So now ... where do I go?

Hmmm … sorry Phoenix…now I am more confused. I thought that the specs I was given would be something of value since sales person said this was all they were told…although this is why I was held out on purchasing these beds or any bed yet because not convinced of what would constitute a great foam mattress that is NOT toxic. .

I looked at your mattress guidelines and the density I think was 3lbs for both the Cradlesoft and the Gemma firm and I gave you all the layers in the last email for the Cradlesoft and the Gemma firm which did add up to the thickness of the mattresses.

So, what am I missing and/or not understanding?

So…And…if possible…are you able to provide and recommend any stores that are in my neck of the woods in the Palo Alto, Ca area that would be able to give me the specs that I need to make an informed choice on the memory foam mattress that I need?

I went to Nest Bedding in Mountain View Ca to test out the Gemma and the Cradlesoft and the Cradlesoft was the best thus far that I tested for memory foam.

If I go with their latax I did like the Starling but I would need to get a dr’s note to specify that I have chemical sensitivities so they can remove the wool from the mattress and although I love firm which it is I would still need to add something to the latex mattress so it reaches the crevices of my body and rebound there to supported too. Just like my old tempur pedic mattress did for me.

I have waited for over a year to find the right bed so a few more weeks of research will hopefully pay off with your expertise and assistance, Phoenix.

Hi insearchofweeetdreams,

[quote]Hmmm, sorry Phoenix…now I am more confused. I thought that the specs I was given would be something of value since sales person said this was all they were told…although this is why I was held out on purchasing these beds or any bed yet because not convinced of what would constitute a great foam mattress that is NOT toxic. .

I looked at your mattress guidelines and the density I think was 3lbs for both the Cradlesoft and the Gemma firm and I gave you all the layers in the last email for the Cradlesoft and the Gemma firm which did add up to the thickness of the mattresses.

So, what am I missing and/or not understanding?[/quote]

You are missing the density of the polyfoam and memory foam layers which is the most important factor in the durability of memory foam or polyfoam. They should be able to provide them to you and it would surprise me if they couldn’t because they are knowledgeable about the mattresses they sell but if for some reason they can’t then you would be missing one of the most important parts of making an informed purchase decision.

The better options and possibilities I’m aware of in and around the larger San Jose region are listed in post #2 here.

Nest Bedding only lists the Gemma and the Bed in a Box memory foam mattresses on their site and I didn’t realize they carried any Cradlesoft mattresses. If you can find out the density of a all the foam layers in either one though I’d be happy to make some comments about the quality of the materials in either the Gemma or the Cradlesoft. NOTE ADDED: Nest Bedding is also now a member of this site

I believe you may be able to choose softer latex than their standard configuration which may be a better match for you and some of their other latex mattresses are also in a softer range. Most people that are sensitive to wool don’t have any issues with a wool quilted mattress cover because there is no contact with the wool so it may be fine for you unless or course you are vegan and are avoiding wool for personal reasons. It normally also isn’t difficult to get a prescription from a health professional such as a doctor, naturopath, or chiropractor for a mattress without a fire barrier.

Phoenix

Hi Phoenix!

Hope you are well.

Thanks so much for your input. I have been trying to get answers from my sales person and he seems to be trying as best as he can to find out the answers to my questions but it seems that the representatives at Jeffco and at Gemma are not very responsive. Well, this is what he claims to be the case.

I want to say that both mattresses have 3 pounds of density but not sure for what layers… but trust me I will find out what all the layers have so you may help me figure out which mattress is better. Either the Gemma Firm or the Jeffco Cradlesoft 14 inch Gel Infused Memory Foam with Coolmax Cover.

One site said the Gemma had 0.8 Firm HD and then had 1.6 Gemma Visco Elastic Memory Foam at 3.2 Density and then the 7.5 inch Foam Support Core was 2 lbs Density. But I will verify with my sales person tomorrow.

I cannot find anything on line regarding the Jeffco construction of the layers and of course the Jeffco Mattress is the mattress that felt better to me. But I do not want to purchase a mattress that has low quality. I also do not want to pay Tempur Pedic prices either especially since my original was only $999.00 plus tax and it was excellent compared to what Tempur Pedic offers today.

Yes, I want an even better mattress then the Tempur Pedic! I want a mattress that has the spinal alignment but with no toxcins and is the firmness that I need :slight_smile: I will be looking over the list in the San Jose area that you posted and take a visit to some of the stores and test mattresses. I am hoping to find a mattress within the next few weeks with your help, Phoenix :slight_smile:

Also, if the density is high will that make the mattress feel like I will be sinking into quicksand? I want the mattress to rebound quickly so that I am fully supported everywhere and sink a little but not enought to make to make me feel I am sleeping “in” the bed given that I prefer the sleeping “on” the bed feel.

