Found a floor model one of these for $850, is this a good buy? I know it is discounted significantly, but I do not want another 1000 dollar mattress that lasts 3 or 4 years at best. Wanting this to not be like the last two mattress purchases that lasted about 5 years each and each resulted in a lot of back pain and not so great sleep. I have spent hours trying to find more information about the durability, materials, etc. for this mattress and as noted on several of the good mattress sites, it is difficult to find detailed information on some of the name brand mattresses. Willing to spend more to get a good quality mattress that will provide several years of good reliable service. Really like the feel of the Posturepedic Hotel and Resort series, but I am absolutely not going to purchase a pillow top mattress.
Dont want to pass this up if it will hold up well.
That would depend on what was most important to you but as you can see here … the Tuscan Summer Villa has 2.5" of soft polyfoam and some high loft fiber above the latex and another inch a little deeper so you would mostly be sleeping mostly on polyfoam rather than latex. In 3 or 4 years (typically but depending on the person) you may well find that these polyfoam layers have softened or degraded (like your other mattresses) and that the mattress has lost too much of the original comfort and support that attracted you to the mattress in the first place. Of course there is no way to predict this exactly or how much foam softening you could tolerate before the mattress because unsuitable (especially for support) but I would tend towards a mattresses that used better quality materials in the comfort layers because these tend to be the weak link of a mattress.
On paper … this is significantly less than the new price for the same mattress but I would ask yourself how comfortable you are with a “used” floor model (and probably no warranty) as well as with buying a mattress that may no longer be suitable for you a few years down the road. While they do use “smart latex” in the support core (which is mostly synthetic Dunlop which is a lower quality and less costly type of latex) and 2" of “intuisoft” latex in the comfort layers (which is a little higher quality and has a higher natural latex content) … the weak link of this mattress wouldn’t be the latex but the polyfoam.
From a “commodity” perspective … it would certainly be better value than buying the same mattress new. From a quality of sleep and durability perspective … I would personally question buying it when there are other choices that may provide the same comfort, support, and your other preferences in a mattress that will last you longer.
Thank you for the quick reply. Your reply definitely depicts the frustrating part of researching mattresses. The terms hypersoft and convoluted hypersoft are used in the description of this mattress in most locations and maybe I just havent looked in the right places but I havent found a lot of good information on these mattresses that describes these layers as being polyfoam instead of latex. These mattresses are advertised to be latex, which would lead one to believe the entire system is latex. I have purchased and researched extensively a lot of different items and can say with confidence a mattress is hands down the most frustrating item to try to learn about and feel comfortable about making a decision on.
The mattress would not have a warranty as you mentioned and I was a little concerned about this aspect but willing to sacrifice a little if the mattress were constructed of good quality materials that will last several years. But after your explanation, I am afraid we will have the same problem with the foam layers that we had with the one pillow top mattress we had.
I dont know for sure whether there is a latex manufacturer close enough to my location to consider this option but I was curious whether looking at buying a good quality box spring mattress and then utilizing a high quality latex top that would provide a similar feel/support/etc as the Posturepedic Hotel/Resort mattress would be a reasonable approach with the mindset of replacing the top every 3 years +/-.
There are basically three different types of foam which are memory foam, polyfoam, and latex foam.
Memory foam and latex foam are what are called specialty foams and if a description doesn’t specifically mention either memory foam or latex as the description of a foam layer, then it’s safe to assume that it’s one of the hundreds of tradenames for polyfoam and then knowing the density becomes the most important part of knowing the quality. In the case of the S&F … almost all of them have too much polyfoam in the comfort layers IMO and finding out the quality/density is next to impossible.
Post #1 here may be helpful and has a step by step process that can help you find the best possible quality and value mattress. As you will see, knowing what to avoid can be a big part of eliminating the confusion and frustration and knowing where to buy can be even more important than knowing what to buy.
If you let me know your city or zip I’d be happy to let you know of the better options or possibilities I’m aware of in your area.
Latex has a different “feel” than the other two types of foam but it is closer to polyfoam (which is also a fast response material) than it is to memory foam (which is a slow response material). Because all foams come in softer or firmer versions … personal testing is important to find the best combination of pressure relief/comfort and alignment/support that is most suitable for your body type, sleeping positions, and personal preferences.
