Latex Mattress Retailers near Downsview (Toronto)

[phoenix]

Hi sb,

You are getting a little bit of misinformation or perhaps “partly correct” information from Sleepworks.

1. The owner doesn’t like wool in the quilting (says it does not stretch and instead matts). He uses Hollofil instead. Do you know anything about hollofil? I did a search on the website but it gave just three hits that just mentioned the word (one said it is good as a fire retardant, which I don’t believe is a requirement here in Canada).

Each manufacturer (just like any other group of people) may have their own preferences and beliefs for their own reasons but wool quilting has been used very successfully in high quality mattresses for many years and is a great quilting material for those who prefer it.

Hollofil is a trade name for a hollow synthetic polyester/Dacron fiber that is often used in sleeping bags or in jackets to replace down because it’s light and lofted and traps air which makes it very insulating. While it’s breathable and for most people it would be fine in terms of temperature … it is used mostly for its insulating ability and doesn’t absorb moisture or regulate temperature as effectively as wool.

2. He also said that a purely latex mattress can be compared to jello - meaning it is difficult to handle. I wonder if it could be an advantage when moving or transporting? For example, can it be “folded” or “rolled”?

He is right that latex is very heavy, “floppy” and can be difficult to handle and transport but of course in a mattress it’s not something that is moved very often. It can certainly bend easily and depending on the thickness can be folded or rolled or even compressed (see here). Of course all of this is more difficult with a full mattress vs individual layers but if you put it in a mattress box then with two people it can certainly be moved. For those who like latex the difficulties of moving or transporting it are a small price to pay for the feel and performance of sleeping on a latex mattress.

3. He recommends using polyurethane as the base layer and 3.5" (or 4") latex on top. With my weight and height (6’, 165 lbs) the latex would absorb everything; i.e., the base layer would not be reached. Is it as simple as this? How long can the polyurethane be expected to last?

You can see some comments about a latex/polyfoam hybrid such as he is suggesting vs an all latex mattress in post #2 here.

• Legislation in Ont (or maybe Canada) requires polyurethane mattresses to contain at least 45% soya oil … this makes polyurethane organic

I don’t know who told you this but neither one is remotely true.

• In the GTA, latex in ILD 31 and 41 is all that is available

This isn’t accurate either.

• Carpenter makes the latex foam, and was fined $500 million for price-fixing

Carpenter doesn’t make latex … they make polyurethane foams. Any latex they sell comes from another foam manufacturer. They and other foam manufacturers in Canada, the US, and Europe were involved in several price fixing legal actions but the legal proceedings are ongoing. A google search on Carpenter price fixing Canada will bring up much more information. I don’t know of any fines that have been imposed on any company that are close to the amount he mentioned.

Unfortunately the owner does not want to provide spec sheets. Said something about not wanting to bother the manufacturer for getting one.

I’m not sure what spec sheets he means but any manufacturer or retailer should be able to provide you with the information in this article. If they can’t I wouldn’t consider the mattress. For polyfoam (with or without soy polyols) you would need to know the thickness of the layers and the density of the polyfoam. For latex you would need to know the thickness of the layers and the type and blend of latex.

Phoenix