Question about $400-500 budget, foam or innerspring?

Mattress Talk General Mattresses Questions
1

Hi, I’m looking into purchasing a Twin mattress in Brooklyn, NY. I don’t want to spend a lot of money on it as I do foresee getting married in a few years and having to buy a new bed. That being said, I am willing to spend some money so my mattress won’t start degrading in a year.

With a $400-500 budget, is it worth looking into foam or should I just go for innerspring? I’ve done some reading on here and it seems the higher end latex mattresses will be more durable. How about in this price range? Is the quality so bad that I might as well look into innerspring?

Thanks in advance for your help. :slight_smile:

2

Hi stanleychs1437,

While the choice of materials in your mattress is a personal preference … IMO it would be well worth looking into different types of foam mattresses (polyfoam or latex foam or memory foam) because there would certainly be some good quality choices available for a twin mattress in your budget range.

The better options or possibilities I’m aware of in the New York City area (subject to the guidelines here) are listed in post #2 here that will give you a good starting point for your local research and some of the better online options I’m aware of that are in lower budget ranges are listed at the end of post #4 here as well.

Phoenix

3

Thanks Phoenix.

What would you say about these two? I can’t really understand Sleep EZ’s website.

https://www.sleepez.com/catalog/product_info.php/products_id/287

https://www.sleepez.com/catalog/product_info.php/cPath/1_4_22/products_id/105

It appears the first link is their Roma line, it’s Dunlop, and doesn’t offer any customization choices.

The second link appears to be Dunlop as well and offers a choice on the firmness level. Both are all natural latex.

The Mattress 24/7 Sweet Dreams looks to compare with the Sleep EZ Roma

Natural and Blended Talalay Latex | Radium Latex - Mattresses 24/7 (doesn’t mention thickness)

While the Mattress 24/7 Back Ease looks to compare more with the DreamFoam Ultimate Dreams Latex

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CP85P7I/

Is it worth it to spend more for the Spindle?

A bit of background information about me, I’m 5’9", 130lbs, and generally a back sleeper. I think I don’t need a firm mattress for durability, in fact due to my lower weight I should get a softer mattress. I’m leaning towards the Sleep EZ Roma, it’s a little more than the polyfoam core options, is it worth it?

Stanley

4

Hi stanleychs1437,

When you can’t test a mattress in person for PPP then the most important part of making an online choice is always a more detailed conversation with the retailer or manufacturer so they can help “talk you through” the differences between their mattresses and the options they have available that would have the best chance of success based on the “averages” of their customers that are similar to you (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here). They will know more about the specifics of their own mattresses and be in the best position to provide you with the type of guidance you need than anyone else.

Having said that … there is more about the Roma in post #2 here. It is a two sided mattress so you would have the choice of sleeping on the firmer or the softer side.

Both mattresses use two layers of Dunlop latex so they both use high quality materials and there are no weak links in either of them. The main difference between their designs is that the Roma is a finished two sided mattress that has a quilted cover and the SleepEZ 6" special is a one sided component mattress that has a stretch knit cover where the layers can be customized both before and after a purchase (by rearranging the layers or exchanging a layer). Assuming that either one or both would be a good match for you in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) either one would make a good quality/value and very durable choice.

Again it’s usually a good idea to narrow down your options at any specific manufacturer to a single choice based on more detailed conversations with each of them before making comparisons between your finalists.

I don’t have the information I would need about the Sweet Dreams to make any meaningful comments about it (see this article)

I also don’t have all the specific information I would need about the Back Ease to make any meaningful comments about it either other than it’s a latex polyfoam hybrid that would be similar in design to the Dreamfoam Ultimate Dreams latex mattress as you mentioned. You can read more about the pros and cons of a latex/polyfoam hybrid vs an all latex mattress in post #2 here.

This would be a “value” judgement based on your conversations with each of your finalists and your individual criteria and the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you. This is also a very high quality mattress that uses 100% natural Dunlop latex made with a continuous pour process and has a wool quilted organic cotton cover which can help with temperature regulation.

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 decide whether any mattress would be “worth it” to you.

There is also more about different types of quilted covers vs unquilted stretch covers in post #12 here and the posts it links to.

Once you have talked with each of the manufacturers you are considering and have narrowed down your options to a single mattress with each one and you are confident that all of them would be a good match for you in terms of PPP (or that you have good options after a purchase to fine tune or return the mattress if you aren’t) then you would be down to finalists that are between “good and good” where there are no lower quality materials or weak links in any of them.

At this point any of the mattresses you are considering would likely make a very good choice so if you are down to final choices (see post #2 here) and there are no clear winners between them then deciding which one would be “best for you” would be a matter of best judgement based on your conversations with each of them and all the objective, subjective, and intangible parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.

Your next step in the process towards making a final choice would be a more detailed conversation with each of the manufacturers or retailers you are considering but you are certainly looking at some very good quality/value options :slight_smile:

Phoenix

5

Hi stanleychs1437, if you can try out some mattresses with different builds it might help get a feel for the differences. Then you can narrow down to what feels better - all latex, all talalay, dunlop, latex over poly foam hybrid.

