So I decided to buy latex mattresses for our Leggett & Platt adjustable beds (King split Twin XL) latex gold 8 inch supreme mattress. For people in the Vancouver Lower Mainland, I ended up purchasing from Snug Sleep in North Vancouver, The owner, Don, is a most engaging character and very knowledgeable about product. I like the fact that he measures you for the mattress according to your body, The service was excellent, he delivered the mattresses himself and there was no additional charge. That’s nice for a change. I feel like I’ve bought a quality product that will last and be comfortable. Now we’ve never slept on latex before so I’m really looking forward to it.
Don showed us around his warehouse and gave us a tour of how things are done. He gave us a demonstration of how he cuts the latex for the layers, how the wool/alpaca comforters are made, etcetera. What a refreshing full disclosure experience.
He has Dunlop latex sourced from Sri Lanka and if you go to his website there’s more info.
Our bed base is being delivered today so tonight we’ll be able to sleep on our new bed… so excited.
Thanks for letting us know what you ended up deciding … I appreciate it.
You certainly made a great quality choice … and congratulations on your new mattress
I’m looking forward to any comments and feedback you have the chance to share once you’ve received it and have had the chance to sleep on it for a bit.
Ok, here’s an update on our experience over the past 6 weeks (Jan 8-16 to present) with Snug Sleep, Don.
On Jan 8th we had our 8 inch latex mattresses properly put in twin XL covers (when we unwrapped the mattress bundle when our bed bases arrived in late December they were encased in a king cover, not 2 twin XL. Not a big deal.
We tried this for 12 days but we both found our mattresses not to our liking. I found mine too hard, and my husband’s was hard like a board. We phoned Don on January 19th and he told us how to change out the layers to adjust the mattresses.
We both had 3 layers of 2 3/4, 2 1/2 and 2 3/4. Big holes up means it’s softer while big holes pointing down equates to harder. I changed mine to all big holes pointing up to make it the softest.
Now my husband’s had one layer of holes all the way through, which mine didn’t have. He changed his other 2 layers to holes up so it would sleep softer.
We tried that configuration for 15 more days and it still wasn’t right. Phoned Don and hauled our mattresses to his retail space on February 2nd to figure out a better configuration.
I said I had too much pressure on my shoulder and arms (side and back sleeper). My husband has a pretty hard time trying to explain what exactly the problem is other than it’s NOT working (he’s a side and back sleeper too). He’s fixated on the memory foam/gel topper we had on our old coil mattress. I’d asked Don what the ILD was and he said he didn’t know, that’s what he’s trying to figure out. He had us lay on the floor this time testing the configuration rather than his slat base that we’d laid on before to test originally. I think it seems to have a bounce and is not flat and as stable as on the floor - like our bed base would be. While we were doing this I asked (being confused) which of the three layers was the core layer and which was the comfort layer. Don said he didn’t know what I was talking about. I gathered he was frustrated with us at this point so I let it go and said nothing.
My question remains though if you could answer it. The bottom layer I’m thinking should be the base, the middle the core, and the top the comfort???
Anyway, Don ended up upgrading us to 9 inches, 3 layers of 3 inches. Don cut my middle mattress into 3 layers where the head and shoulders would lay. My mattress had all holes facing up so it was the softest it would ever go. My husband’s mattress was reconfigured by Don. Don said there wasn’t anymore that he could do for us. I was stunned to say the least.
So we tried that. I slept on mine one night. Then the next night I tried my husband’s - and my husband is never getting his mattress back. His mattress is softer than mine and sinks in more. My whole body feels much better in it. Since the one Don made for me can’t get any softer, I’m taking my husband’s. My husband says it’s too soft for him and he doesn’t like it so it makes sense for me to keep it.
Now bear in mind Don fits the mattress to your body configuration as he’s expert in this. His website says men sleep differently than women. He has you lay down on his base and he puts different layers down (2 configurations in our case) and asks you how it feels and he judges what the fit is according to how your body sits in mattress. We can’t figure out how a mattress feels unless you actually sleep on it overnight.
