I have some questions about toppers. To start, I have a fairly new firm, queen size inner spring mattress that's in like new condition. I'm a side sleeper. I find myself wanting more cush or padding for my hips and elbows. I roll around a lot at night trying to get comfortable. I'm a 6 foot tall 245 pound divorced male. I  tend to sleep hot. I've been considering memory foam toppers from Costco and others. I'm also looking into latex toppers as well. Is there some kind of guide or rule-of-thumb to follow when it comes to body weight and toppers? Is latex better than memory foam for my situation and my sleeping hot? What about thicknesses and ratings? I've read some posts about 'heavier' individuals sinking right through their toppers, which is certainly a concern in my case. Are there some internet sources I could be checking out? Every site I've visited thus far has indicated their products are the best. Any input or suggestions would be much appreciated. Thanks. Counselor1

I think the trick is not to get too thick of a topper.  2" of memory foam or latex will probably do it.  I used www.monstermattress.com and got 28 ild for a topper.  Turns out latex didn't work for my partner's back, but as far as heavier folk and sink in, that 2" was good.  Three was too much. 

The correct thickness of your topper depends upon how firm the mattress underneath it is and how soft you want your comfort layer to be. Weight is really a secondary factor. For example I weigh less than half what you do. On my old extra firm innerspring mattress a 2" 4lb memory foam topper over a standard eggcrate provided the perfect amount of cushiness. On my current mattress the 2" topper made the bed too soft and hurt my back, but I still wanted a little pop of cushiness so I got an inexpensive 1" visco topper from Overstock.com--just right for that mattress.

Latex will last a lot longer than any visco you can buy and sleeps much cooler. Look for something in the 24 to 28 ILD range. Any firmer and you won't get the cushiness you are after. There are two kinds of latex and each has a very different feel. Talalay is very resilient. I'm not a big fan of Talalay. I find it pushy and jiggly. I prefer Dunlop latex which feels less aggressive and more secure and relaxing, since I can nestle into it without jiggling all over the bed. You should try out a latex mattress if at all possible to see if you like the feel before investing in a latex topper. 

I really love the soft cradling feeling of memory foam over an innerspring mattress. But visco can sleep hot, especially in the higher density foams which tend to be more temperature sensitive. There are newer ventilated visco foams out that are supposed to address this problem, so if you prefer the feeling of memory foam but are concerned about the heat factor you might want to look into them. The lower density foams like the cheapo topper I bought from Overstock will add a certain amount of cushiness to a mattress and sleep suprisingly cool, but being low density I would hesitate to put more than 1.5" on a mattress for fear of hammocking into very soft foam. Also, no telling how long cheap visco will last before it starts to compress--but then hey, it's cheap and easily replaced.

You may find a single topper will do the trick, but there's no reason why you can't use a couple of toppers of different materials--latex and memory foam--to build the perfect comfort layer.

One word of advice though, if you order online, make sure you can return it without incurring a restocking fee if you just don't like it or worse still--can't sleep on it at all.

Thanks for the ideas thus far. I have some additional information about my mattress. It is a Sealy Silverado cushion firm with a blended cashmiere top.