Latex equivalent to firm coil mattress w/ Geo-Matt foam topper??

Discussions General Mattresses Questions
1

Hello all. I am paralyzed by all the information available.
The stats:

  • I currently sleep on a firm coil spring mattress with a 3.5" Geo Matt foam topper by BeautyRest. I like it but need to replace the topper every 12-18 months.
  • Paid $700 for the mattress, the topper runs $110-125 every 12-18 months.
  • I am a 25-27 BMI depending on my weight loss or gain.
  • Side Sleeper (sleep apnea keeps me off my back)
  • Have pressure points on my hips and shoulders, as well as arthritis in my lower back.
  • do not like memory foam because of the slow spring-back.
  • Want to stay under $700 total.
  • expect to buy a new mattress every 10 years.
    I think Iā€™ve settled on a latex mattress. And lately just thought it might be best to a get low-end thinner latex and add a talalay topper?
    The one thing I canā€™t seem to figure out is which of the many choices would be equivalent to what I use when the Geo-Matt is brand new.
    I read in the blog somewhere about the softness levels, but canā€™t seem to find that information now. I knew I should have printed it out.

Any and all opinions would be helpful. Iā€™m still reading and started to print a small novel of forums, articles, and reviews online with highlights. I was thinking of charting it on a wall with pegs and string, but it reminded me too much of what you see in a crime thriller. :wink:

Thanks!

2

I only just came across the Five steps with tips & tricks article. Thanks!

Iā€™m starting to lean towards a firm latex mattress with a talalay topper that I may have to replace after 3-5 years. Iā€™ve been considering Lucid, but donā€™t like the idea that itā€™s made in China. DreamFoam Ultimate Dreams is appealing as well, and who knows, I may not need the topper.
The casper also has caught my attention. It tops out my budget, but then so would the firm latex with an added talalay topper. It could be their marketing that caught me.

Iā€™m still interested in what folks think would be a budget friendly option for the coil with Geo-Matt.

3

Hi KarenLeePA,

Youā€™re welcome!

The latex used in this mattress is Dunlop, but there isnā€™t complete information about the blend or certification information about this foam. There is a 7" polyfoam core beneath it but the density is unknown, so this is not an all-latex mattress. A forum search on Lucid (you can just click the link) will bring up comments and feedback about them. As you stated, Lucid is from China, and post #6 here is about mattresses imported from Asia or China which may have been compressed for long periods of time in either shipping or storage before being purchased, which in my opinion makes this a more risky purchase.

This mattress is also a polyfoam core product with latex on top. The 1.8 lb polyfoam core is 6" with a convolute on top and is topped by 3" of Talalay latex that can be custom-ordered in different ILDs (levels of firmness). The top quilt panel has 1.5" of a plush polyfoam quilted to the covering. As you may be aware, Dreamfoam is a site member here, which means that I think highly of them and their advice, and I feel they compete with the best in the industry in terms of guidance, product and quality. Youā€™d want to place a phone call with Dreamfoam before placing any potential order, so as to receive their advice as to the plushness level that they would recommend for you. You are correct, you may not need a topper, and I would recommend you choose your mattress comfort level based upon attempting to find a plushness that would work for you, sans topper.

The Casper mattress contains no latex. You may be confusing it with the old specifications it had. You can see more about the Casper mattress specifications in the Simplified Choice Thread here.
Comfort Layers:
1.5" 3.5 lb ventilated polyfoam
1.5" 4 lb 10 ILD Memory foam
1.5" 2.5 lb polyfoam
Support Layers:
5" 1.5 lb 36 ILD Polyfoam

None of the mattresses youā€™re listing contain innersprings ā€“ they all have polyfoam support cores. And the Geo-Matt is a piece of polyfoam with some engineered (cut out) contours, so frequent replacement as you described youā€™re experiencing would be normal for that.

As for toppers, there is more information about choosing a topper in post #2 here and the topper guidelines it links to. There is more complete information there as well about choosing a latex topper. I believe this may the post you stated you had once read but were having a hard time finding again? Maybe not.

As far as picking a mattress for someone else, there are simply too many unknowns, variables, and personal preferences involved in choosing a mattress for someone else to make specific suggestions based on specs (either yours or a mattress) or theory at a distance that can possible be more accurate than your own careful and objective testing (using the testing guidelines in the tutorial post) which is always the most reliable way to predict which mattress will be the best match for you in terms of PPP (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here).

Also, there are also no ā€œstandardā€ definitions or consensus of opinions for firmness ratings and different manufacturers can rate their mattresses very differently than others so a mattress that one manufacturer rates as being a specific firmness could be rated very differently by another manufacturer. Different people can also have very different perceptions of firmness and softness compared to others as well and a mattress that feels firm for one person can feel like ā€œmediumā€ for someone else or even ā€œsoftā€ for someone else (or vice versa) depending on their body type, sleeping style, physiology, their frame of reference based on what they are used to, and their individual sensitivity and perceptions. There are also different types of firmness and softness that different people may be sensitive to that can affect how they ā€œrateā€ a mattress as well (see post #15 here) so different people can also have very different opinions on how two mattresses compare in terms of firmness and some people may rate one mattress as being firmer than another and someone else may rate them the other way around. This is all relative and very subjective and is as much an art as a science.

I know that is a bit of information, but I hope it begins to help you sort things out. If you read through this and come up with more specific questions, please post back and Iā€™ll do my best to answer them for you.

