Tempur-pedic Rhapsody Breeze Return/Replacement

Discussions General Mattresses Questions
1

Phoenix,

I am new a member as of a few months ago. I have thoroughly enjoyed and exhausted myself reading posts on your blog. Thank you so much for all your time and expertise you give to help the common person.

I am 35 yrs old, 5’11" 185 lbs, back sleeper w/some lower back pain. My wife is 28 yrs ols, 5’9" 130 lbs, side/stomach sleeper w/upper back and neck pain from a degenerative disk. My wife and I bought a King Size, Tempur-pedic Rhapsody Breeze back in August from Mattress Firm. We bought it based upon the higher quality materials used, therapeutic support, and the supposedly cooling breeze material. I have slept hotter than I ever have in my entire life. We have tried different mattress covers, no cover, modal/bamboo sheets, and a set of Sheex all to no avail.

The District Manager we are dealing with has been top notch in customer service and in trying to help us find an appropriate mattress for us. My wife loves the bed, motion isolation, and has never slept better. Only complaint she has is that the Rhapsody Breeze is a little too firm compared to what she is use to. I on the other hand sleep so hot, that I went from being a back sleeper to an all over sleeper. I now wake up with lower back pain, shoulder pain, and sometimes neck pain. All I can assume is that I get so hot, that I am constantly changing positions looking for a cooler spot. I haven’t had a decent nights sleep in 3 months. Any other opinions are tainted due to the heat issues I have with this mattress. I know I will be hot somewhat due to my nature, but with our previous queen pillow-top I never slept as hot.

We have several options with the District Mgr from Mattress Firm (*Note: we did have some hiccups when we were trying to schedule a return pick-up, so this is why the District Mgr is involved and doing so much for us.) He is already letting us keep the bed frame and mattress protector for free regardless of what we choose to do.

  1. We can return the Tempur-pedic for a full refund, with no restocking or shipping fees
  2. We can exchange it for any other bed, up or down in price for another 45 days free trial with no strings attached or fees.
  3. We can keep it, but then have to purchase something that will help me sleep cooler. (This is not really what we want to do, considering the price of the Tempur-pedic.

Now, here are some of the other beds she likes based on how they feel with a 30+min test in the store, but we are not so sure about the longevity and support. We only have major retailers near us in the Greater Atlanta area. In order of preference.

  1. Mattress Firm’s Aireloom Ingrid hybrid w/ latex pillow-top set $6,499 (willing to even swap for the Rhapsody Breeze)
    Near impossible to find info on it, due to private labeling.

  2. America’s Mattress I-Serta Profiles Prominence Super pillow-top hybrid set $2,699 (120 day trial, $99 fee for exchange/refund)
    http://www.serta.com/buy-mattress/iseries/iseries-profiles/iseries-profiles-prominence-super-pillow-top
    Note, the salesperson did find out the thickness & densities in each layer for me
    Prominence
    • Thermo°Cool™ yarn Fabric Covers with TENCEL® fibers
    • .75” Cool Action™ Dual Effects® Gel Memory Foam (5.5lb Density)
    • .75” EverFeel™ Technology (4lbs Density)
    • 1.5” Cool Action™ Dual Effects® Gel Memory Foam (5.5lbs Density)
    • 1” Serta® PillowSoft™ Foam (4lbs Density)
    • 1” Serta® Support Foam (5lbs Density)
    • Duet® Coil Individually Wrapped Coil-in-Coil Support System

  3. America’s MattressSerta I-Comfort Directions Acumen foam mattress set $2,499 (120 day trial, $99 fee for exchange/refund)
    http://www.serta.com/buy-mattress/icomfort-sleep-system/icomfort/acumen
    Acumen
    • Thermo°Cool™ yarn Fabric Covers with TENCEL® fibers
    • 1” Serta PillowSoft™ Foam (4.5lbs Density)
    • 2” EverCool® Gfx Memory Foam(4.5 lbs Density)
    • 2” Cool Action™ Dual Effects® Gel Memory Foam (5.5lbs Density)
    • 1” Pods™ Gel Activated Support (4lbs Density)
    • 6” ComfortLast® Foam Core with Ultimate Edge® Support (Hard polyurethane not actually foam)

  4. Mattress Firm’s Stearns & Fosters April Rose Plush hybrid set $4,199 (will refund the difference)
    http://www.mattressfirm.com/Stearns_and_Foster_April_Rose_14_Luxury_Plush-P417.aspx

We also went by The Original Mattress Factory, but due to their limited selection and 25% exchange fee & no refunds we decided there were better options. Although, they did have high density foam and closely compared to the Tempur-pedics in construction for half the price. http://www.originalmattress.com/serenity/overview

We have found several online from Amazon to a few independents like Lucid, Sleep Innovations, Dynasty, Brentwood, Dream Foam, Ultimate Dreams, Pure Bliss, Night Therapy, Pure Crafted Beds, and several others. No specific order. Most of them have mainly great reviews, but most have not been owned more than 6 months or so, so it makes hard to gauge how long they may last. But for the price of most of these budget ones, it wouldn’t matter as long as they last 4-5 yrs. Plus with some of them charging return shipping fees for refunds, complaints on returns and issues w/ longevity we are not sure who to trust.