He reconfigured our mattresses according to our complaints and likes, which just goes to show how wrong one can get it, even a so-called expert… My husband even said Don understands what he’s wanting and I thought for sure this time it would be right. I really did expect more from Snug Sleep.
So on we soldier. Now my husband can make my mattress, which is his now, harder. I feel so bad for him. My question is: Should he just make the mattress harder or hardest so he has a firm bottom and then buy a memory foam/gel topper or a Talalay topper? Our bed sits lower than our previous bed, but it’s 8 inches off the floor. He says his back hurts when he gets out of bed. Not sure if it’s mattress or different height of bed. He seems so fixated on the memory foam/gel topper, that I think maybe that might appease him.
Is there anywhere in the Vancouver area that I can test a Talaly topper in the flesh?
Thanks for taking the time to share an update … I appreciate it.
I’m assuming that the “2 3/4, 2 1/2 and 2 3/4” is the thickness of each of your original the layers … is that right? I’m not clear about the firmness (density) of each of your layers because in addition to flipping the layers so that the slightly softer or firmer side is up (Dunlop can be a different firmness on each side of a layer) … Dunlop latex also comes in different firmness levels and if your layers are each a different firmness then you can also change the comfort/support of a mattress by rearranging the layers as well.
Deeper layers are usually firmer and are more for primary support/alignment, upper layers are usually softer and are more for comfort/pressure relief and secondary support, and middle layers or “transition” layers are are usually either the same as the bottom or the top layer or somewhere in between them (depending on the design of the mattress) and can affect support/alignment and comfort/pressure relief to different degrees (depending on your weight, your body shape, and your sleeping style).
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.
What different people call each layer or the terminology they use is less important than the actual function of each layer and how they work together in combination with different body types and sleeping styles.
I’m not clear what you mean by “Don cut my middle mattress into 3 layers where the head and shoulders would lay”. Does this mean that he cut your middle layer into 3 separate sections with a softer section under your head and shoulders? If this is the case then it would be a form of zoning.
Zoning systems can sometimes be useful and worth considering for people that have more difficulty finding a mattress with the right “balance” between comfort/pressure relief (under the shoulders especially) and support/alignment (under the hips/pelvis especially) or who have more challenging circumstances or sensitivities, body types that are more difficult to “match” to a mattress, more complex medical issues, or who have a history of having more difficulty in finding a mattress that works well for them. There is more about zoning in this article and in post #11 here and the additional posts it links to.
Memory foam is a very different material with very different properties than latex but the choice between them is a preference and budget choice more than a “better worse” choice. There is more about the differences between them in post #2 here but if your husband is “fixated” on memory foam then I would keep in mind that latex will never “feel like” memory foam … although you can certainly add a memory foam topper on top of a latex mattress.
If you are testing a mattress locally then knowing the ILD’s or other “comfort specs” isn’t important because your body will tell you much more about whether a particular mattress is a suitable choice or possibility for you in terms of PPP than knowing the ILD of the individual layers.
That’s good to hear that you found a layering combination that works well for you
It’s also “somewhat” good news that it was too soft for your husband since because he still has firmer options available.
I would keep in mind that the first “rule” of mattress shopping is to always remember that you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress and there are too many unknowns, variables, and personal preferences involved that are unique to each person to use a formula or for anyone to be able to predict or make a specific suggestion or recommendation about which mattress or combination of materials and components or which type of mattress would be the best “match” for you in terms of “comfort” or PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your Personal preferences) or how a mattress will “feel” to you or compare to another mattress based on specs (either yours or a mattress), sleeping positions, health conditions, or “theory at a distance” that can possibly be more reliable than your own careful testing (hopefully using the testing guidelines in step 4 of the tutorial) or your own personal sleeping experience (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here).
The suggestions that they are providing come from their years of experience based on the “averages” of their customers that are similar to you although of course not everyone fits inside the averages of other people so regardless of the knowledge or experience of a retailer or manufacturer your own sleeping experience will always be the only way to confirm whether the layering combination you choose will be a good “match” for you in terms of PPP and how well you will sleep on it.
Unfortunately (and regardless of someone’s level of expertise or experience) nobody has a crystal ball that can predict for certain which specific mattress or combination of materials you will like best or that you will sleep best on … it just doesn’t exist.
