Newbie needs help with mattress selection

[phoenix]

Hi sleepyvet,

I know this is an older thread but I’m sure you’ll find it…I happen to be visiting family in Charlotte, NC for a few days and can’t resist visiting mattress places while there. My question is about the Denver Mattress Co. specs. I previously posted about being 300+ lbs. and how I was looking for a King latex mattress. You suggested looking at something substantially thicker than 9" given my size.

New posts go right to the top of the forum list so I have no problem finding them

A thicker mattress may or may not be necessary depending on how well a particular style, combination of materials, and layering works for you but in general you would be in the weight range where a greater thickness (up to 12") could certainly be a benefit. I would include this in your conversations with various manufacturers and retailers and there is more information about the thickness of a mattress in post #14 here. Your own personal testing will also be just as important as any “theory at a distance” though.

You’ve probably seen this but the better options I’m aware of in the Charlotte, NC area are in post #2 here.

I expect my mattress to last about 10 years. Given that, would you be concerned about the memory foam that is intermingled into both the comfort and the support layer of both the Aspen and the Snowmass? Obviously I would LOVE to spend less money, so a mix of latex and memory foam may be the way to go, but I am prepared to spend anywhere between $1500 to $3000 for a great mattress so I am not asking strictly because I CANNOT spend more.

The two “mostly latex” mattresses sold at Denver Mattress don’t contain any memory foam. They each have an inch of polyfoam in the upper layers (which is within the guidelines I normally suggest as being reasonable because the more rapid softening of a layer this thin compared to latex won’t have a significant effect on the mattress) and besides this thinner layer any additional polyfoam is in the bottom layers which are less subject to wear and softening and are usually not the weak link of a mattress.

There are many factors involved with the durability of a mattress that are unique to each individual (see post #2 here) and a mattress that would last for 10 or even 15 years for one person may only last 5 for another. Part of this is because all materials will soften to some degree and the loss of comfort and support is the biggest reason that a mattress usually needs to be replaced. If you choose a mattress that “just barely” provides the support and alignment you need then even a little bit of softening may take you over the line where for you the mattress is no longer providing what you need while for someone else it may require much more softening to take them over the line where the mattress no longer “works” for them.

The materials themselves will certainly last that long and won’t be “broken down” after 10 years but whether they will still be providing you with the support you need at that time will depend on how suitable the mattress was for you in the first place. While they use good quality materials and are good value IMO … this has nothing to do with how suitable they may be for your heavier weight and they may not provide the support you need even when they are new much less years down the road. The latex support layers are 32 ILD in both models which would be on the soft side for someone of your weight IMO but I would also keep in mind that personal testing always trumps “theory at a distance”.

I realize you cannot attest to the 3 P’s in my case…I plan on going to try them out. But as far as quality and value (in this case, value with regard to things YOU can account for and not my personal value equation), do you at least think the price is justified based on materials used? I am willing to here pros and cons either way, and am not expecting you to talk me in to or out of anything. Mostly, I am curious if you think it would be a bad plan to go down the route of mixed latex and memory foam in order to achieve a thicker mattress without substantially increasing cost.

From a “raw commodity” perspective I would consider both mattresses to be very good value yes (compared to other mattresses that use similar components and materials). The blended Talalay latex they use is good quality material and the polyfoam they use (not memory foam) is 1.8 lb density which is also “better than average”) although not in the “best” range for polyfoam and the ticking/quilting also doesn’t use higher cost materials such as wool. My biggest concern with both of these would be their suitability not their quality and value. I would test both of these very carefully for support/alignment in particular (this article and post #11 here may help you test for alignment). Thickness is only one of many factors I would consider and a thicker mattress that is too soft or not supportive (especially in the deeper support layers) would be just as “bad” as a thinner mattress that was too firm for you (or became firm with compression too quickly so you felt like you were “bottoming out”) or didn’t have the range of adaptability to accommodate all your sleeping positions. With a thinner mattress that has a firmer support layer but where the comfort layers are not quite soft or thick enough you can always add a topper but a mattress where the support layers are too soft or the comfort layers are too thick and soft is very difficult if not impossible to “fix” except perhaps on a partial or temporary basis.

I imagine you’ll be taking some time away from the computer…feel free to share thoughts when you return. Thanks so much for all your help and information.

I have certainly spend less time on the forum over the holidays than “usual” but I usually try to keep fairly up to date even on holidays so I don’t get too far behind (and there are often fewer posts than normal over holidays so this helps as well)

Hopefully this has helped but if you have more questions or I haven’t answered any particular concerns completely feel free to post any more questions you may have.

Phoenix