We need your help on Mattress selection advice

Hello Everyone

We need your help on Mattress selection advice, we are side sleepers M 270lb and F 160lb we have been sleeping on the cheaper style memory foam beds, the Sleep Innovations for the last 6 years.

The first mattress worked out ok but not great for 4 years with only some aches and pains in morning. So I decide to buy another. Although the first one lasted 4 years the second one lasted 1 ½ years and now sags 2-4 inches around my hip area. We both have lower back problems and now some upper back issues.

We need a Mattress that will be soft for my wife she like cloud supreme type of feel, but be supportive of my weight for me, I do like a soft mattress but don’t like to sink into a mattress too much.

We need Suggestions On what type of mattress to look for all latex, latex foam mix, all memory foam, what density and what amount of them.

Thanks for your advice in advance

Hi Bum Back,

My personal thoughts are that it is probably more effective to first research outlets rather than trying to “design” or even think about the type of mattress that may work best for you.

There’s lots of information in the mattresses section about the different materials that can be used in the comfort and support layers and different ways to put them all together but each person may have different preferences and the different qualities of each material may be more or less important for each person. It’s important though that no matter what type of material you end up choosing that you know the difference between good and low quality. I would read the overviews first and this will help you to ask better questions when you find the types of outlets that have the knowledge and experience to help you make your best choices and also help make more sense of their advice.

There are some guidelines here that can help you avoid most of the worst choices when you are mattress shopping. The better outlets are factory direct manufacturers and sleep shops that carry independent or local brands. These will generally be much more knowledgeable about different materials and open about what is in their mattresses and will usually have a range of different types of mattresses with good quality and value (relative to budget) throughout their entire line so you can test each material and see how you feel about each one. This way you can focus more on which mattress provides the PPP (Pressure relief, Posture and alignment, and Preferences) you prefer and know that anything you choose there will have good value. If you find two or three of these types of outlets in your area, then this is all you need to make a great choice no matter what type of mattress you prefer and you can focus on testing mattresses with the help of someone who already knows what you would otherwise have to learn (and learning enough to design your own mattress by specs can take a very long time because there are so many variables involved both in the mattress materials and layering and in the different needs and preferences of different people)

There are so many versions of each material (for example there are hundreds of different types of memory foam alone) that it becomes too complex to make suggestions because just suggesting “memory foam” doesn’t take into account which type or the layering and combinations that are possible and all of this can make what seems to be similar mattresses very different. The same holds true for latex, polyfoam, innersprings and most mattress materials. Without first knowing the type of materials you tend to prefer and without a reference point of mattresses with known constructions you have already tried and liked … theory at a distance will do more to confuse and can lead you down a path of frustration more than it will help.

If you let me know the city or zip you live in I’d be happy to let you know of any better manufacturers or outlets that I know of in your area.

Step 1 … first find the better outlets (not the better mattresses).
Step 2 … start the process of testing different materials and how you like each one and then testing different mattresses with these materials to find the kind of layering and combinations that best suit your needs and preferences.

The people you find with knowledge and integrity in step one will be your “best friend” and guide with step 2 and help you make the best possible choices. If they are experts already … then you don’t need to be :slight_smile:

Hope this helps

Phoenix

Phoenix My zip code is 11733 could you supply Manufactures and outlets in my area

Thanks
Bum Back

Hi bum back,

The closest factory direct manufacturers to you are in NYC. You may already know this but you are also not in an area that has a great selection of mattress stores. Some of the better outlets that are in reasonable driving distance are in post #2 here. There are more complete descriptions of many of them in post #7 here.

Some of these are fairly far away or make some very high quality mattresses but may be in a higher budget range than you are looking for. Because you didn’t mention a budget and don’t yet know the materials you may prefer … any of the ones that attract you based on their website information and that may be close enough to justify a drive would be worth a phone call.

If NYC is a reasonable drive for you … I would tend focus on the NYC list which are likely to have better quality value choices than the options I’ve listed later in this reply

Closer to your neighborhood you would need to “interview” the local outlets to get a sense of how knowledgeable they are about the materials in their mattresses along the lines of this article.

If you are OK with doing this (and sometimes feeling like you may be pulling teeth when many of them may not know or not want to tell you the answers you need to these types of questions) … then these are the stores that may be worth some research. I’ve included some of the brands they carry that may have some better value models in their line but they would need to give you a layer description of the mattresses for you to be able to know the quality (and many outlets can’t or won’t do this). High quality materials like latex, higher density memory foam, or higher density polyfoam is important for durability with higher weights especially (as you have seen).

If nothing else these outlets would give you a good place to test various materials or types of mattresses to see which you preferred even if you don’t end up purchasing there.

http://www.onestopsleepshop.com/ Coram, NY. Eclipse, Therapedic, Eastman House, Gold Bond, Pure Touch Latex (Therapedic).

http://www.mybobs.com/naturally_bobs_latex Nesconset, NY and other locations. The only mattress I would consider here is the Naturally bob’s and I would want to know the details of the materials (the type of latex and the density of the base foam). See post #4 here before you consider these.

http://www.shirleysleepshoppe.com/ Shirley, NY. They have no listing of what they carry but their site indicates they carry Gold Bond. Some of the King Koil heavy duty mattresses also use very good quality foams. I would call them first to see what mattresses they carry before considering a visit.

Bayshore Furniture & Mattress - (NY) Bay Shore, Bohemia, NY. Therapedic, Eclipse, Eastman house, Gold Bond

Products - IKEA Hicksville, NY. The Sultan Edsele is worth considering here because is is “mostly natural” latex and while it may be quite firm … it would be a good base for a softer topper.

http://www.sleepworksny.com/ Massapequa Park, NY. Pure Latex Bliss, Ecosense, Therapedic, Natura, Gold Bond. Pure latex bliss in particular makes some very nice Talalay latex mattresses although they are often in a higher price range than most factory direct outlets.

http://www.plazafurnitureny.com/ Massapequa Park, NY. Carries Savvy Rest component latex mattresses which use high quality materials and can be customized in different ways but are also in a more premium price range than some other similar mattresses.

http://www.furnitureexprezz.com/ Ronkonkoma, NY. US Sleep, Quality foam (long island manufacturer of innerspring/poly promotional mattresses), Enso, Coaster. Talked with Jacob and he is knowledgeable and helpful. Mostly memory foam mattresses. Check foam densities carefully to make you aren’t purchasing low quality memory foam (particularly with Enso).

Bliss Sleep Center .com Domain Name Is For Sale Water Mill, NY. Carries some high quality mattresses made by Savvy Rest, White Lotus, Royal-Pedic, and Natura which are all high quality mattresses but are also in more premium price ranges so I would make some careful value comparisons here.

Hope this helps and if you have questions along the way feel free to ask :slight_smile:

Phoenix