Hey,
So, I’m currently evaluating my options for building a Latex Mattress. My main considerations at this point are Sleep EZ, Latex Mattress Factory, and Arizona Mattress. I think at this point I’m leaning slightly more towards either Sleep Ez (due to the warranty and the fact that customization of split layers doesn’t drive the price way up) or Arizona (due to the overall lower price).
.
For transparency reasons, I just wanna say that yesterday (before I found Arizona), I posted a thread very similar to this one in the Sleep EZ section.
[hr] For some background:
[li]Current:[ul]
We are on a ~15 year old firm innerspring mattress
[/ul][/li]
[li]Sleepers:[ul]
I am a 6’4" 225lb stomach sleeper…who occasionally rolls to side/back. I’m guessing my rolling is due to me becoming uncomfortable.
My partner is a 5’7" 140lb side sleeper
[/ul][/li]
[hr]
We tried out a latex mattress at The Original Mattress Factory:
[li]Construction:[ul]
?? on top/stitching
1" of 3PCF (16-22 ILD) Talalay Latex
2" of 3.25 PCF (21-27 ILD) Talalay Latex
4" of 2.5 PCF (24-34 ILD) Polyurethane Foam
2" of 3.25 PCF (21-27 ILD) Talalay Latex
1" of 3PCF (16-22 ILD) Talalay Latex
?? on top/stitching[/li][/ul]
[li]Notes:[ul]
This is a flippable mattress - hence the mirrored pattern above
It seemed a bit soft for me, but was still comfortable. Maybe a little firmer would be nice
The price (~$2,100) seemed a bit steep
TOMF’s warranty & return policy isn’t as nice as other places, so sorta worrying
TOMF recommends their “true box spring” (even for Latex), while most places seem to recommend slats or a flat non-bowing surface.
[/ul][/li]
[hr]
So, now to get into the questions that I have about building the proper latex mattress:
[li]Many places seem to use Dunlop as the base layer and often the middle layer. Why is this?[ul]
Is it just because Dunlop is cheaper (not necessarily worse - just less expensive)?
My main concern here is that if we ever wanted to swap some layers to adjust the comfort, we wouldn’t want to move the Talalay to the middle and bring Dunlop to the top.
The OMF mattress I listed above uses all Talalay, but also has the polyfoam core. Would Dunlop or Talalay give more of the polyfoam core feel?
[/ul][/li]
Based on our size/weight, sleeping habits, and the fact that we found the OMF mattress rather comfortable (ever so slightly too soft for me), what would you recommend as a configuration?
[li]Due to the AC/Zoning in the house, one of the concerns of ours is the heat in the summer.[ul]
Would one material be better than the other in terms of air flow?
What are your recommendations for the mattress protector?
[/ul][/li]
[li]What can you tell me about the cover? It seems like some sort of Bamboo/Wool cover, but I’m not entirely sure what that entails. [ul]
What does that do in terms of airflow/heat
What does that 1" do in terms of comfort and/or firmness?
How does it compare to a cotton/wool cover (like SleepEZ has)?
[/ul][/li]
Do the toppers come with any sort of warranty? I’ve seen it mentioned that the mattress should have a ~20 year life, but I’ve seen nothing about a warranty.
Do your orders have free shipping?
Arizona Premium Mattress currently seems to have the best prices for the combination I’m looking at. This is due in-large to the sale prices. I’m not sure if we’re ready to pull the trigger on the mattress right this moment, so I’m curious as to how often the toppers are on sale like this.
[hr] Thanks for any assistance!
…and thank you TMU for this amazing site!
Also…sorry for posting multiple questions in multiple parts of the forum - feel free to merge or something if needed. Being it’s designed in such a way that we direct things towards an expert/retailer, it’s hard to figure out the proper way to ask the same questions to multiple sources - being 90% of my questions for SEZ & APM are the same
Lots of questions but I will do my best. First of all, the specs you listed don’t follow true specs for Talalay latex. Talalay does not come in spreads that wide. Talalay is a spread of + or - 2. For example a #19 ILD will be between 17 and 21 not 16-22 and that is true whether it’s Talalay Global or Vita Talalay (Radium). Polyurethane also does not come in a 10 point spread. The difference between a 24 and 34 is dramatic so the specs that you were given make no sense to me which makes it very hard to know exactly what you were on.
Foam mattresses work best on solid or slatted platforms, not box springs. Why add the motion of a box spring to a mattress that cancels motion transfer. Again it doesn’t make sense to me.
