Prana vs Temperpedic vs traditional innerspring

:slight_smile: Hello. First time posting. Just wondering about the Prana mattress line at City Mattress. We currently have a four year old Sterns and Foster that was supposed to be a really good quality mattress that has been rotten since the first weeks we owned it. It is the most uncomfortable, unsupportive mattress we have owned. The company is willing to give us a small credit towards the purchase of a new mattress at their store. I just don’t think traditional innerspring is going to work for us for a number of reasons. We liked the Temperpedic but not the price, and liked several of the Prana models (Vinyessa, Super Vinyessa, Samadhi). Because they are coming out with version 5 we are trying to negotiate a better price on a version 4 floor model. I have been reading previous posts about the new 2.5 vs. 1.5 density foam and that the version 5 is supposedly made with better quality material. Has anyone had a version 4 Prana model of the above for at least 2-3 years and still really likes it? It has been hard to gauge whether in the long run this mattress will hold up. The sales person says that the Vinyessa will not support a heavier person over the long run, and recommended 1 of the other versions. I get that all mattresses will get body impressions but I really need a good mattress that will support a heavier person who is a side sleeper who has some lower back pain. I am not looking to spend a fortune here, but with the small credit and the possibility of a good price of a old floor model, I am seriously considering the Prana line. I just want to hear from some people who have a Prana mattress (over 1 year - the honeymoon period) and whether it is worth trying to further negotiate a better price.

Hi jmb0070,

Unfortunately your experience with your Stearns & Foster is unfortunately fairly common because of the type and quality of the materials they use in their mattress (in the comfort layers especially).

It sounds like you may have read this already but you can read more about the previous versions (up to version 4) of Pranasleep in post #3 here and in post #2 here and in post #3 here and in posts #1 and #2 here and a forum search on Prana (you can just click this) will also bring up more information and feedback about them as well.

It sounds like you have also read about this as well but fortunately they changed the design in version 5 and the top layers of polyfoam are now higher density and are no longer what I would consider to be a weak link in the mattress in terms of durability but they are still in a significantly higher budget range than other similar mattresses and the top layers are still polyfoam so you would still be feeling and sleeping on polyfoam more than latex. There is more about the new version 5 in post #19 here.

There are many thousands of innerspring mattresses that are very different from each other both in terms of the type of innerspring they use and the type and quality/durability of the layers and materials that are used above the innerspring so it would be very unlikely that there wouldn’t be any that would be a good match for someone in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preference). I would consider the type of materials and components in a mattress to be a preference choice not a “better/worse” choice and I would be hesitant to exclude any type of mattress or material from your options unless you know for certain that they aren’t what you prefer regardless of the many differences between them … especially in the types of materials used above the springs. Don’t forget that the upper layers of a mattress are the weakest link of a mattress … not the layers above the springs.

I would be very cautious about using other people’s experience as a reliable source of information about the durability or useful life of any mattress. A mattress will last for different lengths of time for different people and a mattress that one person sleeps well on for many years may only last a few years or sometimes even less for someone else (and vice versa). Outside of comfort and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) a mattress is only as good as the quality of the materials inside it and it’s much more effective to use the guidelines here to help you assess the durability and useful life of a mattress than to use other people’s experiences that may not (and probably won’t) reflect your own.

It may not make a lot of sense to make a choice based on receiving a “small credit” towards a mattress that is in a “much” higher budget range than other similar mattresses. Your mattress is worthless to them so any discount you are receiving would be more of a “tactic” to convince you to buy from them again.

There is more about the most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase in post #13 here that can help you make more meaningful comparisons between mattresses and I would make some VERY careful value comparisons between other mattresses that are available to you (and I would say the same thing about Tempurpedic) to make sure that you have a compelling reason to buy a mattress in that budget range and I certainly wouldn’t consider a version of their mattress prior to version 5 which uses the lower quality polyfoam and would be a much more risky choice … especially with a floor model that may not have a warranty.

