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Memory Foam Mattress.org Quick tip:
Always pay attention to the density and ILD of memory foam, as foam can
vary in support and comfort.
Dr. Rick Swartzburg,D.C.
Author of
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Memory Foam Mattress Reviews and Links
Memory Foam Mattress.org is proud to offer
foam mattress reviews and links to help you make an informed decision when
buying a memory foam mattress. With the help of Dr. Rick Swartzburg, D.C.,
we have reviewed the material on the following mattresses and even tested some
of them personally. The result: A better understanding of what they
are really selling and whether they really offer what they claim. Keep in
mind that some of these companies may not give out important information like
ILD ratings, but you can and should inquire before making the purchase. If
you have any questions regarding any memory foam or other foam mattress types,
you can email
Dr. Swartzburg personally at
info@memoryfoammattress.org
If you have a memory foam mattress that you would like to have linked to our site, we would be pleased to review your memory foam product. Just click here to read our policy on links and advertisements.
Personally Tested and Reviewed Foam Mattresses:
Tempur-pedic® - The original visco-elastic mattress company. They offer their classic three inches of 5.3lb. memory foam over a 5 inch base of high density polyurethane. They offer a stretchable, thinner material cover for more of a memory foam feel. Dr. Swartzburg personally used this mattress and found it to be very supportive of the spine, but a little too firm for side sleeping at times, especially on cold nights when the memory foam was not as soft. The other problem with the 5.3lb. density memory foam is that it is so temperature sensitive, that when rolling over at night, the surface does not feel the same as the place your body was finally able to mold to. It actually takes quite a few minutes to get the area soft again, so he found that he would wake him out of sleep. Even so, he still believes that this mattress was far superior to any spring mattress that has ever tried, as all memory foam seems to allow a much higher degree of overall body contouring and therefore reduced pinpoint pressure on your joints. They talk about their Air flow system™, but the convoluted foam they use on the base cannot transmit air to the surface of the bed, so this may be of little use. The Deluxe model offers an extra inch of the 5lb. memory foam and an extra inch of the polyurethane base. This will add a bit more depth to a person's penetration into the mattress, but will still have the problems with the hardening of the foam with cooler temperatures. Tempur-pedic has introduced a number of different models, but the most popular of the newest models is the Celebrity Bed. With the Celebrity bed, Tempur-Pedic® has used 2 extra inches of 5lb. memory foam as a pillow-top that offer more surface softness, presumably in an attempt to avoid the initial hardness of the other models. While Tempur-pedic does not list what density this foam is, we are happy to see that Tempur-Pedic is listening to feedback from their customers. This mattress is significantly higher priced than most memory foam mattresses you will find. Tempur-Pedic offers a 20-year limited warranty and a 3-month sleep trial. Tempur-Pedic offers a 20-year limited warranty and a 3-month sleep trial.
SelectaBed ® - The Tri-pedicŇ memory foam mattress offers a variation on the traditional memory foam mattress in that it has four inches of memory foam and three different layers of foam total. The memory foam structure designed to avoid the problem that occurs when 5lb. memory foam hardens up on colder nights due to its extreme temperature sensitivity. It has a special 4lb. 10-ILD memory foam layer over the traditional 5lb. 20-ILD memory foam layer. This avoids the problem of rolling on to a surface that is too temperature sensitive, as 4lb. memory foam is more pressure sensitive. Even though the 4lb. memory foam that is made in the USA is a very high quality, it is still not supportive enough to be the only memory foam layer in a mattress. Therefore the Tri-pedic uses the 5lb. memory foam underneath the 4lb. for support. The bottom layer is composed of high density polyurethane for support and stability. The Soft-pedic® mattress offers a variation of the Tri-pedic® in that it has the same first 2-layer composition, but also contains zoned latex foam underneath to add more softness, without allowing the hips and low back to sink in further and, thereby, avoiding any hammock like effect of the body and spine. Dr. Swartzburg, who advised, helped design and tested these mattresses for the company believes that this the Soft-Pedic mattress is the best side sleeper mattress available, as it has the highest degree of body contouring with just enough spring to lend extra body support. He believes that the Tri-pedic mattress has the most consistent and plush memory foam mattress feel and also supports the spine better than the traditional memory foam mattresses do. These mattresses are priced much less than Tempur-pedic® mattresses. For those on a low budget, be sure to inquire about their more generic Selectabed 2000 and 5000 4lb. and 5lb. respective, 3 inch memory foam over 5 inch high density polyurethane foam mattress. Selectabed.com offers a 4-month sleep trial and 30-year limited warranty. Selectabed.com has been certified for using 100% U.S.A. manufactured memory foam and as a 100% U.S.A. manufactured product.
