We are looking forward to move to our new place next week and we want to get a king size mattress.
A year ago I took my fiance to a local place to try out mattress and he likes the MF over latex. Since our budget is limited I found this one on sale from Costco (also makes me feel more comfortable buying due to their return policy)
http://www.costco.com/Novaform-14"-Serafina-Gel-King-Memory-Foam-Mattress.product.100031199.html
Please let me know what do you think of it since I am still a newbie with Mattress.
Thank you
Hi minmin001,
While 2 of the 3 layers are probably good quality (although they don’t describe the middle layer in terms of exactly what it is or other information such as softness/firmness that would be useful) … I would be very wary of purchasing a mattress that used more than 1" of 3 lb memory foam (see the memory foam guidelines I use here) unless you are in the very lowest budget range.
I would also be very cautious about buying any mattress from a big box store because they know little about their mattresses or how to help you make a suitable choice in terms or PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal Preferences) and the suitability of a mattress for your body type, sleeping positions, preferences, and physiology is just as important as it’s quality and value. If you make the wrong comfort or support choice … then a mattress would have little value to you regardless of its quality or value in “commodity” terms. You can read more of my thoughts about buying from a big box store in post #4 here. In essence … you are rolling the dice and hoping your number comes up.
Phoenix
Thank you for your reply Phoenix. I’m from Austin TX, what do you think will be a good king size mattress in that $800 price? I believe I went to one of the local place you posted before but yelp have some bad customer service review on it which made me a little scared buying from there.
Hi minmin001,
As you can see in post #1 here … I don’t provide advice on specific mattresses to buy … only how to make the best possible choices that fit your personal criteria. This post is the most important post on the forum and will provide you with the information, steps, and guidelines that can help you make the best possible choices.
The knowledge, experience, and guidance of who you deal with can be as big a part of the value of a mattress purchase as the mattress you buy.
You have much higher odds of being able to tell the suitability of a mattress with careful and objective personal testing. You can tell the quality and value of a mattress by comparing the materials and design to other similar mattresses. The “missing link” is the retailer and manufacturer you are dealing with and their willingness to provide you with the information you need about their mattresses and designs along the lines of this article and of course their knowledge and experience that can provide you with the help and guidance and education that can help you make better and more informed choices.
Some of the better options and possibilities in the Austin area I’m aware of are listed in post #2 here.
Phoenix
Minmin,
A lot of forum members seem to like the dreamfoam (brooklyn bedding on amazon) mattresses for that price range
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008KQ8YZO/ref=twister_B008KQ8YC2?ie=UTF8&psc=1
and
https://www.amazon.com/DreamFoam-Mattress-Ultimate-Dreams-13-Inch/dp/B0092UCN0Y
If you buy them using “Dreamfoam” as the seller, you get a free pillow for being a forum member, but there is NO return policy. If you buy them with “Amazon” as the seller, Amazon’s standard 30-day return policy applies
Hi paladin732,
Just to clarify … the mattresses are shipped compressed and if they need to be returned then they can’t be re-compressed so Amazon’s large item return policy would apply which has some costs attached to it (see post #11 here).
This is often a source of confusion and often if you call Amazon to ask … if the item was shipped using one method they will often assume it can be returned with the same method which can result in them providing you with incorrect information about returns. I’ve even seen cases where Amazon arranged for a mattress pickup (with another manufacturer) with UPS and then the shipment was refused because it was too large.
Phoenix
thank you. I think I will go back to that austin store that’s on your post and give it another try =)
also will try to see if fiance will consider latex since he does sleep hot and from what I’m reading latex is a little cooler than MF
Thank you
one quick question. is latex rubber foam different from the latex mattress we are talking about?
I was looking at this and wasn’t sure, I’m thinking going with the Malaysia 9 Inch Talalay Blended Latex Foam Rubber, and want to see your input as far as the foam and value. Thank you
http://www.sleepworld.net/our-products/latex-mattresses/
Hi minmin001,
Latex cores are made of rubber that has been foamed into the cores used in a mattress. It is made using two different processes (the Talalay process and the Dunlop process) and either of these can use either natural rubber (from the Hevea Brasiliensis tree) or synthetic rubber (Styrene Butadiene) or a blend of the two along with the other compounds that are needed to make the foamed core.
You can read more about the different types of latex in this article and in post #6 here.
For a mattress that contains 9" of blended Talalay latex, the Malaysia is great value IMO.
Phoenix
Thank you. I also found this but since it doesn’t say much about the latex they use I wasn’t sure if it’s compareable with the other one.
http://austinnaturalmattress.com/product/austin-natural-mattress-direct-9-latex-mattress/
Hi minmin001,
The mattress you linked is made by Boyd and doesn’t contain any latex at all. You can see a description of their two 9" natural flex mattresses here.
What they call “engineered latex” is a really misleading and deceptive description because it’s just polyfoam … not latex at all. Austin Natural Mattress should also know better than to list it as a latex mattress the way they have. It’s not comparable to a latex mattress or even a latex/polyfoam hybrid mattress (with a latex comfort layer and polyfoam support layer) at all.
Phoenix
Thank you. I talked to someone from austin natural mattress and they said for blend latex they consider 40%+ blend as good, is that true?
Also should I ask about what % is the blend Malaysia use since it’s not stated on the website?
Hi minmin001,
That would depend to some degree on whether you are talking about Talalay or Dunlop latex. You can read more about the different types and blends of latex in post #6 here.
The Malaysia uses Talalay which is only made by two companies. One is a 30% / 70% natural / synthetic blend and the other is a 40% / 60% natural / synthetic blend and both are high quality materials and very comparable to each other.
Phoenix
Phoenix. So we bought the Malaysia few weeks ago. So far I haven’t really felt much amazing difference compare to our old cheap mattress. Fiance did make a comment about how he doesn’t really like the mattress now since it sinks in the middle of where he sleeps and it made me worried.
That place doesn’t have much of a return policy or service and I wasn’t sure if that’s normal for latex?
Hi minmin001,
The quality of a material is not something you can “feel” … it determines how long the material lasts.
All materials and mattresses come in a very wide range of softness/firmness levels and the firmness and thickness of the layers and the overall design of the mattress is what determines what I call PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) and how far you will sink into the mattress in different areas. This will depend on your body type, sleeping style, and the design of the mattress (not the type of materials).
So there is really no “normal” for latex outside of being a highly resilient and durable material because it depends on the design of the mattress.
You may have made a wrong “comfort” or “support” choice in terms of the firmness or design of the mattress rather than a wrong material choice. Even the highest quality mattress that uses the highest quality materials may be suitable for one person and unsuitable for the next. Did he not notice how it felt when you tested it?
In any case … the first thing I would do is talk with the manufacturer about any options you have outside of a return.
Phoenix