Shopping advice wanted in Burlington VT area

[phoenix]

hi vfox,

I sent you a PM about using your email as a username (which I can change if you like)

You are the second one who has posted on the forum today from Burlington (see this thread).

I would guess that the reason for your pressure is just what you are suggesting. The futon has probably compressed and become firmer while the memory foam has likely softened and you are “going through” it more and feeling more of the firmness underneath it. As you also mention … memory foam is also the warmest of the 3 main types of foam (polyfoam, memory foam, latex) although there are cooler and warmer versions that can make a difference. It’s also not uncommon that a mattress that is too firm can cause alignment issues (as well as pressure issues) and this could be contributing to your husbands back issues.

1. Can you recommend some stores in the Burlington VT area which are worth visiting? Do any of them carry mattresses made by Mattress Underground approved manufacturers?

While there aren’t any local factory direct manufacturers there … much less any of our recommended members … there are a few choices (out of about 35 I looked at in the area) that have better odds of finding quality and value or that could act as a testing ground if you are comfortable with an online purchase. They are listed in post #4 here.

2. At least initially, I like the sound of latex - but am I likely to find a decent latex queen mattress for under $1000 (our budget)? If not, can you recommend the best combination of materials that might fall into our price range?

You could probably just “squeek” in with a 6" latex mattress with this budget but that wouldn’t leave room for a design that had separate comfort and support layers and would normally be a choice for fairly light people who needed less than “average” thickness or who preferred a firmer mattress.

The comfort layer is the most important part of the mattress in terms of durability and for most people (but not all) would be the bigger part of the overall feel of the mattress so a latex comfort layer over a high density polyfoam support core would be a good choice as a “lower budget” latex alternative. These should be available in your price range.

3. If we fail to find what we want in a store, we are not adverse to ordering on line (in fact, we do most of our major shopping on line). Can you recommend which of the Mattress Underground member companies might offer products in our price range?

If they aren’t available locally … then the members here that specialize in online sales (many of them carry latex) are listed in post #21 here. There are many good options but one mattress of that type (latex/polyfoam here) has been particularly popular because of it’s quality and value and because the top layer can be customized for firmness. Part of the reason for it’s value though is because there are no refunds so there is some “risk” involved as well (but they are good at helping their customers make good comfort layer firmness choices). A search on “Ultimate Dreams” (you can click this) will bring up lots of feedback about them.

Another similar option that is inside your budget is here and this is great value as well.

There are also a couple of “all latex” options on the list (latex support core and comfort layer) that are also excellent value and only a few hundred over your budget if you feel that is worthwhile considering.

So I would start locally both to test the “feel” of latex in various combinations and to get a sense of what is available locally and then look at the online manufacturers as a source of better quality/value unless you come across a local option that is comparable or only slightly more (I usually use about 20% as a guideline but this is up to each person’s “value equation”) and the lower “risk” of testing the mattress in person makes up for any difference in price.

Hope this helps

Phoenix