Thank you for the help in unravelling what is in that mattress!
The help you offer on this site is incredible, and whilst I am still learning, I already feel far more informed than most consumers are in the purchase of a mattress.
Itās incredible that you can possibly spend $2100 or so on a mattress and it have potentially sub-par components in the most critical area of the mattress. Iām not saying that is the case, just that you are right, you can find information about many other beds, itās not worth the time to try and track down itās components unless we just canāt find one with our same perceived level of comfort ( which I doubt will be the case!)
I also have a personal reference for the hack-sack-leisure.com place that you mentioned. One of my colleagues at work purchases all of his beds from there and has nothing but good to say about them, so I will be stopping by there some time this week to talk with the owner.
We are hoping that he has some no spring latex based mattress, or can custom make one for us, with similar perceived comfort to the spring air without the mystery foam!
Next up for us was the Spring Air Back Supporter Latex.
They had 3 models on display / sale at costco. One of which we didnāt like right away.
That left us with the following 2 models :
Exhilaration: $1,700 King Size
Fabric: Organic Cotton with Silverness Upholstery: 1" Temperature-regulating Latex Upholstery: 2" Medium Firm Latex Support Core: 8" HD Plant-based Polyurethane Foundation: 9" Eco-Wood
Slumber: $2,100 King size
Fabric: Organic Cotton with Silverness Upholstery: 1" Temperature-regulating Latex Upholstery: 1" Plush Latex Upholstery: 2" Medium Firm Latex Support Core: 8.5" HD Plant-based Polyurethane Foundation: 9" Eco-Wood
This is where it got a little tricky for me, I liked the Slumber as it felt that my shoulder was allowed to sink deeper into the mattress relieving the pressure points. My wife on the other hand preferred the marginally firmer Exhilaration model.
I guess this is where our statistics start to come into play. I am 5ā10" around 215 lbs with weight distributed pretty evenly and she is 6ā0", curvier around the hips and weighs more than I do(no exact figures here) but carries most of her weight around that hip to lower back area.
So I think I am starting to see a pattern with preferences around mattress and I like a slightly softer sink in type of feeling and she prefers it a little firmer, but she probably also sinks in at that level based upon weight differences.
As for the mattresses above, I think they are probably share similarity with the first one we liked the feel of initially at similar price points, but the support core could probably be better for the price they are asking, but at least there wasnāt the Poly Foam in the comfort layers.
I think youāre definitely on the right track. The only thing I would caution is to make sure that both of these mattresses have no āhiddenā polyfoam over the latex (sometimes they forget to list it but it doesnāt look like this is the case here). You can find this out either with a spec sheet or adding up the thickness of the layers in the description to make sure they add up to the thickness of the mattress with a small allowance for the thickness of the ticking/quilting.
Men generally carry more weight in their upper bodies and have wider shoulders than women which need to sink in more if they sleep on their side (even though they are still lighter than the pelvis). Women on the other hand tend to have wider hips and carry more weight in their lower body so the issue is often āstoppingā the hips/pelvis from sinking in too far.
The thicker upper layers of the Slumber (an extra inch of āplushā latex) are likely helping your shoulders more while the thinner layers on top of the Exhilaration are closer to the support layers which help your wife more. This is also one of those places where an innerspring or latex in the core may be more accommodating for the differences between you (they are more adaptable to different weights and shapes).
Many manufacturers will offer a āside to sideā split layering to take into account the different weights and profiles of a couple. Zoning ā¦ especially where the support layers under the hips/pelvis is firmer ā¦ can also help as it can create a better balance between the āsinking inā needs of the shoulders and the āsupportā needs of the hips. With slightly softer support under the shoulder area your shoulders can sink in more while the firmer support under the hips can help with pelvic/lumbar support for your wife. Most types of support layers have zoned options but there are differences between the effectiveness of different types of zoning. More than 3 zones can be a little tricky and actually less effective in many cases.
Iām looking forward to any feedback from the two factory direct outlets in Boise but you are heading in the right direction IMO.
Thanks for the encouragement, and the amazing help you have already provided!