The sales person that I have been dealing with will be in tomorrow and he is first on my to go see list :slight_smile: Hopefully he can provide me the answers that I seek.

Be Well and Take Care, Phoenix!

Hi insearchofsweetdreams,

I hope you are able to find out the information you need.

Spinal alignment and perceptions of firmness would vary with each person so for this you will either need to test a mattress in person to decide how well it matches your specific needs and preferences in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) or you could make an online purchase with a good return policy that would give you the chance to assess it based on your own sleeping experience without the risk that can sometimes be involved in buying a mattress that you can’t test in person beforehand and doesn’t work out as well as you hoped.

What is the criteria that you are using to decide whether a mattress is “safe enough” for you? Once you have decided on the criteria and/or the materials that you are comfortable with then it’s much easier to eliminate mattresses that don’t meet your criteria or that use materials that you would prefer not to have in your mattress. If you are using CertiPur as your “standard” then almost any mattress that uses North American polyfoam or memory foam or that is CertiPur certified would be “safe enough” in which case you would have a very wide range of choices. If you are using a different standard such as Oeko-Tex then you may need to consider materials other than memory foam or polyfoam (with the rare exceptions of mattresses such as the Gemma that use memory foam or polyfoam that are Oeko-Tex certified). There is more information in post #2 here about organic, natural, chemical free, safe, and green mattresses that may be helpful in deciding about the types of materials you are comfortable with having in your mattress and that can help you decide on the answer to “how safe is safe enough for me?”

This will depend more on the specifics of the memory foam and on its response time and temperature sensitivity and on the thickness of the memory foam and the type of material in the other layers below it (or even above it) than it will on the density of the memory foam alone. Any density of memory foam can have faster or slower response and more or less temperature sensitivity depending on the chemical formulation that was used to make it. There is more about the different properties of different types of memory foam in post #9 here and in post #8 here but there are so many different types of memory foam and different memory foam mattress designs that your own testing will be the best way to decide on all the things that you can “feel” on a mattress.

All slow response materials will have more of an “in the mattress” feel than fast response materials such as polyfoam or latex which have more of an “on the mattress feel” but again there is a wide range of different types of memory foam that have either faster or slower response rates and this will also depend on the thickness of the memory foam and the type of layers above and below it as well. This is another one of the criteria that you will need to decide on based on your actual testing.

Most people that prefer a more “on the mattress” feel tend to prefer faster response and less temperature sensitive materials than memory foam.

Phoenix

Hi Phoenix :slight_smile:

I did read the specs on the Gemma Firm that you ref me to and this is why I was reluctant to purchase the Gemma Firm since it it felt good BUT it did not feel firm enough so in the end it was not good enough. However, I very much did love the fact that it is Oeko-tex rated the highest.

I am still working on getting the specs for the Cradlesoft Jeffco 14 inch Deluxe Gel Infused Memory Foam with Coolmax Cover.
By the way, the Cradlesoft was in the Albany store for Next Bedding that I tried out. The reps from Jeffco have not responded back to my sales guy as to date so not sure if I will get the specs that I need.

This mattress felt so much better than the Gemma Firm. Although this mattress does not come with an organic cover it is Certipur. I do love that part. I did not itch on this bed. The bed did not feel hot to me either. But again I want a bed made of quality that will be built to last in its 10 yr warranty. I also did not like that it is 14 inches high. Cradlesoft has an 11 inch as well as a 12 inch Deluxe Gel Infused Memory Foam with Coolmax Cover and I would much prefer the 11 or the 12 inch. But they are on line and not in the stores to test out.

As for the list that you sent me for the San Jose/San Francisco surrounding area. I did try urban sleep store before I found Next Bedding and the Urban Sleep store has so much wool that I started to have a reaction of feeling itchy in my eyes and my eyes were watering and my skin felt itchy and then gained a headache from it all. This also happened when I went to the futonshop.

SO the research continues. I really would like to find a memory foam mattress again that would feel as Goldilocks would say, Ahhh, this is just right :slight_smile: as well as the princess in me that can feel a pea and say that my body is aligned and supported completely :slight_smile: and even better if it is Certipur and will not stir up my allergies. ALthough the explanation by california mattress about Talalay latex sounds like it could be something I might like and will test out. Any more thoughts on this Phoenix at least until i uncover more specs for you. I really need to find my mattress asap!!! Thanks for all your input, Phoenix!

Hi insearchofsweetdreams,

I’ll be happy to make more comments about the quality of the materials in the Cradlesoft mattress if you can find out the specs of the materials but other than that I think that my previous replies and links include most of the suggestions I would make and I would just follow the steps and information in the tutorial post to the best of your ability.

There are also many good options in the San Francisco list so at least you don’t lack good options to choose from.

Of course if you have any specific questions along the way I’m always happy to answer them to the best of my ability as well.

Phoenix