We do like Temp-flow/Relief Mart, but we live more than 4 hours from the closest retailer. They will ship directly, but want $149 to ship to us, we get a 120 day trial, but if we exchange any layers or return the mattress we have to pay another $149 before getting a refund. We were interested in their Harmonia Bio-Green and the idea that they haves holes in the memory foam to help with heat dispersion. They also use higher density foams in their mattresses which is listed on their site. The King Harmonia is $2,199, which already includes a $300 review coupon. http://tempflow.com/harmonia-mattress-model.htm

I know I gave you a lot of information and back story. I am open to any suggestions or advice. I have read through most of all that you have posted as links on the top of your website. I am not so sure we will be able to find a foam mattress that will allow me to sleep without all the heat, thus the reason we have even looked into pillow-top hybrids. Thank you for your time in even considering assisting in our selection. I will be fine as long as I don’t sweat through the night, lol.

Many Blessings,
Adam

2

Hi adamroberts,

You can see some comments in post #2 here about the two main strategies I would suggest when you are considering exchanging a mattress for another one at a store where there are no particularly good quality value options available to you or where you may not be able to find out the information you need to make an informed choice.

There is more about the many variables that can affect sleeping temperature in post #2 here and more about tracking down issues with sleeping temperature in post #2 here but there are some people that are more towards the “oven” end of the “oven to iceberg” range will tend to sleep warmer on any type of memory foam including most of the gel memory foams which tend to only have a temporary effect on the sleeping temperature of a mattress.

I would tend to avoid this as well in your circumstances because anything that you put on top of memory foam to help with temperature regulation (such as a more breathable polyfoam or latex topper or a natural fiber topper or mattress pad such as wool) to help it sleep cooler can also affect the ability of the memory foam to soften with body heat and can significantly change the feel and performance of the mattress.

You are fortunate to have this option and if I was in your shoes this is the option that I would choose because it would allow you to start over again and purchase a mattress that is much better quality/value than any of the mainstream mattresses that are available at Mattress Firm which as you probably know from your reading here I would generally tend to avoid completely (see the guidelines here).

Some further comments about the information you were given …

[quote]2. America’s Mattress I-Serta Profiles Prominence Super pillow-top hybrid set $2,699 (120 day trial, $99 fee for exchange/refund)
www.serta.com/buy-mattress/iseries/iseri...nce-super-pillow-top
Note, the salesperson did find out the thickness & densities in each layer for me
Prominence
• Thermo°Cool™ yarn Fabric Covers with TENCEL® fibers
• .75” Cool Action™ Dual Effects® Gel Memory Foam (5.5lb Density)
• .75” EverFeel™ Technology (4lbs Density)
• 1.5” Cool Action™ Dual Effects® Gel Memory Foam (5.5lbs Density)
• 1” Serta® PillowSoft™ Foam (4lbs Density)
• 1” Serta® Support Foam (5lbs Density)
• Duet® Coil Individually Wrapped Coil-in-Coil Support System[/quote]

These specs are completely incorrect and the “real” densities of the materials in their mattresses are lower than the specs they provided you. You can see some of the more typical specs for the materials that Serta uses in post #14 here that came from Serta. The specs for the pillow soft foam and the support foam that they provided are generally memory foam densities and they are both polyfoam layers so whoever provided you with this information has little knowledge of foam densities or they would have realized this as soon as they saw it. The support foam would be 1.3 lb density and the Pillowsoft foam is 1.2 lb density and the densities of the memory foam layers would be lower as well. On their own site here you can see that they list dual effects memory foam as 3.6 lbs (even lower than the specs I linked to).

I would make similar comments to the specs of the other Serta mattresses you listed and I believe you are getting completely inaccurate information.

I also wouldn’t consider any of the Stearns & Foster mattresses unless it was in a firm model which minimized the use of lower quality or “unknown” foams and added a topper on top and this would be a more risky choice than starting all over again.

The OMF memory foam mattresses use similar or higher quality materials compared to the Tempurpedic HD line (5 lb and 8 lb memory foam and a good quality polyfoam base layer) but of course like many smaller manufacturers they are much better value.

