Natural Fiber Innerspring Mattresses

Discussions General Mattresses Questions
1

Have a question about innerspring mattresses… I do not like memory foam/gel foam and I currently have an all latex mattress which is not comfortable to me. I have been thinking of getting a natural fiber innerspring mattress and have been looking at the following:

Vi-Spring Elite
Royal-Pedic All Cotton Mattress
Mygreenmattress Pure Echo Natural Mattress

I realize the pure echo is much cheaper than the other two and that mygreenmattress is a member of the site. Is there much of a difference quality-wise between the pure echo and the other two? Does hand tufting make much of a difference? Are there other innerspring mattresses I should be looking at too?
My budget can afford the more expensive mattresses but if I can get something comparable for cheaper it would be preferable.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!

2

Pretty hard to argue the value of the Pure Echo mattress, I even say this as a dealer of VI-Spring. Not sure if you have had a chance to test the mattresses in person? Personally I think pocket coils are vastly superior performance to offset, bonnell or continuous. So I will say the Royal-Pedic product commands a significant premium for a mattress with ultimately a less comfortable spring system.

With the VI-Spring Elite the cost is a little higher but really the value of the mattress given the sheer amount of cotton/blended with wool is amazing. The Pure Echo or RP mattresses basically use a thin layer of wool over an all cotton upholstery which is going to be fairly firm. The VI-Spring uses blended cotton with devonshire wool which is a very high grade British fleece, its definitely far more luxurious in terms of the type of upholstery. The springs they use are also incredible and can actually be ordered in the correct support for your body based on your height and weight vs a one size fits all approach. This is important because the springs provide most of the comfort and support in these mattresses. The hand tufting done on these mattresses will minimize (not eliminate) the body signature you get as the natural fillings compress. Without doing this the mattress will certainly not hold its shape as well.

I would also check out Berkeley Ergonomics to see if there is a dealer in your area, they use excellent pocket coils but with thin layers of latex upholstery. Its not exactly what you are asking for but realistically they feel quite different from an all latex mattress without springs of any kind.

3

Hi dogs_007,

Not surprisingly (since he is so knowledgeable about mattresses and mattress materials in general) I would completely agree with all of Daniel’s comments … including his comments about pocket coils vs other types of linked coils in terms of what most people would find most comfortable. Wool is also a more resilient fiber than cotton and will tend to pack down less and maintain it’s softness and comfort better than cotton batting over the course of time.

Just to add a few comments that would also be worthwhile considering …

There is more information about the 3 most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase in post #13 here which can help you make more meaningful quality/value comparisons between mattresses in terms of suitability (how well you will sleep), durability (how long you will sleep well), and the overall value of a mattress compared to your other finalists based on suitability, durability, and all the other parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you (including the price of course and the options you have available after a purchase to fine tune the mattress or any exchange/return options that are available to you).

I would always keep in mind that the most important part of the “value” of a mattress purchase is how well you will sleep on it because no matter what the cost … there is very little value in purchasing a mattress that you don’t sleep well on.

Vi-Spring is certainly an exceptionally high quality hand built and tufted mattress with great materials and components that uses natural materials and innerspring/natural fiber mattresses would be more temperature regulating than any other type of mattress but as you probably know it’s in a much more premium budget range than many other mattresses that also use natural materials. There is more about Vi Spring and other “ultra premium” mattresses in post #2 here and post #2 here and post #2 here may also be of interest as well but I would be very careful to differentiate how you feel “about” a Vi Spring and how you feel “on” a Vi Spring. There are certainly cases where a mattress in this budget range may be “worth it” for a particular person that isn’t price sensitive and that has specific criteria that aren’t available in lower budget ranges but this would be unusual and in general I would need a compelling reason that clearly indicated there was “enough” of a difference in “real life” compared to many other mattresses that may be just as suitable in terms of comfort and PPP, just as durable, and that are in much lower budget ranges to justify the higher cost.

While I can’t speak to how any mattress will feel for someone else or whether it will be a good match in terms of firmness, “feel”, or PPP … all of the mattresses you mentioned use good quality materials and there are no obvious weak links in any of them that would compromise the durability or useful life of the mattress.

Yes … hand tufting can make a significant difference in how well a mattress maintains it’s comfort, shape, and resilience and help prevent the shifting of materials over the course of time.

[quote]Are there other innerspring mattresses I should be looking at too?
My budget can afford the more expensive mattresses but if I can get something comparable for cheaper it would be preferable.[/quote]

Outside of any local manufacturers that may be close to you that still make innerspring/natural fiber mattresses … there are also some other innerspring/natural fiber options that may be worth considering in post #4 here.

As Daniel also mentioned … there are many people who also do very well on a latex/innerspring hybrid (see post #13 here) and some of the better innerspring/latex options I’m aware of (including a few component mattresses) are listed in post #2 here and the post it links to but you would need to check their websites or call them to see if any of them have a dealer close to you if you wish to test them in person before considering a purchase.

Phoenix

4

Thanks, Daniel and Phoenix for your fast relies and info!

I have tried the Vi-spring and RP in person and preferred the Vi-spring… I guess I now know why!
Ideally, I would like a mattress that’s tufted, with pocket coils and natural fibers (no foam - although I am open to a small amount of latex). I think I may try the Pure Echo first, considering it is much much cheaper and they allow returns (minus the price of shipping). I wasn’t able to find a mattress with all those requirements outside of the Vi-spring - please let me know if I missed any!

As an aside - My problem with shopping for mattresses is that most mattresses feel comfortable to me for 10-15 min in store but after several hours I usually wake up in the middle of the night with lower back pain.

Unfortunately, there aren’t any Berkeley Ergonomics stores nearby.

Thanks again for your help!

5

Hi dogs_007,

I’m not surprised (assuming that the VI Spring had a suitable spring tension and padding for your body type and sleeping style).

Outside of the list that I linked in my last reply if you let me know your city or zip code I’d be happy to let you know if I’m aware of any manufacturers that make a natural fiber/innerspring mattress in your area.

Assuming that you decide to pull the trigger on the Pure Echo … you would certainly be making a good quality/value choice … and congratulations on your new mattress.

If you test a mattress very carefully and “objectively” (and hopefully using the testing guidelines in the tutorial) and you are testing for more than the more subjective “comfort” or the “showroom feel” of a mattress then in “most” cases and for “most” people it would end up being “close enough” to your actual sleeping experience that only relatively minor find tuning may be necessary if anything is necessary at all (see post #4 here) but for those that have have some history of having difficulty in finding a mattress that “works” or have more challenging circumstances (such as health or back issues or an unusual body type) then the odds of making a choice that doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for would be higher and the return policy can be a much more important part of the value of a mattress purchase.

Phoenix

6

Thanks for the info, Phoenix.

Haven’t pulled the trigger just yet. I live in the northern Virginia/DC area and if you are aware of any manufacturers that make a natural fiber/innerspring mattress in the area that would be greatly appreciated.

I’ve read the great tutorials on here but for some reason still struggle to find the “right” mattress for me, and so as you mentioned, for me, return policies definitely factor into the equation.

Thanks again for your help!

7

Hi dogs_007,

The better options or possibilities I’m aware of in the Northern Virginia/DC area (subject to making sure that any mattress you are considering meets the quality/value guidelines I linked in my previous reply) are listed in post #2 here.

Off the top of my head the only retailers in the area that would carry an innerspring/natural fiber mattress would be Urban Mattress and Mattress Traditions (although there may be others I don’t know about).

Phoenix