Please help me choose a Costco Memory Foam Mattress

Hi Betsy80,

There’s no reason to be embarrassed as Sleepy1 mentioned. The goal here is always to get to the best possible outcome no matter how many missteps there are along the way :slight_smile:

Just for reference … density is the weight per cubic foot of a layer of foam not the thickness of any of the materials in the mattress. The thickness is the “amount” of materials (no matter what the density) and of course the thicker a layer of similar density the more the raw materials would cost.

Costco also has a great return policy (see the details here) and they will pick up the mattress the same way they delivered it (curbside if that was how it was delivered) if you decide to return it. Just keep the original box if you decide to try it out. This at least makes it possible to test it now that it’s coming anyway without any real risk.

The Novaform is also reasonably good value in terms of “raw materials”. 4 lb memory foam is medium density/durability and the base layer is good quality as well (2.0 lbs is not the best but is good quality). The problem isn’t so much one of poor value but because you won’t know whether the mattress is suitable for you until you try it. With 2.5 inches of memory foam it may be somewhat on the firm side but this will depend on the firmness of the polyfoam base layer.

Of course it’s not in the same value range as the Ultimate Dreams which has twice as much memory foam (the most costly part of the mattress materials) and the memory foam and base foam is also higher quality (density). With this mattress you could also test the Tempurpedic Cloud Luxe locally (which is widely available) to get an idea of how it felt (they say it’s just a little bit firmer than the Luxe) so it wouldn’t be as much of a blind purchase and you could get a clearer sense of how suitable it may be for you.

For you though … I think that the best of all options since you have it available and when you are facing the kind of “debilitating back pain” you are facing would be to work “in person” with a local manufacturer such as Parklane that has high quality and value mattresses because the suitability of a mattress is just as important if not more important than just the price alone and you would have more testing options there and some “in person” guidance that wouldn’t be available with an online merchant.

At the very least I would narrow down a local choice to the one that was “best” for you and then once you have a better idea of the type of mattress and combination of materials that is best for you and that you prefer … then compare it to a similar online option as a “value reference” … keeping in mind that it wouldn’t be exactly the same as the one you tested so there would still be a little more risk involved if you went in that direction.

Phoenix

Hi Phoenix I bought this Novafoam topper when I realized how bad my bed was sinking but naturally it didn’t help. Now I am using my folks guest bed which is a hard latex from Parklane. Since I stopped sleeping on the old sinking mattress, my lower back pain is soooo much better, I could hardly walk before. My usual head/neck/tmjd/jaw pain remains the same and not good. But it was my back that was so bad with the sinking bed.

Anyway, I tried the topper on top of he latex bed because it’s a bit hard. The topper is soooo soft though, I sink in it, reminds me of my sinking bed only it’s an all over sink. I thought the hard and soft would sort of mix, but all I feel is the soft. So the mattress I have coming is going to be a bit hard, I am prepared for this. But what kind of topper do I buy that won’t be overly soft yet softer than the hard mattress and that will work with my mattress, whichever one I will end up with. Even when I buy a better mattress, it will likely be a bit hard because the softer are spendier. Based on my experience with this super soft topper, whatever mattress you have underneath doesn’t seem to matter, whether it be a 3K tempurpedic or a $300 Kmart mattress, because all you feel is the topper! What do you think?

Hi Betsy80,

The mattress underneath a topper makes a big difference. This is why the same topper didn’t work on your old mattress because it just followed the soft spots and it did on the latex bed because the support underneath was much more even. The top few inches of the mattress/topper are what you will “feel” the most when you lie on the mattress but the layers underneath this are what keeps your back in alignment. You may not “feel” the alignment as much but it will be a big part of what you don’t feel (the back pain). the thicker the topper the more you will feel the topper itself and the less you will feel the top few inches of your mattress and the thinner the topper the more you will feel the top few inches of your mattress.

This is the difference. An “overall” sink is fine because if you sink in evenly and you are in alignment. This is the way memory foam works (you are more “in” the mattress). It’s when you sink in unevenly and your hips/pelvis sink down too far relative to the rest of your body that you have alignment issues and the back pain that can go with this.

The first step is to sleep on your new mattress for a few weeks so you know how close it is to what you want after you have gone through any initial adjustment period and the mattress has gone through its initial softening.