Dunlop vs Talalay - Dunlop is more dense and conforms to body curves less than Talalay. It’s useful as a base core or for heavy people. For everyone else Talalay is my choice. Here at Arizona Premium we specialize in all Talalay mattresses but we often do mix a dunlop core with Talalay top layers. Natural Dunlop is less expensive than natural Talalay. For me an all Talalay bed just provides more comfort but then I am a side sleeper well under 200 lbs. So you see it really depends on the weight of the person and the favorite sleeping position as to what might work best.
We have 15 mattresses on display in our showroom and many are setup in a dual firmness. Over 70% of the couples that come in end up with a dual firmness. Back sleeper with a side sleeper. Heavy person with a light person. These are all reasons why couples are rarely on the same page when it comes to the perfect mattress firmness. By far the most popular dual firmness model consist of a Firm Talalay base core on one side and a medium Talalay base core on the other topped off with 3" of Soft Talalay. The heavier person gets more support from the firm core but both get pressure relief from the soft 3" topper. For someone of your weight who is strictly a back or stomach sleeper I would recommend a Medium for the 3" topper over the Firm core thus making not just the cores different in firmness but also the comfort layer. It’s always best to call me so we can discuss these options over the phone.
Heat in the summer, are you kidding me. Your talking to Phoenix, AZ. Talalay latex is lighter weight vs Dunlop and as such has more airflow. Bamboo fabric is stronger than cotton and wicks away moisture better than cotton. Wool is also great and pulling moisture away from your body and creating a dry sleeping environment which equals a cooler sleep. You can choke off the airflow by using a waterproof mattress protector so I do not recommend the use of a waterproof protector if you are sensitive to heat issues.
Our mattresses have a 10 year non pro-rated warranty and 10 year pro-rated warranty which you can read in our FAQ section. Individual toppers have a 5 year warranty. The firmer the topper the longer it will last.
Our most popular mattresses do come with free shipping as does several other items on our site. Individual toppers and cores do not have free shipping. Every day is Black Friday here so the sale price is not likely to change any time soon.
Hopefully this answers most of your questions. Please feel free to call me direct to discuss further 888-773-7326
No additional savings are available but since you are getting all the components for a complete mattress you do get the 20 year warranty just no refunds, only exchanges.
Stopping here to say that I have no officially placed my mattress order!
Arizona Premium Mattress seemed to have the best deal in terms of ordering Cores/Toppers. The Cover is a similar price to what I would find elsewhere, but has Bamboo (so should be stronger) - so I saw no reason to order it elsewhere.
My main concern was on the warranty period. In-theory, I could get a fairly comparable mattress from other places with a 20yr warranty & 100 night trial for a couple hundred dollars more.
In the end, once I learned that APM will offer the 20yr warranty if you buy all of the components for a complete mattress for them, it essentially eliminated my 1 hesitation.
Thanks to this “build a full mattress and get the full warranty” system, combined with their great value on cores/toppers…and not to mention the MU5 discount and assistance from Ken, I’m quite pleased with my decision! The shipping/wait time is higher than most place, but I’m in no rush, so the quality, customization, and price will hopefully make it worth it!
For anyone curious about the final build I decided to go with:
King Size Bed (split side/side)[ul]
[li]Cover: Bamboo - Wool Zippered Mattress Cover[/li]
[li]Top Layer: 2" Blended Talalay[ul]
[li]Left: 19 ILD[/li]
[li]Right: 28 ILD[/li][/ul][/li]
[li]Middle Layer: 3" Blended Talalay[ul]
[li]Left: 28 ILD[/li]
[li]Right: 32 ILD[/li][/ul][/li]
[li]Bottom Layer: 3" Natural Dunlop[ul]
[li]Left: Firm (34-38 ILD) [/li]
[li]Right: Firm (34-38 ILD) [/li][/ul][/li]
[/ul]
Based on our size and sleeping habits, I think we’ll be very pleased with this. If not, the combination of layers we have should allow it to be fairly customizable. Oh, and the idea of being able to change out individual layers over time and/or to meet our ideal settings is a really nice feature!
Thanks again to Ken for the great customer service and all of the assistance on this forum and on the phone!
How can a customer tell whether latex is made by Vita Talalay or Talalay Global? For example, I am trying to choose Talalay topper from naturelle organic beds (which they claim to be from TG), and they list the choice of firmness as 14-19, 24-32, 34-42, 44-50. However, TD chart for N1 - N5 has different numbers. Supposing this is just inaccuracy on the website, when I actually receive the topper, how can one tell whether it is really made by TG? Also, how can one be sure this is not an old latex (before TG bankruptcy) but more recent higher quality supposedly improved latex?