While it’s not possible to “diagnose” mattress comfort issues on a forum with any certainty because there are too many unique unknowns, variables, and complexities involved that can affect how each person sleeps on a mattress in terms of “comfort” and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your Personal preferences) or any “symptoms” they experience … there is more about the most common symptoms that people may experience when they sleep on a mattress and the most likely (although not the only) reasons for them in post #2 here.
The most common reason for lower back issues is a mattress that is too soft and either has upper layers that are too thick and/or soft or deeper layers that are too soft.
If you can provide more information about the firmness of each of your husbands layers then it may be possible to make some suggestions that would be worth trying.
It’s also possible that he may not be happy with anything but memory foam.
The better options or possibilities I’m aware of in and around the Vancouver area are listed in post #2 here. I don’t know which of them carry Talalay latex toppers off the top of my head so you would need to check their websites or make a few phone calls to find out which of them carry Talalay latex toppers and the firmnesses that they carry.
Hi there… it’s been some time. I have another update.
First to answer your questions previously.
Zoning - it sounds like that’s what Don did, the zoning. It didn’t make any difference to me though.
Ok, from Feb 9 to April 21st we tried these mattresses. My husband couldn’t sleep in it as he said there was no support (remember he slept in my harder one). It just got worse and he couldn’t sleep in it all. Sagged too much for him. Mine also deteriorated regarding the support. I started having lower back pain from the bed, which I hadn’t had before. It’s like after 6 or 7 weeks something went. I don’t know what.
Anyway, my husband phoned Don and he said he needed to change it for the hardest thing he had. Don said if there’s a smell in it he’d have to charge something - women and men sleep different according to Don and women emit more smell then men (I’m guessing as a result of menopause. I’m just guessing at Don’s explanation - I don’t know what’s in his mind).
So my husband took his original mattress made for him (the one I was sleeping in as it was softer)
Don didn’t charge him for smell but another fee for a mattress with more density. He gave him a 6 inch and 3 inch. Don was also told that I wasn’t happy with mine either, that I was going to try the new one and see how it feels compared to what I currently was sleeping on.
So there’s much more support, that’s for sure. So I’m comparing the 3 different configurations. The first configuration was hard as a rock (all 3 layers seemed hard).
The second configuration was two-thirds soft and one third hard. I had said I wanted softer after the first go-around. I think perhaps two-thirds was too much softness. I felt the latex soft layers and they did feel so soft that I was wondering if they were a blend or synthetic.
The 3rd configuration is two-thirds hard and one soft.
My husband still wants harder. It’s no surprise that I do like his. So we had to wait for a shipment of 6 inch to come in this week. We went today to reconfigure mine. We decided I’d ask for the hardest he had so husband can have one even harder and I’d sleep on his.
I must say this has been one of the worst experiences in my life. I found Don to be an arrogant and difficult man to deal with. Once they have your money they don’t care what your problem is.
I had to harp. When I phoned he said as far as he was concerned he was done with me. Of course I said he wasn’t done - made the appointment with a bit of difficulty.
So today when we brought in the mattress he said it smelled. Remember he already basically took my mattress when my husband brought it in. So I figured BS, what a sexist remark. He’s just making this stuff up out of thin air.
I asked him if two-thirds of the 2nd configuration was a blend or synthetic and he got very, very angry with me for even asking. He never did give me an answer. I then asked what the ILD was in my husband’s in order to compare myself. Don got angry once again and asked why I was asking that question, what had I been reading? I said that I was ignorant when it came to latex and was trying to understand and needed some measurement to compare. Don said they don’t use ILDs anymore, he’s the one to say and figure out what the density is and he wasn’t going to engage in the conversation. What a good answer. I guess that tells me all I need to know. He said I needed to make up my mind quick as he had customers coming. I said we were also customers and wanted satisfaction and all he was interested in was the money. He said all the industry was… he didn’t have time for this, it was a no-win situation for him.