We took a trip to luxury Mattress Outlet on the way home today - These guys are no longer on the Cole Road location in Boise, and appear to be out of business in Boise at least. We are going to venture out to Nampa at the weekend to see if the nampa location is still around, also I see you edited your post to remove Bountiful Rest Mattress CO, we were going to head out to Nampa and take a look at them as well and kill 2 birds with one Stone. Are they confirmed to be no longer around or you no longer think they are worth the trip assuming they are still there?
The one I am however most looking forward to going to see is Leisure industries (hacksack-leisure.com) with the reviews from a personal friend and the fact his whole family donāt even look around anymore, they just go straight there for mattresses. Thatās a pretty good initial testimonial for me!
Iām not thrilled to go back to Furniture row, as with my knowledge I now have gained in a very short period of time, I can see what the sales rep was trying to do on my first visit. I will however go and take a look at the two mattresses Snowmass & Aspen, but I think we are heading towards a completely Latex mattress based upon our personal needs and our perceived dislike for springs in the mattress ( I do realize it is probably the poor quality foam or poor quality springs that led to this perception, but it is hard to change my wifeās mind:lol: )
Iāve been looking at some of the configurations on sleepez.com as well and am trying to work out the benefits (to me and my wife specifically) of the 13,000 over the 10,000. I do like that we can tailor each side of the bed to our specific needs, and am not afraid to make an online purchase after I have done the necessary research, and ruled out any local manufacturers and stores. Just wondering if the 13,000 is overkill or necessary in my case.
I already feel that I am limited locally to either hack-sack or Denver mattress (although there may be some options at sleepwithgrace too), based on my current experiences and material in each of the beds weāve liked so far. The search has however been beneficial for me to realize that there is not a one size fits all, and I need my wife to take a far more active role in her needs than she likes to! :lol: She has so far all been about compromising to my needs for the softer side, and that need not be the case as we can tailor each side of the bed:)
I called bountiful Rest in Salt Lake City (who Iāve talked with before and have impressed me) and I confirmed that this was one of their outlets that was closed down because of business conditions and the economy.
Iād also love to hear about your experience and feedback about hacksack-leisure. They certainly fit the profile of the type of manufacturer that I like.
The snowmass is a āmostly latexā mattress except for the 1" of quilting foam on top which is usually the maximum that I consider to be OK and 2" in the base which is not really an issue. The foam they use in the quilting though is 1.8 lb density which is higher quality and firmer than you will usually see in more ācommercialā mattresses. The 2" of Talalay on top is 24 ILD and the 6" of talalay under it is 32 ILD for reference. It may be a little on the soft side for the two of you but your experience will tell you this more accurately. the Aspen has more poly underneath less latex (the latex ILDās are the same) and the polyfoam on top is softer.
The benefit of the 13000 is primarily for people who are larger or greater weight. Shawn can give you more feedback about the specifics but I think the rough guideline would be in the range of mid 200ās in weight. A thicker mattress allows the use of firmer foams which can compress to a lower percentage of their overall thickness and so can act softer when necessary but also is thick and firm enough to avoid the feeling of bottoming out (getting too firm too quickly) with heavier weights and deeper compression. The extra material provides more cushioning and gradual compression and greater adaptability with larger weights or sizes. The weight cutoff is only a guideline as some may prefer the extra flexibility available of more layers or the feel of a thicker mattress with lower weights as well but the main advantage is to accommodate greater weight and size.
Iām glad your wife is taking a bigger role ā¦ mattress shopping is a lot more fun that way especially when both of you can get just what you need and want
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I think we are going to go take a look at these today. There is a groupon coupon today that alerted me to them. Any brands there that you are aware of that I should pay attention to in terms of value?
After a quick scan of their mattresses I am not sure it is worth my time to visit as I think we are sold on latex at this point and do not want springs or memory foam ( except as potentially a short term throw away topper)
Iāve also been emailing back and forth with Jeremy at sleepez and he has recommended the 10,000 with a configuration of medium over firm over extra firm for both my wife and I.
Until I just saw that groupon we had it narrowed down to leisure industries, who we are going to go visit tomorrow and sleepez.
I saw these and didnāt include them mainly because the odds seemed less that they would have something you wanted using higher quality materials with good value.
