SleepEZ 13000 review

I wanted to post my experience in choosing and purchasing a mattress in order to add to the great information already on this forum. I spent hours combing through old posts and reading up on experiences to educate myself on a quality mattress. My mattress hunt started because I tested out my guest room mattress (previously our in master bedroom) and was appalled at how badly I slept on it. I felt I could not ask our guests to endure that mattress!! After debating my options, I felt that my best route forward was to get a new mattress for our bedroom and send our current mattress to the guest room. We were not experiencing any sleep problems with our mattress, a seven year old Simmons Beautyrest Portola Hill (specs quote 5/8" memory foam over 3/4" talalay latex, over coils), though I did notice some very minor body impressions when making the bed. I would describe the mattress as feeling soft on top, but very supportive underneath. The mattress plus matching box spring was 17 inches high and looked very nice on our sleigh bed frame.

Locally, I was able to visit The Original Mattress Factory where there were great innerspring options, but I was already leaning toward memory foam or latex. I found the latex options there to be either too firm or too soft. Next, my husband and I tested mattresses at The Healthy Back Store. My husband had an instant dislike to their latex offerings (from Pure Bliss), as he felt they were too springy. We both liked the new memory foam line from The Healthy Back Store (probably even more so than the Tempurpedics they sell), but the more I researched, I kept coming back to latex - for its durability, for its hypo-allergenic properties, for its lack of chemical processing. Luckily, my husband is flexible and convinced he can sleep on anything. He assured me he would be happy with whatever I chose. :slight_smile:

We are both of average stature and light-to average weight. Both side sleepers, though my husband wakes up on his stomach fairly often. I was leaning heavily toward buying from Brooklyn Bedding and emailed/chatted with them several times to decide on which mattress or firmness would be best for us. Their sales folks were very responsive to my questions and I was absolutely impressed with their service. Initially, I thought we would go with the Aloe Alexis in queen at $1399 - it seemed like a great option for us, as it offered two layers of latex over high quality foam. Brooklyn Bedding recommended a 6 comfort level for us and I was very comfortable with the exchange policy in case our initial choice was off on the proper comfort level. But the more I thought about it, I wanted a full latex mattress. Unfortunately, Brooklyn’s Total Latex is only 10 inches high. I knew that was going to look too short for my current bed frame (which does have slats less than 3 inches apart, so it would work as a base for a latex mattress); I wanted to match my current look as closely as possible.

In reading more Mattress Underground reviews, I started looking more closely at Sleep EZ’s options. I felt like the SleepEZ 10000 and the SleepEZ 13000 were good choices, plus Sleep EZ offered a 5 inch or 9 inch foundation. Thus, I would have a fully customizable mattress that was either 15, 18, or 19 inches high with foundation. I would find this more attractive on my bed frame. I called Sean at Sleep EZ and described our sleep habits, weights, and stature to him. Sean assured me that we did not need the 13000 and would be very happy with the 10000. He also indicated that 85% of his customers end up using some version of the standard layering of S-M-F (for the 10000) or S-M-F-XF (for the 13000) and that either of these would provide us with a multitude of layering options if we needed to customize further. This fact was the breakthrough that led to the purchase decisions for me–I don’t consider myself or my husband to be especially sensitive, hard to please, or have health or sleep issues. If 85% of Sleep EZ customers find this combination (in some layering form) to work for them, it seemed highly likely that we would, too. Sean was slightly concerned about my husband’s stomach sleeping, as that could require a firmer mattress. He wanted to know if my husband preferred stomach sleeping or simply ended up on his stomach because of inadequate pressure relief for his hips or shoulders. I asked my husband and he felt that he was primarily a side sleeper. Sean strongly recommended that we do split latex layers for our queen bed, so that if our needs were different, we would have all options available. He stressed that split layers did not affect comfort (cannot feel the seam) or longevity and do not move around. Sean also said that, based on everything I had described to him, we should go with the Talalay latex.

I ended up ordering the SleepEZ 13000 for its flexibility and aesthetics. I felt that the 13 inch mattress plus 5 inch foundation most closely matched our current mattress. I also felt that the four split layers of latex allowed us the full gamut of comfort options, should we need them. The 10000 plus 9 inch foundation came out to $2025; for $200 more dollars (the 13000 plus 5 inch foundation), I could have even more options available. I placed my order on a Friday. Sean told me I could expect the mattress the following Thursday (and this was confirmed by the UPS tracking numbers on my emailed receipt).

