Latex Core + Memory Foam + Wool Cover Mattress, or Slow Recovery Latex?

I’ve recently thrown away my old spring mattress and bought a Broyhill 12’’ gel memory foam mattress from Sleepy’s (before I found this website). I like the soft and viscous memory foam feeling of it but it sleeps extremely hot in summer (I don’t use AC and only use a fan). I did try to add a wool topper. It cooled down the sleeping surface (but only the surface!) while still passed the memory foam feeling to me. I also tried a latex topper. It too feels cooler than the foam but overwhelms any memory foam feeling. Either way, it seems the hot issue comes not only from the comfort layer; it feels to me that the entire huge foam bed absorbs hot air during the day and gives off during night. I didn’t have any similar problem with my old spring mattress.

Fortunately I can return the Broyhill for full refund. So I now plan to find a new bed that retains the feeling of the Broyhill bed as much as possible but just not as hot. The specs of the Broyhill bed are: 2" gel infused memory foam + 3" convoluted engineered latex (which I now know is basically another kind of foam) + 6" HD foam base. I cannot get info on density; I’d say it sleeps like a Tempur-cloud. Based on my study of the website and my own trail-and-error experience, I gather that a bed with latex core, memory foam comfort layer (or at least upper comfort layer) and wool cover might do the trick for me. Am I in the right direction? If yes, where can I possibly find a mattress like that? I cannot find anything similar myself (and I’m thinking there must be a reason why manufacturers don’t make beds like that)… If it does not exist as a ready-made mattress, can I combine a latex core, a memory foam pad, and a wool topper and DIY a bed? Is it more likely to meet my expectation (recreating the Broyhill feeling but not as hot) than other combinations?

Another option is to get the slow recovery latex topper from Arizona Premium. I called the company and they (Graig?) say they can use a slow recovery latex topper in their Adjustable Ultra Plush Latex Sleep System instead of a regular topper. So I’m thinking of getting a 6" medium latex core + a 3" slow recovery latex topper + a wool cover. This also sounds promising to me. The good thing about it is that people there are very helpful and if the plan doesn’t work out I can always return the mattress in 60 days.

Yet another option is to try other memory foam bed and hope there are cooler ones? But if I am right that the foam base contributes to the heat too, then I’m not sure if there’s any foam bed that doesn’t have a hot foam base. (For example I see cooper foam comfort layer but I haven’t seen a cooper foam base yet.)

I’m 5’6’’ and 110+ pds. I’d really appreciate any suggestions on my mattress plan. Thank you! Thank you also for running this great website for all :slight_smile:

Hi Miya,

While it’s not possible to quantify the sleeping temperature of a mattress for any particular person with any real accuracy because there are so many variables involved including the type of mattress protector and the sheets and bedding that you use (which in many cases can have just as significant an effect on sleeping temperature as the type of foam in a mattress) and on where you are in the “oven to iceberg” range and because there is no standardized testing for temperature regulation with different combinations of materials … there is more about the many variables that can affect the sleeping temperature of a mattress or sleeping system in post #2 here that can help you choose the types of materials and components that are most likely to keep you in a comfortable temperature range.

There are many variations of each type of foam material (latex foam, memory foam, polyfoam) but in very general terms latex is generally the most breathable and “temperature neutral” of all the foam materials followed by polyfoam followed by memory foam. While only a minority of people that sleep on memory foam have temperature regulation issues … the ones that do are a higher percentage than with other types of foam.

Wool is also a great temperature regulating material and in most cases if you are using a wool quilted mattress protector (vs a mattress protector that has a semi breathable membrane) and sheets that are made from natural fibers (such as cotton, silk, or flx linen) then the odds would be much lower that you would have temperature regulation issues even on a memory foam mattress (particularly if the memory foam is more breathable than some of the older formulations) but you can also add a wool topper if your mattress protector and sheets aren’t enough to keep you in a comfortable temperature range and that would probably be the “best possible” solution with a particular memory foam mattress.

Wool and other natural fibers are generally better in terms of temperature regulation than foam materials including latex but your latex topper may have been too thick to “allow” the feeling of the memory foam underneath it to “come through”. In very general terms … the properties and firmness of materials and components that are closer to the top surface of a sleeping system will tend to have a bigger effect on the overall “feel” and firmness of a mattress than materials that are deeper in the sleeping system, thicker layers or toppers will contribute more of their feel and firmness to the overall sleeping system than thinner layers, and a thinner layer would “allow” more of the feel and properties of the layer(s) underneath it to “come through” than a thicker layer.

The only way to know whether any combination of layers and components will be “temperature regulating enough” for you will be based on your own personal experience but I would agree that in general terms you are looking in the direction of having more breathable and temperature regulating materials closer to your skin which for most people would certainly improve temperature regulation compared to sleeping directly on memory foam with less breathable and temperature regulating materials between you and the memory foam. The latex core would probably have less effect on temperature regulation than the layers that are closer to your body so it may not make as much difference as you would hope for although it would certainly affect the feel of the mattress compared to a polyfoam support core that would be more typical with memory foam mattresses.

