I’m looking to buy a King size quality memory foam mattress for right around $1000. My preference is medium to firm mattress, or at least with inner-spring. I weigh about 200. I sleep hot so any cooling advantages would be nice. This is definitely a big one since I have a lot of trouble sleeping when I’m hot. I am a back sleeper primarily. I should tell you that I have a fiance that will be sleeping on this bed too. She is about 115. Side-sleeper. Sleeps cold. (But we can get her some extra blankets.) I am an internet shopper so have no problem with online store as long as it has good warranty and no over the top return charges. I would appreciate any suggestions on where and what to buy. I would love it if Phoenix replied. You seem like the man when it comes to mattresses from what I have read. Others feel free to reply though. I could use all the help I can get.
If you sleep hot you should look to latex and not memory foam. Having said that I am a hot sleeper as well and a little more than a year ago I bought a Tempflow mattress (http://www.tempflow.com/) and love it! I would also caution you as to what mattress covers and blankets you use as you can trap heat into those mattresses very easily. I found that out with a mattress cover that was supposed to breath but didnt, I recorded temps from 86-92 degrees while using that cover. I replaced it with an all cotton one from Tempflow and that solved the problem, temps were down to 84 degrees after sleeping on it for a while. They have a pattended air flow system but it is still memory foam and it still will get hot from time to time. Pricing was inline with a tempurpedic model but customer service was outstanding. One bad thing about them though is it took about 6 weeks to get the mattress which I hear is common. I highly recommend them.
Hi Elcan,
First of all I should echo some of Rskman’s comments. I also think highly of the Tempflow mattresses and the designs and materials they use (see post #9 here) although they are a little out of your price range.
Memory foam does tend to sleep hotter than other types of foam although there has been some incremental improvement with some of the newer types of memory foam and gel memory foam that tent to be a little cooler.
Rskman also made a great point about temperature regulation in a mattress and how any of the materials you use in the upper layers can affect sleeping temperature. He also did some very specific testing for this. You can see more about the different factors that can affect sleeping temperature in post #2 here and more about the microclimate of a mattress in post #29 here.
The “moral” of all of this as Rskman mentioned is that even with a material like memory foam that tends to sleep warmer there are other changes that can be made that can reduce sleeping temperature.
Some of the better value online memory foam options I’m aware of are listed in post #12 here.
There may also be some good value available locally and if you let me know your city or zip I’d be happy to let you know about any of the better local options I’m aware of.
Phoenix
I live in Mobile, AL.
Also just read up on what you said about latex mattresses. I like the durability and breathability. Do you think I could get a quality latex from $1000-$1500. Also, in your opinion is it far superior to memory foam. If you believe so and I can buy a quality one in my price range, please suggest some online or stores around Mobile.
Hi Elcan,
In a king size … you are certainly in the range for a latex hybrid (latex comfort layers and polyfoam or an innerspring support core) but you would be at the bottom of the range for an all latex mattress and it would have less latex in it which may or may not be suitable for your specific needs and preferences. A latex hybrid would be similar to a memory foam mattress (all memory foam mattresses use memory foam in the comfort layers but not in the support layers because memory foam is not supportive enough to be used as a support layer) except the comfort layers would be latex instead of memory foam.
The choice between them would be based on your personal preferences rather than “better or worse” because they have a very different ‘feel’ and performance and each person may have a different preference. Regardless of which type of material you may be leaning towards though “in theory” … its important to test both of them locally if that is possible to see which you prefer in real life. They are very different. No matter which material you prefer … it would be important to make sure that you use the best quality of either that was available in your budget range (along with any other layers or components that were in the mattress besides just the memory foam or latex).
There are some good online options available from the members here for latex hybrids or even all latex mattresses that use less latex that are in your budget range listed in post #21 here.
Some of the better options and possibilities I’m aware of in the mobile area are listed in post #365 here and I would call each of these to see whether they have any all latex or latex hybrids on their floor that you could test. This will give you valuable reference points and guidelines about your preferences regardless of whether you buy locally or online.
Phoenix