Hi Aunins,
If the only issue with a mattress is that it is too firm and there are no soft spots or sagging in the mattress then a good quality topper can certainly be an effective way to add some additional softness, “comfort” and pressure relief to your sleeping system but the only way to know for certain whether a specific mattress/topper(s) combination is a good “match” for you in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your own Personal preferences) is based on your own careful testing or personal experience on the combination. If you can’t test the combination in person then there will always be always some risk and uncertainty involved in adding a topper because the specifics of the mattress itself along with your own body type, sleeping position, and preferences can affect which specific topper would be a suitable choice on any specific mattress.
There is more information about choosing a topper in post #2 here and the topper guidelines it links to which along with a conversation with a reliable and knowledgeable supplier (that can provide you with good information about how their toppers compare to each other or to other toppers they are familiar with that are available on the market) can help you use your sleeping experience as a reference point and guideline to help you choose the type, thickness, and firmness for a topper that has the least possible risk and the best chance for success. It also includes a link to a list of some of the better online sources for toppers I’m aware of and a link to the online suppliers that have good exchange/return policies as well
As you mentioned … a good exchange/return policy can reduce the risk of an online topper purchase so I if you aren’t certain that a topper will work well for you I would always make sure you are comfortable with the options you have available after a purchase just in case the topper you choose doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for.
[quote]My conclusion is that the bed is too hard. I like the 2 inch topper, but I don’t feel it cushions quite enough. When I’m on my side, my shoulders ache when I wake up, suggesting 2 inches isn’t enough… I did try folding the topper in half to make it 4 inches of 20ILD and sleeping on it like a twin bed. After about 30 minutes I felt that was actually a little too soft for my back and I unfolded it and slept like normal. Perhaps I need to give that a longer try. Anyway, to make the bed softer, here are the options I am considering:
- SleepOnLatex has a good return policy, and I could return and exchange the topper for a 3 inch (20 ILD) topper. That may provide the extra cushioning I need.[/quote]
Based on your testing where 2" wasn’t thick/soft enough and 4" seemed to be too thick/soft it would make logical sense to try a 3" topper and this would probably be the next option I would try. It’s also much simpler than trying to use more complex layering combinations…
I’m guessing you meant to say 2" of 20 ILD? Every layer and component in a mattress (including the cover) will have an effect on every other layer and component in the mattress both above and below it and the mattress “as a whole” so this wouldn’t be the same as most DIY mattresses because the mattress underneath the toppers would have a different combination of materials and components than most DIY mattresses that used latex or a polyfoam layer underneath the two latex layers. There are also too many unknowns and variables involved to be able to predict whether any DIY design will be a good “match” in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP based on specs (either yours or the mattress).
Having said that … this would probably also be softer than your current mattress/topper combination and could also work well and would also be well worth considering as an option IMO. It would probably be my second choice only because I tend to keep things as simple as possible but I would guess (and it would be strictly a guess) that the odds of success would be similar to the 3" single topper but once again the only way to know for sure would be to try it.
This may be a little bit less risky than using 2" of 30 ILD under the 2" of 20 ILD in terms of stomach sleeping but it still may not be soft enough to provide enough pressure relief when you are sleeping on your side. I personally would lean towards one of the first two options unless you tried the 2" of 20 ILD and the 2"" of 30 ILD and it was too soft for you.
[quote]4. Buy 2 inches of 5lb density memory foam to go under the 2 inch latex topper. That would be 2 inches 20ILD latex, 2 inches memory foam then the mattress. I was considering this memory foam:
https://www.rakuten.com/prod/227404324.html[/quote]
If you think you would prefer the “feel” of slower response of memory foam under the latex this may be worth considering but this would be a preference choice rather than a “better/worse” choice. I have no idea whether you would like it or whether it would work for you and I would treat this as an experiment to see how it feels to you and I would only consider this if you had the option to return the memory foam for a refund in case you didn’t like it.
I would also be skeptical about whether the density they are listing is correct and I would confirm the shipping weight to make sure that the weight of the topper works out to be 5 lb density. You can calculate what it “should” weigh by multiplying the thickness times the width times the length in inches and dividing by 1728 to calculate the cubic feet and then multiplying by 5 to get the weight that it should be. If you do a forum search on PurGreen (you can click the link) you will find other examples of memory foam toppers that are probably the same memory foam that use numbers as part of the product name that “look like” density numbers but don’t relate to the density of the memory foam. If this is one of these toppers you certainly wouldn’t be the first one that was misled.
I also don’t consider PurGreen to be a reliable certification for harmful substances and VOCs (offgassing).
I would keep in mind that while your mattress may be firm … it’s certainly not rock hard and it already has some softer comfort layers on top of the spring. They would feel firm because they are relatively thin but they would function as a transition layer with a topper or toppers on top of them and any of your topper combinations on your mattress would feel softer than they did on the floor.
Phoenix