Phoenix,
Your site is fantastic! I have learned very much here,
Since latex foam mattresses are slim pickings here in Omaha(only one at Labeda which was only 7 inches and seemed OK).
After reading may posts on here, I called Joe @ Midwest Mattress over in Des Moines, Iowa .
Joe, who you referenced in a post, was found at their Urbandale store, and pointed me to their Nevada bamboo-top all-latex foam mattresses that came out from Restonic. These new Nevada mattresses are so new (different bamboo top) they are not yet on the midwest-mattress.com web site yet, so I emailed you some floor model pics he sent me from his showroom (I could not figure out how to attach them to this post, so hopefully you can). Joe was great, and prompt with his quote and pics, and you have a great member there. He offered free shipping since they offer it at the Iowa State Fair and ship beds this way after that, and no sales tax, and even gave me an additional “friends and family” discount!
My wife and I plan to buy side-by-side adjustable twin XL beds, so question one is your opinion on adjustable beds, and is there any one brand or model that you recommend?
My main question #2: Since I am in Omaha, and may be buying these beds without trying them, I wondered which Restonic Healthrest Nevada mattress (the attached pictures show the mattress contents) would be better for us as I a 185 pound stomach and side sleeper. My wife is 125 lbs and sleeps in every position. Joe said NO way on their thickest-topped Nevada Eurotop model as too soft, so I was interested in your thoughts and opinions on the quality and components and price Restonic Healthrest Nevada Latex Foam Cushion Firm vs. the Plush.
Question #3: I just discovered this AM that there is a Denver Mattress outlet here in Omaha, so what do you think of their Snowmass Latex model here as compared to the Restonic?: http://denvermattress17.reachlocal.com/?scid=1408229&kw=132968:5529&pub_cr_id=6622775890 I understand that it does not have 100% latex, but what do you think of the mattress bassed on contents and what other people have said on here?
Once again, thanks for your great site, and your members, and I look forward to getting a new bed and better rest. My old pillow-top innerspiring mattress is worn out, dipped and killing us!
I don’t have the specific layering information of the two mattresses that you mentioned but from the pictures they appear to be all latex with a support core and two different thicknesses for the comfort layer and based on the prices you also sent me seem to be great value as well … and even more so when the TMU and friends and family discounts are factored in
As you know … Midwest Mattress is a member here which means that IMO they are among the “best of the best” in terms of quality and value and are highly recommended. While the “components” of each person’s “value equation” is an individual thing so there is really no way to just “assign” a price based on just the latex layers alone … I can say for certain that I wouldn’t hesitate to make a purchase from any of the members of the site here based on their recommendations of what was most likely to fit your needs and preferences regardless of which specific mattress they recommended. The quote you emailed confirms this. I can also tell you that Midwest Mattress is one of the few retail outlets that has equivalent “value” to the factory direct outlets that are mostly members here and this is because of the combination of his business model and the lower profit margins he works with, his direct relationship with the Restonic licensee that make his mattresses, and his knowledge of mattresses in general and the service he provides to his customers.
This thread has some of my thoughts on adjustable beds and the three main manufacturers. They are very comparable in their features and it includes a list of features that may be important to some and also includes an online outlet that carries all three as a " price reference". In many cases … a “package deal” when you are purchasing a mattress and an adjustable bed together can lower the “regular” price of the adjustable significantly which of course is part or your quote as well.
There are some general guidelines here for different heights, weights, and body types and some here for different sleeping positions but there are many variables in every mattress and person including thickness, ILD of each layer, and the other components of the mattress and variations in body types and sleeping styles and while these can provide some generic guidelines based on “averages” … more specific questions about which mattress may be “best” for any particular person are always best asked of the manufacturer or outlet who knows every detail of their mattress and has the experience with a large customer base which can act as a guideline for how different body types and sleeping styles can “interact” with each specific mattress. This is the “next best way” of making the most appropriate choice besides personal testing of a mattress.
An example of this is his recommendation to avoid the Eurotop model (which I would also suggest) which would be much more risky for stomach sleepers. I will say though that for combination sleepers … “just enough” in terms of the thickness/softness of the comfort layers for best pressure relief will put you closer to the firmer support layers that will lead to better support and alignment. If there is a choice between two seeming equal options … then slightly firmer is usually safer because a mattress that is too firm for good pressure relief can be adjusted with a topper while a mattress that is too soft for good alignment is much more difficult to “fix”. Because latex is a high performance material as well and has a higher compression modulus (gets firmer faster with deeper compression) … there is also more room for error than with other types of foam such as memory foam or polyfoam.
The quality of the materials as far as I can see from a picture (talalay latex) is great and talalay latex is one of the highest quality mattress materials and one of my favorite as well. You can see the pros and cons of latex here.
Again … I don’t have the specific layering details and components of the Restonic so I can’t make any direct comparisons but I have mentioned the Snowmass on many occasions as having good value. A search on “Snowmass” (you can click this) will bring up many posts and comments about both this and the Aspen which is also a “mostly latex” mattress sold at Denver Mattress. It may be a good option to test these to help you make your best selection for the Restonic choices because some of the “comfort specs” of the Snowmass and Aspen are known (the latex in the comfort layer is 24 ILD and in the base layer is 32 ILD for both).
For some reason I didn’t include them in the Omaha list in post #3 here (now corrected). In general I place a premium on local testing but if the local value isn’t in the same range as an online purchase that you aren’t able to test … then an online or “remote” purchase makes a lot of sense as well. In this case some local testing can also help the outlet you are dealing with (in this case Joe) help you make your best possible choice.
Overall … the quality and value that Joe is offering is great and would be a good choice in any case (with some guidance about the best choice for you) and if anything local compares well according to your personal “value equation” (including the importance of actually testing a mattress before you buy it and any options you have after the sale) then having a choice between “good and good” instead of “better or worse” is better yet.
Here is a link to the company that makes restonic that may be helpful. http://www.clarebedding.com/index.asp?sPage=11#Healthrest – Click on “View Product Information” under healthrest latex and click next till you get to the all latex beds.
I would keep in mind that Restonic is a licensee group of independent manufacturers that often make their mattresses differently in different areas of the country. Many of the licensees are family owned private manufacturers that are fully transparent and others are less transparent about the materials they use.
Restonic as a group makes some good quality mattresses (and some that aren’t) that can be better value than some of the other larger manufacturers but outside of how well a mattress matches your specific needs and preferences in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) … a mattress is only as good as the quality of the materials inside it regardless of the name of the manufacturer so I would always make sure that you are able to find out the information in this article so you can make sure there are no lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress and so you can make meaningful comparisons with other mattresses (regardless of who makes it).
While the Restonic mattresses made by Clare Bedding may be different from other Restonic mattresses made by different Restonic Licensee manufacturers in other areas of the country … in my experience Clare Bedding itself is one of the better Restonic licensees and has always been helpful and transparent when I’ve talked with them on the phone and I think they are “good people”. This means that the chances are good that a retailer that carries their mattresses will be able to find out the type and quality of the materials inside one of their mattresses (if they don’t already know them) so that a customer can make sure that a mattress they are considering doesn’t have any lower quality materials or weak links and can make more meaningful comparisons with other mattresses.
