Restonic Mattress Questions

Discussions General Mattresses Questions
1

Obviously we are new to the forum. Although still somewhat confused we feel much more educated after spending time reading from the website. Thank you.

Our questions are in regard to the Restonic brand foam mattresses. In our city we have a long time, respected and family owned furniture dealer from which we have purchased many items over the years, including a conventional Restonic mattress that we have been pleased with. They stand behind their products and offer free delivery, setup and haul off.

After 12 years it is time to start looking for a replacement mattress. We were in their store recently and looked at their offerings. They only carry Restonic and only recently have begun carrying some their foam offerings. We are considering a foam bed this time. Unfortunately they are not very well schooled on their foam beds and could not explain the labeling or construction of their foam bedding other than the most basic information.

Anyway, after some testing, there were 2 Restonic foam beds in their showroom that my wife and I are considering:

The firmer of the 2 was called the “Expressions” Latex Model. It was labeled as follows:

1/2" Super Soft Foam
1" “Hypersoft” Foam (what is this?)
1 oz. Paladin FR (what is this?)
3 1/2" #4 Latex Foam (supposed to be Talalay)
6 1/2" High Density Base Foam
Worry Free II Hi Pro Semi Flex (no one could explain what this is)
10 yr Non Pro-Rated Warranty
This model had a button tufted top cover with the words “cool-max” embroidered into it.

Although not quite as firm as the latex model, we also liked the feel of this “un-named” memory foam model which was labeled as follows:

Poly knit Zippered Cover
Tietex Sock
2" Gel Foam
2 1/2" Omalon Hi Density Foam
6" Hi Density Base Foam
Worry Free III, Hi Pro Semi Flex (what is this?)
10 yr Non Prorated Warranty

The “Expressions” Latex model above is probably our favorite between the two. We are in our mid 50’s and fairly average in size. I am 6" tall and 175 lbs, my wife is 5’-2" and 135 lbs. Thankfully neither of us have back or other medical problems. We simply like a fairly firm and supportive mattress.

We have also shopped a couple of other local mattress-only stores, but they only offered the overpriced iComfort (we did like the feel of the iComfort Prodigy) and really overpriced Tempurpedic brands. The Restonic offerings were priced at about 50% less than the iComfort models we looked at and we could probably negotiate an even lower price. We also feel that the store would stand behind the Restonic beds if we had problems.

Could anyone explain the construction of the above and tell us if these are well built and should even be considered?

Sadly the Restonic website does not offer much information.

We are in Oklahoma, about 100 miles from Oklahoma City and per recommendations on this site we plan to also visit Oklahoma Mattress in the near future. They may be our best bet, but we have concerns about buying from someone 100 miles away.

Thank you

2

Hi LotsBS:

Your name is certainly descriptive of the state of much of the industry :slight_smile:

Restonic like some other brands are a licensee group which work together but are a group of independent factories that often make their mattresses differently in different areas of the country. One of the “challenges” of licensee groups is to get the group to agree on “standards” of materials and manufacturing. These types of brands can vary across the country in terms of their value and the use of more “appropriate” layering.

Some comments about the stats you listed (and just the fact that the outlet gave them to you willingly is already an indication of a better outlet …

1/2" Super Soft Foam

This is generally low density, open celled, and breathable polyfoam that is used either in quilting or upper layers of a mattress. It would be part of the “weak link” of the mattress.

1" “Hypersoft” Foam (what is this?)

This is a tradename for another low density super soft foam made by Carpenter in the “super soft” category and that would be part of the “weak link” of the mattress

1" “Hypersoft” Foam (what is this?)

Same as above

1 oz. Paladin FR (what is this?)

This is a viscose/silica inherent type fire barrier made by Milliken which is one of the “safer” options used for fire resistance in a mattress.

3 1/2" #4 Latex Foam (supposed to be Talalay)

Talalay latex is a high quality latex foam. #4 is likely a firmness rating.