So I took 6 inches and 3 inches. He said if we put the 3 on the bottom and 6 on top it would be harder. I took it and ran as fast as I could. I never want to deal with that man again. We spent a hair under 4000 there (2 twin XL mattresses, 1 wool duvet and 1 pillow) and the customer service STINKS.
I am hopeful that I will be happier with my husband’s mattress though and that it doesn’t go wonky after 6-8 weeks - LOL.
Boy, the industry needs to have a brick and mortar place where they have all configurations laid out for one to check, complete transparency of contents and warranties and trial periods. When you spend that kind of money you’d like satisfaction. Seems like the whole industry is crooked. Just my opinion.
Thanks for taking the time to share another update and I’m sorry to hear about your very unpleasant and frustrating experience.
You would be able to tell if he added a zoned middle layer by checking to see if the middle layer has 3 separate sections. You would probably be able to tell by “feel” which of the sections are firmer or softer as well and the softer section would normally be used in the upper third of the mattress under the head and shoulders.
I’m not sure what your husband means when he says “there was no support” (see my earlier reply about primary and secondary support and pressure relief) and you didn’t mention whether your husband was experiencing any actual “symptoms” which is the most reliable way to know if a mattress has a suitable combination of layers and firmness levels. If your husband is used to sleeping on memory foam then it’s also possible that he just doesn’t like the more subjective “feel” of latex because it’s quite likely that your latex mattress is actually firmer than the memory foam he was sleeping on previously.
In your case It sounds like your mattress is too soft but I don’t know the specifics of the layering combinations you tried previously or that you are using now so I would need much more information about the specifics of the combinations you have tried and how your experience compared on each of them to be able to make any meaningful suggestions.
[quote]So my husband took his original mattress made for him (the one I was sleeping in as it was softer)
Don didn’t charge him for smell but another fee for a mattress with more density. He gave him a 6 inch and 3 inch. Don was also told that I wasn’t happy with mine either, that I was going to try the new one and see how it feels compared to what I currently was sleeping on.[/quote]
It would be helpful to know the densities of his new layers as well as the densities of the layers he was sleeping on previously.
[quote]So there’s much more support, that’s for sure. So I’m comparing the 3 different configurations. The first configuration was hard as a rock (all 3 layers seemed hard).
The second configuration was two-thirds soft and one third hard. I had said I wanted softer after the first go-around. I think perhaps two-thirds was too much softness. I felt the latex soft layers and they did feel so soft that I was wondering if they were a blend or synthetic.
The 3rd configuration is two-thirds hard and one soft.[/quote]
Once again it would be helpful to know the densities of each of the layers in each combination you tried because I am having trouble following the specifics of the layering combinations you’ve tried, the specific “symptoms” you experienced on each of them, and how your symptoms “changed” from one combination to another.
If I understand you correctly the combinations you’ve tried were …
First combination:
Top layer: 2 3/4" thickness but you didn’t mention the density/firmness.
Middle layer: 2 1/2" thickness but again you didn’t mention the density/firmess
Bottom layer: 2 3/4" thickness but again I don’t know the density/firmness.
I’m guessing that the big holes were down at this point because you mentioned that you slept on this configuration for 12 days and then changed the layers so that the big holes were up.
Your only comment about this combination was that it felt too “hard” for you but you didn’t mention any specific symptoms.
Second combination:
I think that the next combination you tried was the same mattress with the big holes up. Is this correct? I understand that you slept on this for 15 days (which would be long enough to notice the differences) and you mentioned that you were experiencing too much pressure on your arms and shoulders but you didn’t mention how it compared to the first combination you tried. I’m assuming that you didn’t have any back pain on either combination but I don’t know if the shoulder and arm pressure was worse on your first combination than on the second one (which would be logical if your first combination was firmer than your second).
Third combination:
My understanding is that the next combination you tried was after you took your mattress in to make some changes and included …
Top layer: 3" thickness but you didn’t mention the density/firmness
Middle layer: 3" thickness cut into three equal section but you didn’t mention the density/firmness of each zone
Bottom layer" 3" thickness but you didn’t mention the density/firmness
My understanding is that you only slept on this combination for one night before switching with your husband which is unfortunate because that isn’t long enough to know whether it would have been suitable for you or to be able to compare your experience on this combination with the other ones you’ve tried.