Having said that, if I considered them I would tend to call them first and find out a few details of some of their mattresses.
Englander makes some better value mattresses (which they may or may not carry) in comparison to other mainstream brands.
King Koil (Comfort solutions) also makes some āmostly latexā mattresses.
Corsicana makes some āpromotionalā (lower budget) mattresses that in the lower budget ranges (using polyfoam) may have better value than other mainstream brands.
Glideaway makes some better value memory foam mattresses in the lower budget ranges that compete favorably with other mainstream brands (some factory direct manufacturers even carry them rather than going through the expense of prototyping their own memory foam mattresses for the fire codes).
With all of these the brand is not nearly as important as the materials in a specific mattress (and your ability to find out from a retail outlet).
I doubt that the quality/value here would be better than what you already know about but a phone call describing the specifics of what you are looking for (for example latex with no more than an inch of polyfoam above the latex or memory foam that uses 5 lb breathable memory foam etc) and then confirming that they can give you the layer by layer breakdown of their mattresses (to confirm that when they say āyesā to your questions they are not āforgettingā some of the layers) will quickly discover if they are worth a trip.
Thanks for confirming my assumptions after scanning their mattresses. I think I will save myself a trip.
That leaves me with hack sack leisure industries as my sole hope of finding what I am looking for locally.
I think we are tending towards the 13,000 just to give us a touch more configuration if we need it.
My gut tells me that I am probably going to go the sleepez route because I am not sure that leisure industries have a 100% latex mattress that we have our minds and hearts set on at this point.
We know we donāt want poly foam anywhere in the mattress, and we know we donāt want springs either which has me pretty sure on what path.
Whilst when I set out on this journey I didnāt want to go over $2000 I would rather go over a touch and get what we want than settle for something else.
one of the other posts on here also had me realise something about the sleepez option that is a great advantage is the ability to replace the softer comfort layers in the mattress in 10 years rather than the whole mattress.
That is a great selling point to me and one Iād jump on if I was in the industry and had a product that I could stand behind!
Thanks again for this amazing resource and the help you have offered me and my wife on this journey.
Just got back from Leisure industries and they have some nice product with good materials on offer. Unfortunately for me they donāt offer a 100% Latex bed. The closest I could come to was a mattress with 4" of Talalay Latex with a 29 ILD over several inches of HR Polyfoam.
The price for the King set including the box springs was $1650, which seemed fairly good value in comparison to all the other shopping I have done in the area. I think for other comparable beds with slightly lesser quality materials we were looking at least $500 more than that.
They also had some Latex with memory foam combinations which we did not ask too many details about as I didnāt want to waste their time as we have decided on 100% Latex.
Overall I was impressed with their product and their prices, it is just a pity that they didnāt offer what I was looking for.
In making the decision we ruled out spring cores on personal preference, we ruled out polyfoam based on the research and help from here, and we ruled out memory foam after deciding we liked the feel of latex better, along with the durability factor.
Our personal criteria meant we really donāt have a local option, but for anyone else reading that is not as focused on Latex as we are then Leisure industries seemed to be the best value quality product in the area.
I ended up ordering the 13,000 mattress from Sleepez and we went with the top 2 layers split and the bottom 2 not with a configuration of medium-Firm,Firm, Extra firm for both sides in the blended Talalay.
Youāre right ā¦ they are a much better value than mainstream type mattresses and the materials seem like good quality even though as you say itās not all latex. Latex over high quality polyfoam (or over a good innerspring) is a good alternative for many people that want to approach the feel of an all latex mattress without the expense of a latex support core. Just for reference for those who read this post ā¦ the Sealy Embody Meditation is a similar construction (4" of latex over polyfoam) and uses lower quality blended Dunlop over what is probably lower quality polyfoam and it currently sells for $600 more. ADMIN NOTE:Removed 404 page link | Archived Footprint: us-mattress.com/sealy-meditation.html
How did the 4" of 29 ILD feel in terms of pressure relief? Iād be curious too just for future reference if it was Talalay or Dunlop.
In any case ā¦ it looks to me like you did well with both your mattress choice and your layer choices. I hope you have a chance to report back when youāve had chance to sleep on it for a bit.