I think that is a question you should ask directly to them. I can tell you how our customers can tell - the manufacturers label is right on the topper. Toppers are cut from 6" cores, the label is in the center of the core. When cut into 3" toppers the label gets cut in half. The top half will show the code which will end with an N2 or N3 and so on along with the testing results of the 9 different areas. Right in the middle of the label it will also say ILD and then under that will have the N code. If you get the bottom half of the label it will clearly show Talalay Global 510 River Rd. Shelton CT Made in USA and you might see part of the testing results along with a long Bar Code and a hand written N code.
Vita Talalay uses a small stamp that can be hard to read but has similar details but it sometimes only shows up on one of the toppers so the firmness can be hand written. The cores will always have the full stamp on them that states Made in the Netherlands. They use much different N codes on their natural talalay. Their N-7 is the same ILD as TG’s N-4 so not to get confused.
Quick question for you…
When should I expect the confirmation email to be sent on the order?
I’m always a bit worried when ordering over the phone. Due to the letters like B/C/D/P/T/V/Z/ect that all sound the same, I’m always somewhat worried that either the email address or shipping address may be wrong - it’s happened to us before
I got the email from my bank saying that the card was charged last night, so it seems the order has gone through. But I haven’t received any sort of confirmation email for the order. I just wanted to check to see if one should have been sent by now.
I wrote down an incomplete email address which is why you didn’t receive it. I’ll forward you my copy of the receipt. Let me know if you do not get it shortly.
Ken,
I’m planning to start construction on our new bed-frame soon.
(See my design here)
The standard size for a King Mattress is 76x80.
I see that the foam cores/toppers are 76x80.
Once a Bamboo cover is placed over the mattress, do you know what the final dimensions are for your mattresses?
I plan to add a little wiggle-room to the design (to cover manufacturing variability). Currently, I have it as a 76.5x80.5 section for the mattress. I’m assuming I’ll want to increase this, but I just wanted to see if you had dimensions for the covered product.
Nice base design! It would not finish any larger than 76 x 80 if anything it will be slightly smaller since we cut the covers fit tight due to minor stretching over time.
The final layers of the mattress arrived yesterday.
It took a bit of work to get the layers in place and zip it up properly, but it all came together nicely in the end!
My side was softer than my old bed, but still pretty firm (just how I wanted it), and my GF’s side was much softer than our old mattress - and she said it was great.
I’ll hopefully remember to come back here in ~1 month and give an update once we give it more of a break-in period. But at this point, I’m still pleased with the purchase!
Congrats on your Arizona Premium mattress purchase :cheer: ! Thanks for your support of our Trusted Member program, we feel strongly about the quality, expertise and support these manufacturers/ retailers provide. Thanks too for sharing your DIY details and offering support to other consumer subscribers, positive engagement is the spirit and backbone of the TMU Forum . Also thanks to @KenHightower of Arizona Premium Mattress for the excellent hands-on support throughout BChaps’ research process. Advice from and access to these industry experts is a real asset to this community, always appreciative of their partnership.
That would be great, BChaps; looking forward to your updates in the future…
Dear Ken: Probably, this has been discussed somewhere, but I wanted to ask some specific questions.
If I put medium firmness (around 30 ild) dunlop 3’’ latex topper on top of Combi-Zone coils, will it feel softer (or more comfortable) compared to putting it on a firm layer of foam? Basically, I have such latex layer on top of firm foam and it feels a bit too firm (hip and shoulder pain and arm falling asleep). Initial feel of latex layer is quite comfortable, so it is a bit surprising to me that a few hours of sleep make such a bit difference. How much of a difference would coils make?
Related question. I noticed that almost all latex mattress manufacturers place soft latex (around 20 ild) on top of medium latex in their most popular configurations. So I assume latex on latex feels pretty firm. On the other hand, hybrid mattresses seem to use medium latex on top of coils. Is that correct?
How do firmnesses of 8’’ Combi-Zone, 6’’ Caliber Edge, and 6’’ QE Bolsa compare?
Basically, I wonder if I should add soft 3’’ topper on top of my medium topper, or place coils underneath the medium layer. Which one would be more comfortable? Longer lasting?
If comparing to our base foam yes, it would feel a little softer over a coil. I would say there is about a 15-20% difference in the feel.
We design our mattresses for each individual. Weight and sleeping position have a lot to do with what is recommended. All of our coils are in the Firm category with the latex comfort layers determining the overall feel. I would just add a soft layer over what you have now to get more comfort for your hips.
