Phoenix,
Thank you for the response!
So I went ahead and purchased a T&N Queen 10 inch mattress and have slept on it for 4 nights now. I know itās still early but both my wife and I have not had the best experience thus far. We have the mattress set up on slats and are coming from a 5 inch Ikea foam mattress that we have slept reasonably on for the past couple of years.
Right from the get go, using the palm of my hand to compress both mattresses, itās very apparent that T&Nās is softer (maybe because itās thicker.) My wife is pregnant and is thus side sleeper and the past 4 nights for her have been very difficult as she complains of hip soreness. As for myself, I am normally a stomach sleeper (half military crawl) but in the last 4 days I find myself tossing and turning because of the heat in this position and end up on my back and wake up with lower back soreness. We have even tried to crank up the AC to counter this but to no avail.
I really like what T&N stands for and really want to like their product. We will of course give the mattress a longer trial as part of it just might be getting used to a new mattress. However tonight I will switch back to our Ikea foam mattress and see if my wifeās hip soreness goes away.
@Phoenix I was wondering if you could suggest some mattresses that offers more firmness than the T&N that I can start doing some research on them while we continue to test out the T&N. Part of me wonders if the T&N would work out just fine if they still made a 5in mattress.
Hi ckimchi,
Itās certainly not surprising that the Tuft & Needle would be softer than a 5" Ikea foam mattress and the properties of the top layer of foam would be more contouring as well. For most people the Tuft & Needle would be more towards the firmer end of the firmness scale and there are probably more people who would find it too firm than too soft but of course this is always very subjective and individual to each person.
I would keep in mind that there will be a break in and adjustment period with any new mattress as well so your experience will also change over the course of the first few weeks as the mattress breaks in and your body gets used to a sleeping surface that is very different from what itās used to (see post #3 here).
Most people donāt seem to have temperature issues on the Tuft & Needle but there are a few that have mentioned that they sleep warm. In your case itās possible that it could be connected to sleeping on a softer mattress that you are sinking in more than you are used to which which would be more insulating than a firmer mattress. There are many other possible reasons as well and while itās not always possible to to track down temperature regulation issues for any particular person on a specific mattress because there are so many variables involved (including your room temperature and humidity, your sheets and bedding and bedclothes, your mattress protector or any mattress pads you are using, and where you are in the āoven to icebergā range) and some people can sleep warmer on mattresses that most people are generally fine with ā¦ there is more about tracking down a potential cause or causes for temperature regulation issues (at least to the degree possible for a specific mattress) in post #2 here and the posts it links to that may be helpful.
There are also no āstandardā definitions or consensus of opinions for firmness ratings and different manufacturers can rate their mattresses very differently than others so a mattress that one manufacturer rates as being a specific firmness could be rated very differently by another manufacturer. Different people can also have very different perceptions of firmness and softness compared to others as well and a mattress that feels firm for one person can feel like āmediumā for someone else or even āsoftā for someone else (or vice versa) depending on their body type, sleeping style, physiology, their frame of reference based on what they are used to, and their individual sensitivity and perceptions. There are also different types of firmness and softness that different people may be sensitive to that can affect how they ārateā a mattress as well (see post #15 here) so different people can also have very different opinions on how two mattresses compare in terms of firmness and some people may rate one mattress as being firmer than another and someone else may rate them the other way around. This is all relative and very subjective and is as much an art as a science.
While the only way to know for certain how firm a mattress will feel for you is based on your own personal experience ā¦ when you canāt test a mattress in person then the most reliable source of guidance is always a more detailed phone conversation with a knowledgeable and experienced retailer or manufacturer that has your best interests at heart and who can help ātalk you throughā the specifics of their mattresses and the properties and āfeelā of the materials they are using (fast or slow response, resilience, firmness etc) and the options they have available that may be the best āmatchā 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 āaveragesā of other customers that are similar to you. They will know more about āmatchingā their specific mattress designs to different body types, sleeping positions, and preferences (or to other mattresses that they are familiar with) than anyone else.
Phoenix
Just wanted to say thanks for the great info here about the various foam technologies! It has been some great reading in anticipation of purchasing a new mattress!
Hi oneshot431,
Welcome ā¦ and Iām glad the site and forum could help you 
Iām looking forward to finding out what you end up deciding ā¦ and of course any other comments or questions you may have along the way.
Phoenix
Thanks for all the insight. Really helps when making the decision.
Hi Mroz,
Iām glad that the site could help you as well
Phoenix