new mattress

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E_SolSi

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so this has been in the works for a while now
my previous mattress was a Sleep Innovations bed in a box type memory foam that I got from Costco about 9 years ago
it was cheap, I want to say <$400, it served me well for a few years, then started to compress and get pretty significant body divots even with regular rotation of the mattress, it would likely have been fine as a spare/guest room mattress that wasn't going to be used everyday. either way I was pleased with it for the most part

when looking for a new mattress I considered higher end memory foam, adjustable air beds, conventional spring mattresses, latex, etc.

I ended up deciding to go with a latex mattress after more time and research than I care to admit to
this then brought me to the dilemma of WHICH latex mattress
this process gets more overwhelming the further in to it you look
natural vs synthetic vs blended latex
dunlop vs talalay
firmness level
swap-able / re-configurable layers
:spin:

so fast forward damn near a year
finally decided what mattress and configuration I was going to go with
I selected the Sleep EZ, Select Sleep 13" model (could have went with the 10" and saved some $$ with no real loss in comfort, but aesthetically I prefer the look of a thicker mattress)
their evaluation period, return policy, and warranty were good and seemed to be competitive with everything else I was seeing available.
they got good reviews on the forums I found
https://www.sleepez.com/natural-latex-mattress.html?model=13000

used their configuration tool and ended up with:
medium talalay
medium dunlop
firm dunlop
x-firm dunlop

ordered it on a Monday evening, got a call almost immediately after placing the order to go over the order details and confirm everything. great customer service :thumbup:
it shipped 2 days later on Thursday and arrived the following Thursday (today :) )

it came in 4 large boxes weighing between 48 and 65 lbs (FYI - latex mattresses are heavy AF)
the boxes were all labeled with the contents and firmness level inside
this made getting the bed together pretty easy
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first box contained the mattress cover and the base x-firm layer
inside was a vacuum packed roll (similar but smaller than the way my old memory foam came)
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there was a thick plastic double layer, when that was opened there was another bag like a giant garbage bag
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when that was removed I found the base layer already inside the mattress cover
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mine was not listed as having the organic cotton cover, bonus :D
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unzipping the cover found the x-firm base layer
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got the next 2 layers out and installed
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then came the top layer of medium density talalay
this layer was packed smaller and was lighter weight than the other layers
(talalay is less dense than dunlop)
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this was listed as a blended talalay, got 100% natural, bonus :D
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noticed the talalay layer had way more holes than the dunlop layers
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zipped the cover shut
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finished product
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not quite 13"
I'm ok with this
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bonus stuff that came with the mattress:
2 queen size latex pillows
they ship both shredded latex and solid latex
both of these were shredded latex (asked for both shredded if possible when ordering)
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the pillows can be adjusted by removing filler
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also came with a set of 300tc sheets
(I have better sheets already so these will likely be spares or given away)
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everything together
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so after getting everything together I laid on the mattress for a while
initial impression was great
the latex is very different from memory foam
the response is instant, unlike memory foam that has a slow sink to it, so when you lay down or roll over it immediately reacts and adjusts, it also doesn't feel like you are rolling up and out of a hole when you change position
its also bouncier than memory foam, it has a nice springiness to it almost like a conventional mattress but it still conforms perfectly around you whether you are on your side, back, or stomach
seems to be the perfect blend with all of the positive aspects of both of those types
I found the comfort and support to both be awesome, will be able to tell more after sleeping on it for a few nights
so far it is pretty awesome

looking forward to going to sleep tonight :D
 

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so to continue this...

because I was curios as to how and why the old mattress had failed, and because I didn't really want to move it in one piece, and because I have a couple razor sharp machetes...
I decided to cut up the old mattress, you know, for science
after cutting the mattress in to 16ths, I could clearly see areas that had compressed significantly
so I broke out the trusty tape measure and the results surprised me a bit
the old mattress was 11" thick, this was made up of 3" of memory foam and 8" of support foam
for the most part the memory foam held up reasonably well, the most compression I saw was about 1/4 inch, most was less than that, if compressed at all
the support foam on the other hand was clearly the weak point in this mattress with several areas showing compression of 1/2 - 3/4 inch

the-more-you-know.jpg
 
There is nothing like a great mattress...one of the best purchases you can make

We have a very high end Sterns and Foster bed we bought like 5 years ago or so and spent a small fortune on......but to this day it has been one of the best purchases i have ever made in my life.
 
