I discovered the mattress underground this week, and have learned so much. Thank you for all the great information!
Because of persistent low back pain (maybe a herniated disk?), I bought a memory foam mattress in June at my doctor’s suggestion. It helped, initially, but I prefer a firmer, more supportive mattress that isn’t rock-hard. After following your guidelines for choosing the best mattress for pressure relief and support, I’ve found several latex or latex hybrids that feel comfortable. The top choices are Pure Latex Bliss Pamper, American Sleep (Southland) Williamsport, and Restonic Sensation. I haven’t found specifications for the American Sleep and Restonic mattresses yet. They are considerably less expensive, and therefore appealing. Can you tell me how these mattresses compare? and how they compare with Ultimate Dreams?
Personal specs: I am 5’, 115# and a back and side sleeper. My husband is 5’8", 170# and a stomach and side sleeper. He can sleep well on anything, so I get to choose the mattress. We would love to spend less than $1000, but I am more interested in sleeping well and waking up without pain.
An interesting aside: Over the holidays, I slept for 4 nights on a Comfort Sleeper by American Leather. It had a very firm 5" HD foam mattress on a plywood support. They were the best nights’ sleep in almost two months! I’m trying to get info from American Leather about what foam they use. What this tells me, though, is that my back likes a thin comfort layer and more support–and probably a mattress that is 8-10".
Unfortunately … without the specifics of the layering in each I can’t really help you make any meaningful assessments or comparisons and I don’t know the layering of either the Williamsport or the Sensation (and a quick online search didn’t provide any further information of either).
I can tell you that the Pamper isn’t a latex hybrid (which is several inches of latex over a different type of support core usually an innerspring or polyfoam) but an all latex mattress which of course means it uses more costly materials (latex is a higher cost material than either innersprings or polyfoam). It would also be helpful to know if this was the old Pamper (with the white cover and an inch of latex in the comfort layer) or the new Pamper (with 2" of latex in the comfort layer and a blue cover).
Post #2 here talks about the pros and cons of a latex hybrid vs an all latex mattress in general terms.
I would also need to know the layering of the two hybrids you are looking at to compare them to the Ultimate Dreams but it does have exceptional value and it would be unlikely that you would find anything locally that would be in the same value range at least in terms of materials. Of course … a local purchase is also less risky because you can test it in person to make sure it suits your needs and preferences which adds to local value a well. I normally use a 20% difference between local and online as being “equivalent value” but each person may have a different risk tolerance and use a different number. The Ultimate Dreams also has a 3" comfort layer and 1.5" of softer quilting so given your experience I would choose a firmer layer than average for your height and weight because the quilting will add to the softness of the layer compared to just the latex ILD alone. They can also make a tighter quilting pattern (making it a bit firmer) which I would probably suggest as well if you go in this direction. Either way though … knowing the details of the Williamsport and Sensation would help you make a more appropriate choice.
It would be interesting to know the details of the material in the sofa sleeper but as you mentioned it does tend to point towards the need for a firmer support core and thinner comfort layers (like the Pamper) or at least firmer comfort layers if they were thicker. You may also do well with a single 6" layer in the right firmness (probably in the range of 'medium") without a comfort layer at all … particularly if it was latex which is very conforming and point elastic and can be soft with initial compression but then gets firmer more quickly than other types of foam with deeper compression.
This firmness preference is not uncommon with people who are lighter who are often at either end of the spectrum. They will often do well or prefer a softer than average comfort layer (because their lighter weight needs softer foam to sink in enough) or do well with a firmer than average surface (because their lighter weight and body shape isn’t as pressure prone and they tend to prefer the greater freedom of being more “on” the mattress instead of “in” the mattress). People who tend to “sprawl” will also often do well with firmer layers. My only caution would be your side sleeping which is a more pressure prone position and it would be interesting to know if you spent time on your side when you were on the sofabed.
A firmer preference would also make it more likely that your choices would come closer to matching your husband who is heavier (even though he can sleep on anything) and would normally need more firmness in both the comfort and support layers than you would … particularly with his stomach sleeping.
I wish I could be more specific but with the “gaps” in the information it’s not really possible.
Well, I went back to the store to try to find out more about the content of the mattresses. The Southerland Williamsport was 2" of firm Talalay Latex over a 6" “progressive core” of three layers of polyfoam. The manager thought that the bottom layer was 2.0, but did not have the specifications. The Sensation had gel foam in the comfort layer and I want to stay away from memory foam. Then I tried the Pure Latex Bliss Pamper again (the new one with the blue cover) and that clinched the deal for me. I ordered the Pamper.
Based on all the good information that I learned on this site and the specifics that you could offer about our sleeping habits, I feel reasonably confident that this mattress will make my back happy. I will pay attention to your caution about side sleeping and pressure relief and add a topper if necessary.
I still don’t have details about the sofabed mattress, though I’m pretty sure that I mostly slept on my back. I will let you know about the material of that mattress if American Leather ever divulges it.
Thanks so much for your knowledge, opinions, and this site. It was all very helpful. And thanks for suggesting Wildcat Mattress in Lexington and Nicholasville. They were good people to do business with.
Congratulations on your new mattress … and on the research you did to find it
I hope you have a chance to let us know both about the sofabed (if you’re able to find out) and also how the Pamper works for you once you’ve had the chance to sleep on it. I think you made a good choice. I would say the odds are in your favor and you’ve also left some “room” for fine tuning because the Pamper is a good base for this if it becomes necessary.