There is also more information about buying a mattress for those that are in higher weight ranges in post #3 here and the posts it links to and making sure that there are no weak links in a mattress would be even more important in higher weight ranges.

I would also make sure that you’ve read the mattress shopping tutorial here which has all the basic information, steps, and guidelines you will need to make the best possible choices … and know how and why to avoid the worst ones.

Phoenix

Thanks for responding so quickly. Yes, I did read several of the posts prior to asking my questions. There is a lot of good information, as well as a lot of very technical information that even if I asked the questions, I am not necessarily sure I could wrap my head around the explanations. I am just looking for a mattress that will give me 3-6 years of comfort and support. In terms of Prana, I have 3 coworkers who have a Prana model, and two of them love it. The 3rd coworker found she sank in too far and didn’t like that feeling (she is very petite). She exchanged it for a traditional innerspring. The credit I spoke of is close to $1200 but I do have to purchase a mattress from their store, so reading descriptions of great mattresses out of my area is not going to work me unfortunately. Since I hate my current mattress, being given $1200 towards a new mattress doesn’t sound like a bad trade -as I cannot imagine a new mattress with four more years of research would be worse as the S&F. I tried the Red bed line but it felt just like my S & F. I tried the Beautyrest Black and that was way, way too firm. I tried the IComfort and didn’t really love that either. Having an autoimmune disorder definitely affects my sleep and unfortunately provides chronic back pain, so perhaps I am not going to be able to find a “perfect” comfortable, supportive mattress. The dream of getting a good night of sleep is so tantalizing that I guess if the price was right I might consider a Prana - although certainly not a new one, with those crazy prices they are asking. I realize the version 4 has some negative points (don’t all mattresses) so I would really only consider it if the store can really come down quite a bit on the floor model Samadhi and given what their employees pay for the Prana mattresses, I certainly think there is some wiggle room. That being said, if they cannot meet me at the price point I am willing to go, then I will need to move to plan B - which takes me back to a traditional Innerspring mattress (I am keeping our box springs -they are only four years old - 5 1/2 inch size). Are there any City Mattress models that you could recommend ?

Hi jmb0070,

I would start by reading the tutorial post because it sounds like you may be trying to “talk yourself into” a mattress purchase that you may end up regretting and may not be happy with in the medium to longer term (and possibly the short term as well).

I would keep in mind that there are three parts to the “value” of a mattress purchase.

The first part is testing for the suitability of a mattress in terms of PPP and how well you sleep on it. A mattress needs to keep you in good alignment and relieve pressure points in all your sleeping positions and if you use the testing guidelines in the tutorial they can help you decide which mattress is most suitable for you.

The second part is the durability of a mattress and how long you sleep well. Even if a mattress feels great and is a great “match” for you when it is new and you sleep well on it … there would be very little “value” in a mattress that uses lower quality materials that will be subject to premature foam softening and breakdown and the loss of the comfort and support that was the reason you purchased it relative to the price you are paying. Again … this would be particularly important if you are in higher weight ranges where the quality and durability of the materials will be even more important.

The third part is the “value” of a mattress purchase compared to the other mattresses you are considering based on all the other parts of your personal value equation (including price) that are most important to you.

Again … there is more about the most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase that can help you make more meaningful quality/value comparisons between mattresses in post #13 here.

I personally wouldn’t minimize the importance of using good quality and durable materials by just calling them “negative points”. They are obvious weak links in a mattress that can lead to premature softening and breakdown much more quickly than you may realize. It’s also not correct that all mattresses use lower quality and less durable materials or have a weak link in their design and there are many mattresses even in much lower budget ranges than you are considering that don’t use lower quality materials that would be a weak link in the mattress.

Only you can feel what you feel on a mattress and there are too many unknowns, variables, and personal preferences involved for anyone to be able to make specific recommendations or suggest a specific mattress or combination of layers or materials based on specs (either yours or a mattress), health conditions, individual circumstances, or “theory at a distance” (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here). I can certainly help you narrow down your options by avoiding the worst ones and with “how” to choose or act as a fact check but not with which specific mattress, company, or manufacturer to choose.