Once this has happened … then you can choose a topper if you need it based on the guidelines in post #8 here. There is no point in speculating on what topper you may need until you have slept on your new mattress, it has broken in, and you have gone through any initial adjustment period you will need. Then you will know for sure how your mattress will feel for the longer term and be in a much better position to decide on a topper.

Phoenix

Thanks Phoenix. The topper is 3 inches. Is that considered thick? I don’t know if I need a thinner one or simply need a firmer one. Right now all I feel is the overly soft topper not the hard bed underneath, they don’t mix at all to create the good medium feel I seek. I hate this topper so much. I know you said it does what memory foam is supposed to but honestly, I’ve never tried a memory foam mattress that super soft. And I tried from firm all the way to the spendier softer and they were nothing like this. My tempurpedic pillow is rock hard compared to this thing but really it’s more like a firm than super firm feel but I am saying in comparison. I know with 100% certainty if this topper fails on the hard guest latex bed then no doubt it will be the same misery with the new mattress.

Hi Betsy80,

A topper will typically range from about 1" - 3" and in some cases 4" so this would be on the thick side of a typical topper range. I think what you are really asking though is … “is this thick enough” or “is this too thick” and these are very subjective questions that would vary from person to person depending on the body type, sleeping style, and perceptions of the person themselves and on the mattress the topper was being used on. The best and only way to answer this is to read the post I linked earlier about choosing toppers to help you decide what is best for you.

In addition to this … different materials or different types and densities of memory foam will have a different feel and performance. All memory foam will have a “feel” that is much more “in the mattress” than other types of materials but there are dozens of different types of memory foam that will have this feel more or less than others. Lower density memory foam (like you have which I would avoid in the first place) will tend to sink in more and feel softer than higher density memory foam but there are so many different types that it’s best to talk with the people you are considering buying from to find out more about the specific type of memory foam they carry (slow or fast response, more or less temperature sensitive, softer or firmer feeling, more or less heat retentive etc).

As I mentioned in the last post … the thicker the topper the more you will feel mostly the topper and the less it will “combine” with the feel of the layers or mattress below it. In your case … because the topper is on the thick side … you are just feeling more of the qualities of the particular type of memory foam that is in your topper. Other types or densities of memory foam in the same thickness would feel different. Lower density toppers will also “allow” you to go through or sink into them more easily which could result in either too much sinking or in some cases you would go through them too much and feel too much of the firmness of the layers below them (this would be similar to using a thinner topper with a higher density memory foam).

It appears from your description that your Novaform is thick enough to shield you from the firmness of the mattress below it (you are not “going through” and feeling the sudden transition into firmer layers) but is quite low density so you are sinking into it more than you are comfortable with. I would also suspect that the Parklane mattress isn’t as firm in the top layers as you believe it is so this may also be having an effect that you are not aware of. The Novaform is probably in the 3 lb range and I would personally not consider this density … especially in thicker layers … if I was choosing a memory foam topper unless it was a 'throwaway" and the “feel” you are experiencing is exactly what i was looking for. If you want “softer” memory foam I would tend towards 4 lbs and if you want “firmer” memory foam I would tend towards 5 lb memory foam. If you want “more” of the feel of the layers below the topper to come through I would choose thinner. If you want “less” of the feel of the lower layers to come through I would choose thicker. Only you know what you are feeling on the mattress by itself and how much more softness you believe you need. Nobody else can “feel” what you are feeling.

As I mentioned … I would tend towards better quality/density toppers and would talk with the people who sell it so that they can tell you more about the particular type of memory foam they are selling compared to others. The topper you have isn’t likely “failing” (you mentioned that you weren’t feeling the firmness underneath it) so much as it is just a type of memory foam that you don’t do as well with or like as much and the density is so low that you are probably sinking in too far.

I wish I could be more specific but nobody except you can know for sure what you will feel on a specific mattress/topper combination for certain until you have tried it so the guidelines are to help you make the best possible decisions using your own “best” judgement in combination with talking to people who are familiar with what they sell and will give you their best suggestions and guidance as well.

Phoenix

Hi Phoenix and everyone. So update on my Costco mattress as well as my new bed.

