Hi CeruleanBlue.
Good to hear from you again.
You are quite right that mattress shopping can bring along “hidden” expenses as you’ve had with your returned Heaven mattress…time investment (before and after), pains, sleep disturbances …to say the least. But I am glad you were able to return it and that you now have a list of 3 good finalists. You are in the fortunate position to choose between “good and good” and with some good guidance from the retailer/manufacturer, you can find the best fit for you and your husband.
#1 pros/cons: With its level of customization for all 3 layers this should be enough to find a good fit layer arrangement. The top 2 layers can be selected in various ILDs SuperSoft latex is 15ILD, Soft/Plush is 22 ILD, for Medium is 32 ILD so there is enough range for any testing and swapping.
From your mattress selection I assume that you want at least 3 layers, of 10" thickness minimum… just FYI … many latex mattresses have 7" to 9" thicknesses with only 2 layers which should be sufficient to provide adequate support/comfort for lightweight sleepers.
The best way to avoid this is to have a detailed conversation with them about your BMI, sleep positions, and other mattress needs and preferences. Latex is a premium material with consistent behavior and there should be no need to become a latex layering expert when there are already a number of them at the ready, willing to help! They have a support team ready to help if fine-tuning is needed.
This is an important factor as far as your Personal Preferences and all the other 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 doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for). Something like this can be a “make it or break it” issue for many people. That said, I wouldn’t base your decision on the warranty offered. Warranties are not a reliable indicator of the useful life of a mattress as most of them have exclusions designed to protect the manufacturer from honoring them or exclude “normal” body impressions and don’t cover the loss of comfort and support that comes from foam softening. Granted that latex can in certain cases last for at least a decade. Beware of any salesperson who attempts to sell you a mattress based on its warranty and bear in mind that some of the highest quality and longest lasting mattresses in the world only have a 10-year warranty. In other words, base your durability estimates on what you know about the materials in a mattress, not on manufacturer warranties.
#2 pros/cons: Having multiple (five!) latex layers definitely gives you enough room to swap, test, experiment, etc. The goal is really to find a fit that’s going to most closely match your needs from the get-go. You already have some experience of what does not work for you so you don’t have to shop in the dark! The best way to reduce shipping/exchange costs would be a detailed conversation with the retailer/manufacturer based on your experience and your sleep stats, needs, etc.
And for the #3 MFC Presto…
Presto was designed with the idea of layer switching to accommodate up to 9 firmness options to suit different needs and preferences. It is likely that you’ll achieve the right feel from the beginning, with their expert guidance! MFC is not only a Trusted Member of our site which means that I think very highly of their products but Mario (the company owner) is also an expert member of our site with a great deal of knowledge and experience to help you discuss best-fit configuration. As far as the stretchy cover goes… you can always find an encasement or mattress protector that is more to your liking later. The most important thing at this stage is that you get good support/comfort. Sop I’d place the cover a little lower down your list of must-have.
Again, I know that mattress shopping can cause some information overload and “analysis paralysis.” All your 3 finalists are good durable beds so you can’t really go wrong. I’d gather a bit more data from the discussion with their support teams.
While I can’t choose the mattress for you, I do recommend that, in addition to detailed conversations with the three options above, that you also revisit the article that talks about the needs of different sleeping positions
Hopefully, I’ve been able to eliminate some of your anxiety and help you move forward. I’ll be interested to learn of your eventual decisions.
Phoenix