I know that dunlop and talalay are two different processes for producing
latex mattresses (and other latex products). My question involves firmness.
I've read that talalay feels airier and not quite as supportive as dunlop. My
specific question is if you have two different mattresses, one made from the
dunlop process and the other from the talalay process and they are both the same ILD,
does dunlop feel or present as more supportive than talalay? I hope I'm making sense.

Thank you,

Jay

Jay you have my answer in the other thread.

They say Dunlop feels firmer because it is denser than Talalay due to the manufacturing process. I will repeat the analogy that I just posted in the other thread here, as it seems to be a good one. Dunlop is like pound cake and Talalay is like angel food cake. Probably as good at analogy is I can think of.

From squeezing the samples that I have received (a rather poor way to test a mattress don't you think?) the Dunlop definitely feels firmer. This is even though it is marked with the same firmness designation as the sample of Talalay. To me Talalay feels more "springy" and Dunlop feels more dense. It would certainly be nice to have two beds, one all Dunlop, and the second one all Talalay. Then you could sleep, on alternate nights, on both of them for a period of a week and then you would know how "YOU" liked the different products.

I think all the above descriptions are right. Talalay is springier, bouncier, and Dunlop is just firmer, without much bounce or spring to it, more like a piece of rubber.

Does anyone know? Are those thick rubber cushions you see sometimes under people's work stations, Dunlop latex? Some of those feel so amazing, and I wonder if they're not Dunlop?

Talalay is a process and Dunlop is a process.  The difference in the 2 is the one step that Talalay does in freezing theirs to make it consistent.  Freezing the foam makes its cells stay in the area it is meant to be.  For instance.  If you take a snow globe and shake it, now with all the particals in the space evenly it is instantly frozen whih makes for a more consistent and better product.  As the particals settle and clump up in the bottom of the globe they are very inconsistent which is the Dunlop process.  If you look at a piece of the 2 side by side you can see the difference in the cell structure.  Usually the Dunlop is much more dense at the bottom of the piece and Talalay is evenly dispersed through out the piece.  Talalay is the GOLD STANDARD of foams.  It is the only type made and processed in the US.  Sealy owns the SAPSA factory which makes the Dunlop process so in turn they will always say theirs is better.

I tried a Dunlap Topper and a Talalay topper and I just preferred the feel of the Talalay Latex topper better for a good night's sleep.

I have read and read on this subject. It always turns out that the author of the piece you're reading is usually for the product he is selling.

It would be wonderful if we could all go to a show room that had several all Talalay mattress of 100% natural botanically grown latex, and several mattress of 100% natural botanically grown latex developed by the Dunlop process. And let me hasten to add, in various firmness levels.

Very few people have an opportunity to do this. In the end what happens is, you purchased one or the other and you either like it or you don't. Therefore you need to purchase from somebody who will take the mattress back, and we'll give you your money back, less return shipping. Not too many of the companies are willing to do this.

I just purchased and all natural 100% botanically grown latex mattress developed by the Talalay process from FloBeds. They have a policy of taking the mattress back within 90 days and refunding your money less return shipping. Habitat also has a "give your money back" policy and they extend the period for six months. I believe Sleep EZ has a some what similar policy.

In the end it always comes down to one thing, "If you're happy you're happy, if you're not you're not."

Sometimes we just have to roll the dice and take our chances.

Thank you all for your great responses. Eagle, your spot on
and wonderfully thoughtful, as usual. Bill, as to your comment
about being able to find a place to try out the various latex
options, it's easier said than done. There are two foam stores
in the Boston area, one sells only polyfoam and the other sells
both latex and polyfoam but they don't have mattresses in the
store to try out. They have samples of the foam that you can feel
between your hands but there is nothing to lie down on. You pick
the foam from their "hand samples" and then they send out the
order to a local factory who assemble the mattress.

Any other ideas are welcome. I think I might just have to do
what eagle is suggesting and bite the bullet and go with one of
the companies that has a flexible return policy.

Thank you.

Jay

enlighten wrote:
Jay: Savvy Rest, unlike so many online stores, uses dealers. I went to one out of state and was less than satisfied. But there are all kinds of dealers. If one is close to you, you might give them a call and see how many beds they have that you could try out. Savvy Rest sells both Dunlop and Talalay. And you don't have to buy from them, just test out the mattress.

Savvy Rest does not have a return policy, only a exchange policy for 90 days and their shipping charges are rather high. However, I feel that they are a good company with a good product, as per the posts on this forum. In any event here is a link to their website showing the various dealers around the country. Possibly one of them is not that great a distance from you. http://www.savvyrest.com/order/find-a-dealer

Feeling samples of latex or any other kind of foam between your hands is next to useless, in my opinion. In fact it can even be quite deceptive. For instance. The samples of Talalay that I received from two different suppliers felt very soft compared to Dunlop. So much so that I was convinced I needed Dunlop in my mattress to have a firm enough mattress to sleep on. After a great deal of, "this and that" and you name it, I finally bought from FloBeds an all Talalay mattress. The experience of laying on this compared to trying to make a determination by feeling 3 inch sample blocks of foam, is greater than "night and day" you really need to lay on a mattress to make any kind of a determination. And even then it's not going to be the same as sleeping on one for several nights. But it beats the heck out of just reading and feeling samples. If you want more details on this you can read my thread "Just bought a FloBeds"

Good Luck!

eagle2 wrote:
Great eagle! I will check out Savvy Rest and read through your thread.

I just returned from a foam store in Boston and was finally able to gather some facts
about the mattress that I currently own. They only had talalay samples at this store
and I realized by handling them how different talalay is than what I have at home. I realize now that
I have been sleeping on dunlop latex for the past 12 plus years. Talalay is so much spongier
and lighter than dunlop. My dunlop mattress is very heavy and has a very different rebounding action
than the talalay latex. I learned that if I go the talalay route I'll go firmer rather than
softer.

Thank you again for all your help eagle.

Jay

Jay: You are welcome.

It sure would be nice if more people would post back after receiving information that was helpful to them. It just seems that we get a lot of posters who come and ask questions, in many cases get some kind of helpful response, and never come back and let us know how things worked out.

Dunlop is an entirely different process from Talalay as you know. And I have never slept on a Dunlop mattress. But I was very surprised once I had slept on a Talalay mattress how firm Talalay can feel. Now I only have two sides to a California King, one side being medium, over firm, over extra firm, and the other side being firm, over extra firm, over extra firm. So both sides are definitely on the firm side. But having said that, I must say that Talalay is a much more supportive material than I had assumed, based on what I have read on this forum and from squeezing those little 3 inch foam blocks.

I was totally convinced in my own mind that I had to have some Dunlop in my mattress to get a firm enough configuration. This is most assuredly not true.

Good luck in the great "What the best mattress guessing game!"