I’m shopping for a latex topper and looking for a bit of advice. I’m pretty sure I want 2" or 3" Talalay in about 18-24 ILD. I’m fine with blended, especially given the price advantage. I do want latex made by a well known manufacturer. I have no experience with latex and would have no way to tell if I receive the genuine article / correct firmness, so I don’t want to take my chances with any mystery foams or unreliable retailers.
This will go on top of a new firm innerspring mattress that I selected specifically to pair with a soft latex topper. I bought the entry level (cheapest, least frills) “firm” Beautyrest (13.75 gauge coils) I could find (queen size). Even this has more padding on top than I wanted. We slept on it for the first time last night and it feels very firm right now. It’s on a metal platform base, without a box spring of course.
I’m an average height skinny dude and my girlfriend is 5’2" about 130#. I’m a back and side sleeper. She’s a bit of everything, but I don’t know how much of her stomach sleeping is because our old mattress was uncomfortable for her on her back or side. She needs pressure relief, for her hips for example. I think she’s right on the edge of a 2" or 3" topper being suitable, whereas I figure 2" or less would be adequate for me. I’m concerned that 3" may screw up my spinal alignment (and maybe even hers). My idea was to start with a 2" topper and see how it goes, and if it’s not enough get an additional topper (maybe 1") for either the whole bed or just her side. I probably would’ve done that already, but I’m finding that a lot of websites only sell 3-inchers, and some that have 2-inchers only have more expensive all natural Talalay, or only have Dunlop. That’s causing me to reconsider whether I should just get a 3".
What do you think about how suitable 3" would be for us and how its performance would compare to 2"?
Say I have the kind of choice that Brooklyn Bedding offers, between 19 ILD and 24 ILD, what’s going to be my best bet?
Before you consider a latex topper (or any topper for that matter) I would strongly encourage you to test similar materials in person (even if it’s just the top layer of a mattress that uses it) so you have some personal reference points about how latex “feels” and performs. While latex is a great material … like all materials it may not be everyone’s preference.
Post #2 here and post #8 here have some guidelines (and links to some of the better sources I’m aware of) that can help you make the best possible topper choice using your experience on your current mattress and any testing you have done as a reference point.
Thanks for your reply and the links, I checked them out. I’m not very optimistic about being able to try much of a variety, particularly latex (and particularly material that’s not mystery foam called latex), locally. I’ve also become very skeptical of the value of testing mattresses in stores in general, but maybe it would have some usefulness to get a general feel for different types of topper materials. I don’t feel excited about memory foam, so I’ll probably end up rolling the dice on latex, probably the conservative route of getting a 2" topper and take it from there.
I think your own personal testing is probably the most reliable way to know if you like a specific type of material … at least in general; terms. Most areas have some type of latex mattresses available (and in most cases it’s not too difficult to find out what type).
If you let me know your city or zip I’d be happy to let you know of any possibilities I’m aware of in your area.
If you are “going blind” then a 2" topper would be a conservative approach (a “little to a fair bit” of extra softness).
Thanks for your offer. I’ve seen your suggestions for my area in another post. I don’t suppose you know offhand if any of those places would have Talalay toppers available for testing? Or any updates to that list? I guess I could take a look at their websites and make some calls. Only a few of them are really close though.
How much value would there be in trying an all foam bed with Talalay on top? Would that give me any useful sense of what Talalay would feel like on top of my mattress? It looks like I could try a Natura mattress with latex, for example. But it has wool, and for some reason Dunlop latex, over Talalay. So I wouldn’t even get to feel Talalay on top with that. Not even through wool.
By the way, I read your account of questioning Bob’s Discount Furniture about their mattresses. That was hilarious. It’s amazing that with all those calls you just got the runaround and could not find a person at the company who has a clue what they’re selling. Maybe you could find a way to get Bob on the phone (if that’s even his real name) to see if he even knows what they’re selling.
It’s up to date as far as I know or have researched. I keep the lists up to date as I come across new options although they may not include every option in the area.
I think it would be a good idea. The top few inches of a mattress are a big part of what you “feel” and if a mattress had several inches of Talalay on top … particularly if there was no quilting over it … it would give you a good reference point for what Talalay latex feels like. Even with a quilting layer it would give you some sense of the “feel” of the material.
Pure Latex Bliss has a number of mattresses that have blended Talalay latex in the top layers and use a stretch knit cover so they could be a useful testing ground as well. They also have several toppers (very soft in the mid teens range of ILD) that you could try on different mattresses as well. They have a retail store finder here so you could see if there were any close to you that may carry them.
Some of the Gold Bond dealers in the area may also carry their Ecotouch latex mattresses which also have Talalay latex comfort layers with an unquilted stretch cover.
A few phone calls will hopefully turn up some mattresses that use several inches of Talalay in the top layers but I would also check for quilting layers which may affect the feel vs sleeping directly on the latex itself. If there is nothing available that is close enough then you could still order the topper “blind” but if there is something close enough then IMO it would be worth testing.
This would also give you “some sense” of Talalay latex although the Dunlop used for the quilting and the wool would certainly change the feel vs Talalay by itself.
I still laugh when I think about this. If there is a “Bob” … he’s probably in accounting