Would it be wrong of me to ask about how much you paid for your new mattress? I've been thinking about some different things and I'm wondering if one of those memory foam tops ( 3" or 4") is worth the buy and would last me a few years.... or even make a real difference.
 
Seems like a nice mattress. Is there a place to try them out before you buy?

I would rather buy an older used car off the lot than mattress shop.
 
Would it be wrong of me to ask about how much you paid for your new mattress? I've been thinking about some different things and I'm wondering if one of those memory foam tops ( 3" or 4") is worth the buy and would last me a few years.... or even make a real difference.
click the link, prices are there
 
my tempurpedic is shitty now too. it's basically concave.
 
We have a Tempur-Pedic King. Can't remember the type but it was the most expensive without the tilt so....damn. My wife's "blind taste test ability" ALWAYS picks the expensive crap. 0% interest yada-yada. Had it almost 4 years. Still paying $100/month for it :blink:

I still can't sleep more than 7-8hrs before my back tells me "Good Morning". But....I've had the least amount of back problems since our purchase. I used to spend 5-10 days a year laying on the floor and I made my wife rub my back every morning (for years) because I was in pain. I've been floor free since the purchase and only rubs I want are for sport injuries. So I'm only slightly bitter and my wife gets to be right. Cost was $5300 but we hope to keep it for a few more decades.
 
I've never seen a preamble, story, purchase, and short term review this lengthy for a car, let alone a mattress.

I've needed a new mattress for 5 years, thanks for this.
 
7.8/10 mattress build thread would read again.

I have a mattress made in part with bamboo so it's hypoallergenic which is good for me because my allergies can be miserable.
 
very cool! thanks for sharing. i bet within 3 or 4 days that you get that extra 1/2 inch. not often in life you can say that :)

also once a year in the summer we put our mattress in the sun to "bake out", even though we have a vinyl mattress cover its a just in case measure. same with our pillows but every few weeks. they last alot longer and get super fluffy after sitting out in the sun.
 
Would it be wrong of me to ask about how much you paid for your new mattress? I've been thinking about some different things and I'm wondering if one of those memory foam tops ( 3" or 4") is worth the buy and would last me a few years.... or even make a real difference.

as B said, the prices are in the link
the total for mine was $1850, shipped, no tax, no surprises

Seems like a nice mattress. Is there a place to try them out before you buy?

I would rather buy an older used car off the lot than mattress shop.
this place has a store front in Tempe AZ, lol
semi local for you, Bedding Barn sells some latex mattresses, they are ridiculously expensive, and they are not very forthcoming with what the inside of their mattresses are composed of (layers, thickness, ILD, etc) but you can go there to get an idea of how a latex mattress feels, then go online and look in to getting one
2 other places I was strongly considering were:
Arizona Premium Mattress
Spindle Mattress
 
significant body divots
Did anybody else snicker a little bit reading this or am I the only perv/psycho?

When I bought the new house, I went and got a Stearns and Foster. I got it without the box spring and had an extra coupon for 10% off or something. It's been an amazing bed. I need to get some good daylight pictures of the bedroom, all I have are night time pictures. :ph34r:
upload_2016-9-23_7-1-17.png
 
p.s. The bed industry is a fucking racket. The different names, labels, brands, etc. The discounts, warehouses, gimmick materials, etc.Random pricing, sales, delivery only, BAH.

Oh, and i'll never, ever, ever buy a tempurpedic. My body already runs hot and they literally make me sweat every time I sleep on them. AND they are so soft they fuck up my back.

