Memory foam mattress

DenBo_4

On Ideal World yesterday they were selling Memory Foam mattresses for £65, I've looked on the internet and one was £289, and in Dunelm they are £100 (for a double mattress). I'm sure this question has been asked many times, but are Memory Foam mattresses (and pillows) all the same? Or do you get what you pay for? I've got a newish mattress but I'm waking up with backache, so thought a memory foam might be the answer, but I'm very short of cash and wondered what's the best/cheapest one on offer?

barrymung

Was it a mattress or just a topper on IW? You really want to go for a full matress. Toppers are to be avoided if possible..

I bought mine from ebay from a company in Germany. Even with postage it was far cheaper than the cheapest one I could get in the UK!

Still fine after 3 or so years of constant use, too!

It takes a bit of getting used to, a different sleeping experience to a "normal" mattress. For what it's worth my backache improved considerably but then again my previous mattress was a bit old. Was it the memory foam that made it improve or would I have had the same improvement with a conventional mattress? I don't know.

Thought: Why not see your Doctor first and see if there's some other factor causing your backache? It'd possibly save a few quid!

Thought #2: Does your backache improve when you sleep elsewhere, such as in a hotel on holiday?

Edit: Am I allowed to mention the name of the company on ebay on here?

Katmc2k

barrymung wrote: »

Was it a mattress or just a topper on IW? You really want to go for a full matress. Toppers are to be avoided if possible..

I bought mine from ebay from a company in Germany. Even with postage it was far cheaper than the cheapest one I could get in the UK!

Still fine after 3 or so years of constant use, too!

It takes a bit of getting used to, a different sleeping experience to a "normal" mattress. For what it's worth my backache improved considerably but then again my previous mattress was a bit old. Was it the memory foam that made it improve or would I have had the same improvement with a conventional mattress? I don't know.

Edit: Am I allowed to mention the name of the company on ebay on here?

We also bought one from an ebay company in Germany-can't guarantee its the same one-but we hate ours. It's slowly getting more bearable but it caused us major backache for the first few months and there is not very much "memory" to it! Translate-it's as hard as a brick! It is absolutely nothing like the memory foam ones that you see in posh bed shops for hundreds of pounds anyway.

Obviously everyone is different, and its more than possible that OP would like the mattress from Germany, but I would never buy a mattress now without going into the shop and having a go on it!

belfastgirl23

Just to add in, in case you're not aware, memory foam mattresses are HOT. We have one and it's really comfortable but we are still using 4.5 tog duvets in the depths of winter, and that's in a draughty old house. In the summer I'm just used to waking up because of the heat. Just to give you a bit of a warning, I know this wouldn't be a problem for everyone...

Katmc2k

barrymung wrote: »

As a matter of interest is memory foam supposed to stop you having back ache?

Not sure, but the first people I ever knew to have one years ago when they cost thousands of pounds got it because they had permanent back damage due to a car crash and they were recommended it by their chiropractor (sp?)

Tim_Deegan

DenBo wrote: »

On Ideal World yesterday they were selling Memory Foam mattresses for £65, I've looked on the internet and one was £289, and in Dunelm they are £100 (for a double mattress). I'm sure this question has been asked many times, but are Memory Foam mattresses (and pillows) all the same? Or do you get what you pay for? I've got a newish mattress but I'm waking up with backache, so thought a memory foam might be the answer, but I'm very short of cash and wondered what's the best/cheapest one on offer?

To be honest I would say that if they are selling a memory foam mattress for £65, and it isn't just a topper, then it is one or more of the following:

a) a second
b) not genuine memory foam
c) very poor quality memory foam from the far east.

Don't just go for a very cheap memory foam mattress, as many are either very low quality and, or they use a very low density memory foam which won't work properly. Memory foam should really be at least 65kg per m3, however if you prefer more of a medium feel then you can go as low as 55kg, but don't go any lower otherwise it won't give you the support.