6 1/2" High Density Base Foam

This is polyfoam but “High Density” is more of a generic description and means little without knowing the specific density of the polyfoam. Generally it means 1.8 lbs or higher but the term is often used for lower quality/density foams as well.

Worry Free II Hi Pro Semi Flex (no one could explain what this is)

This is the type of foundation they are using. An example of a semi-flex foundation is here. Semi flex means it is “not quite” rigid and has some shock absorbing abilities (which aren’t really necessary with foam mattresses) but it’s also not rigid or zero flex.

10 yr Non Pro-Rated Warranty

Warranties only cover defects rather than the softening or wear and tear of a mattress. Mattresses that wear out too quickly are not covered by the warranty. In general they are more about marketing and knowing the materials in a mattress is more important than the warranty. The warranty exclusions are also just as important as the warranty itself and in most cases even more important.

This model had a button tufted top cover with the words “cool-max” embroidered into it.

Cool max is a fiber used in the ticking (cover) of a mattress which increases breathability which can help regulate temperature while you are sleeping. A button tufted top cover means that the foam has been pre-compressed to a degree using a button on the end of a thread or tufting wire to secure it to the inner layers. Tufting can make it firmer and also a little less prone to the effects of softening and with fiber helps with the migration of material…

Poly knit Zippered Cover

Polyester fibers are a lower cost and less breathable ticking fabric. A knit material is more conforming than a woven material and can stretch more with the foam below it.

Tietex Sock

This is another foam of fire barrier made by tietex that is a “sock” material that surrounds the inner foam and is impregnated with a fire retardant chemical or is manufactured with inherent (part of the fiber itself) fire retardant materials. The “best” of these chemicals are Boric Acid (which is much less harmful than many other chemicals used as fire retardants) but a wool or viscose/silica fire barrier is preferable IMO. There are also many other ways to make a mattress compliant with the 1633 fire code including chemicals added to foams, added to quilting or comfort layer fibers, or as part of a separate fire barrier. Of course the less chemicals the better and there is quite some controversy about fire retardants used in furniture and mattresses in general.

A good “expose” about fire retardants and the 1633 legislation that is fact and research based appeared recently in the Chicago Tribune. It has certainly drawn some response from the chemical industry which is scrambling with damage control.

2" Gel Foam

This is usually a memory foam with some type of gel added into the memory foam while it is being manufactured. The gel memory foams that have particles added are IMO inferior and less durable than the gel foams where the gel is part of the foam structure itself. It’s a variant of memory foam (although it can also be added to regular polyfoam and this one doesn’t say which it is).

2 1/2" Omalon Hi Density Foam

This is a high quality polyfoam made by Carpenter (an American foam manufacturer) although they don’t provide the density.

6" Hi Density Base Foam
Worry Free III, Hi Pro Semi Flex (what is this?)
10 yr Non Prorated Warranty

Same comments as previously

Overall … with a few questions yet to be answered …

Assuming the answers are OK, the main “negative” is the expressions has 1.5" of polyfoam in the quilting which is around the maximum I would normally consider over latex (otherwise you are feeling more of the polyfoam and the polyfoam will be the “weak link” of the mattress). My preference is no polyfoam at all but a thinner layer is normally OK in terms of durability and creates a feel that some people like at a lower cost than using softer latex. I would consider this as an option if it had good value.

The "un-named one also needs a few questions answered (type of gel foam, density of the omalon and HD foam) but assuming the answers justified it, I would probably consider it as well if it met your needs and preferences and had good value.

A forum search on Oklahoma will turn up several outlets or manufacturers outside of Oklahoma city itself, some of which may be closer to you.

Hope this helps.

Phoenix

3

Wow Phoenix, thanks for the quick and informative reply!

Actually the “Expressions” Latex had 1/2" of “super soft” foam (ie: low density open celled) not 1 1/2". Am I to consider that better or worse than 1 1/2"?

I also originally mis-typed the label and have corrected it below in bold. Why and what is the advantage/disadvantage of the 2 layers of Hypersoft Foam?

