I’m looking into Beloit’s line of mattresses as they’re a trusted manufacturer in your list, are responding to my questions very well, and are close enough to make the price of transport offset by this board’s benefits. There is one thing in particular I’m seeing in some of their mattresses I’m trying to understand which seems to go against what is listed at Mattress shopping guidelines - finding the best quality and value - The Mattress Underground which is the inclusion of 2+ inches of memory foam (G-Flex foam) in the comfort layer of a number of their lines.
Since it seems like the foam is a known variable, is this a variance from the guideline in the article mentioned?
Reading the comfort layer articles on the site, one of the tips/tricks is dealing with multiple layers of thin latex ILD’s (both firm and soft). What should be expected (more on- or in-mattress?) when firm ILD’s are interlayered with memory foam and natural fibers as demonstrated in the Heirloom line such as with the following from http://www.beloitmattress.com/mattressess/heirloom-line/heirloom-tuft-top/ :
Upholstered on both sides with:
bonded cotton pad in the center ⅓
1 inch of 44 ILD Talalay Latex
2 inches of G-flex gel foam
1 inch of 24 ILD Talalay Latex
3.5 ounces of Pure Joma Wool
Organic Cotton knit cover
I’m not clear why you think it would be a variance from any of the guidelines in the site or which guideline you are referring to. The type of materials in a mattress or in the comfort layers are strictly a preference choice (as long as they are good quality and durable materials) and there is no “better or worse” combinations except based on the preferences of each person.
As long as a mattress is a good match for you in terms of PPP and the quality of the materials are good and there are no “weak links” in the mattress (which there aren’t) then the rest is really a matter of personal preferences based on which of the criteria of your personal value equation are most important to you and how it compares with any of your other “finalists”.
Could you be a little more specific what you mean? Perhaps I’m not understanding what you are asking.
I think I understand. Where I was confused was my treating the information on the page as being harder guidelines than I think they were intended to be (preferences versus rules). Since #4 seemed to have a pretty defined limit on the amount of foam, I was taking that to say “if there is more than an inch of memory foam which is <= 4.0 pounds (with the ‘or so’ wording at least) that is going to result in a higher chance for decreased longevity of the comfort layer”. Based on the reply, I think it was intended to read as “if you have more than an inch of memory foam which is < 4.0 lbs the quality will not be as good.” Is that more correct?
With the layered question, I’m asking what the combination of various layers should produce in terms of comfort layer distribution (since the combination scenarios for latex, memory foam and fibers seems like a grouping of everything in one bunch). I understand combined thin layers of latex can produce different results, and I’m trying to understand where product combinations fit together so I can understand when trying to compare between vendors (such as are multiple latex layers comparable to a latex layer and a foam layer, etc.). I understand this may not be possible without actually touching and experiencing, but I was hoping there was a general rule of thumb which would explain what to expect when materials are layered in combination such as a natural fiber with foam being more or less firm than foam with latex, latex with natural fiber, etc.
The idea of guideline #4 is to make sure that there is no more than “about an inch or so” of lower quality or unknown quality materials in the comfort layers and quilting layers combined because they could become the weak link of a mattress.
The “or so” is to take into account that if a mattress has 1.5" of lower quality/density or unknown materials in the comfort and quilting layers combined (and quilting can make a material more durable because it pre-compresses it) that it doesn’t suddenly cross a line into being “bad” but once you reach about 2" in the quilting and comfort layers combined then I would want to know the density/quality of any polyfoam or memory foam to make sure it was higher quality/density than the guidelines.
These are just the simple version which for most people would be fine but there is more about the many factors that can affect the relative durability and useful life of a mattress in post #4 here.
Higher quality/density materials can be as thick as they need to be to be a good match for you in terms of PPP.
This wouldn’t be quite as accurate or inclusive as the way I wanted it to read and how it’s currently worded but it has the same overall sense yes (except it doesn’t include polyfoam or have a little less exact thickness).
These are all questions about what I call PPP rather than the quality of the materials and are much more subjective and relative to each person. They can only be answered by testing a mattress or with your own personal experience except in very generic terms (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here).