The mattress arrived early on Thursday morning in many boxes, all of which were clearly marked. I had read reviews of the SleepEZ unpackaging process, so I thought I knew what I was in for. I unpacked the foundation first. It assembles without tools, though I had to re-do the assembly a few times, as I did not realize at first that all four sides of the foundation have velcro to help the slats and cover adhere; initially I had some velcro on the top and some on the bottom of the foundation. Once I got that straightened out, it was smooth sailing. I assembled the four sides and middle support of the foundation, stood inside it to lift it onto my bed frame. At this point, it was unwieldy, but not too heavy for a single female. Once on my bed frame, I unrolled the slats and made sure they attached to the velcro on the foundation. Then I fit the foundation cover over the slatted foundation. This may be obvious to others, but it wasn’t to me: the foundation cover goes over the TOP and four sides of the foundation, not the bottom and four sides. Thus, you do not need to put the cover in place until after you have the foundation and slats assembled.

Next I located the box with my top (S) latex split layers, as this is where SleepEZ puts the mattress cover! I unpacked it and found that SleepEX had sent me an organic cotton/wool mattress cover - very nice! I spread it out over the foundation and tucked it under/to the side as best I could. Then I opened the box containing my bottom (XF) layers of latex. Make sure you open the box right next to your bed, as the less you handle the latex, the better, so it does not stretch or tear. I learned to keep the split layers sort of folded onto themselves, as I carried them the short distance to the bed then put them on the middle of each side and let them spring open almost into place. Then I gently “waved” them into a perfect fit on each side of the bed. The split layers were very easy to handle for one person. I am not sure if a single layer of queen-szed latex would be easy to handle alone. I did the same with each successive layer - firm, them medium, then soft, carefully pulling the mattress cover around each layer as I was put in place. The fit was tight, but I did not have any trouble zipping the cover when I was done. All told, the process probably took me just over an hour and I was working by myself. The foundation took me the longest and that was due to my velcro mix-ups initially.

The new bed looks great and seems of excellent quality. The wool-quilted cover seems to mitigate the springy-ness of the latex slightly; my husband is not bothered by it at all. In fact, he has either gotten used to it after 2 weeks or it has lessened enough so that he doesn’t notice it. Our sleep has been good, but we did not have sleep problems to begin with. I will say that I appreciate that the latex sleeps cool. It has turned into summer overnight here in the past two weeks and I usually have trouble transitioning seasons with the nighttime temperature changes (we do not keep our AC temps as low as our heat at night). I have not been troubled by heat or night sweats at all on the latex bed. We are both using the standard layering (S-M-F-XF) and–so far–it seems to work. I keep describing my feeling on the bed as one of floating on top of still water. I am definitely on top of this mattress, yet it supports every part of me. I was struck by a recent comment by Phoenix, as it perfectly describes how we are feeling about the mattress so far: it does not “wow” us, but instead disappears beneath us because of its well-designed support. We have both noticed that we are waking up earlier (with approximately 30-45 minutes less sleep than before), but more fully refreshed and awake.

Of course, the search is not over, as I am looking for a mattress protector. I like the current feel of the mattress and don’t need to modify it. Would the Geneve St Dormeir or the Natura Wash and Snuggle have less effect on the feel? I am also considering the Tempflow Organic Cotton Mattress protector ($129) suggested by someone on this forum. Please help me decide… I don’t need waterproof and don’t want to sleep hot!

Finally, I love the shredded latex pillows that SleepEZ sent. They are overfilled right now - I could probably make a third pillow out of them, but I find them great for back support when I am sitting in bed and I also use one between my knees at night. I may eventually transition to using them for neck support when sleeping.

Many thanks to all the folks on this forum who contribute their knowledge and experiences! I feel like I made a great purchase!

Hi Mightyh,

Thanks for taking the time to write such a detailed review and sharing all the steps of your process with us. I appreciate it.

You certainly made a great choice that was well thought through.

You can see some of the tradeoffs between the different types of mattress protectors in post #89 here.

In terms of “feel” the Natura is the thickest and would probably have the biggest effect on the feel of your mattress. The Dormeir is thinner and more stretchy and would have less effect and a stretch knit cotton would have the least effect.

The Dormeir has wool so it would have a bigger effect on regulation temperature than cotton and it would also be more water resistant (it’s not water “proof” though) than cotton.

Overall if both temperature regulation and feel were most important then I would probably go with the Dormeir.

I have the Natura Deluxe Protect which is similar to the Dormeir except it has the waterproof/breathable membrane and while it’s fine … if I had to do it over again I would probably choose the Dormeir both because it’s more stretchy and because water resistant is fine for me and is more breathable than having a waterproof membrane.

