it on a solid surface platform like this then it would probably be subject to sliding and you would need a way to attach it to the surface. ADMIN NOTE: Removed Footprint to Discontinued Product | Archived Footprint: broadwayfurniture.net/bedroomfurnitureportland/about-the-platform-bed-frame/
Iāve also talked with some of the manufacturers of some of the KD foundations that are available and asked them to measure the dimensions of the Laxeby to see if it would fit and could be used with their foundations instead of slats but I havenāt heard from any of them to confirm this.
I have a Dutch heritage which means that I love dark chocolate ā¦ so if you ever need to exchange a mattress for dark chocolate Iād be happy to help you put it to good use
Hereās my update after having a good couple of months to get used to our new mattress. We did get The Ultimate Drams and in the level 4. Which is definitely a firm mattress. Personally, I would not go any firmer than this if you are a side sleeper. I kind of wish we had went up with at least a 5, but without trying it out, I am glad that we played it safe. We may add a topper to soften it up some but still havenāt done so.
So, now to compare our mattress to the latex Ikea mattresses.
The Ikea Edselle
Definitely a good bit softer than our level 4 Ultimate Dreams. It has been a couple of months since I tried out this mattress in the store, but I remember sinking into the Edselle. There is no sinking in at all with then our new mattress.
The Ikea Elfsjord
This one in my book was SUPER firm. I would say that it was a good bit firmer than our level 4 Ultimate Dreams. But, as I said before, from the get-go I was not a huge fan of the Elfsjord.
I know this is all subjective, but I know that I would have loved some sort of a comparison when I was shopping!
While i agree with you that comfort ratings can be subjective ā¦ I would also say that āon averageā there are a lot of people who would agree with your comfort ārankingsā for these mattresses.
Hello everyone - I am new to this forum and so far have been enjoying and absorbing the wealth of information here and so wanted to start off by saying thank you to all the contributors.
We are in the market for a new mattress for our new king bed (which will be arriving later this month) and moved on from coil to either memory foam or latex mattress
We liked the Serta iComfort and the Serta Cool Elegance (which seems to have more layers and/or a central support layer than the iComfort) memory foam mattresses. We are both <140 lb but I have a weaker lower back so need good support. Would you recommend Cool Elegance for this purpose? In addition, how serious are the cons of memory foam regarding off-gassing issues/ sleeping warm/ hard to move or shift positions on the bed for the Cool Elegance?
In parallel reading pros of latex mattresses (and esp. natural latex) in their durability, superior resilience, no or not as much off-gassing, good balance between support and comfort that lasts longer etc. Main deterrent for latex mattresses however: cost and availability of options. So far the only latex mattresses we have checked are the Latex Foam from Original Mattress Factory (Latex Supreme was too soft) and Savvy Rest Natural Latex. Liked Savvy Rest better because itās natural and customizable but also quite expensive and we are not sure if we are ready for that. Got a lot of info on the Ikea ones which we may try this weekend but they are 2.5 hours in Charlotte (we are based in Raleigh- Durham). Would prefer to try more latex mattresses options available in other stores in the Raleigh Durham area. Any recommendations of stores/ brands?
Also how does latex compare to memory foam for a weaker back?
Thanks for the time in advance. Truly appreciate it!!
The first place I would start your research is post #1 here which will give you all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that you will need to make the best possible choice ā¦ and eliminate the worst ones (which would include Serta mattresses and other major brands along with any manufacturer or retailer that isnāt able to provide you with the specifics of the materials in their mattresses). There is really no way to know the quality or value of a mattress unless you know the specifics of the quality of the materials inside it and without this you would be making a completely blind purchase that canāt be meaningfully compared with other mattresses that may be much better in terms of quality, durability, and value.
As you can see in mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here ā¦ Iām happy to help you assess the quality of a mattress as long as you are able to find out the specifics of all the layers and materials (which Serta generally doesnāt provide) but the suitability of a mattress in terms of comfort and support or what I call PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) can only be known for certain through your own personal testing or experience. A mattress that provides you with good PPP may be completely unsuitable for someone else and there is no āformulaā that is more effective than your own personal testing or experience.
