Hi mschnittman,
This seems to be my day for long and complex posts but while this one may not be really short ⌠it will be focused on steps that can be taken to simplify the process of choosing a great mattress 
As you can see from my last post (and others today) the âstudyâ of mattresses can be a long and complex process that is made much more complex by the lack of accurate, fact based, and meaningful information that is available. As you mention ⌠this is a specific strategy of the major manufacturers and their primary customers which are the larger retailers and chains. They are more responsive to their shareholders or investment groups rather than consumers. They replace local reputation and word of mouth advertising based on the quality and value of their mattresses with advertising budgets and marketing strategies that continue to promote half truths and marketing stories to sell mattresses.
Unfortunately the vast majority of consumers have been blinded by these strategies of the last decade or so (or longer) to the point where they donât even know meaningful questions to ask any more and have blind loyalties to certain brands that have been created by marketing and carefully managed perception. What major manufacturers and larger outlets that depend on them disdainfully call âoff brandsâ are actually a better source of quality and value. Major brand marketing and even corporate lobbying for certain practices (such as the 1633 fire regulations) has created a more difficult environment for smaller manufacturers and their ability to get their message out in the face of consumersâ tendencies to âfollow the advertisingâ and to only consider the information that comes to them easily through mass media instead of the information that they could find if they did more careful research. Major manufacturers have grabbed a large market share that used to belong to hundreds of local and independent multi generational manufacturers all across the country who have mattresses âin their bloodâ that made (and still make) exceptionally high quality and value products. Since the introduction of 1633 I would guess that about 20% of them have gone out of business (which I believe was a big part of the underlying reason for the regulations).
Also unfortunately ⌠consumers have had little access to sources that will give them accurate information and even many of the âexpertâ sites that are on the internet promote incorrect information and donât do their homework. Many of these are mostly fronts for mattress outlets that are more concerned about promoting the âbenefitsâ of what they sell than they are about actually educating their audience. Much of the incorrect information is repeated so many times that it takes on the âauraâ of truth even though it isnât. I could go on at length about this but I think you get the idea. This is one of the reasons for the guidelines here which will help consumers to avoid most of the worst choices that are available if they âfollow the advertisingâ or are lured by the fake sales that are everywhere that are meant to create the perception of âa great dealâ.
In general there are two good approaches to finding a great mattress. The first of these is becoming an expert. This of course can involve many days, weeks, or months (or longer) of research and you will soon come face to face with the difficulty and frustration of actually finding this information and then applying it in the face of manufacturers or retailers who either donât know or wonât tell you what is in their mattresses to even be able to evaluate it. This is by far the most interesting approach for those who have the time but in the real world itâs not practical for most people. To give you an idea of the level of knowledge that is âout thereâ in many if not most cases ⌠just spending a couple of hours reading (and not even studying) the mattress shopping tutorial will make you more of an âexpertâ in the type of information that really counts than most of the people who sell mattresses in the mainstream industry.
The second approach of course is the simplest and this involves putting your efforts into finding the factory direct manufacturers or better sleep shops that sell higher quality and value mattresses and who already know the information (to different degrees) that you would otherwise have to learn. Some of these will have the technical information and will gladly talk specs with you all day long while others have decades of experience that is âreal worldâ and may not be as âspec educatedâ but make up for it with years of experience and practical knowledge. In other words ⌠finding the best outlets is just as important a step with this approach as finding the best mattress and researching retailers comes before testing mattresses.
These types of outlets are what I call âmattress peopleâ who have the knowledge, experience, and integrity to educate and inform their customers and are more focused on helping them make their best choices (and building their local reputation for great quality, value, and service) than they are on their profit margin. They understand that profits are a side effect of the service and the quality of the products they provide. These kind of outlets have many things in common and to find them involves some time on websites followed by time on the phone (not through email) âinterviewingâ the potential places to visit (along the lines of this article) before even considering going there to test mattresses.
These retailers or manufacturers will often have better quality and value in most of their product line and itâs not a matter so much of choosing the best value mattress that they sell but more a matter of choosing the most suitable mattress out of the range they offer. They would have the knowledge and experience to help with this. While most of the mattresses they sell will tend to have better quality and value than anything in the same budget range sold at more âmass marketâ outlets, itâs still important to know the details of every layer in a mattress so you can make meaningful quality and value comparisons. In some cases market pressures makes it necessary to also carry some major brands to attract traffic (or they may not eat) but they will often âsell againstâ these brands rather than promoting them. These are the types of businesses that understand the importance of knowing what is in your mattress.
