Latex mattress questions

[phoenix]

Hi Martina,

When you are looking at building your own DIY mattress I would make sure you have read post #15 here and post #2 here and post #5 here and post #7 here so that you have realistic expectations about the time and testing and trial and error it can take and the learning curve involved to end up with the design that is the best match for you.

1. Talatech Latex from Latex International – If a store sells a 19 ILD topper, is it exactly 19 ILD, or they don’t really know exact #, but know to a certain degree, say between 18 to 20 ILD, for example. In other words, does LI measures and labels EVERY 6" foam with a specific ILD #?

ILD is never exact although it is closer with blended Talalay than with other types of latex. Latex International blended Talalay measures the ILD in nine places on the core (Radium uses 15) and then they average out the ILD’s and “rate” the mattress as the rating that is closest to the average ratings they measured. The individual measurements can have a variance in the range of +/- 2 ILD (below detection).

2. So assuming 19 ILD foam is really 19, how long would it last on average with a normal sleeping usage? How long would it take for a body impression to form, say for a person that weighs 130 LB? I am potentially buying a 19 ILD foam, and concerned about its durability.

There is no way to answer this with a specific number of years because there are too many variables and durability is relative to each person. There is more about the factors that can affect the useful life of a mattress in post #4 here and the posts it links to. The one thing that you can safely say is that latex is the most durable of all the foam types.

3. I am also concerned about the supportability of 19 ILD (3" high). The support layer would be 36 ILD (3" high). Based on our measurements (5’ 3", 126 LBs and 5’ 8", 130 LBs), do I need to be concerned about alignment issues because the comfort layer being too soft?

There is no formula that can predict this and a DIY project may also involve some testing that you can use as reference points and some trial and error. ILD is only one of many factors that are part of building a mattress that “matches” your specific needs and preferences (see post #2 here).

4. We have an option of getting 28 / 36 ILDs instead of 19 / 36 ILDs. (I am ruling out 19 / 28 because we definitely want to avoid alignment issues.) In my past experience of approx. 32 (talalay) / approx. 35 (dunlop), I felt the top layer needs to be softer to a) relieve pressure issues and b) get a better lumbar support. I don’t know how much of the difference we would feel between 28 / 36 and 32 / 35, because if you average those 2 numbers they are very close. I thought about averaging to try to get the overall feeling, although I don’t know if this is an indication of anything.
   (28 + 36) / 2 = 32
   (32 + 35) / 2 = 33.5
   (19 + 36) / 2 = 27.5

Do you think I would notice the difference between 28 / 36 and 32 / 35?

That depends on how sensitive you are and only your own experience can tell whether you would notice a difference. Because you are looking at middle and bottom layers and your weight is light the difference would probably be small but some would feel it and some wouldn’t (more the difference between 28 and 32 than the 1 ILD difference between the bottom layer which is generally below detection and the deeper layers are the ones you “feel” the least). Once again there is no way to predict this for any individual person. I should also mention that “averaging” ILD’s isn’t really an effective way to decide on layering because it doesn’t take the compression modulus of different layer thicknesses into account and the number of inches you are averaging (which isn’t necessarily the actual thickness of any layers) can also make a difference (depending on how far different parts of your body sink into the mattress).

5. Do you have any other pros & cons comments regarding 28 / 36 vs. 19 / 36?

With only 6" of latex I would think that 28 / 36 would be much firmer than most people of your weight would be comfortable with but it would also depend on your body type and sleeping positions.

Phoenix