"Major" Brands Sealy Optimum?

Hi Begsel,

Did you happen to find the information about the Optimum memory foam that you were going to try to find? I thought you had purchased one but it seems that you have only tried them in a showroom and that you sleep on a Stearns & Foster?

I have a couple of questions or comments about a few of your posts ā€¦

As you probably know ā€¦ warranties donā€™t cover the loss of comfort and support that comes from the softening of the foams in the mattress which is the main reason a mattress needs to be replaced. Warranties are used more as a sales technique and do more in most cases to protect the manufacturer than the consumer.

While S&F does have good coils ā€¦ the small amount of titanium they use or double tempering is not likely to make a difference in the real life performance or durability of the mattress as a whole because the weak link is almost always in the foams and other materials above the coils.

Since a mattress is only as good as the materials and construction that are inside it ā€¦ how can you tell the quality of their mattresses if you donā€™t know the specific details of the materials that are inside them? What is the basis for your belief that they sell ā€œqualityā€? So many people use ā€œqualityā€ as a marketing term or as a meaningless descriptive word that is attached to whatever they want people to buy but if the manufacturers donā€™t provide ā€œqualityā€ information ā€¦ you are only buying a brand label.

Did you ask any of the specifics of the materials in your mattress? Iā€™m not so sure I would call a mattress that has ā€œheld upā€ since Christmass as holding up well. Thatā€™s less than a year.

Which folks did you mean that promote independent companies?

Something that is comfortable in a showroom (which is a highly managed and subjective environment in most cases and where itā€™s pretty easy to use various techniques to make people feel whatever you want them to feel) may not be so comfortable in a year or more. Itā€™s always a good idea to know enough about the materials in a mattress to be able to buy it with an eye to how it will feel and perform in a few months and years from the time you purchase it.

I also should ask you why you are promoting some of the major brands you are recommending. Do you work in the industry or are you just a consumer that believes that the major brands really are good quality and/or value regardless of what is in them?

Phoenix

Thanks for the links I definately know more now than I ever thought about. I know that every mattress we buy, we are lucky to get 3-4 yrs out of nd they are not cheap. I never really thought of what they were made out of. All I know about our current mattress is that it is double pillow top so it can be filpped but it really hasnā€™t helped. I know that I can. Thanks againfeel the coil springs pop now like they are binding underneith me when I move around. I will be checking these linksout before buying now.

Chicago IL

Hi Misbasnji,

Iā€™m assuming youā€™re looking for the better manufacturers in the Chicago area?

If thatā€™s the case ā€¦ one of the best quality/value manufacturers in the country is in Chicago and is a recommended member of the site.

The Chicago list is in posts #2 and 4 here.

A forum search on MyGreenMattress or Qualitysleep (you can just click these) will bring up many comments and feedback about them.

Hope that helps :slight_smile:

Phoenix

hello Phoenix,
taking your recommendations, i chose the ā€œradianceā€ in the optimum line, but i find it slightly too hard. iā€™m told it defeats the purpose to put something between the body and the memory foam. i need a bit more softness without sacrificing the support (for both my shoulder when i sleep on my side as well as the soft-to-touch comfort preference). the softer optimums donā€™t have quite enough support when laying on my stomach. if i buy a 1-2" topper, what should i buy so as not to lose the ā€œoutlastā€ cooling factor?

Hi Dymnd,

If the mattress is very slightly too firm ā€¦ then you probably made the best possible choice along the lines of option #2 in my reply to your earlier post ā€¦

If you have only had the Optimum for a short time ā€¦ then it will still be going through the initial softening period and may end up just where you want it to be in a few weeks (as long as the difference is not too uncomfortable in the meantime). You can hasten this by walking on the mattress evenly over the surface (this can help to shorten the initial softening period of a memory foam mattress although for the sake of others reading this ā€¦ this is not recommended for an innerspring mattress).

If it turns out that it is still too firm after it has gone through the initial softening or break-in period (and you have gone through the initial adjustment period for any new mattress) ā€¦ then I would suggest a topper in the material that you prefer (which seems to be memory foam). The thinner the better both in terms of temperature and support and an inch or two would generally be enough depending on the degree of change you need in the comfort and pressure relieving qualities of the mattress. The thinner the material ā€¦ the less it will compromise support ā€¦ especially on your stomach which needs the thinnest/firmest comfort layer that ā€œworksā€ for you.

