There are many different cooling technologies that are used in mattresses (memory foam and otherwise) and outlast is just one of them. All of them âworkâ in combination with other factors to a âdegreeâ but how cool a mattress sleeps in real life is a combination of many factors ⌠some of which have little to do with the mattress and more to do with the person or the bedding that is used on the mattress.
There is a discussion at the end of post #4 here on the three main cooling methods used in mattresses. There is also a more detailed discussion on the many factors in a memory foam mattress that can affect sleeping temperature in post #6 here.
Like all major brand mattresses though ⌠I would also question the value of the Optimum (you can see more about this in post #48 of this topic) and before I considered any major brand I would read this article which may help eliminate most of the lower value choices when you are mattress shopping and help you focus on mattresses (including those with effective cooling technologies) and manufacturers or retail outlets that have better value.
Hi Cjt⌠To learn more about Outlast in Sealy Optimum go to www.outlast.com. Try the bed in a store. If you go to the Sealy website, there is a link to find a retailer by you. Youâll see that this isnât a gimmick and I understand your concern. Gel alone is not cool, it just breaks up the density of the foam. Are Dr. Scholl inserts cool? You really need to try this bed to feel the difference.
Do you happen to know the density/quality of the memory foams that Sealy uses in the Optimum?
Iâm hopeful that you either know (if you sell them) or asked (if you bought one) because none of the online sites or retail outlets have been able to get the quality/density information for the memory foam that Sealy uses in the Optimum. Even the reps donât seem to know.
The Dr Scholl gel is actual a thermal conductor (feels cool) while the Gel used in the Outlast is a phase change material which works differently (stores and releases heat as it changes phase).
You can see more information about the thermal conductivity of the gel used in Dr Scholls inserts and some of the mattresses that use it at the Technogel website.
I livee in Okeechobee, Fl and we desprately need a bed that does not break down. My husband and I wake up constantly waking up with horrible back aches. We have a queen bed and it is ok size wise but it is only 4 years old. I am over weight and my husband is not so we wound up with a lump in the middle and a dip in my side. Any sggestions will help.
Post #10 here can help you with a step by step process of shopping for a mattress that can lead to âyourâ best mattress in terms of performance, quality, and value.
The most important first step you can make is to connect with the better local manufacturers or sleep shops that have the knowledge and experience to help you make your best choices and carry a range of good quality and value mattresses. Even if they are a bit of a drive away ⌠they can save you a great deal of time and research and change mattress shopping from an exercise in frustration and not knowing who to believe into a pleasure.
The local manufacturers and some of the better possibilities that are closest to you are in post #2 here.
I took a quick look locally and there doesnât appear to be many options in your back yard. I wouldnât visit Badcock or Ashley and the other local outlets either donât have a website of donât list what they carry. It may be worth a quick call to check what brands they carry and if you post them here I can let you know if they may be worth including in your research.
My suggestion is to find a bed with a cushion tight top (not pillow top) so each of you are comfortable. Ashley carries Stearns and Foster who have titanium alloy in their coil system with a 25 yr warrantee. They also have twice tempered coils that hold up better than single tempered coils. Good luck!
What about any places in the west palm beach area. They would be closer. I know there are several mattress stores in the area but I do not know if any of them would be recomendable.
Pretty sure Iâd stay away from Begselâs recommendation of the Stearns & Foster coil mattress. If you read the articles that Phoenix linked to in his response to you, they will tell you why.
You may have missed Phoenixâs link (the Post #2 link) to the shops closest to you. Here they are:
www.schraderbeds.com West Palm Beach. Local factory direct manufacturer that makes a full range of quality mattresses using latex, memory foam, and traditional innerspring/polyfoam mattresses. Are open about the materials they use.
www.comfortcustombedding.com/ Plantation. Local factory direct manufacturer that also makes a full range of quality mattresses using latex, memory foam, innersprings etc. with good value.
www.palmbeachmattress.com/ West Palm Beach. Local factory direct manufacturer. Makes mostly âpromotionalâ mattresses using innersprings and polyfoam (from 1.5 lb density and up). Doesnât have any latex or memory foam on the floor to test though. Bob the owner has been in the industry for quite some time and has been building mattresses for about 6 years. A good source for lower budget matresses.
www.starbeddingmfg.com/ Hiahleah. I have talked to Gabriel (the son of the owner) and they specialize in wholesale manufacturing to retail outlets in their area and hotels but they also have a local showroom that sells factory direct. They mostly make innerspring/polyfoam mattresses that are better quality and value in low to mid budget ranges. Very knowledgeable and open about their mattresses.
www.zenomattress.com/ Ft Lauderdale. Local factory direct manufacturer. I talked with Jim (employee that has been with them for over a decade) and they are 3rd generation manufacturers who custom build using any material including memory foam, latex, and innersprings/polyfoam. Are open about their materials, and have good quality/value and have a range of mattresses on the floor for testing.
www.floridaorganicmattress.com/ Ft Lauderdale. Retailer that carries Savvy Rest, Royal-Pedic, OMI mattresses. These are high quality mattresses that target âorganicâ consumers and are good for testing various latex layering and options but also carry much more premium prices compared to most local manufacturers
I have the 2012 Stearns and foster and it is wonderful! I got the cushion firm estate because my husband is overweight and we are more than pleased with the comfort and how well it is holding up. We got it at Macyâs around Christmas. These folks promote independent companies. Iâd go with what is comfortable to both of you.