Fourth combination:
This was your husbands mattress which you said “felt” softer than yours and if I understand this also included three 3" layers but again I don’t know the specific density/firmness of each of his layers.
While you said your whole body felt mattress and that he wasn’t getting it back. After 6 or 7 weeks on this combination you mentioned in your last reply that you were experiencing lower back pain which indicates that this mattress was probably too soft for you. This could have been related to the normal break in and adjustment period and it sounds like you may have been better off with your previous zoned combination (but again you didn’t sleep on it for long enough to really know).
Fifth combination:
[quote]So my husband took his original mattress made for him (the one I was sleeping in as it was softer)
Don didn’t charge him for smell but another fee for a mattress with more density. He gave him a 6 inch and 3 inch. Don was also told that I wasn’t happy with mine either, that I was going to try the new one and see how it feels compared to what I currently was sleeping on.[/quote]
It sounds like you only exchanged your husband’s mattress (that you were sleeping on and that you experienced lower back pain) and kept your previous zoned mattress but I don’t know if you slept on this one or if you immediately slept on the 6" + 3" mattress that was a replacement for your husband’s mattress and your husband continued to sleep on your zoned mattress.
Sixth combination:
If you slept on your zoned mattress for a while then the 6" + 3" mattress would be your 6th combination. If you didn’t sleep on your zoned mattress for a while then this would be your 5th combination. It would also be helpful to know more specific details about how you are sleeping on this mattress compared to the other combinations you’ve tried. Once again it would be helpful to know the density/firmness of the 6" layer and the 3" layer so I have a reference point about how your different combinations compared on a “layer by layer” basis.
I’m also assuming that your husband is still sleeping on your zoned mattress which not surprisingly is too soft for him (although once again I didn’t notice any comments about any specific symptoms he experienced). It may be worthwhile to let him sleep on the 6" + 3" mattress which was made for him (with the 3" layer on the top and then on the bottom if he wants it firmer) which would let you try the zoned mattress for a while which was “made for you” not for him.
[quote]So there’s much more support, that’s for sure. So I’m comparing the 3 different configurations. The first configuration was hard as a rock (all 3 layers seemed hard).
The second configuration was two-thirds soft and one third hard. I had said I wanted softer after the first go-around. I think perhaps two-thirds was too much softness. I felt the latex soft layers and they did feel so soft that I was wondering if they were a blend or synthetic.
The 3rd configuration is two-thirds hard and one soft.[/quote]
I don’t know the specifics of the density/firmness in each combination you tried so I can’t really comment about each combination but all the latex in their mattresses are 100% natural Dunlop and they don’t have any layers that include synthetic latex.
I think part of the problems you are having is that you are sleeping on each other’s combinations so that he doesn’t have any clear reference points or feedback for which combinations or changes would have the best chance of success. It would be much more effective to take a more “step by step” and incremental approach and only sleep on the combinations that were designed for each of you because the approach you are taking sounds somewhat “random” and is very confusing so it would be very difficult for anyone to give you good advice if you weren’t sleeping on the mattress that they thought you were. This may be part of his frustration.
While there would be no reason for him to be angry for asking … I’m guessing that his frustration about the combinations you have tried and the approach you are taking may be showing through. All of their latex is 100% natural Dunlop.
Again it sounds like his frustration is showing through although again this shouldn’t be something that you should be experiencing.
As far as firmness … many Dunlop manufacturers don’t rate their mattresses in ILD ratings and use density instead. According to their website … Latex Gold is available in 5 densities which would normally be expressed as kilograms per cubic meter or in some cases as pounds per cubic foot. If the densities of each layer isn’t available then it would be helpful to know the relative firmness of each layer in each combination or zone based on a “word rating” (soft, medium, firm etc).
I hope that you are successful with your new layering combination (which I believe is combination #6 and if I understand correctly your husband is currently sleeping on your newest 6" + 3" combination) although I have to admit that may be just as uncertain or confused as Don probably is. Once again … it’s unfortunate that you didn’t appear to spend much if any time on the zoned configuration that was designed for you.