You can read about the many factors that are involved in the sleeping temperature of a mattress in post #2 here and you can read more about the pros and cons of memory foam in this article but in very general terms memory foam tends to be the least breathable of the different foam types (although there is a wide range inside the memory foam or gel memory foam category). You can also read a little more about the different methods that are used to cool down memory foam in post #6 here for those that tend to sleep warm on memory foam but still prefer its feel and performance.
Memory foam also has a slower response than other types of foam so it is not as resilient and movement friendly as other materials although there is a wide range of different responses between different types and densities of memory foam and the thickness of a memory foam layer or layers and what type of foam or material is underneath it will also play a big role in how the mattress feels and responds to movement and changing positions. Any material can provide good pressure relief and support/alignment in a combination or design that is suitable for you but the choice of material is a matter of personal preference more than being ābetter or worseā for specific types of people or circumstances.
For most people neither of these are a big issue and are worth the tradeoffs that are involved in all material choices but for some where these are more important parts of their criteria they certainly are. It depends again on your own preferences, tendencies, and sensitivity.
If you do choose memory foam then I would also make sure it meets the criteria in post #10 here so that the chances of being affected by any offgassing is minimized (some people can be more sensitive to this than others).
The key for a weaker back (or any back) is not so much which material you use or prefer but the specific design of the mattress that the material is used in. All materials can provide you with good alignment as part of a design that works well for your specific body type or sleeping positions.
So overall and for some people the properties connected to memory foam would be enough to exclude them from consideration while for others there is nothing else they would rather sleep on. Your own sleeping experiences (whether you tend to sleep warmer than others for example) and knowing your own material preferences through personal testing and more detailed conversations with knowledgeable and experienced manufacturers or retailers about the specifics of their mattresses are the best way to decide which types of materials or mattress designs are best for you. I would tend to avoid thinking in ābetter/worseā terms and more in terms of which of the pros and cons of each material or mattress choice is most important to you.
Some of the better local options in the Raleigh/Durham area Iām aware of are listed in post #6 here.
Thanks for the quick reply and the wealth of information you have provided. We will give preference to Latex Beds and see if we can find a decent one that we like without overspending too much. We will try to check out Restonic, Savvy Rest and the Healthy Back Pure Latex this weekend.
One thing I was not sure, the PureLatex Bliss and the Healthy Back Bliss Pure Latex sound so similar, and PureLatex Bliss lists Healthy Back as one of the retailers, so I wonder if they are all the same. Although Healthy Back website has Celsion listed as a temp regulating material used in their mattress, while PureLatex Bliss does not mention Celsion. Ha ha - as a newbie this is all a bit confusing all the similar names and most of them come from Latex International
After we look through these shops I think it would be good education for me to look at posts/ articles on this site talking about the difference between Dunlop and Talalay, their densities - and the ILD ratings. Any suggestions? For eg. the OMF guy said their blended talatech talalay has a density of 34 lb/cubic feet and I have no idea if thatās good or bad in terms of mattress design/layers. Based on the reading I have done, the only thing I know is Dunlop is easier to make, has more imperfections and is typically firmer and less expensive than talalay while talalay can be customized for firmness and the manufacturing process is more complicated hence more expensive.
Thanks again for all the help. Btw the article on PPP is very informative.
Post posting note: I read about some pros and cons for Latex and differences between Dunlop and Talalay and typical ILDs here:
Still looking for some info on how these ILDs compare to foam densities and for Talalay vs. Dunlop what are reasonably good densities to have in the construction of the mattress.