There is more about the most important parts of the value of a mattress purchase in post #13 here that can also help you make more meaningful comparisons between mattresses but knowing the quality of all the layers and materials in a mattress (see this article) is the most reliable and only way to identify any weak links in a mattress and it’s relative durability compared to other mattresses. Reviews will tell you little to nothing about the suitability of a mattress in terms of PPP or the durability of a mattress relative to other mattresses (see post #13 here). There is also more about the variables that can affect the durability and useful life of a mattress relative to each person in post #4 here.

IMO … you are fortunate that you have the chance for a refund and again, if I was in your shoes there is no doubt I would start all over again (with a sigh of relief that I wasn’t limited to mattresses that are sold at Mattress Firm) and follow the steps in the mattress shopping tutorial which has all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that you will need to make the best possible choice this time … and know how and why to avoid the worst ones.

Phoenix

3

Phoenix,

Thank you so much for your prompt response and going into detail about everything. My wife and I are both leaning towards just taking the refund and starting all over again. The person from America’s Mattress said those were the specs given to him by their Serta manufacturing rep. So I will toss those out. I will follow up with our adventures in finding the right mattress for us. Any details and specs I receive, I will post so it may help others likewise.

Many Blessings,
Adam

4

Hi adamroberts,

I’m looking forward to finding out what you end up deciding on your second time around and of course any comments or questions you may have along the way :slight_smile:

Phoenix

5

We are looking into Latex mattresses again. We are still both leaning towards possibly a Tempflow w/ Biogreen. Here is there link. If you click on the specific mattress, it will show how thick each layer is with the type & density of the foam. Thanks for anything you know can tell us about Tempflow.

Many Blessings,
Adam

6

Hi adamroberts,

You can see my comments about the Tempflow mattresses in post #9 here and a forum search on Tempflow (you can just click the link) will also bring up more comments and feedback about them as well.

They use high quality materials in all their mattresses and there are no “weak links” in any of them so if any of their mattresses are a good match for you in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) and compare well with the other mattresses you are considering based on the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you then they would certainly be well worth considering.

Phoenix

7

Phoenix,

Could you recommend any local places to go try out good quality/value mattresses in the Atlanta/Greater Atlanta area and within a 2-3 hr driving range?

A question about Tempflow. Is it reasonable for us to pay $149 each way if we are for some reason not happy with the Tempflow? That could be $300 if we are unhappy with the choice we made. We don’t mind the shipping costs to us, as much as the return shipping to obtain refund if needed. There is only one retailer close to us and they are 3 hrs away, and only have the Tempflow Selene in stock for trying out. http://tempflow.com/mattress-recommendation-chart.htm

I also found a company out of California called Plush beds, which has an 100 day in home trial with no shipping fees or return fees. I spoke with John from Plush beds and he was able to answer any and all I questions In had about there Botanical Bliss , 100% natural organic, Green-Guard certified mattress. They allow you to pick the ILD rating you desire in your latex mattress.
Here’s that link. http://www.plushbeds.com/Botanical-Bliss-Organic-Latex-Mattress10-comparison.html?size=kng#tabcontainer

They also post on their website the densities in their memory foam mattresses. Just click on learn more.

If you have any other posts and/or recommendations that would be comparable or better than those listed above would be greatly appreciated. I know the PPP is relative to us and our preference, but if you know of higher quality mattresses at a better price point we would be grateful for the recommendations.

Also, what could we do that would be beneficial to you and/or your site, since you do not charge anyone for your time and expertise in running this blog/site? We would like to show our appreciation for all that you do here.

Many Blessings,
Adam

8

Hi adamroberts777,

The better options or possibilities I’m aware of in the Atlanta area (subject to the guidelines here) are listed in post #2 here.

There is nothing in the Macon or Athens areas that I’m aware of that would justify a trip there compared to what is available to you in Atlanta.

The Birmingham list is in post #57 here and if you do decide to go there the first place I would suggest visiting is Royal Bedding which is a factory direct manufacturer that I think very highly of.

[quote]Also, with Tempflow is it reasonable for us to pay $149 both ways if we are for some reason not happy with the Tempflow? As there is only one retailer 3 hrs away, and they only have the Tempflow Selene in stock for trying out.
tempflow.com/mattress-recommendation-chart.htm[/quote]

The options you have after a purchase should you need to exchange or return a mattress are just one part of what I call your personal value equation that may be important to you so it would depend on how one of their mattresses compared to the other mattresses you are considering based on all your other criteria as well. If your testing indicated that the mattress was a good match for you and there was little risk that you would need to return it then it would be a much less significant issue than if you weren’t confident that a mattress would be a suitable choice and the risk of returning it was higher. Some manufacturers have separate costs for returning a mattress and with others it’s built in to the initial cost of the mattress so it’s an “invisible” cost.

There is more about the most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase in post #13 here that can help you make more meaningful comparisons between mattresses based on all the criteria that are important to you.

Phoenix