Mattress Forum

I'm a side and back sleeper. With the zones you would want to lay on it in a way that your body (head, shoulders, back, small of your back, rump, legs etc.) are seated in the proper zones. It's not really that much of a problem. If you sleep with your head a few inches from the headboard, most people will be okay. From what I understand the vast majority of adults pretty much have the same torso length, it's the leg length that differentiates our heights. I found myself in the beginning inching my way one way or the other to get the best fit, but it's no big thing. I can see some people preferring it and others not wanting to be bothered or just not liking it, so take it into account before you buy this mattress. Even with free shipping on returns, it's gonna be a hassle to rebox this beast back up and send it back. 

JW

On the 6" core, they build these with either 38 or 32 ILD natural Dunlop.

The next 2" is customized to the purchaser based on their prefernces and can be Talalay or Dunlop.  The Talalay is Talatech from LI (their blended Talalay product) and can be chosen in 19, 24 or 28 ILD's.  If you go with a 28 ILD that could also be chosen as Dunlop.  He basically admitted that the 7 zone sleep system is more marketing than anything.  There is a 7 zone topper out there made from Dunlop by Latexco (http://store.mattresses.net/3-inch-latex-mattress-topper.html ), so I'm thinking if you go with Dunlop you might get this type layer.  I did not confirm that with him.  I'm guessing if you go with Talalay for this layer, you won't get the 7 zone system.  I'm wondering if dunadan has this layer in Dunlop and that is why he found the mattress too firm.   dunadan, do you happen to know the ILD's of your layers and the type of latex used?

The next 2" is listed as quilted natural wool and natural latex.  He said that they are not using wool in there except in the more expensive green options which they aren't really making anymore.  He said the quilting has a "little" latex, some fire retardant batting, and the bamboo fabric top.  He said this layer finishes 1.5" - 2".  I am somewhat disappointed by their not using wool in this layer. 

For me, he recommended that I not go with the 12" pillowtop model since I am a stomach sleeper and back pain sufferer.  I appreciate the restraint from upselling.  He recommended the 38 ILD Dunlop core + a 24 ILD Talalay topper for my setup.

He confirmed that their 60 day return period does cover shipping both ways.  However, there is no warranty whatsoever after the 60 days.  He said with this being an all latex mattress, there wasn't a need for a warranty because of the durability and at this price point they just weren't going to provide that.  This is not a deal killer for me as I posted above.

He mentioned that they experimented with doing a removable core/topper mattress setup similar to others, but didn't like how that went.  He also mentioned that to him, latex pieces that are glued together feel slightly different to loose stacked pieces.  Any of you guys experience anything like this?

He confirmed that they are the sister company of R&S Mattresses, the Phoenix local reailer with multiple stores.  I have some comfort in that to have as many locations as they have, they must be doing a fair volume and they have maintained an A+ BBB rating.

All in all, this is still an option for me, but I'm not sure the bang for the buck is as impressive as I first thought.  6" of Dunlop + 2" of blended Talalay are not exactly high end components.  And the quilted layer is not as impressive as I first thought.

Any reactions from the group on this info? 

http://www.whatsthebest-mattress.com/forum/foambymail-diy-mattress-pieces-arrived-today/19139-0-1.html

I think this is reasonably priced for what you get and has reasonable quality latex.  If you read other websites carefully, they have the same issue: a 10" bed is 8" latex and 1.5" of top, rounded up to 10".  I think the dunlop core and talalay top is common configuration.  Isn't that what the Habitat Furnishings 8" latex mattress is?

Did you ask if LatexMattressShop offers swapping after purchase?  Probably not.

It's not clear what the top 1.5-2" consists of.  A little latex, a little wool, bamboo fabric.... What exactly does that mean?  Seems like an 8" bed with something on top.

As for advice on which way to go?  Warranties, smorranties.  But I think you are buying an 8" mattress here.  A fair comparison to FBM is 6" dunlop with 2" dunlop/talalay, an enclosure.  I don't know if enclosures have wool quilted into the top or not.

