I originally came across this forum in 2016 as I was researching mattresses to buy after spending all my younger years on a twin size spring mattress that I outgrew. I settled on the #bestmattressever from Brooklyn Bedding as it was being discussed on this forum in May 2016, and I purchased it at the beginning of June 2016, iirc with a small discount that I had gotten through here at the time. It served me well for the first 4 years or so but in the last year has grown lumpy and I believe it has been a contributing factor to my ongoing sciatica. I contacted Brooklyn Bedding today and after sending them pictures they have approved my warranty claim, but before I settle on the updated version of the #bestmattressever I wanted to do some research to determine if a more firm mattress would be a better fit.
A few stats about me: 6’2", 240lb side sleeper. I use a 20x54" bamboo/memory foam body pillow to elevate my leg and I am a side sleeper for 95% of the year. Originally I came across Brooklyn Bedding after seeing their name mentioned through here, however it seems the presence has been scrubbed and search results past June 2017 don’t return much. While I am curious what happened, I also know since they approved my warranty claim my next mattress will be coming through them as I do not have the money to buy a new mattress. I am awaiting a response from them as it seems they have updated the #bestmattressever, not only in quality but in name too, but I am also wondering if should switch to a slightly more firm mattress.
It is offered in 3 versions: Soft, Medium, and Firm. My original one was Medium, however since that has only lasted 4 years before getting a crease in the middle I am wondering if I should switch to Firm.
Thank you for sharing your experience with your BB mattress and your stats. It is good to hear that BB is honoring your warranty claim and replace the defective and/or warn out mattress that started to get lumpy and it is contributing to your sciatica pains. I’d guess that back in 2016 you purchased their reworked version of the best mattress ever in which the latex was replaced with polyurethane foam.
You may remember from your last visit here that we can certainly help with “how” to choose … but it’s not possible to make specific suggestions or recommendations for a mattress because the first “rule” is that you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress. There are too many unknowns, variables, and personal preferences involved that are unique to each person for anyone to be able to predict or make a specific suggestion about which mattress or combination of materials and components would be the best “match” for you in terms of “comfort”, firmness, or PPP or how a mattress will “feel” to you based on specs (either yours or a mattress), sleeping positions, health conditions, or “theory at a distance” that can possibly be more reliable than your own careful assessment and testing (hopefully using the testing guidelines in step 4 of the The mattress shopping tutorial here) or your own personal sleeping experience (see post #2 here ).
The firmness choice should be based on the sleeper’s needs and preferences and not on durability considerations. Good and durable foams have higher densities. Higher-density foams can be produced in different firmness choices or IFD (X-soft, soft, medium-soft, medium, medium-firm, firm, X-firm) I’d recommend to first determine the quality of the materials and components used in any mattress you may consider so that you have a good idea of what to expect in terms of longevity. You may want to revisit the mattress durability guidelines here to pinpoint any lower quality materials or weak links that would be a cause for concern relative to the durability and useful life of a mattress before making any purchase.
The hybrid (12") BME is using 1.5" of TitanFlex (a type of polyfoam) and 1"-2" (depending on firmness) of Variflex Transition polyfoam. They do not provide on their site more details or the density for the Variflex foam type which would allow for an assessment of the quality and durability for this foam type. Their chat assistant mentioned that due to a worldwide foam shortage they have been forced to remodel some things and change foams.
Brooklyn Bedding patented VariFlexTM polyform in May of 2021 which according to VariFlex TM application description of identification is …
“Foam rubber; Low-density polyurethane foam for use in mattress surfaces; Polyethylene foam for use in the manufacture of mattress cores; Stuffing composed of polyethylene, rubber, or plastic for mattresses”
BB’s membership was discontinued in 2016 which is why there is little updated information on their new and remodeled products. Subject to confirming that the components within the mattress you are offered meet the quality/durability criteria for your BMI (see this article )and the quality/value guidelines here
I hope this adds some needed clarity and helps you move forward in one direction or another.