I don’t keep a record of the individual mattresses or their specs that the retailers and manufacturers in the hundreds of forum lists throughout the forum carry on their floor or have available online (it would be a bigger job than anyone could keep up with in a constantly changing market) but checking their websites and making some preliminary phone calls to the retailers/manufacturers that are on the local lists is always a good idea before you decide on which retailers or manufacturers you wish to deal with anyway. This will tell you which of them carry mattresses that would meet your specific criteria, are transparent about the materials in their mattresses, and that carry the type of mattresses that you are interested in that are also in the budget range you are comfortable with. Once you have checked their websites and/or talked with the ones that interest you then you will be in a much better position to decide on the ones that you are most interested in considering or visiting based on the results of your preliminary research and conversations.

Having said that … if you are only looking at mattresses that contain memory foam comfort layers with some latex underneath it then there are a few options listed in post #2 here that may be helpful.

Of course I can’t speak to how any of these mattresses would feel for you or whether they would be a good “match” in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your own Personal preferences) and I would always keep in mind that when you can’t test a mattress in person then the most reliable source of guidance is always a more detailed phone conversation with a knowledgeable and experienced retailer or manufacturer that has your best interests at heart and who can help “talk you through” the specifics of their mattresses and the properties and “feel” of the materials they are using (fast or slow response, resilience, firmness etc) and the options they have available that may be the best “match” for you based on the information you provide them, any local testing you have done or mattresses you have slept on and liked or other mattresses you are considering that they are familiar with, and the “averages” of other customers that are similar to you. They will know more about “matching” their specific mattress designs and firmness levels to different body types, sleeping positions, and preferences (or to other mattresses that they are familiar with) than anyone else.

If you are attracted to the idea of designing and building your own DIY mattress out of separate components and a separate cover then the first place I would start is by reading option 3 in post #15 here and the posts it links to (and option #1 and #2 as well) so that you have more realistic expectations and that you are comfortable with the learning curve, uncertainty, trial and error, or in some cases the higher costs that may be involved in the DIY process. While it can certainly be a rewarding project … the best approach to a DIY mattress is a “spirit of adventure” where what you learn and the satisfaction that comes from the process itself is more important than any cost savings you may realize (which may or may not happen).

There is also more about primary or “deep” support and secondary or “surface” support and their relationship to firmness and pressure relief and the “roles” of different layers in a mattress in post #2 here and in post #4 here that may also be helpful in clarifying the difference between “support” and “pressure relief” and “feel” that may be useful as well.

For those who decide to take on the challenge then I would either use the specs (if they are available) of a mattress that you have tested and confirmed is a good match for you in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP as a reference point or blueprint and try and “match” every layer and component in your reference mattress as closely as possible or use a “bottom up” approach (see post #2 here).

I certainly think highly of Arizona Premium and as you know they are a member here which means 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 mentioned they have a good return policy as well and the cost involved in returning a component or a mattress.is very reasonable.

While their slow recovery latex would be more breathable than most memory foams and has slow recovery properties that are similar to memory foam as well … it would also have a different “feel” and it will probably be firmer than most memory foam layers as well. Once again though the only way to know for certain whether you will like it or not will be based on your own personal experience.

Phoenix

Thank you very much Phoenix for the detailed answers to my questions! You mention something like “particularly if the memory foam is more breathable than some of the older formulations.” I’ve seen gel-infused memory foam and copper memory foam, but apparently the gel-infused one in Broyhill didn’t work for me. Could you recommend some new forms of memory foam with trustworthy cooling technology?

I was also blown away by your list of memory-foam-over-latex mattress! I’m interested in christeli’s LUX ESTATE, and I wonder if cashmere cover helps with temperature regulation in both directions, or only warms up like what a feather bed does? Well I’ve never thought of using cashmere in cover it’s just too luxurious but they don’t have wool option at all…

Thanks a lot!

Hi Miya,

There is more information and comments about some of the different methods that can be used to help cool down the tendency of any memory foam to sleep warmer for some people in post #6 here but memory foam manufacturers don’t disclose their specific formulations and there are so many variables involved in temperature regulation other than the memory foam formulation itself that the only way to know whether any memory foam mattress in combination with all the other variables that can affect temperature regulation will be “temperature regulating enough” for you will be based on your own personal experience.

While cashmere (and the silk that they use in the quilting) are natural fibers that like other natural fibers can help with temperature regulation in both directions … in most cases the amount of cashmere is a cover fabric is relatively small. I don’t know the percentage of cashmere in their cover fabric or whether the silk in the quilting is blended with other fibers as well.

Again though … the mattress protector or sheets you use can either add to or diminish the temperature regulating effect of the cover and quilting materials and the memory foam underneath it.

Phoenix

Thank you Phoenix! I’ll continue to do some research and will let you how it goes!