You have a difficult decision to make and there seem to be tradeoffs.  Sorry, I don't have a recommendation to make.  I'm happy that my skepticism lead to more information.

How far back did you dig in the archives to look at DIY mattresses?  And I'm sure there are other people who have done DIY latex mattresses.  Did you check some of the sites that have lots of DIY instructions?  You might find some useful information there.  www.instructables.com is one such site; there are probably more.

Yep - Habitat's 8" bed is Dunlop + Talalay (though they use 100% natural for both layers vs the blended Talatech with latexmattressshop).

No swapping, but he did say that if the bed is too firm, they will send a 2" soft topper free of charge to soften things up in hopes of the buyer keeping the mattress rather than returning it.  Presumably you could still send the whole thing back if you didn't like it with the topper.

Definitely an 8" bed.  LI does make a quilting latex called Evercloud that I believe is what they are using in the top 1.5 - 2". I don't think this quilted latex would make that big of a difference.

I have gone back a good bit here on some DIY threads, but plan to keep digging.

Thanks for your help!

I'll say this about my experience in mattress hunting: Quickly after I found this site, I knew building my own mattress was my best option. I've learned that buying a mattress which I couldn't alter the layers would be risky for me. My choices were strickend by my small budget, so FBM caught my eye quickly. I read the negative reviews they had and determined most of them were related to cosmetics and the other negative comments were also made against the other top places. My current mattress is 15" and I spent about $650 which is half of my budget. This gives me the oppurtunity to add a 2" topper or another foundation if I want and still be under my budget.

I would like to keep the whole shebang (mattress, foundation, mattress protector/pad) in the $1,500 to $1,700 range.  I've narrowed primarily to LatexMattressShop or FBM.  If I go the FBM DIY route, I'm still trying to decide on the best mattress protector or case.  I'm leaning towards the St. Dormeir pad (http://www.whatsthebest-mattress.com/forum/st-geneves-st-dormeir-wool-mattress-pad-review-day-3/13490-A-1.html) available now from flobeds for $159.

Right now, I'm leaning back towards FBM over LMS for a couple of reasons:  all natural latex vs. the blended talalay used by LMS, modular approach for getting it just right, like the idea of at least trying at first to sleep directly on the latex, your positive review of what you received from them, and like the thought that in 10 years I could pull a layer or two out and completely refresh the mattress with the assumption that the core will be pretty untouched.

With FBM, right now I would order this setup:  6" 36 ILD core + 2" 32 ILD mid-core + 2" 20 ILD topper (all 100% natural talalay).  I could swap the 20 and the 32 if I wanted to experiment with a firmer feel. 

FBM cost on above:  $1,216

Foundation (http://www.amazon.com/Thick-Foundation-memory-latex-mattresses/dp/B002RVCSRI/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1305859732&sr=8-3): $229

Mattress Pad/Protector:  $159 - $239

(I'm also considering this bamboo temp. regulating pad instead of the Dormier:  http://www.cuddledown.com/product/mattress-pads-protectors/temp-regulating-pads-protectors/ultimate-comfort-bamboo-mattress-pad.do?sortby=newArrivals#    

Grand Total:  $1,604 - $1,684  (vs. $1,530 for the LMS route + the Dormier cover.  That extra $100 buys me all talalay, all natural, and 2" more of latex)

I'm having too much fun over analyzing everything to order right now!   Seriously, I feel like I'm still learning stuff, but my goal is to order one way or another by the end of this week.  Of course, my 14 year old crappy inner spring mattress with featherbed on top is sleeping great right now for both my wife and me since we flipped it.  She mentioned maybe we don't need to buy a new mattress after all.  I told her I had way too many hours invested in this not to do something!

I started to get the feeling I was over analyzing as well; thats where I got those question from. You're in a good situation right now given you are currently sleepy comfortably, So no matter what I say take all the time you need. I've heard flipping a mattress could give another 3-6 months of good sleep.