Using latex in the upper layers of a mattress (whether they were in a pillow top, a Eurotop, or in a tight top mattress) would result in a much longer lasting mattress than using lower density polyfoam (or low density memory foam). Many local, online, or smaller manufacturers will also use either a zip cover so that you can replace individual layers or in other cases they will open up the mattress and replace a layer that has softened more than the others and then sew up the mattress again at a very reasonable cost.
The closest factory direct manufacturers to you are in the Pittsburgh area and are listed in post #2 here.
Since these are a fair drive away … I spent much of the morning looking at options or at least better possibilities that are closer to you. This includes everything within about 50 miles of you that I could see. Some of these I’ve talked with and some I’ve just listed the brands they carry that may include some models that have better quality/value but would need further research into the materials in the specific mattress you are considering (and this would depend on how knowledgeable the retailer is about what is in their mattresses).
http://delanosfurniture.com/ Terra Alta, Reedsville, WV. Talked with the owner and they carry Imperial and Perceptive Sleep (HSM) and Dutch Craft mattresses. They told me that their manufacturers may not provide them with all their foam densities but the owner is knowledgeable and has toured the factory to confirm foam quality and is passionate about smaller brands. He also has a lower profit margin to provide good value. More knowledgeable than most about mattresses materials and the industry in general.
http://grandmashousewv.net/ Nutter Fort, WV. Springwall, Restonic. Has some layering information available but not complete. Changing their Restonic line to gel.
I would start with a few phone calls to talk with the ones that are closest to you too ask about the types of mattresses they carry that you may be interested in testing (based on the materials you are most attracted to) and to get a sense of the level of knowledge and experience you can expect when you go there.
Wow, none of these are over 1 hr away, I am surprised that some of them carry the latex, memory foams, etc. Not sure when you did all of this leg work, but am impressed.
After talking yesterday have spent several hours researching and am all but sold on a full depth latex mattress. Only remaining concern is ensuring that the layers are actually latex and not some cheap foam labeled as latex and learning a little more about the densities, etc. I really like the idea of going with 3 or 4 different layers with a zipped cover which would allow for interchanging some of the layers and fine tune the mattress.
I didn’t have a “list” for your general area so this was my project for part of last night and this morning (when I could actually talk with some of them)
Of course the research isn’t “complete” and you would still need to know the details of specific mattresses you were considering but it will give you a leg up on where to focus your time and energy and perhaps most importantly who and what to ignore. There are more that I didn’t list that what I did.
The “choose your own” layer type of latex mattresses are more typically found with online manufacturers that offer the chance to replace layers if you make a choice that your sleeping experience tells you isn’t exactly what you want. This can help offset the “risk” of an online purchase and also has the benefit of being able to replace an upper layer if it wears faster than the lower layers or if your needs change over the years. They are much less common with local purchases although many smaller factory direct manufacturers will change out a layer after a purchase if it needs to be adjusted.
The closest similar mattress to you that I know of would be here http://www.thenaturalsleepshop.com/products-savvy-rest.html although they are significantly more than some of the online choices offered in post #21 here which use the same materials and similar layering options. I generally use a guideline that if an online purchase is @ 20 - 25% less than a similar mattress available locally then it may be worth the extra risk of looking online. any local testing of course can help provide a guideline for an online purchase as well if you know the details of what you are testing.
There is also one other retailer in Fairmont that I didn’t mention that used to carry the Pure Latex bliss mattresses (which are all Talalay latex) but only has one left which is a King size Nature. If it “fits” your needs and preferences it may be available at a reasonable price. They don’t plan on bringing in the new PLB models and other than that only carry Serta which is why i didn’t list them.
Several of the choices I listed may have an “all latex” mattress because I know several of the manufacturers I mentioned make them so some quick calls to ask “do you carry an all latex mattress” will fairly quickly tell you which the are. Even if you don’t end up making a purchase from them … the testing and experience may be helpful.
Hi everybody thanks for your useful discussion and a lot of helpful recommendation. I am new here and hope will get many more help form you regarding my needs.