I would love to be able to make some suggestions but I would need much more specific information about each of the combinations you’ve tried and the details of your experiences and how your symptoms “changed” on each of them.
My husband’s complaints are a very sore lower back in all the combinations except the last that we got yesterday. Again, we’re in early stages but I’m optimistic. Trying out the combo in shop is very difficult unless you actually sleep on it at least one night . One can’t know from 5 minutes of testing in the shop.
I’ll call original mattress combo 1, 2nd combo combo 2 and last one combo 3, which I received yesterday. The same with my husband, although he got his combo 3 May 9th. I had to wait and try his out and for shipment of another 6 inch.
Densities - no clue. I’d asked at combo 2 and Don said he was trying to figure it out and didn’t mention anything after. At combo 3 Don said he knows - nothing was shared with me. Although I do remember at one point he mentioned the number 50 or 55 but I was clueless as to what it meant or which layer - I thought I should keep quiet as he didn’t like to be asked questions by me, it was making him agitated - what-was-I-reading.
Anyway, combo 1 I had a bit of compression pain in all combinations, holes up or down.
Combo 2 I had no compression pain but developed back pain. Now the back pain took 5-7 weeks to show up. It didn’t happen quickly but over time.
I also forgot to mention that my husband, who was sleeping on the harder combo 2, put a memory-gel foam pad of 3 inches on top and slept on that for a long time. It was causing him problems and he’d just go sleep in the spare room like 50 percent of the time.
So when my husband got his combo 3 I of course tried it out and that’s the one that had the hard 6 inch layer with softer 3 inch on top. At that point I was sleeping on my original harder combo 2. I had to wait until May 28th for my change in mattress. My lower back pain was still there and wouldn’t go away … I ended up not sleeping on the mattress about 50 percent of the time.
So my husband still wanted harder and I thought his was good for me. Still soft in the shoulders with no compression pains and hard support underneath which equaled no back pain.
We didn’t intentionally with malice try to deceive Don, we were just trying to make this work
for us without bothering Don any further. My husband thought Don might not take the zoned mattress layer back and we didn’t want to take that chance so he thought it would be better if he just took his original combo 2 in to exchange for the hardest thing Don had, were his words.
So as a result when I went yesterday I said I wanted it harder than my husband’s rather than whining about his. So Don said if the softer 3 inch is underneath the 6 inch it will be harder. I didn’t know it would do that. In the end the zoned mattress wasn’t an issue for him.
My husband’s mattress is hard (3 inch on bottom and 6 inch on top) and last night he seemed to like it. We’re thankful it’s hard so that he has a good solid base. After, if he still doesn’t like it, he can just put the memory-gel foam on top and that’ll be the end of it – finished.
I think I’m also happy (6 inch on bottom and 3 inch on top) as no back pain at all today.
Just as an aside, it’d be nice to know what density I have if any time in future (say down the road 10 years from now) I want to purchase another, I’d know what to buy. Right now I’m just guessing by feel.
Thanks for your help and this website. I’ll give you an update in a couple months. I’m sure it will be positive !!!
That sounds promising. When you are trying to assess the types of changes that would have the best odds of success then identifying the actual changes in your sleeping experience and symptoms between each layering combination you try is much more important than just deciding whether it works or doesn’t work. It’s the changes that happen (whether something gets better or worse and if possible how much better or worse) when you try a different combination that can be the most useful “pointers”.
If you are just testing a mattress for 5 minutes in the store then it certainly wouldn’t be a good way to predict how well you will sleep on it. On the other hand … while nothing has a 100% success rate … with a local purchase for the majority of people … careful testing using the guidelines in the tutorial (rather than just testing for the more subjective “comfort” of a mattress which often won’t predict how well you will sleep on a mattress or how it will “feel” when you sleep on it at home) along with some good guidance from a knowledgeable and experienced retailer or manufacturer will usually result in a mattress choice that is well inside a suitable comfort/support range and will generally be “close enough” so that if any fine tuning is necessary it would be relatively minor and involve different mattress pads, sheets, mattress protectors, or perhaps even a topper if a mattress is too firm (see post #4 here and post #10 here).