Celsion is the old name for what Latex international now calls Talalay GL fast response and Pure Latex Bliss calls Active Fusion (although Active Fusion also refers to their cover which also has phase change materials in it). The type of materials (blended Talalay and Talalay GL fast response) in the PLB lineup are the same in the Healthy Back but the design and layer thickness or firmness of the layers may be slightly different between them (see post #16 and #17 here)
With polyfoam ā¦ density is unrelated or at best very loosely related to ILD because any density of polyfoam can be made in any firmness level. Density is a quality spec not a comfort spec and is one of the most important parts of the durability of a polyfoam layer but has little to do with firmness/softness.
With memory foam ā¦ ILD is not very relevant at all because it changes in response to temperature, humidity and time and memory foam ILDās are not a reliable spec with memory foam. Based on ILD alone ā¦ they are all āsoftā although memory foam doesnāt always feel as soft as the ILD would indicate. With memory foam as well ā¦ density is the most important part of durability not softness or firmness. Any density of memory foam can have different response rates, temperature sensitivity, or tested softness levels and how a memory foam layer feels can also be highly affected by what is over or underneath it in the mattress.
With latex ā¦ ILD is directly related to density and some manufacturers donāt even test their latex for ILD and only provide density numbers to indicate firmness.
In addition to all of this ā¦ ILD by itself is not a reliable indicator of how soft or firm a specific foam will feel because it is only measured at either 25% compression or 40% compression and different materials are tested for ILD on different layer thicknesses. Other specs including layer thickness and compression modulus (how quickly a foam get firmer as you compress it more deeply) and the compression curve of a material (they donāt usually get firmer in a linear progression) are all just as important as the ILD of a material. All the layers in a mattress interact together and affect each other in other words. Post #2 here has more detail about some of the many specs that can affect the feel and performance of a mattress.
When you are testing a mattress locally ā¦ then ILD information is mostly meaningless because good testing will tell you what you need to know about a mattress in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, pressure relief, and Personal preferences) more than any ILD information which is really not relevant unless you are trying to duplicate a mattress. The information that is most important when you are testing a mattress is the quality specs which for polyfoam and memory foam are density and for latex is the type and blend of the latex.
There is also more about ILDās and different types of testing and comparisons between different types of foam in post #6 here and in post #4 here. In most cases ā¦ ILD comparisons are only relevant if they are accurate (which is not always the case), measured in the same way, and between the same type and/or blend of material, and they donāt compare specifically across different materials or even variations of the same material (such as latex).
The density of latex (either Talalay or Dunlop) is not an indication of its quality (unlike polyfoam and memory foam) and is neither good or bad ā¦ itās just a side effect of the firmness of the latex layer.
You can read more about the different types of latex in post #6 here and post # 6 here and while personal experience is really the only way to know whether you prefer Dunlop or Talalay (itās strictly a preference choice in other words) ā¦ you can read a little more about how they compare in terms of āfeelā in post #7 here but I would trust your own perceptions over anyone elseās description because much of this is subjective and can vary from person to person.
You can read in post #2 here why ātheory at a distanceā based on specs is not a reliable way to design or choose a mattress and it also has some links that can give you some insights into some of the many variables involved in mattress design but these can be much more complex than is necessary and in general terms I would keep things much more simple than trying to use complex combinations or specs or ātheoryā to design or choose a mattress. With latex the choices would be more about firmness than density (except in the case of some Dunlop layers where density may be the only spec available that indicates its firmness range).
Thanks for the eye-opener here with the theory vs practice I looked at the post you suggested and after being out of town for a couple of weekends , we are back mattress shopping. We tested a few latex mattresses locally and with our lower cost budget, I am looking at three options in the order of preference:
Online latex mattress.
Pros: from the little I have read so far, it seems like we might get the best value for money if we are able to find a reasonable online outlet. I have also heard some companies allow an exchange of the top layer of foam within 60-90 days with a softer or firmer foam type with just an additional shipping cost - so this offers a great deal of flexibility
Cons: Not sure who I am dealing with and have to make the best guess from the specs available.
Question: Would you have any good recommendations for checking out some online stores?