Phase change materials like those in the Sealy work best closer to the top of the mattress but are not quite as dependent on proximity as heat conductive materials (like many of the gel memory foams) so while a topper will reduce the phase change effect to some degree, you can also use a more ventilating and open celled memory foam or a gel memory foam to ā€œadd backā€ some of the temperature regulating properties you may lose. Bear in mind too that the type of foam and the ticking/quilting material used in the upper layers of a mattress is only part of what makes a mattress sleep cooler and the other parts of the ā€œsleeping coolā€ equation (how deep you sink in, mattress protector, sheets, mattress pad/topper, and bedding) will also have an effect in either direction (either warming it up or cooling it down).

So I would first give it enough time for the mattress and you to go through any initial adjustment and then add a topper if necessary.

Some of the better choices for memory foam toppers are in post #4 here. I would tend to choose either a more breathable memory foam or a good quality gel foam (along the lines of the information in post #6 here about cooling down memory foam) both of which (along with a good breathable cover) can be more temperature regulating than memory foams that more closed cell and less breathable.

Phoenix

Hi Phoenix. This thread was helpful, thank you. Any ideas for a reliable, trust-worthy mattress vendor in or around Ann Arbor, Michigan? Could look in Detroit as well.

Hi Naomi,

Post #2 here includes the better possibilities that Iā€™m aware of in and around the Ann Arbor area.

Phoenix

I am providing an updateā€¦

I have had my Optimum Radiance for almost 2 weeks, and am definitely finding it too firmā€¦ especially when I sleep on my side (since i wake up with achy shoulder/slightly tingly arms). The support (when I do sleep on my back/stomach) is actually quite refreshing after the ā€œhammockā€ of the S&F Estate Plush mattress I tried previously. I am ā€œcounting the daysā€ for this to finish softening to see if ultimately the side-sleeping issue will diminish, yet I am not too hopeful. I can pass along from experience that one should use only the thinnnest of mattress pads (e.g., the Protect-A-Bed), since trying to use the thicker padded types defeat the ability of the memory foam to be able to effectively conform to your body due to the extra surface tension created by the mattress pad thereby making the mattress firmer (which, in my case, isnā€™t a good thing).

Interestingly, when the store came to pick up the S&F Estate Plush, they told me that mine was the second one recently they had picked up, indicating that those manufactured before a certain date had an issue, and they were surprised that they hadnā€™t all been ā€œscrappedā€. Glad to know I wasnā€™t ā€œcrazyā€ despite the store salesman telling me that the mattress wasnā€™t defective, but that it was my unique response to the mattress.

Do you know if anyone offers a 1-1/2" ā€œphase changeā€ memory foam topper? I do like the surface coolness of the Optimum. Yet, I definitely miss the soft-touch of the previous thick comfort layers I enjoyed, so would like my topper to have a lower (?) ILD while not compromising support. I had found the 4" middle comfort layer" too thick, and went instead with the 2" middle comfort layer (of the Radiance), whicih I am obviously finding too thin. HAPPY MEDIUM WANTED! :slight_smile:

I took a look at your recommendations for local manufacturers, and wonder if there are any in the general Nashville, TN area where I might try to find an appropriate topper? (obviously, it would be great to be able to feel/try) Otherwise, I note the online manufacturers you recommended in post #4:

  www.rockymountainmattress.com/ (A member of this site and recommended)
  www.selectfoam.com/ or www.memoryfoam.com/ (Also a recommended member of the site)
  www.foamorder.com/
  www.myluxurymattress.com/

Based on your recommendations, I am assuming I am seeking a ā€œgood quality gel foamā€ but what specifically should I be asking for? (i.e., LB vs ILD)?

Thanks!

Hy Dymnd,

You probably have a little way to go before your mattress finishes going through any initial softening but as you mention this may not bring you into the pressure relieving range that you need (especially on your side). I also agree with you about the importance of surface tension and thinner or more stretchy mattress protectors will have less effect on the feel of the mattress than thicker or less stretchy protectors. Thicker mattress protectors(regardless of how stretchy they are) which can also have a much bigger ā€œfirmingā€ effect on temperature sensitive foams than on other types of foam.

There are 3 different types of cooling technologies used in a mattress (which you can read about at the end of post #4 here) and of the three ā€¦ phase change materials can have more of an effect when they are further away from the body than the other two (heat conductive materials and humidity and temperature controlling materials) so all of the cooling benefits of the phase change materials wonā€™t be lost with a topper.