1/2" Super Soft Foam
1" “Hypersoft” Foam (what is this?)
1" “Hypersoft” Foam (listed twice)
1 oz. Paladin FR (what is this?)
3 1/2" #4 Latex Foam (supposed to be Talalay)
6 1/2" High Density Base Foam
Worry Free II Hi Pro Semi Flex (no one could explain what this is)
10 yr Non Pro-Rated Warranty
This model had a button tufted top cover with the words “cool-max” embroidered into it.

As I said this store is family run and has been around for decades. I feel that I can trust them, it’s just that they are apparently very uneducated about these products.

Bottom line, do you consider this to be a fairly high quality mattress with the limited information I can provide?

Thanks again for your help.

4

Hi LotsaBS,

I thought that’s what you listed the first time but in any case … the less the better when it comes to low density soft polyfoam. While the price for more inches of lower quality polyfoam may be more … I consider it to be a negative. 2.5" of low density soft polyfoam (1/2" plus 1’ plus 1") over the latex is more than I would consider to be suitable for a “latex comfort layer” mattress. They do this to give it a certain feel and to make it more attractive in a showroom (people like soft cushy layers in the more subjective environment of a showroom and don’t realize that they may pay the price later in several ways as the polyfoam softens or as they find out that they may not have good alignment with polyfoam layers that are too thick and soft). Changes in comfort levels or the ability of the mattress to support you as the foam softens over time is not covered by the warranty.

This is exactly what I mean with the licensee groups though. In some areas of the country this mattress would not have any polyfoam in the upper layers which means you would be sleeping directly on the latex (with perhaps a thin quilting layer). If a mattress is too firm then it’s easy to use either a little more latex (thicker = softer) or to use a softer ILD latex and there is really no need to add more than an inch or so of polyfoam in the quilting or comfort layers over the latex at most to adjust the “feel”. This is asking for trouble with foam softening, body impressions, and alignment issues which people will easily believe is the latex rather than the polyfoam on top of it.

They add the polyfoam because it is a cheap way to get the “feel” and sometimes even the “look” (the quilted or tufted appearance) that sells in a showroom.

My bottom line is to never consider a mattress that has a great quality material like talalay latex that has been “spoiled” with the addition of more than an inch or so (say 1.5" max) of polyfoam above it. The “ideal” is no polyfoam at all and to use various layers of latex to get to the softness you want but this is more expensive and some people prefer a thinner supersoft layer on top of the latex to make it a little less resilient. Some also prefer a thin layer of memory foam in the quilting for the same reason. Too much “spoils” the mattress though and reduces durability and the length of time it will maintain the same properties of pressure relief and alignment (polyfoam softens more quickly than latex).

This is not an issue of the integrity of the store or its owners who I’m sure is selling the best quality mattresses they are aware of and would probably go to bat for you if there were issues … but if the issue is outside of even a grey area of warranty coverage and is only about softening … there would be little they could do and the typical solution would be “it’s time for a new mattress”.

One of our retail members sells Restonic and their latex mattresses have no polyfoam in the comfort layers. They also have a close relationship with the local private factory and can request certain changes in the mattress to customize them to a particular customer’s wishes when necessary. This is the type of difference that the licensee factory can make.

Phoenix

5

Thanks Phoenix. We appreciate your knowledge and quick responses. Sounds like we need to keep looking.

6

Just an update. Per the recommendations on the website, we went to see Jim at Oklahoma Mattress in Oklahoma City. Jim was VERY cordial and knowledgeable. We ultimately decided to go the latex route and had Jim custom make them. The mattresses were delivered within a week and the set-up crew was excellent. Although they were expensive, the prices were more than competitive especially when compared to the nationally advertised brands. Jim and his crew are wonderful and we certainly recommend them!

Thanks again!

7

Hi LotsaBS,

Congratulations on your new mattress :slight_smile:

As you know I also think highly of Jim and while latex is certainly a higher cost material … it is also good value because of its durability and the many other properties of latex. As you mentioned … the prices at Oklahoma Mattress make latex an even better value yet.

Phoenix