On the search for a new mattress, and the importance of a warranty

[phoenix]

Hi SigEpTendo,

My wife and I live in Memphis TN and have been sleeping on a hand-me down innercoil mattress that has to be at LEAST 20 years old. We love it, but we recently moved and got a new bedroom set, and want to get a new mattress to match. Even though we arent “feeling” any negative effects on our bodies from this 20+ mattress, it surely cant be doing us many favors at this point.

Unfortunately it would be rare to find a mainstream mattress that lasts this long in today’s market. Mainstream (major brand) mattresses as a rule don’t use the same quality of materials or have as durable a construction (such as two sided construction) as they did 20 years ago.

You’ve probably already seen this but just in case … the better options or possibilities in the Memphis area I’m aware of are listed in post #2 here.

Would ya’ll have any input on the comparison of these two beds, or how important these warranties would be? Again, based on our previous experiences with the mattress we have now, we would love to make this rather large purchase (our budget is around1500), last for as long as possible, even if 20 years might be a little unrealistic.

Memory foam and latex are two very different materials with completely different responses and feel and I would decide which you preferred based on local testing before deciding on one or the other. Not everyone will like either material and this would be a preference choice. Both of these manufacturers are members of the site which means that I believe they are among the best choices in the country in terms of quality and value but they are also apples to oranges comparisons which can’t really be meaningfully compared because of the differences between them in terms of materials and construction. In general terms though … when you have eliminated the worst choices and are making final choices and comparing “good to good” then your own personal value equation and the different objective, subjective, and intangible parts of any mattress purchase which are most important to you will also make a difference in your choice.

You can see some of my thoughts about warranties in post #4 here. Smaller manufacturers are usually more responsive to consumers who make reasonable warranty claims for the sake of their local reputation in the grey areas of coverage than larger manufacturers who tend to be more focused on finding reasons to deny warranty coverage and are more responsive to corporate profits, shareholders, or private equity groups.

As you will read, warranties don’t cover foam softening and aren’t for your lifetime but for the comfort lifetime of the material and most mattresses need to be replaced because of the loss of comfort or support that comes from foam softening long before there are permanent unweighted impressions that are deeper than the warranty exclusions or because of hygienic reasons.

I would pay much more attention to the construction and the quality of all the materials and components in a mattress than I would a warranty which is more about marketing than about giving consumers a way to get a free mattress replacement if the mattress becomes unduring the warranty period.

Phoenix