First the bed. I may need to take and post a photo if this doesn’t make sense. I could NOT have purchased a crappier bed in the world! It was disassembled, no photo to see final look, and I couldn’t test it. First off, it’s low to the ground, so I can’t store my junk. My bedroom is way too small to not be able to store junk like before. Secondly, where you tuck in the mattress pad or cover, it’s so tight you can’t stick your fingers in there to make sure it’s a tight fit. Thirdly, the headboard is too short and lastly and most importantly, the headboard is SLANTED, making it even shorter than it already is. I can’t sit up and the bad posture makes me hurt. As a result of this slant, there is a large gap between the headboard and the mattress so my pillow falls in there. GAH!

So much wrong with the bed it’s hard to really test the mattress since the bed is affecting me so much. They said it was a firm and it is. That’s fine, I got use to the latex firm one at my folks house (from Parklane). I can’t use the topper since it’s so soft that it would probably be too soft on top of a wood board! Ugh, you sink. Speaking of sinking, here’s the interesting and disappointing thing. When I sleep on my side it feels firm but not so much it’s a big problem, I feel even and stable. But when I am sitting, and I am slouching terribly due to the crap bed, my butt sinks, A LOT. Why does my butt sink so much? It’s a small butt, not a big or medium size butt. I don’t feel this sinkage when I am on my side. Also, the sides of the bed are super soft, but the butt of course is not there.

I forget what Phoenix called it, but seems like when I sit, and get up real fast to see how quickly the butt area of the bed raises again, it’s hard for me to tell what is fast and slow. It’s more than a second but less than 2. Sometimes I feel like it’s slow other times fast. I think there seems a lot that needs raising though if that makes sense.

So anyway, I am feeling overwhelmed because I am back at square one, needing both a new bed for sure, and likely new mattress.

I am thinking about going back to Bed Co because they have so many mattresses. But I thought I read somewhere, maybe even here, that Restonic only has 50% happy customers? Is this true? Most of what they carry is Restonic.

Phoenix, I cannot, I simply cannot, tell which bed is right for me based solely on laying on it. I don’t know if it’s because I have not met the bed of my dreams or close to, or because I am a person that needs to sleep on a bed to know. But based on everything I have said and complained about, are your suggestions the same for the 1 or 2 parklane mattresses you mentioned or has it changed? I need to sleep on a mattress to know, but I am hoping based on all I have shared about likes and dislikes, that there is one you feel is right for me. That’s where I am at, I need to be told what I need. I promise if you tell me and it turns out to be wrong, I won’t say, “Phoenix you told me wrong.” I just think I have the best shot of getting it right from someone knowledgeable because on my own I strike out. Please?

Hi Betsy80,

I’m sorry to hear of your experience with your bed. I can imagine that it must be frustrating and disappointing for you.

The best way I know to deal with “overwhelm” is to work with the experts who already know what you would otherwise need to learn. In your case I would strongly lean towards buying locally and not online

Every major mattress company makes better and worse quality mattresses. A mattress is only as good as the materials that are in it and it’s always the materials that are important … not the manufacturers label that only says who put the materials inside the cover. Everything depends on what is in the specific mattress you are talking about and Restonic makes some very good quality as well as some lower quality mattresses. I would also consider that the knowledge and experience of the people you are dealing with is at least as important as the number of mattresses they may have on the floor.

I think I need to be very clear here that I don’t tell people what mattress to buy. I also need to be clear that I haven’t suggested any of the Parklane mattresses except as possibilities that you need to verify for yourself. The whole goal of this site and the forum is to help people with “how” to buy, not tell anyone “what” to buy and this is something I don’t do and wouldn’t be suitable for a forum anyway no matter how much anyone wanted to be told what to do. I personally believe that your own personal testing is the most accurate way to buy a mattress but as I’ve mentioned before if you don’t trust this then the next best way is to talk with the people who know the most about their mattresses which is Parklane themselves. They are good at what they do and are a much better source of information about their mattresses and which may be the most suitable for you than I am.

The best suggestion I could offer you with the circumstances and challenges you are facing is to avoid online merchants that don’t know anything about the mattresses they sell and to work with some good people that are available to you locally that have the knowledge and experience to help you make the best possible choices.