Having said that … outside of comfort and PPP … the most important part of the value of a mattress purchase is durability and a mattress is only as good as it’s construction and the quality of the materials inside it. City Mattress doesn’t list the information that I would need to make any meaningful comments about the quality/durability of the materials in their mattresses on their website but if you can find out the information in this article about any of their mattresses I’d certainly be happy to make some comments about the quality and durability of the materials inside it.

As you can see in the guidelines here … I would avoid all of the the major brands and mattresses that you mentioned (which all use lower quality and less durable materials) and I would encourage you to “reset” how you are looking for a mattress in the first place if you hope to avoid a similar experience to your Stearns & Foster.

If you let me know your city or zip code I’d be happy to let you know about the better options or possibilities I’m aware of in your area.

Phoenix

Hi. If you can steer me in a better direction of a quality mattress than I will strongly consider those options as well. Again, I am limited with the where, but City Mattress does carry a lot of mattresses so if you can give me some makes/models, that would be great. also, what are your thoughts of the Serta iSeries?

Zip 14221

Hi jmb0070,

The better options or possibilities I’m aware of in the Buffalo, NY area (subject to the quality/value guidelines I linked in my previous replies) are listed in post #29 here.

As I mentioned in my last replies I don’t make any specific recommendations for either mattresses or brands. The problem with “brand shopping” is that you aren’t buying the brand … you are buying a specific mattress … and most manufacturers make a wide range of mattresses that can vary from very low quality that in some cases may only last you for weeks or months to much more premium mattresses that use higher quality and more durable materials that will have a much longer useable lifetime. In terms of quality and durability … a mattress is only as good as the type and quality/durability of the materials and components inside it regardless of the name of the manufacturer on the label or the price of the mattress. The name of the manufacturer on the label or the price of the mattress won’t tell you anything about whether a specific mattress is suitable for you in terms of PPP or whether there are any lower quality materials or weak links in the design. There is more about the risks of brand shopping in post #5 here and post #12 here). I can help you narrow down your choices and help you eliminate more than 90% of the choices in the industry and with “how” to choose but not with which specific mattress is best for you.

I would avoid the Serta iSeries completely along with all the largest major brands (see here). You can see some of my thoughts about one of the most popular of the iSeries in post #2 here and the same general comments would apply to the iSeries lineup in general which use the same or similar materials in different combinations in all their iSeries mattresses and I would avoid any mattress where you aren’t able to find out the quality and durability of the materials inside it.

Phoenix

I’ve been to a few of the City Mattress locations down here in South FL over the last two month.
Out of the Prana line, the only one I cared for was the Samadhi. As you’re aware, the version 4 is being discontinued and the V5 is way more expensive.
I also did like the S&F MacClesfield Hybrid, since it has two 3" memory foam layers over the coils. It had that nice feeling of cushion and support. But you had a SF and it didn’t last very long, so I can understand why you don’t want another.
Lastly, the Aireloom Meribel and Silverton were also both comfortable to me, though a tad bit firmer than the MacClesfield. They are more like a traditional mattress, but with several layers of different foam and latex on the top. The Silverton adds a layers of 1.5" micro coils at the top. The Red Bed as micro coils as well, but the foam is so thin that I could feel them.

That you FAUguy for your specific mentions of City Mattress brands you have tried. Really appreciate the feedback. I am hopeful they will come down a bit more on the floor model and I can get the Samadhi. If not, I am really not sure what my Plan B is yet. thought about the Serta ISeries - new model is supposedly coming out next month with a latex topper on top.

This is super helpful information. Thanks so much.

Hi mb0070,

I hope that “Plan B” includes some better quality/value mattresses than the ones you are currently considering which both have some lower quality and less durable materials and “weak links” in their design.

Phoenix