Reviewed Only Foam Mattresses and Mattress Pads:
GoMattress - The Sleep Fit memory foam mattress offers three inches of 4lb. memory foam with a 1.5 inch quilting, over an eight inch base. The quilted cover will take away some of the memory foam contouring, but some buyers may be happy to find a memory foam mattress with more of a traditional look and feel. Go mattress offers a 20-year limited warranty and a 30-day trial period. For their standard memory foam mattress, Go Mattress uses a lower quality imported foam from China, but they do use 100% U.S.A. produced foam for their Sleep Fit quilted memory foam mattress. Therefore, their Sleep Fit memory foam mattress been certified as a 100% U.S.A. manufactured product.
Abed - Now offering 3 models of beds of different names and specifications and have prices that range from moderate prices to very expensive. They are all listed under their Dormia ® line. Their low end Versillies offers 3 inches of 5lb. memory foam over 5 inches of high density polyurethane that is thinly cotton quilted. They compare this with the Tempur-pedic, because it has 3 inches of 5lb. foam over 5 inches of high density polyurethane. Also, high density should not be confused with the more durable high resilient polyurethane foam. Although the foam may have a different ILD than the Tempur-Pedic (at the time of this review they had not listed this information), see the Tempur-Pedic review above for information on this type of mattress. The Rhapsody has two layers of visco-elastic memory foam. The top layer is 3/4" of memory foam quilted into the Lyocell cover, followed by 3 inches of a 5lb. memory foam. The use of the 3/4 inch quilt was to add some softness to the top layer, but unfortunately you will lose a bit of the memory foam sensation with the quilting. The base uses 6 inches of high density polyurethane base with side foam railings designed to keep the sides of the bed from compressing. In Dr. Swartzburg's experience, these foam rail stabilizers are unnecessary, as the sides of the mattress hold up extremely well over time and he has never heard of a problem created by a person rolling on the side of a regular memory foam mattress. The other problem with a firmer edge support comes when you roll close the edge and get a variation in the feel of the mattress or when you sit down and your body is tilted backwards when the back of your buttocks sinks into the softer mattress and your thighs are on the firmer rails. The Ultimate model uses latex as a base underneath the memory foam. They utilize two different diagrams that show contradictory foam bases, but the overall design seems to be a good latex and memory foam combination. As mentioned previously, the support base is very important to prevent any hammock effect of the overall mattress, so it is very important to that they disclose the buyer what base they are using and what ILD they have chosen. Not disclosing this makes it difficult for a consumer to determine the level of softness and support. Abed offers a 25-year limited warranty and a 30-day trial period.
Knox Foam - They now have three models listed. The Body Form™ mattress does not list what type of memory foam they are using, but they state that it takes 5-10 minutes to mold to the body. This would make this foam extremely temperature sensitive and thereby get hard when the temperature drops and likely cause a break in the sleep cycle when rolling to another position at night. With the Tri-Lux™ Memory Foam Mattress they offer a more affordable pricing structure, but do not list the memory foam density. It appears that it is a lower weight, and thereby a lesser quality. With this mattress, they do not bond the pieces together, but rather send it in three separate compressed packages that you have to assemble. The Celina is a newer model that they came out with since our last review. We do applaud the fact that they listened to public and offered a 3-layer design that looks like it was meant to compete with the Tri-Pedic, buy offering a softer, less temperature sensitive surface. they use one inch of 4lb. bonded to 2 inches of 5lb. and a 7 inch high density base. As mentioned before, the high density base should not be confused with the more durable high resilient base foam. Knox foam offers a 60-day trial period and a 10-year limited warranty on the Celina mattress.
Back be Nimble - Offers a the Nimblepedic™, 3 5/8 inch of 5.3lb. density memory foam mattress with a slightly lower ILD than Tempur-Pedic and a bit less on the mattress cost. The base is a high resilient 32ILD foam with edge support. As mentioned previously, we do not feel that edge support is necessary in a well built memory foam mattress. Back be Nimble offers a 60-day trial period and a 20-year limited warranty.
Beware of Cheap imitations!
Unfortunately, not all foam is created equal. Many companies will put together the mattress in the U.S., but buy the foam overseas to save money. With overseas foam, we cannot be sure of the quality or the composition, so we are very wary of recommending mattresses that use memory foam not produced in the United States, with the exception of Tempur-Pedic, who has the only high quality Swedish manufacturing facility we know of. The rest of the overseas foam makers produce memory foam that seems to flatten out with compression, even though it may feel comfortable upon the first feel. Therefore, the memory foam made overseas may not last as long, be as safe to sleep on, and offer enough support. Unfortunately, many companies state their beds are made in the U.S. because the mattress is put together in the U.S., even though they do not use U.S. produced foam. For a list of companies that have produced documentation verifying that their mattresses are 100% produced in the U.S., click here.