Using a cover to firm up a DIY build

Mattress Talk Additional Components & Accessories
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hey all

been a journey here thus far, appreciate all who have helped

all 3" - 34ild dunlop - 28 blended tal - 24ild blended tal

currently just have sheets over it

its damn near perfect, but a touch soft, my 24ild came in around 22ild, so really more of a firmer 20ild, bad draw i suppose. i believe if i had gotten closer to 25ild, i wouldnt be in this situation

210lb 5’10" causing my pelvis to sink and lower back pain. i’ve switch the 28 to be the top layer, it’s helped a bunch, but not out of the woods yet

do you think the Bamboo - Wool Zippered Mattress Cover from APM will offer a touch of support that might push it just over the edge of firmness. maybe not even supportive/firm, more so restrict the depth to which the pelvis can sink? the firmness of the mattress is just right for all other aspects, just need to reduce the sinking

i dont believe the cover is returnable so i’m trying not to be out $300 on just a cover when i could potentially grab a twin xl of something firmer, split my layers, and work on a different configuration

the goal however was always to get a cover at the end of the journey anyway, and so my options are to get the latex correct, and use a SOL-style stretch cover that doesnt interfere much with the layers

or get it soft enough that a quilted cover will firm it up right into the range i wanted it. my fear of the APM cover was always that if i nailed the firmness of the latex, that it would make it feel firmer, so i always erred on the softer side

thoughts?

my only other thought was to cut my 24 and 28 in half, and stack the 24’s on one side and the 28s on mine, that should get me firmer too

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Keep in mind that adding a cover will firm up everywhere not just one specific area so I don’t think I would rely on that to fix your exact issue here. You mention that your pelvis is sinking down causing lower back pain but I suspect what’s really happening is that you’re sinking into the mattress but your torso/lower back aren’t being supported enough (possibly also your rear is bottoming out on the lower dunlop layer) causing your pelvis to roll. In response the lower back muscles try to hold the pelvis in position all night and end up sore from the strain (very common problem to have). Ideally you would have a stiffer section in the middle layer right in the torso area (armpit to waist) then the rest would likely work but it may take some experimenting with different ILDs to get it just right. At 210 lbs and a BMI over 30 you might also benefit from adding another layer (3 vs 4) to allow more travel in the bum area but again that’s something you’ll have to decide as you work through the DIY design process.

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yeah, its certainly possible, i’m a hybrid back and side sleeper, i feel the most discomfort when i’m on my back more-so than on my side. i feel like the nights i wake up without pain are the nights i spend more time on my side

i’ve tried zoning on another mattress, but because i tend to move, targeting the zoning for side sleeping doesnt work for me with back sleeping. i end up over arched, my torso sinks, middle back doesnt, and now i’m arching/bending to far backwards. that was more pain than what i’m now experiencing

i can just cut my 24 and 28 in half, and just double 24 for sleeper2, and double 28 for me, that should firm things up a bit

if that doesnt work, i may grab a 32 blended tal in twin xl and experiment with 24/28 top layer

i’m more curious the wool cover affect will have. in an ideal world, i’d love that topper. we’ve switched everything over to wool and we LOVE it

however, i dont want to nail the layers without the cover, then get the cover, only to realize it messed everything up

so i guess i’m more or so now trying to find out what affect the cover will have on the overall support/sinking/firmness of the mattress