Looking for some guidance.

Discussions General Mattresses Questions
1

Well found this site and have been looking it over the past few days. Wife and I are looking for a new mattress. The past 7 years we have used a temperpedic mattress (at least thats what the co worker we got it from told us it was). Anyway that mattress has been great for us both. We are used to sleeping on a memory foam bed now and are looking for a replacement. That bed still works great, but the top layer seems to be breaking down in some area. I am 6’3" 290, side sleeper, wife is 5’3" 150, sleeps side, back. Anyway we both have been looking around online and we each have found some that fit our budget. But also wondering if anyone knows any stores in the Southeast PA area that has decent mattresses.

One choice that came up was the Dynasty Mattress Lux Grand, seemed like it has good support and reviews over on Amazon are not terrible. But hard to find any input on these outside of the reviews. http://dynastymattress.ecrater.com/p/15262234/15-cal-king-luxury-grand-with-75-hd#

Then we were looking at both Casper and then Leesa. Kind of liked the Leesa company, but am not sure about moving to a mattress that isn’t the same as we are used to. These seem a bit firmer from what I read.

Next up we were looking into Novosbed and either the Aria or Harmony. Wife like a firmer mattress, and since I am bigger I like it a bit softer. So thinking if we go Novosbed, the Aria would make more sense since it would be firmer for her, and my thinking is I would sink in a bit more.

Guess if anyone has more info on Novosbed I would like to hear it. I did search the site and read what was available on here for them. Doesn’t seem to be many reviews from a company making beds for 4-5 years now. Seems the material in their beds is decent, and the price is on point with what we would like to spend.

In the end we would like to spend only around 1200, which limits our choices. Main reason I was looking for an online company was the ability to pay via paypal credit. Anyway any suggestions or advice would be appreciated.

2

Hi Thinkink,

The first place I would start your research is the mattress shopping tutorial here which has all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that you will need to make the best possible choice … and perhaps more importantly know how and why to avoid the worst ones.

Two of the more important links in the tutorial that I would especially make sure you’ve read are post #2 here which has more about the different ways to buy a suitable mattress that is the best “match” for you in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) that can help you assess and minimize the risks of making a choice that doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for that are involved in each of them and post #13 here which has more about the most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase which can help you make more meaningful comparisons between mattresses in terms of suitability, durability, and value.

I’m not sure where you are in the SE PA area but the better options or possibilities I’m aware of in the the Philadelphia/Wilmington/Trenton areas (subject to the “vaalue” guidelines I linked) are listed in post #4 here. There is also a list for the Harrisburg area in post #2 here and the list for the Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton/ Lehigh Valley area is in post #6 here.

The mattress shopping tutorial also includes two links to the better online options I’m aware of (in the optional online step) and one of them is for memory foam mattresses.

I I would be very cautious about using other people’s reviews or experiences on a mattress (either positive or negative) as a reliable source of information or guidance about how suitable a mattress may be for you or the durability of a mattress and in many cases they can be more misleading than helpful because a mattress that would be a perfect choice for one person may be completely unsuitable for someone else to sleep on or vice versa (see post #13 here).

The Dynasty is made in China which means that the quality/durability of the materials are more uncertain than materials that are made in North America and it’s durability could also be affected by any fillers that are used in the foam or how long the mattress was compressed during shipping and storage (see post #6 here).

You can read more about Dynasty in posts #3 and #4 here and a forum search on dynasty (you can just click the link) will bring up more information and feedback about them as well.

You can read more about Casper and Leesa and some of the other new “one choice fits all” mattresses that only have a single firmness choice in post #3 here.

Novosbed used good quality and durable materials in their mattresses and they are one of the better online memory foam sources which is why I included them in the online memory foam list. A forum search on Novosbed (you can just click the link) will bring up almost 400 forum posts that mention them although of course only some of them are feedback from people who have purchased them.

NOTE ADDED JAN, 2016: They have now introduced their new simplified choice mattress which has replaced their previous models and have also become a member of this site.

While there are too many unknowns, variables, and personal preferences involved for anyone to be able to tell you which mattress to choose … hopefully the information here can help with “how” to make the best possible choice and I’m looking forward to finding out what you end up deciding … and of course any other comments or questions you may have along the way.

Phoenix

3

Thanks for the reply Phoenix. I appreciate the links. I am leaning towards Novo above the others. I want to like that Dynasty mattress but the concerns you brought up were some I had as well. It seems the materials Novosbed list is pretty good from what I read you should go by on the forums. I now just got to decide between the Aria and the Harmony. I sleep hot in our tempurpedic we have now, its 15 degrees out thermostat set at 65 and I have an air conditioner on in our bedroom every night just to keep the bed cool and not sink in so much lol. So from what I understand the Gel on the Harmony, and the dual channel foam might be the cooler of the two. I just don’t want it to be to soft for my wife lol. But I guess thats the good thing about the trial.

As for location I am outside of Reading PA. Seems some of these companies (Leesa and I believe Novosbed) have their mattresses made about 30 min from me. So was hoping maybe someplace local would have something similar we could at least try out.

Anyway appreciate the response.

