I'm looking at getting a new mattress as I think the one we've got is getting a bit old now and I'm starting to wake up with my lower back aching a bit. After staying at friends in Melbourne and Newcastle recently, we have both enjoyed the mattresses that they have, which have both been like a memory foam style one.

Now, I know there is Tempur, which is no doubt the best, but not quite sure I could justify the 2 grand price tag that comes with it, so wondered if people have any recommendations or suggestions?

Cheers

The matresses with a layer of memory foam are OK but I wouldn't recommend the 100% memory foam type, especially if you're a restless sleeper and tend to switch from one side to the other all night.

I had a Silent Night 100% memory foam mattress a few years ago and ended up with quite bad pain in both shoulders.

Had no idea what was causing it at first as it was a month or so after getting the new mattress that the pain started to appear but it was just getting worse each month to the point where it was restricting movement of both my arms.

I saw a doctor and since it had appeared on both shoulders at once he suspected arthritis. Had a blood test done and it was all clear. It was only then that I realised it had started after getting the new mattress. Searched on google and found a few other people complaining about the same problem.

Consensus seems to be that if you sleep in the same position all night the 100% memory foam mattresses are fine, but if you "toss and turn" all night from one side to the other (as I do) then they can cause shoulder problems for some people.

Anyways, I switched back to a normal sprung mattress and my shoulders were improving within a few weeks and took about 2 months to completely return to normal.

Now is the time to buy, but be quick as department store sales are coming to an end.

It is a minefield out there. Since buying my last 2 beds (V-Spring made for J Lewis) this memory foam thing plus a rush to "matress toppers" has broken out. Finally decided to go for a bed in Guildford A&N sale - made by Hypnos - retains pocket spring core, plus latex top side for comfort. I instinctively kept away from full memory foam, not least becuase of the whole moisture tanspiration issue.


I think the top manufactures are in order Vi-Spring & Hypnos after that it is a bit of a lottery. I did notice Staples as being traditional beds at middle price points.

Just bear in mind how much of your life you spend asleep! Spend as much as you can afford as sleep affects so much of your life. My previous bed/mattress was from Ikea. Not cheap but certainly not expensive. After a few years, it was so nasty to sleep on.

We spent a 'large' amount of money on a new bed and superking mattress three years ago and it was one of the best purchases ever. So comfortable and we sleep so much better.

Thanks for the advice so far. Johnny, I'm aware at how much life is spent on a mattress, so I won't skimp!

We brought a memory foam mattress and to be honest i would NOT recommend them!
I'm sure they vary in quality and we had a middle of the road price range one
My wife and i now both get back ache that was not present from a mattress before, although i do have occasional issue's with my back

We previously had an Orthopedic mattress this was the best mattress we have ever had, we will be buying a new one soon hopefully, and i think they are worth the money!


Cheers Rich

Well, popped down to Furniture Village to go and try some mattresses. First off, tried the Vi-Spring, that was quite nice, then tried Tempur for comparisons sake and that felt pretty good too, tried a brand called Mammoth and we both liked this one, it was initially soft on top, then feels slightly firmer than the Vi-Spring. I got the other half to check my posture lying on my side and my shoulder and hips were at the same height, I checked her posture too and it was correct for her.

We tried our bed when we got back and the difference was completely different, plus the posture is wrong, my shoulder is sitting much higher than my hip.

This is the mattress I'm looking at and this is the manufacturer's bumph on it

We swear by good pocket sprung mattresses. Tried memory foam, but find that they have a "dead" feel to them.

Pocket spring are great as there is no "roll together" and they are much cheaper than memory foam.

Forget sleep... Memory foam is a serious hindrance to night-time olympics.
Another vote for a good quality pocket sprung mattress here, ours was £900 and worth every penny.

Yes - I bought a Vi-Spring bed for my flat in Amsterdam. It's great - incredibly comfortable. The only slightly odd thing is the mattress seems slightly smaller than the base and the fitted sheet I have is slightly loose too.

Not cheap but British.

Still in a little bit of a quandary on this. You all say pocket sprung, but when I tried a pocket sprung Vi-Spring and compared it with the one mentioned above, we both preferred the Mammoth, which is pocket sprung, just with a little bit of memory foam on top. I suppose my real issue is, if we don't get on with the mattress, I can't return it.

Pocket sprung for me too. Memory foam felt wrong. You need to get the firmness right for you both if you can.

Same here - in need of a new mattress which *will* be pocket sprung - but needs also to be king size; I don't want to lose the frame.

But the current mattress is so old it's started asking to borrow the keys for the car...

I was quite surprised to learn that with Vi-Spring you can return the used matress within a period of time and change it for another with a different tension. They and other firms will also supply matresses with different tensions on different sides of the bed.

I think the answer is to go for pocket spring foundation (prevents rolling togther and gives the necessary back support) with some kind of minimal foam top which provides extra comfort. This is what we have gone for this time. Alternatively you can put a matress topper on top but I have seen these run up to £1k alone .

I find the Vi-spring matress tops quite cratered, where they have been stiched togehter, so now I actually prefer the softer and flatter top of my new bed.
Does mean it is one sided and cannot be turned over , not sure if this will limit life in any way. Time will tell.

It is suprising (or perhaps not) but different pocket sprung mattresses vary considerably. I would advise just trying as many as possible in the shop without looking at the price tag, and just see which feels the best.

The pocket sprung with the foam toppers are probably a good compromise, but might be very expensive.

We got a king size PS matress, and it is not as comfy as our older standard double PS matress. Just down to the level of padding and spring softness etc. Try before you buy !

Absolutely, some of the PS mattresses are like chalk and cheese, spring tension, spring density, side stitching yaba yaba

I have a good friend who owns a company selling Mattresses and the stories he tells about the true worth of the mattresses that get sold in department stores and the mark ups retailers make from wholesalers is shocking.

This article is pretty accurate from what I have been told Mattresses

http://www.furniturenews.net/news/articles/2014/02/2064048988-nbf-warns-rip-mattress-van-scam

And DO NOT buy a mattress from a man with a van, who is selling them cheap Scam