You’re right there isn’t much info on the sweet dreams at mattresses 24/7 but if it’s the same as their 9" latex mattress on their ebay store then it says it’s a choice of firmness. soft/med or med/firm, 6" of latex (either talalay or dunlop). The other 3" comes from the padded mattress encasement, 1 1/2" either side. I’d venture to guess it’s a glued 6" thick layer with either med/firm or soft/med 3" layers glued together. This would be a reversible mattress so the softer or firmer side could be the sleeping surface. If you give Valerie a call she’s really a pleasant lady and I’m sure she’d be happy to answer any/all questions.

You mentioned a twin size, have you considered a twin xl? Same width as a twin but with the length of a king (if you have the room for it). Pretty common size used for dormitories and might be a bonus since there are lots of places that cater to college crowds. Lots of options it seems and sales around start of school for that particular size mattress.

Best of luck

6

Thanks Phoenix. I will give SleepEZ a call and chat with them about how the two options would fit me. It’s good to know that I’ve avoided the bad options and any of these choices would be good.

7

Thanks Brass for bringing that up, I will look into the XL size as well.

8

Hi Phoenix,

I am now leaning towards the adjustable ultra plush from Mattresses.net

reason being for $50 more I get another 2" of blended Talalay topper and zipper cotton cover with wool quilt. I also have the flexibility of exchanging the layers.

My two options here are the SleepEZ 6" special which is NR Dunlop while the Mattresses.net adjustable ultra plush is blended Talalay. I read some of your posts about the different latex types and what I understand is that the Mattresses.net one will be softer and more springy than the SleepEZ 6" special. Are there any health concerns with synthetic versus NR or is that just more of a personal preference for a more “natural” mattress?

I spoke to both SleepEZ and Mattresses.net and they both seem honest and great to work with. Thanks for recommending them on your site! :slight_smile:

Stanley

9

Hi stanleychs1437,

The Mattresses.net adjustable ultra plush would be more closely comparable to the SleepEZ 8" special here (which also has 8" of latex) except the 8" special has a stretch knit cover that isn’t quilted with wool, it has 100% natural Dunlop in the bottom two 3" layers instead of Talalay, and it uses 100% natural Talalay in the top 2" layer.

It would be closer yet to the SleepEZ 9000 mattress here which has a very similar design and uses the same type of latex except for the difference in the number of layers and the options that are available to customize the mattress and the differences in their exchange policies.

I wouldn’t have any “safety” or health concerns with any type of latex and they are all Oeko-Tex or Eco-Institut certified for harmful substances and VOC’s (see post #2 here).

There is also more about the differences between Dunlop and Talalay latex in post #7 here but this would be more of a preference choice based on which one your own personal testing and/or experience indicates you like better.

As you know I think highly of both of the manufacturers you are considering and you are certainly looking at some great options.

Phoenix

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Just want to report back I went with the Mattresses.net adjustable plush, looking forward to the 8" of blended talalay!

Greg from Mattresses.net did mention that their blended talalay is 60/40 and the man-made rubber is petroleum based. Does that sound normal? I didn’t see you mention petroleum in the posts about the different types of latex. Is 60/40 a ratio with too much synthetic rubber considering the price?

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Hi stanleychs1437,

There is more about natural rubber and synthetic rubber in post #2 here and there is more about blended Talalay (which is a 70/30 synthetic/natural blend not 60/40) and natural Talalay in post #2 here. Natural and synthetic are both equally “rubber” (they are not polyurethane which is another type of foam completely) and blended Talalay is a very high quality and durable material that if anything is probably a little more durable than natural Talalay in the lower ILD’s. Synthetic rubber is made from a copolymer of styrene and butadiene and both of these are generally sourced from petroleum (although there are also other sources as well) but they are inert and stable when they are copolymerized together and cured.

There is also more about all the different types and blends of latex in post #6 here.

The Talalay latex in your mattress is certainly a very high quality and durable material and I think you made a great choice. Congratulations on your new mattress :slight_smile:

I’m also looking forward to your comments and feedback once you’ve received it.

Phoenix

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Thanks Phoenix for the info. What do you mean by the blended Talalay being 70/30 and not 60/40? Do you mean you were only talking about 70/30 in that post? Or it is not possible to have 60/40?

Yes I will report back once I get it. Takes about 3 weeks though :frowning:

Greg also mentioned that a 6" core is better than two 3" layers combined together to make 6", is this true?

13

Hi stanleychs1437,

There are two companies that make Talalay latex which are Radium and Latex International and the blended Talalay that both of them make uses a blend that is about 30% natural rubber and 70% synthetic rubber (see post #6 here).

You can see my thoughts about how they compare in post #2 here.

Phoenix

14

Thanks Phoenix, I emailed Greg and he confirmed that the blended talalay is 60/40, perhaps you can speak to them directly in case something changed?

15

Hi stanleychs1437,

While it wouldn’t make any difference in practical terms … Radium used to make a 60/40 blend when they were competing with Dunlopillo who manufactured Talalay latex in England which also made a 60/40 blend.

It was changed to a blend that is “about” 70/30 when Dunlopillo went bankrupt and closed down several years ago.

I have confirmed this directly with Radium in Holland.

Phoenix

16

Thanks Phoenix.