A topper will feel differently on different layers below it so testing a topper on a different mattress wonā€™t necessarily provide you with an accurate idea of what the same topper will feel like on a different mattress.

Because of your focus on temperature and on some extra softness (should it be necessary after a little longer break in period) ā€¦ I would tend to focus on a memory foam topper that is more breathable or uses some form of gel (either phase change or thermal conductive) ā€¦ both of which will sleep cooler. Your idea about a thinner layer would also be a good idea because the more you sink into softer surface layers the more insulating a foam will be.

So I would be looking for a 4 or 5 lb memory foam topper (4 lb will tend to be softer) in the thickness range you are suggesting (maximum 2"). ILD is not really meaningful in memory foam because itā€™s softness is subject to time, heat, and humidity all of which will change the ILD of the memory foam. When you talk with a memory foam supplier ā€¦ I would tell them you are looking for a faster response memory foam that is less temperature sensitive (doesnā€™t take as much time to soften), is breathable or cooling, and is in the softer range relative to other types of memory foam. This will give them the information they need to help you make your best choice. Gel memory foams that have the gel mixed with the memory foam as a liquid rather than particles are likely to be stronger and more durable than either particulate gel foam or a non gel memory foam of the same density (so lower than 4 lbs in this case would likely be less risky in terms of durability).

If you look a little further down in the same Post #4 which lists some suppliers ā€¦ you will find some sources of gel memory foam (and other gel foams) in addition to the sources of memory foam without gel.

Phoenix

Iā€™m in the metro DC area ā€“ any decent mattress makers around here?
Thanks

Hi carolindc,

The better options or possibilities in the Washington, DC area I know of are listed in post #2 here.

Phoenix

Would the Ultimate Dream 13" Gel Foam mattress be comparable to the Sealy Optimum Inspiration? I too enjoyed the Sealy.

Hi brahms5,

About the only thing that can really be compared between the Ultimate Dreams 13" Gel and the Sealy Optimum inspiration is that they both have 5" of memory foam (different types and layering) and that they both use a good quality polyfoam in their support core. Because Sealy provides little information about their memory foam, about the only way to make a comparison between them in terms of ā€œfeelā€ would be testing them side by side in ā€œreal timeā€ which of course isnā€™t practical. Of course if a manufacturer specifically had tested their mattress against the feel and performance of the Optimum this could also give an indication but it isnā€™t a popular enough mattress for a manufacturer to ā€œtargetā€ its feel and performance like some do with Tempurpedic.

Dreamfoam does say that the 13" gel ā€œapproximatesā€ the Tempurpedic Cloud Luxe (perhaps not quite as soft) so this may give you some indication of its feel.

Phoenix

Hi

thanks for your post. just wondering if you are still happy with the ultimate dreams mattress you bought in July. Iā€™m thinking of buying one and want it to last.

thanks,
-K

Phoenix,

I just purchased a King size platform bed and am looking for a new mattress. The sales person recommended the Sealy Optimum so thatā€™s how I stumbled on this site. Lotā€™s of great info.

We are looking for a thinner mattress (8-10") that will rest directly on top of the platform bed. I have lower back problems and prefer a firmer mattress. We have looked a various polyfoam (BoConcept 4 star) and latex mattresses.

We would like to ā€œtestā€ a variety of mattresses to find one that best suits our needs. We live in Northern NJ, near Paramus, Fort Lee NJ and Nanuet NY. Can you recommend a show room or retailer in my area where we can test a variety of mattresses. Thank you.

Hi old2jersey,

Post #7 here includes the better options and possibilities Iā€™m aware of within reasonable driving distance.

Phoenix

Phoenix,

 I live near Milwaukee, WI and just happened upon your site while looking for reviews on the Sealy Optimum series.  Can you recommend any good mattress dealers in my area?  Thanks!

Hi seanerrolquinn,

Iā€™d be happy to :slight_smile:

The better options and possibilities Iā€™m aware of in the Milwaukee area are listed in post #2 here.

No matter who you are considering buying from or working with ā€¦ make sure that you are able to get all the details about the quality of the layers and components of any mattress you are testing.

Just in case you havenā€™t already read this ā€¦ post #1 here and the information and guidelines it links to is always the place I would start to gather the basic information and ideas you will need to make an informed choice and make meaningful comparisons between mattresses.

Phoenix

Thanks Phoenix! Iā€™ll start looking now and hope to be buying once I get my tax refund :slight_smile: