I used to have a Tempurpedic that I loved, spoiled me for anything else. I moved recently and rather than move a 14 y/o mattress across country, gave it away. Now I am shopping for a new memory foam mattress. Back then, there weren’t any other companies besides Tempurpedic, and to save $ am shopping around for alternatives. So far, SelectFoam, DreamFoam and NightTherapy Elite from SamsClub online seem to be the best choices.
I went to a retailer and tested some of the Tempurpedics and liked the Rhapsody (not the cool one) as it was firm and the Grandis (way out of price range). The Cloud ones were way too soft for me. I also tried a Serta memory foam but it seemed a poor imitation.
Does anyone have any experience with the NightTherapy Elite from SamsClub? Would appreciate any advice on specific models that may work for me. I also like the thicker foam beds, am a little concerned about a thin copycat.
The first place I would start your research is the the tutorial post here which has all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that can help you make the best possible choices … and know how to avoid the worst ones.
Select Foam and Dreamfoam certainly have some good quality/value options but the Night Therapy Elite isn’t a mattress I would consider because of the use of lower quality less durable memory foam (Post #10 here has some guidelines I would use for a memory foam mattress). Some of the better online memory foam manufacturers I’m aware of (including Select Foam and Dreamfoam) are listed in post #12 here.
If you have done some careful and objective testing (using the testing guidelines in the tutorial post) and the Rhapsody was the best match for you in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences), then I would be looking at online memory foam options that legitimately compare themselves to the Rhapsody. Several manufacturers on the list make a mattress that uses the Rhapsody as a reference point for comparison and post #9 here has more about matching one mattress to another that you can use for reference when you are talking with online manufacturers or retailers.
As you probably know, since you had a memory foam earlier that its best to go with the one that feels right to you. Memory foams to me, sometimes feel hard, or really firm. The gel cushioned ones are a little nicer, but people seem to love the high density memory foam beds. Its really tough to shop online for a mattress. I’m looking into discount outlets right now, because at the end of the day, its all about the specs.
I’m not so sure I would agree with this. While the density specs of memory foam or polyfoam is the most important part of their durability (although there are factors that can also affect durability as well) … specs are not a particularly good way to predict how a mattress will feel and perform or how suitable a mattress may be for someone in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences).
No matter how good the “value” of a mattress purchase or the density/quality of the materials … if it’s not a good match for you in terms of PPP and the mattress is unsuitable for you to sleep on then it would have little value to you.
Your right. I was referring to a particular mattress store that says they are competitively cheap, and offer a kind of wholesale factory direct high quality mattress experience. Also, you gotta love what you sleep on. I’m finding after researching mattresses that it really does become what you really want to buy, because a lot of these beds use high quality foams, and bases. So, it’s a lot out there. Hey, Phoenix. Is there really a big difference in temperature sensitivity, when it comes to the gel foam vs. memory foam? Is the memory foam that much warmer, that it’s impossible to sleep? Also, why don’t people just get a topper for their bed if it’s a problem?
Some of the chemicals used in memory foam mattresses are toxic, even to those who do not immediately feel like they are being gassed while sleeping.
Anyone with any allergies or respiratory problems of any kind may wish to think twice about sleeping on a memory foam mattress. the fact that they have yet to be proven as toxic (and probably never will be) does not mean that they are safe. Scientific “proof” depends on many things, most of which are far from scientific!
Yes … there can be a big difference between gel foams (which are generally less temperature sensitive and faster responding) and also between “regular” memory foams as well (see post #9 here and post #8 here). Temperature sensitivity and response time is a side effect of the chemical formulation of the memory foam so it can vary widely from foam to foam.
Gel memory foams can also be a little more “supportive” (have a higher compression modulus) than regular memory foams and can have a little less foam creep (which is the tendency of memory foam or any viscoelastic material to continue softening over the course of the night with continuous compression which means you can start off in good alignment when you go to bed but wake up in the morning out of alignment).
Some people are more sensitive to pressure issues and as a group memory foam tends to have less airflow than other types of materials so a larger percentage of people will have temperature issues with memory foam than other types of foam. There are also many other variables that can affect sleeping temperature though that can play just as big a role as the type of foam used in a mattress (see post #2 here).
It’s certainly true that the chemicals used to make memory foam (or any other foams as well such as latex or polyfoam) can be toxic (and I wouldn’t eat any of them) … there are also foams of all types that are “safe” once the raw materials or chemicals have been polymerized, cured, and aired out in terms of any harmful chemicals that can leach out of the foam and enter the body or that are emitted as VOC’s.
