Hello all
I have reviewed much of the topics written about mattresses and I think I have a vague idea of what I should be looking for. I have been sleeping on the worst mattress (because I had zero dollars when I was mattress hunting and was pretty ignorant too). I wake up every day with neck and lower back pain and I toss and turn. I usually have bags under my eyes and I’m sick of it! I’m 25 and that is just too early for constant pain. Please help.
I weigh 120 pounds and am usually a side sleeper mixed with a semi-stomach sleeping position. I also over heat fairly easily. My budget is preferably between $800 and $1,000.
It looks like I need a softer comfort layer (low ILDs) that is not memory foam due to the overheating problems. Looks like I could maybe find some latex mattresses around this price, likely Dunlop. If I do find an all latex, I would need a minimum of six inches right? I found this handy resource and was wondering if you have any recommendations from the list they have: Latex Mattress Reviews You Can Actually Trust 2019 : Top Rated Natural Brand Ratings : Zenhaven Plushbeds Spindle Sleep On Latex SleepEZ Flobeds Foam Sweet Foam Savvy Rest
Or should I just get a higher end inner coil mattress with latex in the comfort layers?
What is feasible for my budget range? Is there anything else I should specifically be looking for beyond chemical off gassing and looking for higher end coils/latex? Are there any brands I can start looking for at mattress stores? I’m still fairly overwhelmed at the variety. Thank you.
Just to start somewhere, would something like this be good: http://shop.keetsa.com/collections/mattresses/products/the-keetsa-latex
It has a layer of latex, but it’s only 1.5 inches, that seems too low. I can’t seem to figure out by googling what iCoil even means. Thoughts?
Hi Eurycerus,
Hopefully you’ve read the tutorial post here which has all the basic information, steps, and guidelines you will need to make the best possible choice … and know how and why to avoid the worst ones. If you follow the steps one by one you will almost certainly end up making a great choice. Of course if you have any specific questions along the way or need any “fact checking” you are always welcome to post them on the forum. 
The only two ways I know to choose a mattress is based on your own careful and objective testing using the testing guidelines in the tutorial post or if you are considering an online choice then a more detailed conversation with an online retailer or manufacturer that has your best interests at heart (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here). I’m certainly happy to help with “how” to choose but the specifics of “what” to choose would depend on which mattress is the best match for you in terms of PPP and the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.
Online reviews based on other people experiences on a mattress that may be completely different from you and have very different needs and preferences (or have no idea about the specifics of the mattresses they purchased) are among the worst ways to choose a mattress IMO (see post #13 here for more about reviews).
The type of mattress you choose in terms of the materials and components is a personal preference not a “better worse” choice. As long as you are confident that the mattress would be a good match for you in terms of PPP, that you know the specifics of all the layers and components (see this article) so you can make sure there are no weak links in the mattress (see post #4 here), and that it is the best choice for you based on the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you after making meaningful comparisons with your other finalists, then it would be a suitable choice.
Brand shopping is also one of the worst ways to choose a mattress. Outside of how suitable a mattress is for you in terms of PPP … the most important part of a mattress purchase is the quality of the construction and materials inside the mattress regardless of the name of the manufacturer on the label. All manufacturers make lower quality and less costly mattresses and higher quality and more costly mattresses. The tutorial post will help you know what to look for and what to avoid and how to make meaningful comparisons.
If you are looking at local choices then if you let me know your city or zip code I’d be happy to let you know about the better options or possibilities I’m aware of in your area.
The tutorial post also includes links to several lists of some of the better online options I’m aware of (depending on the type of mattress you are looking at) if you are including online options in your research.
A forum search on Keetsa (you can just click this) will also bring up more information and feedback about them but again it’s always the specifics of a particular mattress and how it compares to your other finalists that are more important than the name of the manufacturer. An iCoil is just another name for a pocket coil.
Phoenix
Thank you for the response!
I am posting here after I went to Sears and tried a few of their Sealy beds and I just am now afraid that a lot of beds don’t have endurance after reading your in depth mattress information. I am strongly looking at latex beds but wow are they expensive!
Have you heard anything about European Sleep Works? http://www.sleepworks.com/mattresses
I’m looking at this one: Latex vs. coils: both offer comfort advantages - European Sleep Works even though it’s nearly twice as much as I wanted to spend. I really would prefer to get a quality bed that lasts 10 plus years AND that doesn’t hurt me. I wake up in pain daily, back, shoulder, and neck primarily. It’s really killing me.
Here’s another cheaper one that still looks high quality: Alpine Classic | Berkeley CA | European Sleep Works
If you know anything about these types of mattresses then I take a jaunt over and try them out and get some advice from them. I think basically I don’t trust sales people in general and after reading your information I trust mattress sales people even less. For me I don’t know a lot about mattresses but I’m afraid of being “sold” on a crappy mattress.
Do you suggest getting a mattress with an excellent return policy/long warranty? Would that be a good identifier of a quality mattress and mattress store?
I am in the East Bay on Northern California if you have recommendations other than Sleep Works that would be wonderful.
EDIT: I found a similar discussion for those looking here:https://forum.mattressunderground.com/t/hello-from-sf-bay-area
I will post if I go to Sleep Works with my results.
Hi Eurycerus,
Yes … I think highly of them and their knowledge and experience and I have had some great conversations with Steven there. None of their mattresses have any weak links in terms of their design or the quality of their materials.
A forum search on European Sleepworks will bring up more information and feedback about them and they are also one of the better options and possibilities in and around the San Francisco /Oakland area I’m aware of in post #2 here. The San Jose list in post #2 here also includes some of the better options in the San Jose and southern East Bay area. They would certainly be well worth a visit.
Mattress warranties are usually more about marketing than anything else and the quality and durability of the materials would be much more important to me than the length of the warranty because warranties don’t cover the main reasons that a mattress needs to be replaced … only defects in the mattress which tend to happen early in the life of a mattress (see post #174 here).
The importance of a return or exchange policy would depend on the results of your testing and how confident you are that a mattress is a good match for you in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences). Return and exchange policies are built into the price of a mattress and the people who don’t return or exchange a mattress pay for the ones who do. In the case of the European Sleepworks mattresses … their component design has the option to customize and fine tune their mattresses both before and after a purchase which can certainly be helpful if your sleeping experience indicates that you need to change the comfort/pressure relief or support/alignment of the mattress. In other words … it would depend on the parts of your personal value equation that were most important to you and your confidence in your choice.
Return or exchange policies have little to nothing to do with the quality of a mattress or the knowledge, experience, or service of a mattress store. It’s just one part of “value” and cost that may be more important to some and less important to others.
I’m looking forward to your feedback if you decide to go there and visit them
Phoenix