If only the feel was important along with the ability to protect from body oils then a stretch knit cotton would probably have the slight advantage (like having a thick stretchy sheet) but at the cost of water resistance and the temperature regulation of wool (although it is also very breathable).

Congratulations on your new mattress :slight_smile:

Phoenix

A great review and very thorough step by step instructions. This should be a must read sticky for anyone interested in the SleepEZ. Thanks!

Thanks for the review.

Congratulations on the new mattress. I got my SleepEZ 13000 (with the same layering as you) last week and have been enjoying sleeping on it much more than my old mattress. I also thought it off to pack the cover in the box with the top layer instead of putting it with the xf layer since most people will use that as the lowest layer. It just seems to me that putting the 1st two things you’ll use in the same box would be more practical.

I picked it over the 10" for the same reasons as you: more layers = more options and the aesthetics. I didn’t get the shredded latex pillows but got the non-shredded ones that turned out to be too soft/plush for me but my mom likes a softer pillow so I gave them to her and she loves them.

I went with a more basic protector from Luna since for now at least since I wanted to get a feel for the bed before decidining on whether to go for the St Dormier but still wanted to put some protector on it.

nik

Awesome review! I am just about to hit the button on a sleepez, but haven’t been able to decide between single layer queen or split–hubby is afraid the split will sag in the middle where they layers come together? Is this too ‘traditional mattress’ thinking or does it happen w/ latex?

Hi spjz94,

SleepEz uses a wool quilted cover that is designed to work well to even out the feeling of the split layers so most people won’t feel the split itself (outside of the different firmness levels on each side of the mattress). You can read a little more about split layers here but with latex, undue sagging isn’t an issue and for most couples that had different needs and preferences the pros of a split layer and the ability to fine tune each side would outweigh the cons.

Phoenix

For what it is worth (I know everyone’s sensitivity differs), I have the quilted wool cover on my split layer Sleep EZ 13000 and cannot feel the split even when I am actively trying to feel it.

Hello,

First post for me. Thanks very much for the great info on this forum which has us leaning to purchase the SleepEZ 13000 as our next mattress. Do you know which St. Dormeir mattress protector fits the 13000? There are two King models - one with a 16" skirt and one with a 24" skirt. Thanks again.

Tony

The 16 inch St Dormeir fits the Sleep EZ 13000. That is what I ended up purchasing for mine. It is very nice and the standard size fits fine!

My husband and I are still very happy with the SleepEZ 13000.

Thanks.

My wife and I have been searching for a latex mattress for a while. This forum has been very helpful during the process. We are about to order our 13000 from Sleep EZ. And are really looking forward to a good nights sleep!

Hi doohickzzz,

Congratulations on your new mattress :slight_smile:

As you know I think very highly of SleepEz and I think you are making a great choice.

I hope you have the chance to share your feedback once you’ve received it.

Phoenix

Thanks so much Mightyh for your thorough review on the Natural Latex Mattress 13,000 Queen by Sleep EZ! I know that took a lot of time to type up and I am appreciative. I have a ton of anxiety about buying a mattress online. I spent way too much money on a mattress in the past (Simmons Comfortpedic Capri) and absolutely hate it. I despise my old mattress so much that I have been sleeping on my air mattress for a couple months! Love the fact you can change the different layers for comfort. I am pretty sure I am going to do the same as you get the 1300- Talalay Blended with the split s-m-f-xf. I know you gave an update a couple months ago but I know time has gone by since then and some mattresses tend to get softer over time. Are you guys still pleased with your purchase (comfort, temperature… etc)?

Phoenix you rock with your knowledge, you are seriously a Godsend. :slight_smile: God bless you!

I am still very happy with our purchase. My husband and I love the bed! We have both kept the standard layering intact. I do not notice any impressions forming in the latex. The mattress may have softened slightly, but I do not really notice it. We are of light-average weights and I think we could have easily been just as happy with the 10,000, so if budget is a concern, that is one way to trim the cost. Temperature-wise, it seems pretty good. I still have some nights I sleep hot, but I don’t think that is a result of the latex at all. To sum up: I would still highly recommend this bed and SleepEZ!

Thanks for the update Mightyh! I’m hoping to pull the trigger on a 10000 tomorrow. Planning on letting Sleepez guide us for a starting point.

Figured I’d update here quickly while I was in the posting mood.