Original Mattress Factory (OMF) Latex Foam
Pros: It has a 34 ILD blended talalay core which seems soft enough for us (although slightly softer might be better). Cost is reasonable at $1400 for king mattress
Cons: No good exchange policy, if this does not work, we are pretty much stuck with it as their other latex mattress Latex Supreme was too soft for us. This mattress also has a 1" polyfoam on the top for comfort and I am not sure how durable this will be in the long run (5-8 years) since like you mention the comfort layer is typically the weak link and this poly layer at 2.9 lb/ft3 (I think) - I am sure is not the best and may lead to backaches etc.
Either Restonic or Health Back Latex.
Pros and Cons for HealthyBack: Healthy Back offers all natural Talalay latex with no polyfoam. The price tag is however ~$2500 - $2700 for the softness we liked and they didnt reveal any info about their latex.
Pros and Cons for Restonic: They are more reasonable in price ($1800-$2000) - still above our budget - and itās not all natural either. But they have a couple of poly/ latex mixes to choose from.
I think we would prefer an all natural (or part blended) but with only latex in the mattress support and comfort, hence the online is the first preference if we can get this in the price range.
Itās good to see you are asking good questions and doing good research
The read first post I linked earlier has a link to a list of the members here that sell online and there is a wide range of latex mattresses available through them that have many different designs, features, and options. All of them are knowledgeable and provide good quality, value, and service and like all the members here (along with many other sources across the country) I wouldnāt hesitate to purchase any of their mattresses depending on which of the many tradeoffs involved in any mattress purchase are among the many parts of your own personal value equation that may be most important to you. This thread and the links it includes also has more about the pros and cons of an online vs a local purchase.
The OMF latex mattresses are also good quality and value and there are no obvious weak links in the mattress in terms of durability (the guideline I normally use for lower quality materials in the comfort layers is āaround an inch or soā or less because it is already soft and any further softening would have little effect on the long term performance or durability of the mattress). If the polyfoam layer was 2.9 lbs it would be exceptionally high quality but I believe its density is much lower. Since these mattresses are two sided they would actually be more durable than an equivalent one sided mattress. The tradeoff for these are that they lack the ability to customize or fine tune the mattress design or layers and if for some reason you wish to make a comfort exchange there is only one other latex option available. I think their exchange policy (see post #4 here) is actually quite reasonable and fair.
The PLB mattresses at Healthy Back use Blended Talalay (not 100% natural) similar to OMF which is a high quality material. As you mentioned they are not in the best value range but they are certainly ābetter than averageā. Their mattresses are very similar to the Pure Latex Bliss mattresses in design and they use the same type of latex (blended Talalay and talalay GL fast response) made by Latex international. If you know the type and blend of latex in a mattress then thatās really all you need to evaluate its quality.
Iām not sure of the specific design or layers of the Restonic mattress you are looking at so I canāt really make any meaningful comments but they are typically also ābetter than averageā value. Their āvalueā also depends on the retailerās selling price which can vary quite a bit. Once you know the specifics of the layering though then itās much easier to make quality and value comparisons with other mattresses you are considering.
You have certainly eliminated most of your worst choices in terms of brand but I would generally suggest that you narrow down your choice to one specific mattress at each retailer or manufacturer you are considering and then you are in a much better position to make final choices based on the specifics of each mattress along with how well each one matches your needs and preferences in terms of PPP and the benefits and options provided by each retailer or manufacturer more than the manufacturer that makes them.
I am curious as to what type of topper you purchased for the Sultan Edsele IKEA mattress?
I tested this mattress in the store for quite a while and found it firm, which I wanted. I did purchase the mattress. Now after having slept on it for approximately 2 months, I find it almost too hard. I have it on a slatted wood box spring purchased from https://www.usboxspring.com/wood.htm (as recommened by the Admin Phoenix, of this site)
I now need a topper that will add softness but also one that will not retain heat. I tend to sleep warm, which is why I did not go with memory foam.
The ideal choice of thickness and firmness for a topper can vary a great deal from person to person and also depends on the specifics of the mattress it is being used on but post #2 here and the posts it links to should be helpful
The IKEA experience.