Nice 3" blended talalay topper with SleepEZ cotton/wool cover...Now what?

[phoenix]

Hi shaungregory,

My topper+cover was about $400 and I’m looking to spend another $400 for a similar 3" twin XL topper+cover for my wife (probably 19 ILD). In the context of my DIY project, these could just lay on top of 6" or 9" of latex in a separate stretch cotton zippered cover (likely from SleepEZ as well). This would be similar to Savvy Rest’s 10" base mattress with 3" topper.

This could certainly be a good plan so you could use your toppers as part of your sleeping system. There is more about the difference between using a topper vs having the same layer inside the mattress cover in posts #3 and #4 here and in this topic.

But then Brooklyn Bedding had to go and introduce their new mattress. Even though it is a latex over polyfoam, it appears to be high quality/high durability. I should say that I’m 6’ 3"/300 lbs and my wife is 5’4"/130lbs. It appears to be a very cost effective option to get a soft twin XL for my wife and a firm twin XL for me (they don’t make a his/her king with this mattress). This mattress does not come with a zippered cover. Instead the cover adds another 1/2" of thickness and the mattress finishes around 11". Given the “fixed” cover, any future changes would be “all or nothing”.

I would agree that the new Brooklyn Bedding mattress uses high quality materials that would be suitable for your weight range in terms of durability.

The big picture is that the height of both my wife’s side and my side need to be “roughly” the same, in order to keep King-sized sheets on the bed.

If you were to purchase two twin XL mattresses that are the same mattress then they would of course fit your matching size requirements. There is more about the pros and cons of split king mattresses vs a single king size mattress in post #8 here and in this topic.

Purchase Brooklyn Bedding’s new mattress and put our toppers on top. This would result in a mattress of about 15". Given my size, I don’t think this is a “bad thing”. I’m just wondering what impact the “thicker” BB cotton cover might have between the mattress and the top (unlike Savvy Rest’s).

The Brooklyn Bedding mattress may work well for you by itself (which is what it’s designed to do) or you may find you prefer it with your topper on top of it. Every layer and component of a sleeping system will have some effect on every other layer and component and on the mattress as a whole and the quilted cover would add some additional thickness and softness in the top 7" of your sleeping system vs the same combination that had a thinner cover but you wouldn’t be able to “isolate” the effect of the cover unless you were to make a side by side comparison with the same mattress that had a different cover with the same topper on top of it because you “feel” all the layers of a mattress as a whole not individually. In the same way the only way to know whether the mattress by itself or the mattress with the topper would be the best “match” for you or which one you may prefer would be based on your actual sleeping experience.

While you would be ordering the firm anyway and then deciding whether adding the topper would be better than the mattress by itself, in your wife’s case if she is adding a soft topper then it may be worthwhile considering the medium and then using the soft topper on top of it so that there aren’t two “soft” layers in her sleeping system which could be risky in terms of maintaining good alignment.

If you do decide to go in this direction It may be worthwhile just ordering your side first so you can decide whether the mattress would be a better match for you either with or without the topper and then you would be in a better position to decide whether to order a soft mattress for your wife (if you prefer your mattress without the topper) or a medium for your wife that she can use with the soft topper (if you prefer your mattress with your topper) so that you can match the height of hers with the option that works best for you.

Or just continue my DIY project. I’m fairly confident in the needed comfort levels and components, so exchanges/returns are not necessarily a big deal. But even so, this option is likely $300-$500 (or more) more expensive. It would, however, result in a full latex mattress. And, given a zippered cover for the bottom layers, provide the ability to make changes/replace worn out layers in the future.

Outside of the benefits of having component layers that you can rearrange or exchange and the ability to replace a single layer if one layer softens or breaks down before the others (usually the top layer) or if your needs and preferences change over time … there is more about a latex/polyfoam hybrid vs an all latex mattress in post #2 here. The other advantage of a component mattress is that you can “leave out” one of the layers that you would otherwise purchase because you already would have one of the layers while with a “finished” mattress you wouldn’t be able to “leave out” one of the layers and if you find that you prefer the mattress by itself you would have a “left over” topper.

I know Phoenix wont tell me what (or what not) to buy and I completely understand. I also know that I should not rely on other’s experiences. I’m just looking for additional feedback on these options and how best to maximize my current topper+cover investment.

Your choice between the latex hybrid option either with or without a topper and an all latex mattress is really a budget and a preference choice since either one could work well for you “in theory” so I really don’t know which one would be better for you and it would really depend on which direction you feel best about based on all the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.

Phoenix