Phoenix

4

I received the Ultimate Dreams medium firm mattress from Dreamfoam (sister co. to BB) in error. We slept on it for 5 nights while waiting for my correct mattress to arrive. The UD was excellent, very comfortable and supportive. My daily back aches disappeared. I received the Aloe Alexis #5 firm and it has been great also. I have had it for almost 2 months. My experience doesnā€™t mean much as each person has their own unique needs. Dreamfoamā€™s customer service was excellent too. In a survey, I made a mistake saying I had slept on their arctic dream. My comments referred to the UD.

5

PS, I was overwhelmed by all of the choices for mattresses online. What made the difference for me was all of the information on the Mattress Underground. I found it by accident. I was able to make an educated decision before I finally clicked the buy button.

6

Hi Senior Shopper,

Welcome to the Mattress Forum! :slight_smile: And congratulations on your new mattress! :cheer:

Iā€™m sorry that you were originally sent the incorrect mattress, but Iā€™m glad that it was corrected for you and that you are happy with your mattress so far. And Iā€™m happy that your back is feeling better.

I hope that youā€™ll return to the forum and be able to provide more feedback about your mattress after youā€™ve had a chance to sleep upon it or a while longer.

Thanks again for your contribution.

Phoenix

7 
 This mattress is also a polyfoam core product with latex on top. The 1.8 lb polyfoam core is 6" with a convolute on top and is topped by 3" of Talalay latex that can be custom-ordered in different ILDs (levels of firmness).

https://www.amazon.ca/gp/aw/d/B00CP85VOA/ref=mp_s_a_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1503630794&sr=1-9&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65#productDescription_secondary_view_div_1503631044699

This link seems to imply that the Dreamfoam base foam is only 1.5lbs density.

8

Dear Phoenix,

Thank you so much for your in-depth response. iā€™m still fairly paralyzed. The coil mattress I bought just 5 years ago and put the Geo-Matt on top of sounded like the right buy and felt great in the store. So I donā€™t really trust my ability to find the right one. Iā€™m going to call a few manufacturers and see what they have to say about an equivalent to the firm mattress with the Geo-Matt topper. As I mentioned, I donā€™t want to keep using that set up, but I do like how it feels.

BTW, I know the ones Iā€™m looking at are not coil, I should have used ā€˜options to replaceā€™ instead of just ā€˜optionsā€™. I have the coil now and want to get away from it.

Non-latex is okay as long as itā€™s a good product.

Thanks again!!

9

Hi Josher,

Welcome to the Mattress Forum!

Thanks for your link to the Canadian amazon site. The specification listed there for the polyfoam core of the Dreamfoam Ultimate Dreams Latex is incorrect. I confirmed with Dreamfoam that it is indeed 1.8 lb polyfoam. Good find!

Phoenix

10

Hi KarenLeePA.

You are welcome :slight_smile:

I understand how the process of finding the best mattress for you can be a bit overwhelming especially when you are acquiring new and much needed information to match your unique needs and preferences.

I would start by reading the mattress shopping tutorial here but two of the most important links in the tutorial that I would especially make sure youā€™ve read are post #2 herewhich has more about the different ways to choose a suitable mattress (either locally or online) that is the best ā€œmatchā€ for you in terms of ā€œcomfortā€, firmness, and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your own Personal preferences) that can help you assess and minimize the risks of making a choice that doesnā€™t turn out as well as you hoped for and post #13 here which has more about the most important parts of the ā€œvalueā€ of a mattress purchase which can help you make more meaningful quality/value comparisons between mattresses in terms of suitability (how well you will sleep), durability (how long you will sleep well), and the overall value of a mattress compared to your other finalists based on all the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you (including the price of course and the options you have available after a purchase if your choice doesnā€™t turn out as well as you hoped for).

While again nobody can speak to how any specific mattress will ā€œfeelā€ for someone else or whether it will be a good ā€œmatchā€ in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP because this is too subjective and relative to different body types, sleeping positions, and individual preferences, sensitivities, and circumstances and you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress ā€¦ outside of PPP (which is the most important part of ā€œvalueā€), the next most important part of the value of a mattress purchase is durability which is all about how long you will sleep well on a mattress. This is the part of your research that you canā€™t see or ā€œfeelā€ and assessing the durability and useful life of a mattress depends on knowing the specifics of its construction and the type and quality of the materials inside it regardless of the name of the manufacturer on the label or how a mattress feels in a showroom or when it is relatively new so I would always make sure that you find out the information listed here so you can compare the quality of the materials and components to the durability guidelines here to make sure there are no lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress that would be a cause for concern relative to the durability and useful life of a mattress before making any purchase.

In its simplest form ā€¦ choosing the ā€œbest possibleā€ mattress for any particular person really comes down to FIRST finding a few knowledgeable and transparent retailers and/or manufacturers (either locally or online) that sell the types of mattresses that you are most interested in that are in a budget range you are comfortable with and that you have confirmed will provide you with the all the information you need about the materials and components inside the mattresses they sell so you will be able to make informed choices and meaningful comparisons between mattresses and then ā€¦

  1. Checking to make sure that there are no lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress you are considering relative to your weight/BMI range that could compromise the durability and useful life of the mattress.

  2. Comparing your finalists for ā€œvalueā€ based on and all the other parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.

Hopefully the information that youā€™ll gather will give you a little more confidence to choose a mattress (or at least some finalists). If you have some more specific questions I will do my best to answer them

Phoenix