Phoenix,
While looking for a quality innerspring/hybrid mattress I notice that the height of the pocketed coils seems to be getting “taller”. A while back they used to be about 5"-6" in height, then 7" became common,…but now I see on line bed manufacturers coming out with 8" heights! Is this a positive, or a negative development?
I read somewhere that they are doing this so that they can use less foam materials. Should I be wary of this when I am looking at Pocketed Coil systems?
Hi BobinCA,
The height of a pocket coil is just one of many variables that will affect the feel and performance of the coil and how it responds to pressure and how well it can contour to the shape of the body. Some of the others include the gauge of the coils, the number of coils and the coil diameter, the number of turns in the coil, the shape of the coil (cylinder, barrel etc), and the specific design of the coil (single spring rate, multiple spring rate etc).
While it does affect the performance and response of the pocket coil and the mattress “as a whole” … there are also marketing and financial considerations involved as well because many consumers believe that thicker mattresses are somehow “better” and as you mentioned some mattresses that contain taller coils that can contour to the shape of the body more effectively may need less padding materials above the coil as well.
Having said that … I would keep in mind that an innerspring isn’t normally the weakest link in a mattress and the useful life of a mattress will depend much more on the types of materials or components that are on top of the innerspring than the innerspring itself. A “better” innerspring is always relative to the specific needs and preferences of a particular person and would be the one that is part of a mattress that is a good “match” for you “as a whole” in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) so the height of a coil wouldn’t be particularly meaningful in terms of assessing the durability or useful life of a mattress. There is also more about the pros and cons of different types of innersprings in this article and in post #10 here.
Phoenix
…foam above the 8" pocket coil is 1.8 lb density
gauge of coil is 15
your thoughts ?
Hi BobinCA,
[quote]…foam above the 8" pocket coil is 1.8 lb density
gauge of coil is 15
your thoughts ? [/quote]
There is more about the 3 most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase in post #13 here which can help you make more meaningful quality/value comparisons between mattresses in terms of suitability (how well you will sleep), durability (how long you will sleep well), and the overall value of a mattress compared to your other finalists based on suitability, durability, and all the other parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you (including the price of course and the options you have available after a purchase if your choice doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for).
While I can’t speak to whether a mattress is a good “match” for you in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your own Personal preferences) … if these are the only two materials in the mattress and there are no “missing layers” in your description then there would be no lower quality materials that could compromise the durability and useful life of the mattress relative to more average weight ranges (around the lower 200’s or less).
If you are confident that it will be a good “match” for you (or if you haven’t tested it in person then you are comfortable with the return/exchange policy and any costs involved to lower the risk of making a choice that doesn’t work out as well as you hoped for) and it also compares well to the other mattresses you are considering based on suitability, durability, and all the other parts of your personal value equation that are important to you (including the price of course) … then it would certainly be worth considering.
As an example you can see my comments about the Aviya mattress in post #25 here which has the same materials and components as the ones you listed.
Phoenix
Phoenix,
Based on what I have already told you (and it is the Aviya)…do you think that the foam densities are suitable for a side sleeper who weighs 235 lbs.?
Hi BobinCA,
While there is no way to specifically quantify how long any mattress will last for a specific person or predict exactly when they will decide to replace it because it is no longer suitable or comfortable for them (because this is the only real measure of durability or the useful life of a mattress that really matters) and because there are too many unknowns and variables involved that are unique to each person … if a mattress is well inside a suitable comfort/support range and isn’t close to the edge of being too soft when it is new (see post #2 here) and you have confirmed that it meets the minimum quality/durability specs that are suggested in the guidelines here then it would be reasonable to expect a useful lifetime in the range of 7 - 10 years and with higher quality and more durable materials like latex or higher density memory foam or polyfoam (in the comfort layers especially) it would likely be in the higher end of the range or even longer and the chances that you would have additional “bonus time” would be higher as well.
While you are “close to the edge” … you are a little higher than the weight range where I would normally consider a mattress that uses more than “about an inch or so” of 1.8 lb polyfoam and if I was in your shoes I would tend to look for a mattress that used a little bit higher quality and more durable materials that would be less risky in terms of durability or at the very least if a mattress contains materials that are slightly lower than the minimum guidelines relative to your weight range that I would normally suggest then it would be reasonable to reduce your expectations about the durability and useful life of the mattress and how long it may be before you may need to replace it accordingly.
Phoenix