It was Talalay and for me it felt good, my shoulder is where I can immediately tell if it is going to be a problem or not, and this one felt firm and supporting, but soft enough for comfort, I was able to lie on a shoulder that is more than willing to ache for a good 15-20 minutes whilst the owner and I talked about mattresses and why Iād decided on 100% latex and the quality of his mattresses.
The firm version of this bed was a complete no go for me though, it had 2 inches of the same Talalay over the same polyfoam, but was extremely firm and didnāt offer me enough comfort as a side sleeper. It didnāt feel bad on my back though, but was completely unsuitable for my sleeping style.
He was impressed with my knowledge of mattresses and I laughed telling him that I had no clue just over a week ago, and that Iād come a long way in a short period of time thanks to this wonderful resource online.
My wife read some of the posts between us by the way and said you have a PHD in mattresses!
Iāll check back in after the sleeper mattress arrives and let you know what we both think.
So weāve been sleeping on the mattress for about a week now, and my opinions have changed over this time.
Initially it appeared to be way too firm for my liking, but even after the 1st nights sleep, I noticed that my shoulder didnāt tend to have any pain. On my previous mattress Iād wake up with pain in my shoulder, so this was an immediate change, and I now recognise that my comfort layer on my previous mattress was just allowing me to sink into the firmer support layer and wasnāt relieving the pressure points too well.
A week into the new mattress and both my wife and I are however loving it. No pain in the morning, very comfortable no matter which position we sleep in, and no time for it to conform in these positions. My wife also likes the fact that room temperature doesnāt impact how the mattress feels, like it did with the memory foam.
We ended up layering the mattress from top to bottom (on both sides) Medium-Firm-Firm-Extra Firm.
Sheās also happy that the mattress is not as deep as our previous one and her selection of sheets are no longer limited to 21" deep pockets.:lol:
It did however end up costing my a further $2,000 as she decided she needed a whole bedroom makeover to go with the new mattress!:ohmy:
Thanks again for all of your help, and Iāll probably check in again later to give another update after a month or so. I think it is valuable for other people that may be looking to get feedback after a little more time on the mattress.
I know from my own experience and that of many others that latex has a unique combination of firmness/support and pressure relief that is unusual and sometimes takes some getting used to (especially if the feel is much different from the more ātypicalā mattresses that most people are used to). If you āget it rightā though ā¦ thereās nothing else quite like it IMO ā¦ and itās nice to know as well that it is the most durable of all the foams so the feeling and performance can be expected to last for a long time.
What better reason to go on a bedroom spree than buying a new mattress . I guess thatās something like buying a great new pair of shoes and then needing a new wardrobe to go with them
I completely agree with you that any ongoing feedback from forum members can be exceptionally valuable to new members who are just beginning their search. Thank you.
Itās been a while since Iāve been back here, but I just wanted to give my 2 cents from my experience. Iām so thankful for the suggestions on where to find a quality mattress.
We ended up buying from Leisure Industries in Boise on Federal Way. I love their quality and materials. Plus, I love the flexibility they offer. I liked that I could make changes like an organic cotton cover instead of the standard mattress cover material for a minimal fee (I think the organic cotton has now been discontinued but they offer a bamboo product in itās place). And where else are you going to find someone who can potentially alter the comfort layers in your bed after you have purchased? The peace of mind that if I wasnāt pleased with how my mattress felt, I could have them make adjustments after the fact was great. I know there would have been charges to make changes, but nowhere near the cost of a new bed. They also have started selling two sided mattresses, which arenāt something you can easily find.
Since first buying from them in 2013, we have purchased another mattress set from them and will make our next mattress purchase in the coming year from them as well. I would highly recommend them.
Thanks for taking the time to share your longer term feedback and experiences with Leisure industries ā¦ I appreciate it ā¦ and I think it will be very helpful for other forum members in the area as well.
When you visited us before you hadnāt mentioned what you ended up purchasing and I never had the chance to say ācongratulations on your new mattress!ā (now plural).
Itās great to hear that you made some good quality/value choices that turned out so well for you
Iām glad there were posts in this topic. I had long forgotten I had posted in such a long thread with some great details around the Boise area. Iām also glad that Iāve been able to help someone else and give a little back to the site that helped me make a great decision around my purchase.
