Hi Ruler2112,
Wow … that’s quite a saga,
The first thing I should ask you is where you live (city or zip) because I may know of some better possibilities in your area that are closer than 3 hours away.
You unfortunately seem to be one of those people who are tough on mattresses … probably partly because of your sleeping style, and partly because of your body type and weight distribution, and since you are also sensitive to alignment issues that comes from foam softening … all of these things are “conspiring” against you. While Denver mattress uses higher quality foams than most major manufacturers in their price range (1.8 lbs) … in a softer one sided mattress under the stress of heavier weights this won’t hold up as well as higher quality or firmer foams. You can see some of the different factors involved in the durability of a mattress in post #4 here and the posts it links to but part of the challenge is that you are also sensitive to pressure issues so while firmer foams are also more durable … they can also be uncomfortable. In your current case the quilting is what makes your mattress firmer so the foams underneath are the same in both mattresses. Sitting up in bed in the softer version and and the weight concentration it leads to probably hastened the process as well.
With all of this … it would make sense to use latex but I would also bear in mind that while latex is a more durable material than polyfoam … softer layers of latex in the top layers will also be less durable than firmer latex and the thicker the softer layers are the more they will affect you when they soften.
I think that you have also been given some misinformation about latex. You can read more about the difference between blended and 100% natural Talalay in post #2 here and as you can see in softer ILD’s the blend will probably be more durable than 100% natural. Once you are in the mid 20’s or so the difference would likely start to even out. As you can also see in post #2 here along with post #6 here … with Dunlop it’s likely to be the other way around with 100% natural being more durable than most synthetic Dunlop. Dunlop also doesn’t usually come in ILD’s as soft as talalay.
I should also mention that both blended and 100% natural talalay have been tested for any offgassing in the same way (Oeko-Tex standard 100 class 1) and most of the Dunlop has the same of a similar certification so it’s unlikely you would find any type of latex that has an issue with safety or VOC’s whether it’s blended or natural.
One of the advantages of latex though is that even firmer layers are more “point elastic” than polyfoam and take on the body shape better so they can be more pressure relieving even in firmer versions.
I would avoid the Stearns & Foster “so called” latex mattresses because most of them use fairly thick layers of lower quality polyfoam above the latex and you would be asking for a history repeat because the upper layers are the weak link of most mattresses. Because the top layers of a mattress are it’s “weak link” … this is the exact opposite of the type of construction that uses the highest quality of materials in the upper layers that is the most durable. The top 3.5" of the Italian Villa garden for example is all soft polyfoam and this is what you would be sleeping on … not the latex. The foam they use on top of the latex is a mix of different densities and thicknesses but the best of them would be in the same range as the Denver mattresses and the worst of them would be lower density and less durable yet … in spite of their much higher prices. The latex is also mostly synthetic Dunlop or what they call “smart latex” although it’s still a higher quality material than most polyfoam. The best of them is the firmest model (the River View Villa or equivalent) which only has an inch of polyfoam and its higher density or what they call “high performance” (similar to the foam in the Denver mattresses) so this would be the best of the group but because it would be so firm and given your comments … you would likely need a topper on top to do a good job with pressure relief and comfort. A topper has the advantage of being replaceable though which means that if it softens or breaks down faster than the rest of the mattress you can just replace the topper. It would also increase the durability of the foam below it. Going in this direction with a Stearns & Foster though would put an already overpriced and lower value mattress in a higher budget range yet and it would certainly be more than some higher quality mattresses that are likely available to you.
I would also make sure you have read post #1 here which includes or has links to most of the basic information, steps, and guidelines you will need to make the best possible choices.
Your next step though would be to find some of the better local retailers and manufacturers (or possibly even consider an online purchase if there are none close to you) and if you let me know where you are I’d be happy to list the ones I know about.
As you can see in post #404 here and post #12 here … I think this is particularly true in the mainstream parts of the industry but there are certainly many great exceptions as well if you know where and how to find them.
Again … I would differentiate “good” salespeople that do their job and have the knowledge and experience to do it well and the “bad” ones that are more concerned with “making the sale” at any cost and their profit or commission that goes with it but unfortunately the mainstream industry has many more of the second than the first.
Again this is very true with the major brands but not so much the smaller local or regional manufacturers who operate in a very different way.
These along with a mattress / topper combination (that you have tested as a combination) have the advantage or being able to replace just a layer instead of the whole mattress. Some of the component mattresses are also very flexible in terms of being able to fine tune them with re-arranging or exchanging layers after a purchase so this can be a real advantage as well. On the other hand … there are also many smaller local manufacturers who will open up a mattress and make adjustments to the mattress as well and then close it up again if that becomes necessary but of course you can’t do this on your own.
Zoning with a firmer center zone to help “hold up” the heaviest area of your body (the pelvic girdle) which helps the pelvis from “tilting” and maintain good alignment may also be worth considering although with latex it may be less necessary because of its ability to get firmer with deeper compression (and become more supportive) faster than other foams.
Yes this is not unusual because furniture is designed for sitting and uses higher quality and firmer foams that have different properties (better compression modulus for example so they get firmer faster as you sink into them more). Furniture foams (which just means higher quality) are the types of foam that you will find is used more often with smaller or independent manufacturers. Sofas usually start with 1.8 lb polyfoam in the seating area and then goes up from there.
Yes … all latex is very durable relative to other types of foam but once again these 30 year stories are usually with firmer latex and with mattress designs that don’t have the same thicker softer comfort layers that are more common with mattresses today which would be less durable under greater load than the firmer versions.
If you test mattresses locally then ILD information isn’t important at all because your body will tell you what you need to know about comfort and support. If you make a purchase online then knowing the ILD of the layers you have tested can be somewhat helpful as a guideline (particularly in the upper layers) for an online purchase but it’s often not available and ILD alone is only one part why a particular mattress may feel softer or firmer or have the properties it does (compression modulus, resiliency, point elasticity, layer thickness, quilting layers, construction methods, covers, and other components and the overall design are just as important a part of how a mattress feels and performs as ILD). If you are considering online it’s usually better to go with the guidance of the manufacturer you are working with in combination with your testing experiences than to go with ILD alone.
I think that the people who present this as a “better worse” comparison are completely missing the boat. It’s a personal preference issue and each has a different feel and response so some people just prefer one over the other. They are both useful in different designs that take advantage of the strengths of each material or that cater to the individual preferences that each of us have.
I would keep in mind that the experience and knowledge of the retailers or manufacturers you connect with and work with can be just as important a part of successful mattress shopping as researching mattresses in the maze of conflicting and often biased or misleading information you will find “out there” and the steps I usually suggest are to research the sources (especially to make sure that they are transparent about what is in their mattresses) before you research the mattresses.
Phoenix