Latex topper firmness in combination with air mattress for side sleeper

[phoenix]

Hi Ana,

1.) What is the difference between combining layers of the same ILD or having one thicker layer?

Multiple layers will act more independently and will feel a little bit softer than a single layer of the same thickness and ILD.

[quote]The 2" 24 Talalay Topper also doesn’t feel very good to me in general. It feels like my muscles need to work a lot on it. I wonder if that is different with Dunlop, and if the spongyness of Talalay is not for me.

2.) Is that probable, that Dunlop works better for us even in the top layers, or is it likely that with the right base, the topper would work for us, or which explanation do you have (i.e. is it too soft)?[/quote]

It’s certainly possible that you may prefer Dunlop vs Talalay latex. There is more about the difference between them in post #7 here but the only reliable way to know which one you would prefer (or which one you will do better with) will be based on your own personal experience.

(3. Is there any company that offers similarly low prices than sleeponlatex? I saw mattresses.net has some ok-prices.)

The better online sources I’m aware of for latex are listed in post #4 here.

4.) What is the difference of option F) with being mostly synthetic? I usually prefer natural but am open to this option…

Outside of any differences in firmness … synthetic latex is typically a lower density, is less resilient, and has a lower compression modulus (the rate that a layer gets firmer with deeper compression) than natural latex but they would be the best source of guidance about the specific differences between the products they sell and other products they are familiar with on the market.

5.) Now my question is how the sinking in differs for 6" versus 3" or two 3" combined? You once wrote: “Dunlop will be 4 times firmer at 65% compression than it is at 25% compression while talalay will only be “about” 3 times firmer. So Talalay at 19 ILD will take 57 lbs (or less) to compress it by 65% while “19 ILD” Dunlop will take 76 lbs (or more) to compress it by 65%.”

There is more about the effect of thickness in post #14 here and there is more about the pros and cons of a single 6" core vs two separate 3" layers in post #2 here. The ratio between the firmness of a foam layer at 25% compression and 65% compression is called the compression modulus but I would keep in mind that it is not linear (the response curve of foam is generally banana shaped) and that the numbers are approximations that were used to illustrate the point.

For example, how is 3" of 30ILD Dunlop plus 2" 24ILD Talalay or plus 3" 20ild dunlop different from 6" 24ILD, and will my spine more likely be aligned with a 6" 24ild dunlop core or 3" 30ILD dunlop topper plus another topper, or 6" 34 ILD dunlop core? (sidesleeping and some stomach sleeping, some backsleeping too) Or a 3" 20 or 30 ILD Dunlop topper on the air mattress versus the 2" 24ILD talalay, which I know and hear you do not have experience with, which I personally would consider as a medium firm +/- adjustable base that does not seem to sag but distribute weight well. (pretty firm when fully blown up, I actually know 3 people that have been sleeping on those with a 1" topper for years and feel really well on those).

Even if I (or someone else) had experience on a specific combination of materials and components my experience may be completely different from yours. Unfortunately you are the you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress (or any combination of layers) 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 or how a mattress will “feel” to you or compare to another mattress based on specs (either yours or a mattress) or “theory at a distance” that can possibly be more accurate 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).

6.) How do we go about the purchase? Is there any place i.e. by Chicago or in Wisconsin that we could go to and try out layers of Latex? The closest thing I could lay on in a store nearby was Optimum Sealy Insp. Gold Plush: 2" OptiCool Gel Memory Foam, 3" OptiSense 4.0 lbs, with 7" memory foam core of 1.5lb

The better options or possibilities I’m aware of in and around the Chicago area are listed in posts #2 and #4 here. I don’t know where in Wisconsin you are but there is also a list for the Milwaukee area in post #2 here. You would need to check their websites to find out which of them sell individual layers or toppers or have component mattresses that you can test.

[quote]Should me and my partner go lie on Hybrids (coil core with 2"/3" toppers) and derive what we need from that? Is there a way to base our choice of the above mentioned A)-F) on experience instead of relatively blind guesses? There is a Verlo store we may check out.
Also, my partner slept a couple nights on IKEA Malfors and really liked it.[/quote]

Assuming that the materials in a mattress you are considering are durable enough for your body type and meet the quality/durability guidelines here … the choice between different types and combinations of materials and components or different types of mattresses are more of a preference and a budget choice than a “better/worse” choice (see this article). There are hundreds of different types of mattresses in each category and the only way to know whether you will sleep well on any one of them will be based on your own personal experience. There could be one or several specific mattresses or designs in any general category that will work well for you and there could be many in the same general category that you wouldn’t sleep well on at all. It always depends on the specifics not on generalities and the only way to know for certain how you will sleep on any specific mattress or combination of layers will be based on your own careful testing or personal experience.

[quote]7.) After all, considering to keep costs low but also find comfort for sleeping, what do you recommend?
Another option could be to order memory foam on amazon because there I could return them if they didn’t work, though I somehow got hooked on Latex… We also keep our eyes out on craigslist but since I still don’t really know what I need…[/quote]

Again I don’t make specific recommendations. I or some of the more knowledgeable members of the site can certainly help you to narrow down your options, help you focus on better quality/value choices that are available to you either locally or online, help you identify any lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress relative to your weight that you may be considering, act as a fact check, answer many of the specific questions you may have along the way that don’t involve what you will “feel” on a mattress, and help with “how” to choose but only you can decide which specific mattress, manufacturer, or combination of materials is “best for you” regardless of the name of the manufacturer on the label or whether anyone else (including me) would have the same criteria or circumstances or would make the same choice.

Unfortunately nobody has a crystal ball that can predict which specific mattress or combination of materials you will like best or that you will sleep best on with any certainty based on specs or “theory at a distance” and I would be very skeptical of anyone who claims that they do. It just doesn’t exist.

Phoenix