/rant on rant on rant
 
Nice write up my friend.

I have an old hand me down mattress from years ago. Wife's family friend worked at a mattress company so she could get super high end mattresses for nothing for years. It's one of those but has some miles on it now. While I dig it, we're due for a new one. We'll upgrade when we buy a place to king size then and probably end up in something similar
 
night one:
took a little while to fall asleep, I'll chalk that up to getting use to the new bed and pillows
the pillows are really nice, because of the way the fill is you can kind of mold them to the way you want like with a feather/down pillow. I generally have my arm under the pillow with my head over it, so it was nice to be able to thin out that area, so far way more comfortable than the fiber fill pillows I've been running for years
the mattress was great, it felt comfortable and supportive, also slept cooler than the memory foam
woke up stupid early for no apparent reason, but I felt well rested and refreshed, that does not happen very often
also didn't have any of the achyness I've been getting lately (most likely caused by the old mattress that was shot)
so far I am very pleased
 
p.s. The bed industry is a fucking racket. The different names, labels, brands, etc. The discounts, warehouses, gimmick materials, etc.Random pricing, sales, delivery only, BAH.

Oh, and i'll never, ever, ever buy a tempurpedic. My body already runs hot and they literally make me sweat every time I sleep on them. AND they are so soft they fuck up my back.

/rant on rant on rant
agree eleventy-five-bajillion percent on both points.
I tried out tempurpedic back when I was looking for my last bed and found them to be way too soft. they have since come out with different firmness levels so this may not be as big a deal now. I also never really saw them as worth the price premium vs their competitors. they don't seem to last any longer, and I found many of the competitors to be more comfortable. never spent enough time on one to comment on the sleeping temp, but I have heard most people say they sleep really warm. my thought then was if I can get a bed that is just as or more comfortable for a third of the price, even if it needed to be replaced twice as often, I was still on the plus side of the equation.

one of the things I actually liked a lot when I finally started looking at the latex beds was that it was pretty easy to figure out who is who and what is what. there are only a dozen or so manufacturers of latex in the world (2 or 3 for Talalay and maybe 10 for Dunlop), and they are usually molded with a stamp of who made them, a lot of the mattress companies are proud of whose stuff they use and will flat out tell you, and the latex manufacturers are often pretty straight forward with their specs (ILD rating, composition, etc) if you go to their sites (if not it is usually pretty easy to find on forums), so then it just comes down to the mattress shell and marketing that whoever is selling the mattress puts in to it.
the difference between a $1500 mattress and a $4000 mattress is often little more than a different grade of wool in the top padding and a different material for the cover, sometimes it's not even that.
there are companies that will allow you to buy all of the components individually and put together your own custom mattress if you want.
and several others that will sell you a finished product that can be configured and customized to your liking.
and others that have a non configurable finished product if you want to just make a purchase and not be bothered with putting it together or "tuning" it.
 
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cool. as long as you're happy.

I bought a new matress last year.
memory foam something or other from Amazon.
had the best reviews so i went with it.
$500 shipped to my door
unboxed it, cut open the vac sealed bag, and let it unroll itself
havent had any issues since.

i'm not very picky.
 
1 week follow up:
this mattress is great! it took me 4 or 5 nights nights to get used to the new mattress and pillow. now I am sleeping better than I have in years. I'm falling asleep faster, and waking up feeling rested and refreshed (I forgot what that was like), no aches when waking up, bed is super comfortable, the configuration tool absolutely nailed it on the recommendation
I should have done this a while ago
:thumbup: :thumbup:

the only issue, and it is really minor for me (but may be a bigger issue for others) is the pillows have a slight rubbery smell. only really notice it after messing with the pillow, goes away for the most part pretty quickly. it seems to be less and less as time goes by, so either its getting it all out or I'm just getting desensitized to it :shrug2:
didn't really notice any smell to the mattress when setting it up, and still don't, but it is something to keep in mind for people who are super sensitive to smells and such
 
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