Replacement for a helix midnight - no budget

We’ve had a king helix midnight for ~3 years and have generally been happy with it but now feeling it sag on one side and I’ve developed back pain. Due to acid reflux I try to sleep on my side but that results in a pins and needles feeling so I switch to my stomach or back. She’s a stomach sleeper.

Both my wife and I are <150 lbs, between 30-40. She runs hot and likes the plushness of our mattress but I think I need something firmer for my back.

Do we try to do a topper? Get something to go underneath the mattress? Buy something new? Cost is not really an issue. What else should we try?

Hi Greenslices and welcome to the forums! Normally neither a firm nor extra firm topper will help beyond a negligible degree, even if you purchased a 3” extra firm Dunlop topper. Support has to come from the mattress, not from the topper. Also, latex will conform to whatever surface it is on, so if your mattress is soft or sagging the topper will take on the characteristics of your mattress. Lastly, having a top layer that is not encased with the rest of the mattress will allow that top layer enough spatial freedom to move upwards when you lay on it, making for a very plush and enveloping feel, even if it’s an extra firm layer. About 75% of the customers that purchase a firm topper to make the mattress firmer end up returning it, that’s the only reason I mention these things. If you want to try it though, an extra firm 3" Dunlop topper has the best chance of working for you. If you get a 3” extra firm topper and find that it doesn’t work for you, you could either return it within 30 days minus the return fee, or you can use it to build an all-latex mattress by using it as the bottom layer of a do-it-yourself mattress.

Aside from all that, you might want to look at the 10" organic latex mattress by Sleep EZ - Organic Latex Mattress | Shop for 100% Natural Latex Mattresses - SleepEZ

The organic and natural mattresses (the Select Sleep mattresses) are our flagship products. They’re fully customizable, meaning you can order the mattress to be as soft or as firm as you’d like. They’re also fully adjustable, meaning you can change the softness, firmness, back support, pressure relief, etc. AFTER you get the mattress in your home. To be more specific, the 10” is our most popular, and these mattresses normally go out with three 3" layers of different firmnesses - normally the softest layer (or the cushion & contour layer) is on top and the supportive layers are on the bottom. This helps ensure our customers get the right balance of contour for their hips and shoulders but also support for their lower back. If you start with a certain setup and find that it’s too soft, you can unzip the cover and rearrange the layers to get a firmer feel out of the mattress, or you can exchange a layer to make it softer. Additionally, latex mattresses typically last 20 years. If, in 5 or 10 or 15 years you decide you want a softer or firmer mattress you would only have to buy a new layer instead of an entirely new mattress. Lastly, if the mattress starts to break down in 15 – 20 years, it’s normally the top layer that breaks down first, and at that point you can likely just buy a new top layer of latex instead of a whole new mattress and get an additional 8-10 years out of the mattress.

Furthermore, queen, king, and cal king mattresses are available with what we call “split layers,” which means you can have us cut the layers down the middle (from head to foot) so that you can have a different feel / firmness on your side versus your partner’s side, and you can adjust each side independently over the 20 year lifetime of the mattress. About 95% of our mattresses go out with all split layers from top to bottom, and we get zero complaints on being able to feel the split and we get zero complaints about the layers shifting or anything like that, even if you sleep right on the middle of the mattress.

If you’re wondering how to pick the layers for this mattress, you can go to the natural or organic mattress page, click the green button that says “Build Your Mattress Now,” then click the gray oval that says “Personalized,” and you’ll be able to enter your information. The website will then make a personalized recommendation based on your information (the layers in the mattress diagram will reflect the recommendation after you click the “Apply” button. Please note that our initial recommendations have a 90% success rate (we only have a 10% layer exchange rate) so there’s a 90% chance that the recommendation turns out to be your perfect setup!

Although it’s not likely that you’ll need to rearrange layers or exchange layers, you certainly have the option to adjust the mattress according to you and your partner’s specific needs and preferences, both in the short-term and long-term. We have a 90 day exchange and return period, so you can exchange a layer within the first 90 days for a flat-rate $30 fee for the first exchange and the full cost of shipping for any subsequent exchanges. We will ship your layers first, and we will ship them with extra plastic that you can use to package your current layers, and we will ship it with a pre-paid Fed Ex return label. Also, if you will please call us when you are ready to ship your layers back we will schedule a free Fed Ex pick up for you. You will have 30 days after its arrival to return a layer of your choosing, so you’ll have plenty of time to try a few different combinations with the layers you have and the layer we will be sending you so that you can get your comfort and support levels just right.

1 Like

Hey there greenslices,

I think @Sleep_EZ gave some great advice. I just wanted to add a few more things. Have you ever tried rotating your mattress? Some mattresses benefit a lot from being rotated regularly, especially when you facilitate doing it early on, to help them wear more evenly. It looks like you might be past the point where that would help now, though.

Also, if you end up getting a new mattress, it’s worth checking the foundation you’re using. If you’re noticing sagging in a certain area, and you had been rotating the mattress, but still saw sagging in the same spot (just on the other side), that could be a sign the foundation isn’t supporting the mattress properly. You might want to look under the mattress to see if the slats are too far apart or if they’re bending/flexing more than they should Actually, there should be no flex at all. At your weight, and with the Helix Midnight, sagging usually wouldn’t be expected, so it’s worth double-checking the support system.

The last thing you want is to buy a new mattress and overlook a weak or poorly designed foundation. Some of those metal or wooden bases sold online, with inadequate spacing or rigidness, an then the statement, can be used without a box spring, can be a recipe for more problems down the line.

Hope that gives you a little more clarity.

Maverick