What would a good base foam for a 3" Talalay topper.
I’m thinking a 6" piece of a good poly base foam and then a nice soft talalay topper.
What would be a good density and ILD for the poly foam?
Hi jege41,
There are a lot of factors besides just ILD that go into choosing the most suitable base foam. Probably the most important of these is its compression modulus (AKA support factor). It also depends to some degree on how the ILD is achieved and on the thickness of the layer along with your own body type, sleeping positions, and personal preferences. It will also interact with the latex so the 'best" choice can depend on the type and ILD of the latex you are using. For example softer latex may require a softer base foam with a higher compression modulus so that the transition between the two isn’t as sudden.
Having said all that … a good “average” choice would be conventional polyfoam with a polymer (unfilled) density in the range of 2.0 lbs and an IFD (more commonly used with polyfoam than ILD) in the range of 32 or so. Higher in some types of construction or with higher weights and possibly lower for lighter weights (again depending on the other layers and the person using the mattress). Once you are at about 2.0 lbs or so polymer density then the durability benefits of increased density in a polyfoam can diminish. Many higher density conventional foams achieve a higher density and a higher compression modulus with filler which can lower the durability of the foam in some cases.
It would also be very important to make sure you use a good quality cover if you are using latex in a mattress because latex can degrade more quickly with exposure to air and light if you use a thinner cover.
It may also be worth considering a mattress like the Ultimate Dreams because you can choose the firmness of the 3" Talalay layer, it has good quality 2.35 lb polyfoam, and it has a good quality quilted cover as well and it may end up costing you less than buying the materials separately. The only “down” side to this is that it doesn’t have a zip cover which allows for the replacement of layers which would be possible if you were building a DIY with a zip cover and they don’t have returns.
Phoenix