Some of these outlets have been invited to become official members of this site and there are many more that are not âyetâ part of this list and will be included as I get to know them (and they get to know me) or I have time to expand the reach of the site. These are the ones that I âofficiallyâ recommend but there are many more that I either know already have good quality and value or that are a good possibility in various areas (and these are the ones that I usually list on the forum). There are also some that I list as good âtesting groundsâ which carry good quality mattresses but may not have the same value as some of the others and would require more careful âvalueâ comparisons.
I normally recommend first looking locally (or asking on the forum and I will list the ones I know about) because most areas have some good choices within reasonable driving distance. Testing a mattress in person will always be more accurate than going by âaveragesâ with a online purchase. If you have two or three local outlets that are in this group ⌠then choosing the âbestâ from each one will lead to making final choices between âgood and goodâ with the finer details making the final difference rather than having to choose between âbetter or worseâ and not having the information to really be able to do so.
For those who donât have these types of choices available locally or who need a reference point for âvalueâ ⌠then the best of the online manufacturers can be a great source and help. As a general guideline ⌠I would place a premium on local testing and would be happy to pay perhaps 20% more for the accuracy and ease and service of dealing with a high quality local outlet or manufacturer but when the premium for dealing locally compared to an online outlet for a similar mattress is more than this ⌠then the online outlet would become a serious consideration. Of course the âpremiumâ is only a reference (and some local outlets may have lower prices than some online outlets) and each person may have a different number and level of risk they are willing to accept for the particular benefits of an online purchase. The members here that specialize in online sales and guidance are listed in post #21 here. They all have great knowledge, quality, service, and high value products but their design, specific features, and policies have many differences and price ranges so the reasons behind their value may be different between them.
Rocky Mountain is one of these so to answer your question about them ⌠yes I would trust them and consider them to be among the best of the best in terms of both quality, value, and their ability and willingness to inform and help their customers.
This is mostly personal preference based on the qualities and feel of latex vs memory foam and partly based on the more technical advantages of latex (greater responsiveness, breathability, durability, less risky construction, great pressure relief, great support, and other qualities). There is more about most mattress materials including latex and memory foam in the mattresses section of the site and there is more about the relative pros and cons of latex vs memory foam in post #2 here.
I also like combinations that use thin layers of memory foam in combination with latex (particularly a thin layer of latex over a thin layer of memory foam over latex). It is a much less âriskyâ construction.
I should also add that I am not alone in my preferences. If you talk with local manufacturers that have been making mattresses for generations and have seen all the trends develop in the industry and could use any materials they want in their mattresses ⌠you will find that well over half of them will either not make memory foam mattresses or more commonly make it but âsell against itâ and carry it only for their customers who insist on it against their âbestâ advice. They are very aware of the risks of using memory foam and are very cautious about using it (especially in thicker layers) because of the potential harm that returns or the changes that can happen over time in performance, comfort and support and the damage that may happen to their reputation as a result. There are even some that take this to extremes and would rather lose a sale than make or sell memory foam. Iâm personally more towards the middle but on the very cautious side in my thoughts and opinions about the use of memory foam in mattresses.
The reason I like some of the foamex (FXI) memory foams are that they use a manufacturing process called VPF (variable pressure foaming) that can lead to more open celled and breathable memory foam. This is not the only way to achieve this and some manufacturers use mechanical means and some use chemical means to do something similar but I like the quality and characteristics of VPF foam as long as itâs in a good quality/density range. Most of the American foam manufacturers also make high quality foam (and of course some that is not so high quality that is used in lower budget mattresses or in high priced mattresses with huge profit margins).
So in essence ⌠I am a big fan of the second approach which is to research and find the outlets and people who already know what you would otherwise have to learn and who carry high quality and value mattresses throughout their product line. This way you only need to know enough (by reading the mattress shopping tutorial) that you can ask better questions, recognize the âexpertsâ, and better understand the âwhysâ behind their answers.
Some manufacturers will have âtestedâ various mattresses that are more widely available that may have a similar feel (although different construction and layers) to their mattresses to help their customers get a general sense of the feel of their mattresses. This is very helpful and is good advice yes.
Hope this long post helps to âturn the tablesâ of my previous more complex replies into a simple format of researching good retailers or factory direct manufacturers first (instead of specific mattresses first that make or carry high quality/value mattresses and that will become your âbest friendâ. They can replace the need to become an âexpertâ and have to sort through all the confusing and misleading information so all you have to do is choose the most suitable mattress that they each offer and then choose between âgood and goodâ to make your final choice based on the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.
Phoenix