Veteran TMU member here back in the market after my almost-6 year old Tuft and Needle suddenly started giving me lower back soreness/tightness a couple of weeks ago. I attempted to alleviate that by adding, first, a firm latex topper, and, second, a slat set for a better foundation. I know it’s not “recommended” but I had been using a box spring base because I had just bought it when I bought the T&N so trying to get some use out of it (and also I am using a family heirloom antique bed frame/headboard), and it gave me no problems. Last week, I tried with and without the box spring and slats on top of the box spring even. Maybe a slight difference but still lower back tightness, so back to TMU I go!
After reading through everything again and a few searches, I think I’ve narrowed down my choices to:
For analysis, I’m 5’10" 165lbs, muscular build, usually a sound sleeper.
Also, I’m a little curious why T&N isn’t on the member list any more? I was a tad disappointed that it didn’t last longer than it did, but it was my first foam mattress to own, so wasn’t sure if that’s par for the course for foam or not. I do know the foam materials make a difference in the longevity.
Thanks in advance for any input or reviews on Richmond or Ghost! Or any other recommendations that might offer shipping (Louisiana) and <$1000 (Ideally <$750) for full size (mattress only).
Rock on, TMU! I’ve recommended this site to many people over the past several years!
Update: sleeping on an air mattress on the floor to help alleviate the back soreness. I can do that for a little while, but would like a more permanent solution. I even tried the air mattress on top of the existing mattress (which my kids laughed at, because it was about 5 feet tall) as a test run, and it was slightly better, but still had back tightness/soreness the next morning.
I won’t be much help regarding which mattress you might want to purchase, but I wanted to share that my lower back started bothering me after only sleeping on my Tuft and Needle queen original for 5 years. I was good about rotating the mattress and even slept on both sides, since I’m single. As a last ditch effort, I turned the mattress over and slept on the other side for several months. I’m 5’6" and weigh 128 lbs, so you would think the mattress would last longer than 5 years. Oh, and the indentation isn’t deep enough to qualify for the warranty. I wish I could say that I’ll be purchasing another Tuft and Needle. Good luck in your mattress hunting!
Yeah, I was a little disappointed with it also. It was strange. One night, all good. Next night, back pain. Like the flip of a switch. I tried topper, flipping, rotating, as well, but it’s just toast.
Sorry to hear that you have suddenly developed lower back soreness/ tightness recently on your almost 6 year old Tuft and Needle mattress, that is certainly frustrating. The T&N Original/ all foam mattress is of one firmness: medium firm. Whether you use a box spring base or a slated base shouldn’t make too much of a difference as long as the mattress has even support. To rule out any failure by either support base, you could try putting the mattress on the floor and testing it from there for a couple of days. Sorry to hear too that the firm latex topper addition didn’t offer some pain relief as well. Just curious for understanding its level of firmness, is the topper Talalay or Dunlop latex? Have you gradually changed sleeping positions over time, affecting how your body is interacting with the mattress’s support of your body? What is your current pillow situation and has that changed at all recently?
[quote]After reading through everything again and a few searches, I think I’ve narrowed down my choices to:
• (Richmond Bedding 10" hybrid) (Note added later: As of 2023 this company went out of business)
• (Richmond Bedding 10" gel) (Note added later: As of 2023 this company went out of business)[/quote]
Congrats on your new mattress shopping journey ! Richmond Bedding is a good a possible purchase option (Note added later: As of 2023 this company went out of business). The 10" latex hybrid features a 1.5" Talalay Echo latex layer over a 1" foam transitional layer and a 6" pocket coil support base, while the 10" gel has a 2.5" memory foam comfort layer over a 7.5" HD foam foundation. These two mattresses would offer quite a difference in “feel”, the talalay latex over coils would be more “lively” and uplifting, with individual coil support response reacting to movement across the mattress surface, as opposed to the memory foam/ HD foam mattress having a more slow-response/ “sinking into” feeling, as the mattress responds to your body temperature. Coming from your current T&N mattress, do you prefer the feeling of on an all-foam mattress or as you’re considering a hybrid, have you slept on a coil support mattress before? You may find a read of Phoenix’s articles “Mattress Comfort Layers” and “Mattress Support Cores”, as well as "Different Types and Categories of Mattresses"helpful for understanding memory foam vs. latex’s properties in the comfort layers of the mattress, as well as the choices between different types of mattress constructions.
Thanks too for considering TMU trusted member Ghostbed as a possible mattress purchase candidate. This 11" mattress features a 1.5" latex layer, a 2" gel memory foam layer over a 7.5" HD foam support core is also as a rated medium-firm comfort/ support mattress. Having latex over memory foam in the comfort layers is a unique pairing and one that could have an interesting “feel” with the combination of latex, a more “bouncey” material over memory foam, with its more energy absorbing “dead” feeling.
T&N’s discontinuing membership was a mutual business decision having no bearing on consumers and as such, there is no need to make this information public.
TMU does however make public the reasons for membership termination in situations concerning consumers’ best interest when we cannot in clear conscience deem the company a “Trusted Member”. You can read here , for example, this instance of past announcements of business membership termination. The “reasons” are mostly connected with the company not meeting the stringent criteria that TMU has for a prospective applicant to become a Trusted Member. These may include ongoing issues of customer service, failure to disclose specs needed to assess how long a mattress would last, etc.
[quote]Rock on, TMU! I’ve recommended this site to many people over the past several years!
[/quote]
Appreciate your recommendations of the TMU to other consumers and for your support, uccjeb; rock on !
I ended up going with the Hybrid from Richmond. Mainly because I was going to have to get new sheets,etc. with the Ghost, because of it’s height. I called Richmond to order and they were busy (got voicemail), but he called me back about 2 minutes later and I got my order placed.
I will report back in a few weeks after I receive my new mattress.
Still Nice to be in the running from a long time TMU user to be back after 6 years.
Hi uccjeb,
Sorry we missed our window. The GhostSheets and GhostProtector are known for being a big long to help with the bed tuck in process. Plus it has GhostGrip to help it stay around the edges.
Again no worries we missed the call this time. Glad you still picked a TMU approved partner
Welp, after about 10 days, my back is still not happy. The Richmond Hybrid is, I guess, too firm, not allowing for proper spine alignment. I’m likely going to swap it out for the 10" Gel model once I reach the 60-day mark, per their exchange policy. I’ll just have to deal with it until then.
The mattress itself is very well made. It looks and feels high-quality, and it’s super comfortable. It just doesn’t agree with by back unfortunately. I’ll update again in a few weeks, and report on the exchange policy process, etc.
! Thanks for your question.
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