The series comfort series visco is pretty affordable from sears but does anyone know who makes it for sealy? I am looking at the cedar point but I’d like to know who makes it for them. I know Carpenter makes the embody but this isn’t the embody line I believe. Thanks!
Hi maverick,
Page 14 of the latest SEC 10-K report for Sealy says that Carpenter is the major supplier of their foam materials.
Of course you have to dig for this kind of information and they still don’t supply most of the quality specs that you need to make informed decisions or meaningful comparisons.
The density of the memory foam they use in the Comfort series is available though and the Cedar Point uses 3" of 4 lb memory foam over a 7" polycore of unknown quality/density (and likely fairly low).
Phoenix
Thanks Phoenix I’m kind of stuck with sealy or tempurpedic as I’m allergic to foams with soy content. I tried sensus while an amazing product gave me rashes as well as hickory springs preserve which is an even better foam as you don’t even heat up with it…
Thanks for all the info. So if I was stuck with one of these two would you suggest the embody vs the comfort series as perhaps it’s a firmer core? Unless you also knew of any other smaller companies without soy based foam ( hickory and foamex both use it and I’ve had a reaction to both unless it was some other chemical used)
Thanks again!
Hi maverick3934,
That’s a tough one … especially because so many companies are making foams with soy polyols (including Carpenter as you can see in the section at the bottom of this list). There are other types of plant based polyol replacements though including castor oil, palm oil, and rapeseed oil but if it’s the soy that is affecting you then finding out which is used in a mattress may involve quite a bit of research. The only one of these plant based oils that doesn’t require extensive chemical modification is castor oil (but it’s a more expensive feedstock) so it may also have something to do with the chemical alterations of the oil that is causing your reactions. BASF makes a castor polyol in their Lupranol line. Dupont is also making polyols made from corn.
The foam manufacturers don’t only make plant based foams though so it may be worth talking to local manufacturers who would likely know the type of foams that they are using. Of course latex would avoid the problem completely but is more expensive. The Carpenter foam which is soy based is Renew which is their polyfoam.
I don’t know enough details of the foam densities in the Embody or the Comfort series to be able to make a meaningful comparison and I don’t know if either of them are using Carpenters soy based polyfoam but between the two I think it would be reasonable to assume that the Embody probably uses higher quality foams.
Ecosleep makes some good value mattresses (memory foam and latex comfort layers) that use Castor oil foams.
Of course good old petrochemical polyfoams or memory foams may also be your best solution and again … local manufacturers would probably be the best source of finding out what type of foam they use (or would mostly be willing to find out if they didn’t know).
Phoenix
Hi Phoenix just got my cedar point memory foam mattress from sears… Paid only $600 for a full. It’s actually completely made by carpenter. You can see on the bag it was shipped from carpenter to sealy then to sears. So it turns out carpenters makes the mattresses as well not just the foam. It’s real 4 lb density and pretty nice. I can’t even imagine what their 5 lb density feels like. Must be amazing?
Btw can I ask you for a friend wo can’t decide between a 4 inch or 3 inch layer of 5 lb density foam in a memory foam mattress, they usually sleep on a plush firm mattress due to back problems but are having joint problems from the firmness.
Hi maverick3934,
This would depend on all the other layers and components of the mattress (support layers and ticking/quilting) and on how their individual body type and sleeping style interacted with all the layers of the mattress. Personal testing would be the most accurate way to know (and in the case of memory foam the personal testing should include enough time on the mattress for the memory foam to completely warm up). the second most accurate way to know is a good conversation with the manufacturer or the person selling the mattress provided they have the knowledge, experience, and customer base to help their customers make more accurate choices (and are not just “selling” mattresses).
If the choices were roughly equal though … I would go with a thinner layer of memory foam because it’s less risky than a thicker layer. It’s also good to remember that it’s always easier to add additional softness to a mattress that needs it for extra pressure relief (with a topper) than to make a mattress firmer either because it could use a firmer support core or because a thinner/firmer comfort layer would have been more suitable.
Phoenix
Hi maverick 3934,
I missed this post earlier.
I’m not sure if it’s important one way or the other but what normally happens is that Carpenter would make, fabricate, and laminate the foam … ship it to Sealy who adds the cover … and then it goes to Sears. Carpenter is the foam manufacturer and fabricator … Sealy manufactures the mattress (puts the final pieces together).
I hope its “real” 4 lb density … it would be awful if it was “fake” 4 lb density 
On a more serious note, whether 5 lb memory foam feels “amazing” would depend on the person and on which of many hundreds of different memory foam formulations they were trying and the rest of the layers and components of the mattress. There are many people who prefer the feel of 4 lb memory foam because it is often more breathable, faster responding and less temperature sensitive (feels softer) and for some this is worth the tradeoff of lower durability. This is one of the reasons why the tempurpedic cloud series (and others as well) is popular which uses 4 lb memory foam on top of 5 lb memory foam or even softer 7 lb memory foam. Many 5 lb foams are more heat sensitive and conforming but slower responding and firmer feeling (until they soften with heat) depending on the formulation of the foam itself because any density can be made with different properties.
Phoenix