If you do choose to work with an online manufacturer or retailer … then at the very least I would work with better ones such as the members listed here that have more knowledge about their mattresses, will take the time to talk with you in detail, can help you make better choices, and have options available if you make the wrong one.

Phoenix

Thanks Phoenix. The person at Parklane seemed kinda knowledgeable, but not too much. So much of it is luck because not all sales people know their stuff.

Why do you feel my bum when sitting sinks in the current mattress yet my overall body does not when on my side? I think too my crappy bed also makes the mattress worse because of what I said above. The sides being softer I can live with I don’t sleep there, but where my bum is not on the side.

Hi Betsy80,

Some people are of course more knowledgeable than others and the worst of the Parkland people will probably be more knowledgeable than the best at many other stores. If your needs are more specialized though you could always let them know and ask for the most experienced person they have there.

A mattress is not really designed for sitting and when you are lying down your weight is spread over a much larger area than when you are sitting so any part of you won’t sink in as much. When you are sitting most of your weight is concentrated in a much smaller area (your bum) which means that the smaller area in contact with the mattress will sink in more.

Phoenix

“Some people are of course more knowledgeable than others and the worst of the Parkland people will probably be more knowledgeable than the best at many other stores. If your needs are more specialized though you could always let them know and ask for the most experienced person they have there.”

You are probably right, when I go back now I will likely know better what to ask too. I went a couple months back or more, before finding the mattressunderground.

“A mattress is not really designed for sitting and when you are lying down your weight is spread over a much larger area than when you are sitting so any part of you won’t sink in as much. When you are sitting most of your weight is concentrated in a much smaller area (your bum) which means that the smaller area in contact with the mattress will sink in more.”

Thanks that makes sense. Though some beds are more sitting friendly than others I bet, even my old one was better, if it didn’t sink in the middle so much I would have kept it a while longer. Then after the fact someone said, you could just have turned it over you know. Doh! I never thought of that! Stupid me. It was a really thick one too that it would likely have worked. Oh well, it’s gone now and I needed a full not twin anyway.

OK so the journey continues… I will report back. I don’t know if you’re a guy or girl, but Phoenix, you are just amazing.

Uh boy, I sure can relate. We were desperate when we found this forum; had bought the “wrong” mattress once; sleep-deprived and in daily pain; and then the information overload, fear of making another mistake, etc. :frowning:

Sounds like the mattress isn’t too bad so far so why don’t you exchange the bed first and then reassess? At least you have a really good idea what you like/don’t like about this bed so you can make a better choice.

You might try Ikea, or have you looked at Wayfair? They have good values and an excellent search feature so you can narrow down to what you want. Macy’s is also having a sale right now on bedroom furniture. Try to get an all-wood bed; particle board just doesn’t cut it in a bed IMO. The trend nowadays is toward lower-profile beds, so to get enough room under the bed for storage you might have to buy a “storage bed.”

Good luck.

Hi Sleepy!

Where are you in the process right now?

Most everything is made in China, but somethings should not be made there. SHAME on companies that make their mattresses there. Talk about greed. Their profit margin must be much better than U.S. made mattresses but at an expense the customer with the off gassing and potentially harmful materials. I am soooo glad I didn’t at least buy that Sleep Science made in China one from Costco. Yuck. Why does the U.S. even allow it?

So I may have to return my mattress but the bed I bought on CL so I will-sell it, it looks nice so hoping it won’t be a hard sell.

I like the look of the lower beds, they just seem more modern and European. But this isn’t practical. There aren’t many that have drawers either which is why I am OK with just having space, though drawers are nice. I’d only get to use one side anyway. My current bed is plywood. Real wood be better but at least better than composite or particle board right? My bed is not against a wall so I have to have a decent headboard.

We don’t have the one store you mentioned but we do have IKEA. Seems like their prices are only good for the worse quality stuff, but I will have to make a trip there to see if they have anything good in clearance.

Hi Betsy80,

Some mattresses use either firmer materials or the softer materials are thinner so these would be more “sitting friendly”. Of course what you give up is the pressure relief and “comfort” of the softer materials because what you need for sitting is very different from what you need for lying down. Having some support along the length of your back and sitting at an angle instead of straight up (such as an adjustable bed) can make a difference vs sitting without anything behind you or just using pillows to prop you up and take up some of the weight. It can also be less stressful on your back.

