Need Natural Latex mattress

Hi,

  1. I am looking for a Latex mattress with a budget for 600-800 dollars for a king size. Is it possible to get a natural latex king mattress in this budget and if so, please provide some contacts.
  2. Is it OK to go with Synthetic Latex? What are the cons and will it have any health issues and environmental effects during disposal?
  3. The main reason I am going with Latex over memory foam is because the latter retains heat, retains body impressions after few months. Is there any good quality memory foam mattress without these two disadvantages?
  4. What is a Soy based memory foam?
  5. What are the Pros and Cons of Latex + pocket coil mattress?
  6. Do we need a box spring or any sort of foundation for any type of mattress (Latex, Memory foam, Combo)
  7. I live in 90503. Can you please suggest good places to buy good mattress? (natural Latex mattress, memory foam or pocket coil-Latex combo)

Thanks,
Bala

Hi balan,

You are in a very low budget range for a latex mattress of any kind … especially if you also need a foundation … but the better options and possibilities I’m aware of for latex or latex hybrid mattresses that are in lower budget ranges are listed in posts #3 and #4 here.

Whether it’s “OK” or not would really be up to each person based on the criteria that are most important to them. All the latex you will encounter whether it’s Dunlop or Talalay and made from natural or synthetic rubber will have been tested for harmful substances either by Oeko-Tex or Eco-Institut so they would all certainly be safe (see post #2 here).

As far as environmental issues, natural rubber will probably oxidize and break down more readily than synthetic rubber although vulcanized rubber of both types are more difficult to break down than rubber that hasn’t been vulcanized because of the cross linking that is the result of the vulcanization process and it would also depend on the amount of antioxidants and antiozonates and other “anti degradant” substances that are added to foamed rubber to prevent it from breaking down prematurely.

As far as performance … the synthetic continuous pour Dunlop that is being made by Mountaintop foam is a high quality product that is very durable but synthetic rubber isn’t as elastic or as dense or “supportive” as 100% natural rubber that is in the same ILD range and it will have a different “feel” from 100% natural Dunlop although it’s also less costly (see post #6 here). There is more about the different types and blends of latex in post #6 here and more generic information about some of the differences between natural and synthetic rubber in post #2 here but the compounding formula will also make a difference in the feel and performance of latex. Synthetic latex is certainly a higher quality and more durable material than most polyfoam materials.

There are certainly some memory foam products that sleep cooler than others and this has been a significant focus in the memory foam side of the industry. There is more about some of the different technologies that are being used to “cool down” memory foam in post #6 here. And there is also more about the properties of different types of memory foam in post #9 here and in post #8 here. In very general terms … higher density memory foam will be more durable than lower densities up to about 6 lbs density or so and I would tend to avoid memory foam that was less than about 4 lb density because of potential durability issues. There is also more about the many variables that can affect the sleeping temperature of a mattress (outside of just the type of foam it uses) in post #2 here. While most of the memory foam that is being used today will be a little cooler than most of the older formulations … in very general terms … and all the other factors being equal … latex is more breathable and will tend to sleep cooler than memory foam.

So called “soy based” foam is just polyfoam that has replaced a relatively small percentage of the petrochemical polyols (which is one of the two main chemicals that are used to make polyfoam) with an alternative polyol that is synthesized from soy oil. There is more about plant based polyols in post #2 here.

There is more about the differences between an innerspring support core and a latex support core in post #28 here and post #2 here. It comes down to a preference issue based on “feel” and performance rather than being a “better/worse” issue because the deeper layers and components of a mattress aren’t usually the weakest link in a mattress in terms of durability.

All mattresses will need a suitable support system of some kind yes but there are many different options. There is more about the different types of support systems that are generally most suitable for different types of mattresses in post #1 here and the posts it links to in the second paragraph.

The better options and possibilities I’m aware of in the greater Los Angeles area (subject to the guidelines here) are listed in post #2 here. You certainly have many good options in the area.

Phoenix

Thanks a lot Phoenix. I will increase my budget for Latex. I loved the comfort of Latex and will stick to it.

Hi Phoenix,

After searching for a budget latex mattress, finally I could see the SleepEZ Roma 9" mattress might be reachable for me (Queen is 795).

I spoke with them and the specs are 6" of natural dunlop and 3" of quilting (1.5" on each side) to enable the mattress to be used by both sides. The quilting consists of cotton, wool and foam for comfort.

Can you please advise if this is a good deal or should I wait for holiday season discounts? By the way, will there be any discounts during Thanksgiving based on your past experience?

And by the way, I am on the heavier side. I weigh 190 lbs with a height of 5.5. if there are any better alternatives, both natural and synthetic or mix, please suggest. I tried memory foam but not really comfortable with the firmness and hence looking for Latex.

Thanks,
Bala

Hi balan,

The value of a mattress purchase is always relative to what you are comparing it to and there is more about the most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase in post #13 here that can help you make more meaningful “value” comparisons between mattresses.

You can read more about the SleepEZ Roma in post #2 here and the rest of the topic and a forum search on SleepEz Roma (you can just click the link) will bring up more comments about it as well.

There are certainly no weak links in the Roma and based on the “commodity value” of the materials in the mattress it’s also great value (there would be few mattresses that contained 6" of 100% natural Dunlop latex in a lower budget range) but only you can decide whether it’s the “best” value for you based on how it compares to your other finalists and on all the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to.

I can’t imagine that there would ever be any additional discounts on this mattress since their margins on this mattress would already be very low.

The previous posts I linked include the better lower budget online latex and latex hybrid mattresses I’m aware of and the better options and possibilities I’m aware of in the Los Angeles area as well.

Phoenix