Hi Jimbo770,
It’s certainly reasonable as a bottom layer in terms of its firmness but whether it was suitable for any particular person would depend on the additional layers above it and whether the mattress as a whole was a good match in terms of PPP. The 6" of N3 above it would have a bigger effect on the feel and performance of the mattress and the 2" of N5 underneath it would have a smaller effect on the “feel” of the mattress because it’s deeper in the mattress so how it compared to another mattress would depend on the specific layering you were comparing it to. It would have “some” effect on support/alignment if you were comparing it to another mattress with the same layering above it that didn’t have the additional 2" layer under it or to another mattress that was otherwise the same that used a 2" layer on the bottom that was a different firmness. This is generally what would be considered a “stabilization layer” which can prevent the “jiggly” feeling of thicker layers of softer latex. The effects of deeper layers are generally less noticeable than the effects of upper layers.
I don’t know. It would depend on the reason for her hot spots and whether they were connected to pressure relief (which may need thicker or softer comfort layers) or the alignment of her hip joint from sinking too far into the mattress and putting her hip out of alignment (which would generally require firmer support layers or thinner/firmer comfort layers.
When you are trying to decide how to change a mattress it’s important to decide on the most likely underlying cause of any symptoms you experience on a mattress so that you can make changes in the layers that will have the biggest effect. More “random” changes or changes that don’t address the underlying cause of the issues someone is having can quickly become overwhelmingly complex and difficult to assess and have much less chance of success and generally lead to significant frustration. The multiple combinations you have suggested or asked about and your more general descriptions of how you felt are already more complex than I can follow without more specific and detailed reference points.
Post #2 here along with the post it links to that lists many of the forum posts that discuss fine tuning a mattress have much more information about the different symptoms that people may experience on a mattress and some of the possible causes for them but you will need to decide based on your sleeping experience on each combination whether you are looking to change pressure relief, support, or “feel”.
Fine tuning pressure relief generally means changing the thickness or firmness level of the comfort and transition layers in the mattress. Fine tuning support generally means changing the thickness or firmness of the transition or support layers of the mattress. the more subjective “feel” of a mattress is more subjective and comes after alignment and pressure relief (which is what your body “feels” when you are asleep).
You are dealing with complex layering that would require more detailed conversations or at least much more specific reference points and descriptions of the specific symptoms you are having on a specific combination and the specific effects of any changes you make and whether they are an improvement or make things worse so you can identify the “direction” of changes that are most likely to help deal with the symptoms you are experiencing. If a symptom improves after sleeping on it for a few nights then it’s a good indication that things are going in the right direction. If they get worse then it’s a good indication that they are going in the wrong direction. Your specific experience on each combination and how it compares to the others along with small incremental changes can provide the information that is necessary to help you decide on the “best” possible combination. Your actual experience will be a much more effective basis for deciding on the next change than any theory.
The next step IMO would be to incorporate the N2 layering into the mix when you receive it.
What I would suggest for the forum to help to the degree that any written descriptions can help (they are never as effective as verbal communications when you are dealing with complex issues) is a separate “reference” post (you can use the reply to this post) that lists a specific layering headed “combination #1” followed by a detailed description of your specific “symptoms” and experience on that layering after a few nights (one night can too easily be an anomaly) along with your thoughts about whether the symptoms were connected to pressure relief or alignment. This can help with discussing and deciding on the the next combination to test. Once you have slept on the new combination for a few nights then you can edit the reference post and add “combination #2” with another analysis of your symptoms and experience on that combination and how they changed relative to “layering #1”. This can help identify patterns and combinations that make things better or worse and can give a much more clear sense of the next change that is worth trying.
Phoenix