Turning a mattress over and sleeping on the other side (if it is one sided) can cause more problems than it solves because the bottom is not meant for sleeping and is often much firmer and has much less padding and pressure relieving properties than the sleeping side. Sometimes the fabric on the bottom isn’t as comfortable either. It may work for sitting but it would probably not be nearly as good or possibly even unsuitable for sleeping.

Phoenix

Hey Betsy, We’ve been sleeping on the SleepEZ latex mattress for almost 2 weeks now, and it’s absolute heaven! OMG I never knew a bed could feel this good. And not a single back-twinge for either of us. :slight_smile: If you want to hear me gassing about it some more:), you can check out my thread:
https://forum.mattressunderground.com/t/savvyrest-7q-tranquility--topper-vs-sleepez-natural-7000--topper

Wayfair is an online retailer. :slight_smile: http://www.wayfair.com/Beds-C46122.html

Yeah, Ikea may not be “fine furniture” exactly, but they offer pretty good value and are upfront about their materials, etc. We’ve got a couple of Ikea pieces that have lasted for several decades.

Don’t worry, you’ll get there too but really it helps to bite the bullet and really follow the advice here…it’s not an easy process no matter what! Keep us posted.

Thanks Sleepy. Actually I own a dresser and secretary from Ikea that I’ve had which work well, though their crazy heavy if I ever need to move them because their not regular wood but plywood or veneer or composite or something not totally natural. I just think their prices on beds are kinda spendy, the ones that fit my needs are a few hundred dollars (headpost, wood) and I can get those kinda prices closer to home. But if they have closeouts then I’d check them out, I just wish I could know before the drive there.

So you have a topper on your latex, what was the reason you decided to get a topper? Were the beds in the right price range too firm? You said you were miserable with your memory foam, do you think another memory foam brand may have been better? Thanks!

Yah, nothin’ heavier than composite. :slight_smile: It can last pretty well though if it’s good quality. Re: the bed, in that price range you might be better off looking on CL. We got lucky on the bed we ordered along with the bad MF mattress. It was only $260 and we love it. I didn’t mention it because although the frame is solid wood and very sturdy, the headboard is laminate and “gives” a little; we don’t lean against it to read so it works fine for us and it looks great, but it probably wouldn’t work for you (plus, it’s a low platform bed; not much storage underneath).

Actually, we ordered a three-layer latex bed, but with the top layer in its own separate cover, like a topper. The reason we did this, is we found in our testing of latex mattresses at a local store that the bed performed much better for our needs this way. It actually cost a bit more than a regular 3-layer latex mattress because of course we had to pay for the separate zippered wool/cotton cover. And you’d have to ask Phoenix to be sure, but I’m pretty sure that “softer” does not have to be more expensive. We could have ordered any softness we liked for the same price.

Do I think another memory foam mattress might have been better? Probably. When you consider that one 3" layer of quality memory foam costs around $360+ and that’s what we paid for 12" of various foams, they were obviously mostly lower quality. Higher quality foams might have supported us more and off-gassed less. But the latex is so much nicer in every way!
:wink:

Hi you guys, I am back with just one more question. It was mentioned before that it was best to get a mattress with as few inches as possible. Why is this? I guess I always thought that more inches was better, though of course I realize what’s most important was what those inches are compromised of. So everything else being equal, why is less more, so to speak? Thanks!

Hi Betsy80,

I don’t think that a guideline for the specific number of inches in a mattress that would be best for any particular person would have any real meaning because there are far to many variables involved to use these kinds of generalizations.

Perhaps you are referring to comments about the thickness and softness of the comfort layers being “just enough” for the body type and sleeping style of a specific person so that there would be less risk of alignment issues. You could also be referring to comments that in some cases extra thickness in a mattress could be overkill if it doesn’t produce a result that someone would notice in their “real life” experience.

Thinking in terms of “more is better” (which is a common misperception that is used to justify expensive mattresses based on the thickness of cheap materials rather than the quality of the materials themselves) could be just as inaccurate as thinking that “less is better”. The goal is always PPP (Pressure relief, Posture and alignment, and Personal preferences) and making sure that the materials are the best possible quality in your budget range regardless of the thickness of the mattress.

Phoenix