4

Hi Thinkink,

When you can’t test a mattress in person to make sure that it’s comfortable and suitable for your body type, sleeping positions, and personal preferences (including sleeping temperature) then the most reliable source of guidance is always a more detailed conversation with a knowledgeable and experienced retailer or manufacturer that has your best interests in mind who can help “talk you through” the options they have available based on the information you provide them, any local testing you have done, and the “averages” of other customers that are similar to you. They will know more about helping to “match” their specific mattress designs to different body types, sleeping positions, and preferences, how their mattresses compare in terms of temperature regulation, and which of the firmness and layering options they have available will have the best chance of success than anyone else.

NOTE ADDED JAN, 2016: They have now introduced their new simplified choice mattress which has replaced their previous models and have also become a member of this site.

There is more about the different ways that one mattress can “match” or “approximate” another one in post #9 here but it’s very unlikely that you will find two mattresses that have exactly the same materials, components, and specs so in terms of comfort and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) the only way to know for certain whether another mattress was comparable would be based on your own personal testing and experience on both of them. Having said that … all of the Novosbed mattresses list a major brand mattress that is widely available that would be comparable that you can use to get a good sense of how they feel. They describe the Aria as being comparable to the Tempurpedic Cloud Supreme and the Harmony as being comparable to the Sealy Optimum Inspiration.

In terms quality and durability … the only way to make meaningful comparisons between two mattresses would be by comparing the type and quality of the materials inside both of them (see this article) but the quality and durability of the materials will have little to do with how a mattress feels or compares to another one. None of their mattresses have any obvious weak links in their design.

All the mattresses you are mentioning are only available online so the only way to “test” them would be in your own home after a purchase but they all have a good trial and return policy as well so the risk of trying them to see if they are a good match for you would be very small if they don’t turn out to be as suitable for you as you hoped for.

Phoenix

5

Thanks again for your reply. Have one more question for ya. I ran into this site as its listed on here for Dreamfoam. I was looking at the Ultimate Dreams 13-Inch Gel Memory Foam Mattress. In your opinion which do you feel is the stronger of the two. The Dreamfoam 13" or the Novosbed Aria. Only thing I am worried about with Dreamfoam is they charge for a return, and I would hate to have to box up a King bed to return. But just wondering which you feel is the better quality mattress since you read and see alot more on this site them I do.

Thanks.

6

Hi Thinkink,

The most important factor in the durability of a mattress is the quality and durability of the materials inside it … particularly in the upper layers which are the weakest link of most mattresses. There is more about the many variables that can affect the durability and useful life of a mattress relative to different people in post #4 here and the posts it links to.

While the two mattresses you are considering have different designs and one is softer than the other (the Aria is comparable to the Tempurpedic Cloud Supreme and the Dreamfoam has a little thicker memory foam layers and is comparable to the Tempurpedic Cloud Luxe) … they both use 4 lb memory foam on top of 5 lb memory foam in their comfort layers so in terms of durability they would be quite similar for most people.

The Aria has a higher density 2.0 lb base foam and the Dreamfoam uses a 1.5 lb base foam and while for most people this would make little difference in real life … for those that are in higher weight ranges (higher than the low 200’s or so) and are more likely to compress the support core of the mattress “through” the comfort layers more deeply then the higher density base foam could make some difference in terms of durability.

NOTE ADDED JAN, 2016: They have now introduced their new simplified choice mattress which has replaced their previous models and have also become a member of this site.

While there is no way to quantify how long any mattress will last for any particular person, if a mattress is well inside a suitable comfort/support range and isn’t close to the edge of being too soft when it is new and meets the minimum quality specs that are suggested in the guidelines here then it would be reasonable to expect a useful lifetime in the range of 7 - 10 years and with higher quality and more durable materials like latex or higher density memory foam or polyfoam (in the comfort layers especially) it would likely be in the higher end of the range or even longer.

It’s always more realistic to think of about 10 years as a maximum reasonable expectation for any mattress no matter what the quality or durability of the materials and then treat any additional time after that as “bonus time” because after about 10 years the limiting factor in the useful life of a mattress will often be the changing needs and preferences of the person sleeping on the mattress and even if a mattress is still in good condition after a decade … a mattress that was suitable for someone 10 years earlier may not be the best “match” any longer.

Phoenix

7

So went to a Sleepy’s the other day to test out the Tempur Cloud and Luxe. I think my wife liked the Cloud Supreme, and while it was a bit to firm for me, I think we may try the Aria from Novosbed. Had a question though quick. Now I know I read some where on here about mattress weight but can’t find it now. Was wondering why the difference in weight between the Aria and the Tempur would be so much. I heard the tempur is over 240lbs for a king, yet the Aria is only 113lbs for the king, not even half the weight. If they are supposed to have the same density of foam, layers, and size would that not make them even?

Seems the more I look into this the more I get unsure if I even want a new mattress lol.

8

Hi Thinkink,

The Tempurpedic Cloud Supreme weighs much less than the 240 lbs you were told. Their foam densities are also slightly different and the layer thicknesses for the different densities of memory foam and the support cores are also different in both of them but their weights would be much closer.

Phoenix