Your site “Mattress Underground” has helped me greatly so far. Many, many thanks to you for assisting in my mattress education.
I just returned a Tempurpedic Contour because I found it much to hard. It tested a bit softer in the showroom. I weigh 145 lbs and have a mild to moderate L4/L5 issue. I am active and have happily slept on firm mattresses in the past, thus my choice for a firmer mattress, but it is very apparent to me know that I can no longer tolerate it. I now have three feather toppers on top of the Tempurpedic and am finally able to sleep somewhat comfortably. If I don’t have them, I am in a good amount of pain upon waking.
Thanks to your blog, I found Star Bedding in Modesto, CA who sells 100% Talalay mattresses (Latex International) at near half the cost of retail. They make their beds (both latex and coil). Jason at Star Bedding is very knowledgeable and it has been such a breath of fresh air to speak with him over the salepeople at the retail stores. He has generously offered to send two beds to my home to try out (with the plastic on), two ILD’s, 27 and 31. He says I will know in a few days, which one I gravitate towards. He is hesitant to build a mattress to customer specification, because the customer does not have a chance to feel the product. He also cannot accept returns but is happy and willing to work with you to make things right (like putting a topper on, etc.) if things aren’t quite right.
I am happy to have the chance to try Talalay for the pressure relief quality. If it doesn’t work, I’ll be happy to have him build a coil bed as I believe he knows good coil guage, quality foams, etc. and uses them.
My question is the Pure Latex Bliss has different densities, a firmer core with a softer comfort layer. I am mostly a side sleeper. My biggest concern is maintaining support for my spine health and hopefully pain relief. From trying many different beds, I can now see that I prefer a plusher feel. It is a risky question, I know, but would I have enough support and comfort with a 27-31 ILD with no other layer? He uses 5 1/2" - 6" core.
I have really enjoyed reading previous threads and I appreciate any feedback or links to previous posts. All the best to you and again, thank you, thank you for your excellent and informative blog.
Regardless of the actual design or layering of a mattress … the end goal is always PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) and each person can be very different in terms of body type, sleeping positions, sensitivities and preferences so the only way to know this is with your own personal testing or experience. For some people the answer would be yes (in which case there would be little need for any additional softer comfort layers) and in some cases the answer would be no and a design that works best for that person may be a firmer core with a softer comfort layer. It would also depend on the cover and quilting materials used and on the type of foundation or box spring that is under the mattress (a box spring vs a rigid foundation can have a significant effect on the feel and performance of a thinner mattress especially).
Once you have some specific reference points and have evaluated your pressure relief and your alignment on each then you would be in a much better position to decide which one would be the best “match” for you in terms of PPP and whether you may need any additional comfort layers or a different design.
Side sleepers often need to sink into a mattress more because it is a more pressure prone position but again your own experience is the only way to know if any specific mattress (regardless of its design) provides “enough” pressure relief. Once type of design isn’t necessarily any “better” than the other unless it provides meaningful benefits for a specific person.
One of the advantages of working with a local manufacturer like Star Bedding is that they can often make adjustments to your mattress if you need it and they have the knowledge and experience to use your sleeping experience on a specific design as a guideline and reference point for any changes that may be necessary.
Thank you for your informative response. I now have two mattresses in the house and trying them both out. 27 ILD and 31 ILD. Two nights spent on the 27 ILD proved comfy but still woke with mild pain. I woke this morning with barely any pain at all after a night on 31 ILD. I hope it is not a fluke and I’ll try it for a few more days. I am trying out the mattresses only on the floor. The foundation sold with it is a sold wood foundation. I see on the blog that a slatted formation is recommended for breathability and will discuss this with the manufacturer.
In assessing PPP on both ILD’s, it appears that the 31 ILD may work for me. I read your response to indicate that 6" of 31 ILD is a thinner mattress. I appreciate your feedback about working with the Star Bedding and will do so. While pulling the trigger on this purchase is risky, do you see anything that I need to be aware of using a thinner mattress with only one ILD?
Another question is can I use an electric blanket on a latex bed? I think not, but want to be certain.
Thank you in advance for your help. Your site is a treasure trove of useful information.
A solid platform foundation will certainly be supportive enough but a slatted foundation is more breathable than a solid surface. While there is no general consensus about this … you can see my thoughts about it in post #10 here (which you may have read already).
A single core of talalay latex is certainly a good quality and durable material so the most important part of your purchase would be to make sure that it’s a good match in terms of PPP.
Latex is not a temperature sensitive material like memory foam so an electric blanket would be fine.
I’m looking forward to your feedback about your experience on both mattresses.