Hi tarpon21,
[quote]I’m happy to report my wife and I went to Mattress Firm today and laid on some memory foam mattresses. Tried some iComforts with gel, one was way too firm and I like firm. Wife thought it was like laying on a board lol.
Fortunately, we did find one mattress that we both liked, the Serta 10" Kales memory foam. It wasn’t too soft and it wasn’t super firm. I am a side sleeper too, and it felt pretty good. Keep in mind, we have a 4 year old Serta pillowtop that completely fell apart (under warranty still I believe) and has severe sag with extreme sloping on both sides. So, kind of skeptical of Serta, although memory foam is a completely different ballgame.[/quote]
As you can see in the guidelines in the tutorial post … I would avoid chain stores like Mattress Firm and major brands like Serta completely.
Outside of what is on their site (which is next to nothing) I don’t know any specifics about it no and the only information I would be able to find out is what Mattress Firm would provide their customers but it’s very likely that the quality/durability of the materials are quite low. Having said that … the memory foam certainly isn’t 1 lb density and whoever was answering the questions here and whoever provided you with this information clearly knows very little about mattress materials or they would realize very quickly that the specs they are providing make no sense at all.
There is more about the different ways that one mattress can “match” another one in post #9 here but this isn’t a mattress that another manufacturer would even try to match so in terms of feel and performance the only way to know to “match” it would be based on your own personal testing and subjective comparisons. Even if this mattress was “perfect” in terms of PPP though … I still wouldn’t purchase it if I didn’t know the quality of the materials so I could identify any weak links in the mattress and make meaningful comparisons with other mattresses. This would be a very risky purchase in terms of durability. To compare the quality/specs of another mattress (which is a separate issue than PPP) you would need to know the type and quality of all the layers in both mattresses and it’s not very likely you will be able to find out the correct specs for the Serta mattress.
The memory foam is 3" and the support foam is 7" but the only way to know if any mattress is a good match for you in terms of PPP would be based on your own careful and objective testing or if you can’t test a mattress in person then a more detailed conversation with a knowledgeable and experienced online retailer or manufacturer (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here). Some memory foam mattresses with 7" or polyfoam and 3" of memory foam may work well for some people and others may not work at all. It all depends on the specifics of the materials and components in the mattress and the body type, sleeping positions, and preferences of the person.
I would only trust knowing the specifics of the materials inside a mattress … not the name of any manufacturer. Warranties also only cover manufacturing defects in a mattress and have little to do with the useful life of a mattress or how quickly you may need to replace it (see post #174 here).
If your mattress has visible impressions that are deeper than the warranty exclusions then I would certainly contact the retailer where you purchased it so they can send an inspector (normally there is a charge for this) to assess whether your mattress has a “defect” based on the warranty criteria and that there isn’t anything that would void the warranty (any stains of any type on the mattress or a support system that isn’t suitable for the mattress).
That would depend on whether you have a box spring (that flexes) or a foundation (which doesn’t), whether it’s still in good condition with no weak spots or sagging, and on whether it is suitable for the specific mattress that you end up buying. There is more about the different types of foundations and box springs that are suitable for different types of mattresses in the foundation post here and the posts it links to.
I would personally avoid visiting chain stores and testing major brands (or any mattress where you can’t find out the information you need to make an informed choice) because the time you spend will probably contribute more to your frustration than get you any closer to finding a mattress that is the best choice for you.
Phoenix