So today I went out my way to view a mattress and...

Discussions General Mattresses Questions
1

As you all know buying a mattress can be like choosing a partner, quite a complex and lengthy journey. :lol:

I had to go well out my way to view one today, train journey later I get to the showroom.

I was told there was a double for ÂŁ100 but in fact when I got there it was ÂŁ200. Anyway that is not my post topic.

I askwd the sales person if I could look at the actual mattress, I was quite baffled that all you get for £200 is foam and 5cm of memory foam, the chunk of it was just foam, don’t need any fancy marketing names as it did have, it was just foam. £200 for foam and some memory foam,

There really is not a lot to a ‘memory foam’ mattress is there?!

So I looked at the info and went outside and looked on ebay on my phone, and thought should I just buy one on ebay for ÂŁ99 or even ÂŁ120?

Can someone please look at this image and tell me if it is worth ÂŁ200?

I can’t see it myself, it’s probably the same stuff as the online retailrs except without the additioanl warehouse and show room costs?

I need a new firmer mattress soon. I liked the 1000 pocket spring one with memory foam but it was well out my range.

Surly all these peopel get the same memory foam and ‘foam’ don’t they? There’s no special science to this.

2

Hi fixmenow,

Most memory foam mattresses use the same basic types of materials with one or several layers of memory foam on top of a firmer polyfoam support core. Having said that … there is a huge range of different designs that have different firmness levels and that use either lower quality and less durable materials or higher quality and more durable materials that are in a wide range of prices (lower quality and less durable materials are less costly than higher quality and more durable materials).

There are a lot of “cheap” memory foam mattress that use low quality materials that wouldn’t be worth considering and there are also many higher quality memory foam mattresses that would make a suitable and durable choice.

There is more about the 3 most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase in post #13 here which can help you make more meaningful quality/value comparisons between mattresses in terms of suitability (how well you will sleep), durability (how long you will sleep well), and the overall value of a mattress compared to your other finalists based on suitability, durability, and all the other parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you (including the price of course and the options you have available after a purchase if your choice doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for).

While nobody can speak to how any specific mattress will “feel” for someone else because this is too subjective and relative to different body types, sleeping positions, and individual preferences, sensitivities, and circumstances and you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress … outside of PPP (which is the most important part of the “value” of a mattress purchase), the next most important part of the value of a mattress purchase is durability which is all about how long you will sleep well on a mattress. This is the part of your research that you can’t see or “feel” and assessing the durability and useful life of a mattress depends on knowing the specifics of its construction and the type and quality of the materials inside it regardless of the name of the manufacturer on the label (or how a mattress feels in a showroom or when it is relatively new).

While I can’t speak to how it will feel to you … the mattress in the picture you linked uses 5 cm of 50 kg/m3 (3.1 lb/ft3) memory foam which is a lower quality and less durable material than I would consider.

There are many different formulations of memory foam that have different firmness ranges and different properties (such as slower or faster response, more or less breathable, more or less temperature sensitive etc) depending on the chemical formulation of the memory foam. There is more about the different properties that can be formulated into of different types of memory foam in post #9 here and in post #8 here. There are also hundreds if not thousands of different memory foam mattresses that have very different designs and memory foam layer thicknesses and some of them may be a good “match” for you in terms of PPP and some of them may be completely unsuitable for you to sleep on.

The only reliable way to know whether any mattress is a good “match” for you in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP willl be based on your own careful testing (hopefully using the testing guidelines in the tutorial) or your own personal sleeping experience.

If for any reason you aren’t confident that a mattress you are considering would be a suitable choice in terms of firmness, “feel”, or PPP then any trial period and the options you have after a purchase including the exchange/return policy (and any costs involved) would also be a more important part of the “value” of an online purchase just in case (and in spite of the “best judgement” of everyone involved) the choice you make doesn’t turn out to be as suitable as you hoped for.

In its simplest form choosing the “best possible” mattress for any particular person really comes down to FIRST finding a few knowledgeable and transparent retailers and/or manufacturers (either locally or online) that sell the types of mattresses that you are most interested in that are in a budget range you are comfortable with and that you have confirmed will provide you with the all the information you need about the materials and components inside the mattresses they sell so you will be able to make informed choices and meaningful comparisons between mattresses and then …

  1. Careful testing (hopefully using the testing guidelines in the tutorial) to make sure that a mattress is a good match for you in terms of “comfort”, firmness, and PPP … and/or that you are comfortable with the options you have available to return, exchange, or “fine tune” the mattress and any costs involved if you can’t test a mattress in person or aren’t confident that your mattress is a suitable choice.

  2. Checking to make sure that there are no lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress you are considering relative to your weight range that could compromise the durability and useful life of the mattress.

  3. Comparing your finalists for “value” based on #1 and #2 and all the other parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.

Phoenix

3

wow thanks for reply, informative.

Interesting to know that your think that mattress is low quality. The whole experience with that retailer was just bad from the start.

What numerical qualities should I be looking for? Are bigger numbers generally better quality?

I mith find a better on on ebay?

4

Hi fixmenow,

The quality durability guidelines I would suggest are in post #4 here (they were included in one of the links in my previous reply).

I don’t know because I don’t keep a record of the individual mattresses or their specs that the retailers and manufacturers on ebay have available online (it would be a bigger job than anyone could keep up with because they are constantly changing) but checking their listings and making some preliminary phone calls to the sellers is always a good idea before you decide on which retailers or manufacturers you wish to deal with anyway. This will tell you which of them carry mattresses that would meet your specific criteria, are transparent about the materials in their mattresses, and that carry the type of mattresses that you are interested in that are also in the budget range you are comfortable with. Once you have checked their listingts and/or talked with the ones that interest you then you will be in a much better position to decide on the ones that you are most interested in considering or visiting based on the results of your preliminary research and conversations.

