Hi, I’m new to this forum. This post should be deleted or put in its proper place, and edited for concise articulation, to reduce clutter.
I’m all for that, repeat or unnecessary information is clutter.
I wonder if there is a Basic “Custom Layered” Foam Mattress Guideline Section somewhere on this forum?
I know there are specifics to each person’s need and comfort.
But, you know like a basic chart or diagram that outlines/delineates a basic structure for a Foam Layered mattress that’ll give proper support and comfort for a 3 layer foam mattress, that offers minimums and maximums for number of layers, overall thickness, thickness of each layer, and progression of ILDs of each layer, even density recommendations for each layer. And, what foam and retailer is best for lasting comfort and quality.
I recently purchased a 6"x54"x75" piece of HD36-HQ foam: ILD of 35, density of 2.8 lbs/cf from FoamByMail.com It is very resilient, and too firm for me.
for a base layer. I need at least a 12" thick “mattress” to ideally fit in my bedframe, so I was thinking I’d purchase to more foam sheets; 4" HR foam with an ILD of about 15, and a 4" piece of HR with an ILD of 25 from Foamite or FoamOnline as they are the seemingly the only retailers that offer 3 or more options of ILD numbers, in quality HR foam.
Also, there seems to be no section on this forum, for Custom HR foam mattresses?
I sleep about 60% on my side.
Would that be too thick for the top layers?
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Hello Willber!
Welcome to our Mattress Forum. 
There isn’t a single fixed chart with hard min/max numbers for layer count, thickness, or ILD progression — mattress building doesn’t really work that way because the “right” numbers depend heavily on your body weight, profile, and sleeping positions rather than a universal formula. That said, we do have general guidelines on how layers work together in our Mattress Construction section, which covers differential vs. progressive construction and how comfort/transition/support layers interact — that’s a good starting framework for planning a DIY build.
As for your specific plan: going from an ILD 35 base up to ILD 25 and then ILD 15 on top is a reasonable progressively-softer stack, but 8" total of comfort/transition foam over a firm base is on the thicker side, especially for a side sleeper.
Side sleeping generally benefits from a bit more pressure relief at the shoulder/hip, but too much soft/thick foam on top can let you sink too deep and lose support, particularly if you’re mostly on your back the other 40% of the time. You may want to consider thinner increments (e.g., testing with just one of the two layers first) before committing to both.
We don’t currently have a dedicated “Custom/DIY HR foam mattress” subsection, but DIY topics like yours are tagged “diy” under Mattress Talk, so searching that tag will surface similar builds and discussions.
NikkiTMU
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Hi, maybe this whole thread should be moved to “DIY”
Btw, I’m ordering a mid layer, ILD of 18 HR foam, for the base of 6" 35 ILD HR, and top of 3" 12 ILD LD
Should I get the mid layer in a 2" or 3"?
Here, this custom foam mattress builder uses 2" layers, in their 4 layer mattresses.
I may end up making the mattress a 4 layer to change the softness and support.
Honestly, no one knows perfect answers to your questions. DIY entails making mistakes, buying extra materials, buying 3" layers instead of 2", etc.
Even a commercial mattress maker will not satisfy every buyer, that’s why they have comfort trials.
6" + 2" + 2" + 2" layering is good. BuyFoam.com sells Polyfoam in ILD 18 and ILD 28.
Go for high resiliency (HR) if you want spring like responsiveness. Otherwise, Polyfoam and memory foam would help.
FoambyMail also sells memory foam in various ILDs.
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