Hi I bought natural 12" organic latex mattress from obasan but at home for side sleeping it feels much more pressureful than in the store and enough to throw off my shoulders and hips, I’m not sure if this can be from not having a platform frame but rather a frame by renelle now called Yale town which seems to squish just the very bottom layer of the latex a little. My main concern now is to buy a good topper but i dont know if ill lose support a lot and now that I bought a natural bed seems nonsensical to buy a memory foam topper and im not sure if the latex would breathe, at the same time I don’t see how adding any more layers of latex to this tall latex bed is going to soften anything when latex in itself is quite resilient and I’m quite light so I don’t get the pressure relief I need. I was advised by the sales person to get one with an inch of latex and some wool by sleep tech and and then I read a review that sleepteks 3000 topper has no support and that was a waste of money. I’m also debating wool toppers ,the sales person said that that itself is no good because it will condense down Plus I’m not sure if it would give support because my latex beddoes give good support for back sleeping but I like to turn to my side and a few hours on my side is enough to wake up very tense. Any advice for toppers or advice Against some is great thank you
Hi debating,
While I don’t know the specifics of your platform bed … it’s very unlikely that it would affect the feel or firmness of your mattress and it’s much more likely that the upper layers of your mattress are firmer than you need or prefer.
If the only issue with a mattress is that it is too firm and there are no soft spots or sagging in the mattress then a good quality topper can certainly be an effective way to add some additional softness, “comfort” and pressure relief to your sleeping system but the only way to know for certain whether a specific mattress/topper(s) combination is a good “match” for you in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your own Personal preferences) is based on your own careful testing or personal experience on the combination. If you can’t test the combination in person then there will always be always some risk and uncertainty involved in adding a topper because the specifics of the mattress itself along with your own body type, sleeping position, and preferences can affect which specific topper would be a suitable choice on any specific mattress.
There is more information about choosing a topper in post #2 here and the topper guidelines it links to which along with a conversation with a reliable and knowledgeable supplier (that can provide you with good information about how their toppers compare to each other or to other toppers they are familiar with that are available on the market) can help you use your sleeping experience as a reference point and guideline to help you choose the type, thickness, and firmness for a topper that has the least possible risk and the best chance for success. It also includes a link to a list of some of the better online sources for toppers I’m aware of.
A good exchange/return policy can reduce the risk of an online topper purchase so if you aren’t certain whether a topper will work well for you I would always make sure you are comfortable with the options you have available after a purchase just in case the topper you choose doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for because the the only way to know for certain whether a mattress/topper combination will be a good “match” for you will be based on your own careful testing on the combination or your own personal experience when you sleep on it.
Latex and memory foam are completely different materials with very different properties and the choice between them would be more of a preference and budget choice than a “better/worse” choice. There is more about the general differences between memory foam and latex in post #2 here that can help you decide between them but again the best way to know which type of topper material you tend to prefer will be based on your own careful testing or your own personal experience.
“Support” is often misunderstood because the goal of a “supportive” mattress is to keep the spine and joints in good alignment and this requires the type of contouring support that allows some parts of the body to sink in more (softer) and some parts of the body to sink in less (firmer) and this will vary on an individual basis. There is more about primary or “deep” support and secondary or “surface” support and their relationship to firmness and pressure relief and the “roles” of different layers in a mattress in post #2 here and in post #4 here that may also be helpful in clarifying the difference between “support/alignment” and “comfort/pressure relief” and “feel” and how they interact together.
There is more information about wool toppers in post #8 here and the posts it links to but in very general terms … wool toppers will tend to be firmer than softer foam toppers.
Phoenix
Thank you. When you say that one which foam do you mean? latex included? polyurethane foam? or just memory foam? Would a latex bad breathe under the artificial foams? So far I tried my old topper (Polyurethane foam,1.5" eggcrate) yet I still have some pressure so what would be a softer option at this point without compromising support?also at the same time I think I prefer back sleeping without the topper so I’m frayed to go to soft with more density foam,so I’m not sure if memory foam toppers the best bet for both sleeping positions.
Hi debating,
I’m not clear what you are asking … could you clarify your question.
The upper layers and components in a mattress will have a bigger effect on breathability and temperature regulation than the deeper layers in a mattress but latex in general is more breathable than polyfoam which in turn is more breathable than memory foam.
While it’s not possible to quantify the sleeping temperature of a mattress for any particular person with any real accuracy because there are so many variables involved including the type of mattress protector and the sheets and bedding that you use (which in many cases can have just as significant an effect on sleeping temperature as the type of foam in a mattress) and on where you are in the “oven to iceberg” range and because there is no standardized testing for temperature regulation with different combinations of materials … there is more about the many variables that can affect the sleeping temperature of a mattress or sleeping system in post #2 here that can help you choose the types of materials and components that are most likely to keep you in a comfortable temperature range.
I don’t know the specifics of the topper you purchased so I can’t make any meaningful comments about it or how soft it was relative to other toppers but if a 1.5" topper was still too firm for you then it’s probable that you were feeling too much of the firmness of the mattress underneath it and you may need a topper that was either thicker or a topper that isn’t convoluted so that it can isolate you more from the firmness of the mattress underneath it (you can use the topper guidelines I linked in my last reply as a very rough guideline for thickness).
Assuming that the quality/density of the topper is suitable for your weight range … the type of foam (memory foam, polyfoam, latex foam) would be a preference and budget choice rather than a “better/worse” choice. Your own testing on different types of foam materials is the most reliable way to know which type of material you tend to prefer.
Phoenix
Thanks, i meant what kind of foam do you mean is softer than wool? Would latex and wool or just 3" of wool bive better pressure relief without compromising support?and if 1.5" polyurothane foam isnt enough pressure relief then would 3" of wool or latex+wool be even less pressurerelieving?
Hi debating,
Any type of foam (polyfoam, memory foam, latex foam) comes in a wide range of firmness levels and can be either softer or firmer than wool depending on the specifics of the material and on the specifics of the wool topper you are comparing it to. There is more about wool toppers in post #8 here and the posts it links to.
Every layer and component in a mattress or “sleeping system” will affect the feel and performance of every other layer and component above and below it and the mattress “as a whole” so the only way to know for certain whether any combination of materials or components will be a good “match” for you in terms of “comfort”, firmness, and PPP will be based on your own careful testing or your own personal experience.
The actual firmness of a particular layer or component is only one of several specs that makes one material feel softer or firmer or more or less pressure relieving than another (see post #4 here) but in very general terms thicker layers of the same material in the same firmness level will feel softer than a thinner layer of the same material and will isolate you more from the firmness of the layers underneath it. There is more about the effect of thickness in post #14 here.
“Support” is often misunderstood because the goal of a “supportive” mattress is to keep the spine and joints in good alignment and this requires the type of contouring support that allows some parts of the body to sink in more (softer) and some parts of the body to sink in less (firmer) and this will vary on an individual basis. There is more about primary or “deep” support and secondary or “surface” support and their relationship to firmness and pressure relief and the “roles” of different layers in a mattress in post #2 here and in post #4 here that may also be helpful in clarifying the difference between “support/alignment” and “comfort/pressure relief” and “feel” and how they interact together.
Phoenix