We did buy the Sleep EZ 10000 about 18 months ago. Oh how we wanted to love that bed. And it was “ok” for a while. We got the fully split queen in soft->medium->firm. We changed up the layers every way possible and could never get rid of the back pain. In addition, the layers kept coming apart in the center line between us and we would fall into the noticeable gap. Because of this, after a year Sleep EZ sent us a solid “soft” top to replace the spilt pieces. Customer service there has been top notch. Our main problem is that now the latex foam is sagging under our hips, and is noticeably softer. Even on the replacement soft layer. Our Tempur-pedic foundation that we used with it is also showing the same sagging. Not sure if there is a cause-effect there. We aren’t huge people (5’7"/160lbs, 5’4"/135lbs) but we do tend to sleep “together” like one 300lb person. We are side sleepers. I tried some quick zoning with cardboard between various layers but it really didn’t help much.

We are looking at Novosbed options now and going back to memory foam we think.

Hope this helps someone. I wouldn’t say in any way that Sleep EZ beds are poor quality or that their service was bad. It just didn’t work out for us.

Hi BigWind,

Thanks for taking the time to share your experience and I’m sorry to hear that your mattress didn’t work out for you as well as you hoped for. Based on your other post at least your daughter will have the chance to sleep on a latex mattress although it seems that she is somewhat “attached” to memory foam.

This is a very unusual issue with split layering and it can sometimes be a result of how the mattress was assembled (although in reading your previous posts I don’t think that this was an issue with you) but for those rare instances where it is an issue with the split layering then either gluing the two top layers together (if they are a different firmness on each side) or replacing them with a solid layer would resolve the problem.

If the foundation under your mattress is sagging then it would certainly affect the mattress on top of it and with a latex mattress … because of the durability of latex … that would normally be the first place I would look to resolve any sagging issues (see post #4 here).

If you were to put your mattress on the floor and it made a difference over the course of a few nights (a single night’s sleep can be an anomaly and may not be enough to identify a “pattern” in your sleeping experience) then it would be safe to assume that the foundation needed to be replaced or repaired.

Phoenix

Thanks for the reply Phoenix! My daughter very much wants the old TP bed back, but she might just be stubborn (no idea where she would get that quality). For my sake the last two nights I’ve slept on it have been “better”, but it is definitely worn out.

The split in the latex mattress still happens in the 2nd and 3rd layers under the solid top, though not nearly as bad.

I’m not sure I’ll get around to sleeping with the latex on the floor but I might. My wife is pretty convinced she just wants to give up. Regardless of sagging because of foundation, the foam has gotten much softer under our hips and just isn’t supporting us well.

I’m going to start a new thread for a few questions about Novosbed advice.

Thanks again for all you do!

Hi BigWind,

This is a very interesting comment. I have talked with many manufacturers (including SleepEZ) that have used split layers in the deeper layers of their mattresses with a solid layer on top and all of them have told me that they haven’t experienced the type of issues that you are describing here. Even issues with split top layers are very uncommon with a tight fitting quilted cover although they do come up from time to time in some circumstances or sleeping styles. In most cases though this is something that is connected to differences in firmness on each side of the mattress that can create a sensation of sleeping on a “gap” rather than the split layers actually shifting and creating a gap between the split but I’ve never heard of this as even a potential issue with deeper layers.

Because your experience is so rare … it leads me to suspect that something else may be happening and that the source of the sensation you are experiencing may be something else although without seeing the mattress I don’t know what it could be. It’s possible that it could be connected to a sagging foundation or even the firmness levels of the layers themselves.

In any case though … regardless of the reasons why … it certainly sounds like you aren’t happy with how you are sleeping on the mattress which in the end is all that really matters. I hope that your next mattress provides a better sleeping experience for you than some of the other mattresses you have tried and slept on in the past few years that also didn’t work out well for you.

Phoenix

Yeah. I don’t kid myself that I can feel the split in the 2nd and 3rd layers. I’m sure we can’t, but my wife swears she can. I think it is just the change in firmness. It only gets to be about 0.5" in lower levels. However before they replaced the top layer the split would reach about 2" apart in the top layer under our hips in about a week. It was easy to feel. We got in a routine of taking it apart every time we changed the sheets. Sleep EZ sent us that new single top layer no questions asked after a year had passed. They didn’t even fuss at us when we forgot to send the old ones back after a few months! Our bad completely (we did send it eventually though). The cover didn’t seem particularly snug after a while, which could be a contributor. Or it could be our combined weight directly in the center driving the layers apart. We’ve kept the layers identical on both sides after initial experiments. Either soft->med->firm or soft->firm->med on both sides. We flipped, rotated, swapped every layer in every way imaginable trying to even out the “wear”. We are going to use it to replace an old inner spring in our guest room for my mom, so it isn’t “wasted”. I still wish we’d land on the bed we could love though! Thanks as always Phoenix!