Finding accurate information about the “safety” of different types of foam can be difficult and frustrating and the most reliable way to know how “safe” a foam is would be through any certification that it has. It’s also true that that some people can still be sensitive to some types of foam materials even with foam that has been certified and that it’s more common to see this with memory foam than other types of foam. There is some memory foam (and polyfoam) that has an Oeko-Tex certification which is the same “safety” certification that is used with most latex foams but these are much less common in North America.
Thanks for the info and links. I went through the tutorial and some of the mattress information before posting but will go through the tutorial again to understand more about memory foam layers. I was hesitant about the Night Therapy but they had good reviews so I looked at it.
When I tried the Tempurpedic Rhapsody, there was a cool one and a regular one, the salesperson asked if I slept warm or cold. I tend to be cold so the cool Rhapsody felt a little like a fridge, the regular/warm one felt so much better. SelectFoam makes the Regalis which they say is comparable to the Rhapsody and it looks good but its also a cool sleeping bed so I’m concerned it will be too cold for me. On the Dreamfoam website, most of the memory foam seems to be comparable to the Cloud line, which I found too soft. I’m going to call the contacts at both companies and see if they can help.
Back on the East Coast, there was a warehouse club there that actually would get Tempurpedic mattresses.
So I’ve been reading alot on these great threads and decided to check out the latex beds. I went today to Foam Sweet Foam in Anaheim and tried all of the latex beds. I tried not to look at the labels to only judge by the feel. The salesperson was a nice woman but I can’t remember her name and the business card she gave me had the name Scott on it. She left me to try all of them on my own then came back after I tried them all. She unzipped a mattress and showed me all the layers, none are glued together, you choose the layers you want and build your mattress.
My favorites were:
15" from top to bottom, talalay medium, talalay medium, talalay firm, dunlop firm, dunlop x firm, $2999.
12", talalay medium, talalay medium, dunlop firm, dunlop x firm, $2499, but it didn’t have as much ahhh factor
or
12" talalay firm, talalay x firm, talalay xx firm, talalay xx firm, $2499
They have a special right now with $100 off and can deliver on Tuesday if I ordered today so its a quick turnaround. When I first asked about a discount with Mattress Underground she said that they didn’t do anything but later said it might be 5% and to check with the owner.
The beds were comfy and I think I would get good nights sleeping and hopefully no aches and pains. This latex foam is bouncier than the Tempurpedic memory foam. I think I’m biased sleeping for so many years on a Tempurpedic that for the same price, I would go with Tempurpedic. I don’t know enough about the quality of the layers and I like that the Talalay is natural.
I am still going to look some more, I want to spend less than $3k right now, and those prices didn’t include a foundation for $300.
I’m interested in the Select Foam but am concerned about ordering online without trying it and especially with the thread where the delivered mattress had layers not as advertised. I’m also looking at Brooklyn Bedding/Dream Foam and going to check out another local place. The Tuft and Needle sounds interesting because of the backstory and price, I wonder since its polyfoam if the 10 inch was covered with a 7.2lb memory foam layer like the Tempurpedic Rhapsody how it would feel, it would certainly be a good price. Their warehouse is supposedly in the L.A. area, would love to be able to try one of their mattresses. I would also like to try a bed with both latex and memory foam.
15" from top to bottom, talalay medium, talalay medium, talalay firm, dunlop firm, dunlop x firm, $2999.
12", talalay medium, talalay medium, dunlop firm, dunlop x firm, $2499, but it didn’t have as much ahhh factor
or
12" talalay firm, talalay x firm, talalay xx firm, talalay xx firm, $2499
They have a special right now with $100 off and can deliver on Tuesday if I ordered today so its a quick turnaround. When I first asked about a discount with Mattress Underground she said that they didn’t do anything but later said it might be 5% and to check with the owner.[/quote]
They are one of the only places I know that makes 15" component latex mattresses and while 15" is more than anyone would “need”, there are certainly many people who may prefer the feel of more layers of latex. I have spoken with Scott on many occasions and think highly of him but they aren’t a member of The Mattress Underground (at least yet) … so there isn’t any TMU discount there (although of course it never hurts to ask).
You can read more about matching mattresses in post #9 here but if you added a layer of 7.2 lb memory foam to the T&N it would be very different from the Rhapsody because the layers, design, and components would be completely different. It may be a good match for you or it may be completely unsuitable for you to sleep on (the only way to find out would be to try it) but it would be nothing like the Rhapsody.
You are certainly looking at a wide range of different options (memory foam, latex, polyfoam) and considering some good quality/value options (outside of Tempurpedic which of course I would avoid)