Without knowing the density of each layer or at least some type of firmness rating such as a word rating for each layer (such as extra soft, soft, medium, firm, extra firm) there is very little I can do to help because I don’t have any reference points to work from. It would be helpful to call and ask about the firmness of each layer … at least the ones that you are currently using. In the worst case you could take a heavy object and measure how much it sinks in to each layer. The ones that it sinks in more would be softer and the ones that it sinks in less would be firmer)
Unfortunately without knowing firmness ratings and “matching” a set of “symptoms” with a specific layering combination the rest of the information in your post has very little meaning to me.
Once you have identified the firmness of each layer to the best of your ability then I would also suggest that you use a single post to describe only one layering combination with a title on top of the post for that combination (such the combo 1, combo 2 etc that you suggested) and describe all the symptoms you experienced with that specific layering combination underneath the description in the same post.
When you have described that combination and the symptoms that are (or were) associated with it then you can use another post to describe the next combination and the symptoms that are or were associated with that one making sure to include how your symptoms changed from the previous combination.
One combination and description per post may help keep the information to a manageable level that I can make some sense of.
I think it was fairly apparent to Don, owner, that I was after some sort of rating/reference point for the mattress when I asked about the ILD on the second and third occasions whilst at his store. He clearly is not willing to divulge this information with me. It seemed like an insult to him when I asked each time because he got angry and irritated. His manner in trying to fine tune our difficulties was evidenced by being arrogant (only the Gods know-him), impatient/short and trying to give us the bum’s rush out of the store - we were wasting his time, time is money, he has other clients., You have to make an appointment to visit the store, the area is not in a major retail area where there are a lot of consumers strolling by.
Reading the various forums re latex I only saw ratings in ILD only for latex. Can you point me to the website that you went to for Latex Gold re their ratings. levels, please and thank you. Just for my own curiosity I’d be interested to see.
Thanks for the prompt reply.
Yes, I see there’s a NEW website. I did view the older version website previously. Interesting there’s no 9 inch any longer, which is what we have.
But as far as the densities go, there’s still no reference point other than the range terminology plush, soft to extra firm with no specificity.
The “word ratings” for the relative firmness for each of the layers in the combinations you’ve tried would be all you really need and would be very helpful in making any suggestions.
Okay, I see where you’re coming from.
I’ve only ever slept on coil mattresses my whole life. I have absolutely zilch experience with latex so my rating would be coming from a place of ignorance and purely subjective.
For my combos:
Combo 1: extra firm?? to firm (8 inches) (all 3 layers hard) - pressure point pain
Combo 2 soft (9 inches) (2/3rds soft 1/3rd firm) - lower back pain
Combo 3 firm (9 inches - 6" on bottom 3" on top) (2/3rds hard 1/3rd soft) - so far so good
Husband’s combo: the same as mine above with slight variance - because of his comparing latex to memory foam his was made much softer in combo 2.
He also experienced combo 1 as soft whereas I felt it was hard. Go figure.
He had lower back problems in combo 1 and 2.
In combo 3 he’s thinking of making his slightly harder (flipping the 6") with the option of putting memory foam on top. Right now he has 3" on bottom and 6" on top. He’s going to change the hole position on the 6" down to make it harder.
It’ll take him awhile yet to figure this out but at least he has the option now as he’s very happy with the hard 6".
He finds it much better for his back.
It would be helpful for me to follow and keep track of your experiences and “untangle” all the somewhat confusing and complex information that you have included in your posts if you could use a single post per layering combination (or at least the ones that you remember) that each of you have tried and describe your experience on each combination and how it changed relative to the combination before it (see my previous comments in post #8 in the topic).
Start each post with a description of the thickness and firmness of each layer (listed either from top to bottom or from bottom to top) and then describe your experience (or your husband’s experience if the post is about him) under the description of your combination.
I would start with the first combination that each of you tried (again a single post for each of you) and then use a separate post for the next combination that you each tried.
Again … one single post for each combination that each of you have tried in the sequential order that you tried them along with a description of your experience for that specific combination and how your experience and “symptoms” changed relative to the combination before it.