We are still loving our mattress and itās showing no signs of aging at this point either. It has been that good for me that Iāve also forgotten that I used to wake up with shoulder pain.
My feedback 3 years down the road is that if I had to make the same decision again today, I wouldnāt hesitate to go the way we did, I havenāt regretted it once.
Thanks again Phoenix for this wonderful resource that just keeps on giving!
I too am in the process of purchasing a mattress in Boise. Thanks so much for coming back to report long-term about your SleepEZ. My husband and I are also pretty sold on latex and are debating buying locally or online. We are both overweight, but I will be having WLS and anticipate losing quite a bit. My husband likes a softer bed, but with my lower back pain I think firmer is better for me. We are currently sleeping on a 10" memory foam mattress that he likes pretty well and I hate. Lately Iāve been sleeping on our air mattress just to get some support. So here is what Iām wondering: would it be better for us to try the SleepEZ or something like it, like the Dreamfoam 12" Talalay, or head up the road to Leisure Ind. on Federal Way? Iām concerned about buying a bed now before I lose a significant amount of weight, but I just canāt sleep on this thing anymore either. Please help!
While I can certainly help with āhowā to choose ā¦ Itās not possible to make specific suggestions or recommendations for either a mattress, manufacturers/retailers, or combinations of materials or components because the first āruleā of mattress shopping is to always remember that you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress 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 āmatchā for you in terms of ācomfortā, firmness, or PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your own Personal preferences) or how a mattress will āfeelā to you or compare to another mattress based on specs (either yours or a mattress), sleeping positions, health conditions, or ātheory at a distanceā that can possibly be more reliable 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).
Iām not sure what youāve read since you found the site but just in case you havenāt read it yet ā¦ the first place to start your research is the mattress shopping tutorial here which includes all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that can help you make the best possible choice ā¦ and perhaps more importantly know how and why to avoid the worst ones.
Two of the most important links in the tutorial that I would especially make sure youāve read are post #2 here which has more about the different ways to choose a suitable mattress (either locally or online) that is the best āmatchā for you in terms of ācomfortā and PPP that can help you assess and minimize the risks of making a choice that doesnāt turn out as well as you hoped for and post #13 here which has more about the most important parts of the āvalueā of a mattress purchase which can help you make more meaningful quality/value comparisons between mattresses in terms of suitability (how well you will sleep), durability (how long you will sleep well), and the overall value of a mattress compared to your other finalists based on all the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.
Again nobody can speak to how any specific mattress will āfeelā for someone else or whether it will be a good āmatchā in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP because this is too subjective and relative to different body types, sleeping positions, and individual preferences, sensitivities, and circumstances and you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress ā¦ but outside of PPP (which is the most important part of āvalueā), the next most important part of the value of a mattress purchase is durability which is all about how long you will sleep well on a mattress. This is the part of your research that you canāt see or āfeelā and assessing the durability and useful life of a mattress depends on knowing the specifics of its construction and the type and quality of the materials inside it regardless of the name of the manufacturer on the label (or how a mattress feels in a showroom or when it is relatively new) so again I would always make sure that you find out information listed here so you can compare the materials and components to the quality/durability guidelines here to make sure there are no lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress that would be a cause for concern relative to the durability and useful life of a mattress before making any purchase.
It would make sense to narrow down your finalists to two or three choices so you can compare them to decide which of them would be the most suitable, the most durable, and the best value choice based on all the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.
One of the advantages of a component mattress with a zip cover that has individual layers is that you have good options after a purchase to fine tune the comfort and/or support of a mattress both before and after a purchase (either by rearranging layers or exchanging layers or components) and if one of the layers softens or breaks down before the others (usually one of the softer upper layers) or if your needs or preferences change over time (as a result of a weight change for example) you can just replace a single layer or component instead of replacing the whole mattress.
Thank you, Phoenix! Iāve been researching off and on for a few months, but just finally made it to your site. I have read some but not all of the topics you mentioned, so Iāll be sure to read the others you recommend befor going any further. I canāt thank you enough; I already feel less anxious about buying a new mattress.