Some manufacturers use very deep layers of memory foam, and tell people that the deeper the foam the better. The truth is that the optimum thickness for memory foam is 2" to 2 1/2". Less than this and it won't be enough to contour to your body. If the foam is too deep, then you will sink into it, and it will wrap around you making you too hot.

We recently sold an Eros and a Calypso to an osteopath. So we asked their professional opinion on the best type of mattress for back support. They told us that most of their profession recommends a combination of pocket sprung and memory foam. They also went on to say that if you can't afford pocket sprung with memory foam, then the next best option is just pocket sprung, and that they are far superior to latex (or reflex) foam and memory foam mattresses that seem to be the most common memory foam mattresses on the market.

Tim_Deegan

Katmc2k wrote: »

We also bought one from an ebay company in Germany-can't guarantee its the same one-but we hate ours. It's slowly getting more bearable but it caused us major backache for the first few months and there is not very much "memory" to it! Translate-it's as hard as a brick! It is absolutely nothing like the memory foam ones that you see in posh bed shops for hundreds of pounds anyway.

Obviously everyone is different, and its more than possible that OP would like the mattress from Germany, but I would never buy a mattress now without going into the shop and having a go on it!

It is perfectly safe to buy a mattress on line as long as you follow the following giude lines:

I know that many people are very wary about buying items like beds from ebay or other web sites. However if you follow a few guidelines then you can save up to 75% on the shop prices:

1) most important of all make sure that the seller gives a 100% satisfaction guarantee.

2) check previous feedback for the seller, and even contact previous customers to ask them about the seller.

3) use a company who display their phone number, so that you can talk to someone about your requirements (they want you to make the righ choice because it will cost them if you return it).

4) check the sellers return policy. Many sellers charge for postage on returns.....can work out very expensive if you have unpacked a vacuum packed mattress, and you don't like it.

5) try to use a seller who delivers using their own transport. Couriers often damage or misplace goods (believe me I know from experience).

Obviously you can't try before you buy, but for the saving it is worth the risk if you follow the guidelines above.

Tim_Deegan

belfastgirl23 wrote: »

Just to add in, in case you're not aware, memory foam mattresses are HOT. We have one and it's really comfortable but we are still using 4.5 tog duvets in the depths of winter, and that's in a draughty old house. In the summer I'm just used to waking up because of the heat. Just to give you a bit of a warning, I know this wouldn't be a problem for everyone...

There are a couple of reasons that some people say that memory foam makes you too hot:

1) some manufacturers use very deep layers of memory foam, and tell people that the deeper the foam the better. The truth is that the optimum thickness for memory foam is 2" to 2 1/2". Less than this and it won't be enough to contour to your body. If the foam is too deep, then you will sink into it, and it will wrap around you making you too hot.

2) mattresses with latex foam and memory foam don't allow air to circulate under the memory foam to remove the heat. This obviously isn't an issue with pocket sprung and memory foam mattresses. Memory foam does actually absorb heat from your body which then reacts with it to soften it. So as long as the heat can then disperse there is no problem.

Personally I find that I sweat less with my memory foam mattress than I did with my previous one.

seatzie

memory foam mattress did the job for me, we went through about 3 silent night mattresses in 10 years including an orthopedic style one and every morning my backache would be playing up (old sports injury) so this year in the January sale we splashed out on a new bed with memory foam mattress etc, 6 months in I have not had 1 day where I've woke up with a bad back and to be honest the claims of a more restful sleep also seem true too, its certainly done the job for me - starplan was where I got it

Tim_Deegan

seatzie wrote: »

we went through about 3 silent night mattresses in 10 years

So that's an average of 3 years 4 months for each mattress.........you actually did well to make Silentnight mattresses last that long. Normall they last around 2 years.

sleepymy

I was looking at a Heritage 1000 pocket mattress with a 3" memory foam topper on one side. They were asking £380 for a king size.

They said they would be getting cheaper versions in later in the month but I liked the feel of this one, nice and soft.

I was just wondering if anyone knows if this would be worth buying?