Phoenix

5

Thanks.

I understand if not but if I was to post maybe 3 links here do you think you could let me know if they are any good? Don’t worry I will not be blaming you if I am not happy with it, but just a general quick look over and give me your thoughts?

6

Hi fixmenow,

While I can certainly help with “how” to choose … it’s not possible to make specific suggestions or recommendations for either a mattress, manufacturers/retailers, or combinations of materials or components because the first “rule” of mattress shopping is to always remember that you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress and there are too many unknowns, variables, and personal preferences involved that are unique to each person to use a formula or for anyone to be able to predict or make a specific suggestion or recommendation about which mattress or combination of materials and components or which type of mattress would be the best “match” for you in terms of “comfort” or PPP or how a mattress will “feel” to you or compare to another mattress based on specs (either yours or a mattress), sleeping positions, health conditions, or “theory at a distance” that can possibly be more reliable than your own careful testing (hopefully using the testing guidelines in step 4 of the tutorial) or your own personal sleeping experience (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here).

When you can’t test a mattress in person then the most reliable source of guidance about “comfort” firmness, and PPP is always a more detailed phone conversation with a knowledgeable and experienced retailer or manufacturer that has your best interests at heart (and who isn’t just interested in selling you anything they can convince you to buy) and who can help “talk you through” the specifics of their mattresses and the properties and “feel” of the materials they are using (fast or slow response, resilience, firmness etc) and the options they have available that may be the best “match” for you based on the information you provide them, any local testing you have done or mattresses you have slept on and liked or other mattresses you are considering that they are familiar with, and the “averages” of other customers that are similar to you. They will know more about “matching” their specific mattress designs and firmness levels to different body types, sleeping positions, and preferences (or to other mattresses that they are familiar with) than anyone else.

In terms of durability … if you can find out the information in this article about any mattress you are considering and post it on the forum I’d be happy to let you know whether there are any lower quality materials or weak links that could compromise the durability and useful life of the mattress.

Phoenix

7

I only weigh 65kg (10st), so would i be ok with a, let’s say lesser quality one.

The mattress industry is just too complecatd to get head around in a few days… I just need a good mattress. If it’s good enough for a 12st person it surly be good enough for someone like me.

These ones don’t give thickness of memory foam which is a worry?

ebay.co.uk/itm/Memory-Foam-Matress-Pocket-Sprung-New-3ft-Single-4ft6-Double-5ft-King-Mattress-/221777892020?var=&hash=item33a2fe12b4:m:mrakwq6zbeph61bx0V5SJaA

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Wouold an idea to get a memory foam topper and put that on top of a cheaper memory foam matterss?

8

Hi fixmenow,

The minimum quality/durability guidelines I suggested would be the lowest quality/density I would suggest regardless of your weight range (and I would look for higher than the minimums for those that are in higher weight ranges).

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They also don’t provide the density of the foam layers in the mattress. I would want to know the thickness and the density of all the layers in any mattress I was considering and I would avoid any mattress where a retailer or manufacturer either isn’t able or willing to provide it to you because it would be a very risky purchase. Would you buy a computer that just has “a hard drive”, a “CPU”, and “some memory” without knowing some more detailed specifics?

It would depend on the reason you needed a topper. You can also see my comments about choosing a firmer mattress first with the intention of adding a topper later in post #2 here.

In most cases I would avoid this approach because of the uncertainty involved with two purchase choices instead of only one and choosing a topper that would be suitable in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your Personal preferences) for a specific person on a specific mattress can sometimes be almost as difficult as choosing a mattress that doesn’t need a topper in the first place. I would generally focus on choosing a mattress that is likely to be a suitable match without a topper (unless you can test the combination in person or you are purchasing both online as a “set” that is designed to work together and they both have a good return/exchange policy) and then use the option to add a topper as a “backup” strategy in case your initial choice is too firm and doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for rather than a “primary” strategy.

It can also be more costly than just buying a mattress which includes the same materials as the topper as a layer inside the mattress itself and you would be avoiding the risk of having additional materials in your base mattress that you may not need or that may be lower quality foam (that can soften or break down more quickly) or that may be softer than what would be ideal for a transition layer under a softer topper. I would also make sure that you can find out all the specifics of the materials inside the base mattress so you can make sure it meets the quality/durability guidelines here and that there are no lower quality materials or weak links in any of the materials or components in your sleeping system that could compromise the durability and useful life of the mattress.

Having said that … if you do decide to go in this direction and end up choosing a suitable mattress/topper combination which uses good quality and durable materials and turns out to be a good “match” for you in terms of PPP (and there are no lower quality materials or “weak links” in the mattress/topper combination) then it would have the advantage of being able to replace just the topper without replacing the entire mattress if it softens or breaks down before the upper foam layers in the mattress (which is likely because a sleeping system will tend to soften or break down from the top layers down) or if your needs or preferences change over time and a topper can also help extend the useful life of a mattress underneath it as well.

Phoenix

9

Thanks for reply, can you give me a good average foam density please?Just an average for an average person. There must be an accepted minimum for the memory foam element and the bottom layer.

10

Hi fixmenow,

An average density would be a meaningless number but the minimum densities I would look for are listed in the quality/durability guidelines here (which were already linked in several of my previous replies).

Phoenix