Begsel - You have recommended 2 different âS brandâ mattresses over the past week. So which is it? S&F or Serta? And Macyâs promotes independent companies? Huh? :dry:
The first link in my last post includes 2 manufacturers in the West Palm Beach area which are the closest manufacturers to you. The list was centered around Stuart, FL.
In terms of local options ⌠there is little available that I would even look at.
Some of the options mentioned by Begsel are good examples.
Ashley uses lower quality or unknown materials and the information about the foams they use isnât available. For example ⌠they have 3 âlatexâ mattresses which all have various thick layers of what they call R3 foam on top and only thinner latex layers and all of this is over a polyfoam support core. They told me that the R3 is their own name that stands for Rest, Rejuvenate, Recover and they also said it is âsynthetic latexâ manufactured by Sealy but their description indicates it is more likely to be polyfoam that has some of the performance features of latex and is only âcalledâ latex. Of course it could also be the smart latex (which is mostly synthetic Dunlop) that Sealy uses and is made by Sapsa which is the lowest cost/quality of all the versions of latex. Their memory foam mattresses use mostly 2.5 or 3 lb memory foam which I wouldnât even consider. In any case ⌠I wouldnât consider any of the major brands they carry and before I consider their house brand I would want to know the specifics of the materials they use which they may not be able or willing to tell you. This is not a source of high quality materials and of course the major brands they carry will also have layers of lower quality materials in the comfort layers which are the âweak linkâ of a mattress regardless of the coils they may use.
Havertyâs only carries major brand mattresses which I would avoid completely because you wonât be able to find out the real quality of most of the materials in the mattress and any buying decisions will have to be based on a marketing story rather than meaningful information
Stacyâs ⌠donât see a Stacyâs near you ⌠but perhaps Begsel meant Macyâs which also sells major brands so there is no way to know the real quality of any of their mattresses and I would avoid them completely as well.
Badcock also carries mostly major brands but they also have their own house brand (which used to be made by IBC until they went bankrupt) which is probably a better option than many other mainstream choices but again it is unlikely that you will be able to get the information you really need to make an informed choice about their mattresses. An example here is their latex hybrid which has 3" of talalay latex in the comfort layers but it also has 2" of polyfoam in the quilting (which is subject to more rapid softening than latex) and the density of this quilting layer and the polyfoam base under the latex is unknown.
If I was in your shoes I would first call some of the outlets in the links I provided and then visit the ones that were most promising. You will end up with much better quality and value if you buy from a manufacturer or retailer who understands the importance of knowing what is in your mattress and will tell you the real information about the materials in their mattresses than if you buy from a retailer who only tells you âmarketing storiesâ about their mattresses and either canât or wonât give you the type of information you need to validate what they are saying or that shows the real quality of what they are selling.
Phoenix
PS: ⌠I saw after I posted this that Maia already included the links to the stores and manufacturers around the Stuart area ⌠thanks Maia
Did you happen to find the information about the Optimum memory foam that you were going to try to find? I thought you had purchased one but it seems that you have only tried them in a showroom and that you sleep on a Stearns & Foster?
I have a couple of questions or comments about a few of your posts âŚ
As you probably know ⌠warranties donât cover the loss of comfort and support that comes from the softening of the foams in the mattress which is the main reason a mattress needs to be replaced. Warranties are used more as a sales technique and do more in most cases to protect the manufacturer than the consumer.
While S&F does have good coils ⌠the small amount of titanium they use or double tempering is not likely to make a difference in the real life performance or durability of the mattress as a whole because the weak link is almost always in the foams and other materials above the coils.
Since a mattress is only as good as the materials and construction that are inside it ⌠how can you tell the quality of their mattresses if you donât know the specific details of the materials that are inside them? What is the basis for your belief that they sell âqualityâ? So many people use âqualityâ as a marketing term or as a meaningless descriptive word that is attached to whatever they want people to buy but if the manufacturers donât provide âqualityâ information ⌠you are only buying a brand label.
Did you ask any of the specifics of the materials in your mattress? Iâm not so sure I would call a mattress that has âheld upâ since Christmass as holding up well. Thatâs less than a year.
Which folks did you mean that promote independent companies?
Something that is comfortable in a showroom (which is a highly managed and subjective environment in most cases and where itâs pretty easy to use various techniques to make people feel whatever you want them to feel) may not be so comfortable in a year or more. Itâs always a good idea to know enough about the materials in a mattress to be able to buy it with an eye to how it will feel and perform in a few months and years from the time you purchase it.
I also should ask you why you are promoting some of the major brands you are recommending. Do you work in the industry or are you just a consumer that believes that the major brands really are good quality and/or value regardless of what is in them?
Thanks for the links I definately know more now than I ever thought about. I know that every mattress we buy, we are lucky to get 3-4 yrs out of nd they are not cheap. I never really thought of what they were made out of. All I know about our current mattress is that it is double pillow top so it can be filpped but it really hasnât helped. I know that I can. Thanks againfeel the coil springs pop now like they are binding underneith me when I move around. I will be checking these linksout before buying now.
hello Phoenix,
taking your recommendations, i chose the âradianceâ in the optimum line, but i find it slightly too hard. iâm told it defeats the purpose to put something between the body and the memory foam. i need a bit more softness without sacrificing the support (for both my shoulder when i sleep on my side as well as the soft-to-touch comfort preference). the softer optimums donât have quite enough support when laying on my stomach. if i buy a 1-2" topper, what should i buy so as not to lose the âoutlastâ cooling factor?
