Being a guy with a not so great back I thought I’d check out a Tempurpedic bed. I layed down and melted into it. It was weird, but awesome. Then I found out the bugger costs three grand. You can get them cheaper for smaller and lower quality, but the model and size I’m looking at was $3300 total.
I’ve stopped by and checked it out two more times since then and I still like it, but that’s a lot cash. I don’t know anyone that has one–so any opinions would be great.
Bump.
Would love to know about this too (or just mattresses people have had good experiences with in general since I am looking for a new one).
Kuz
Can speak for Select-Comfort, the air mattresses. Bought one three years ago, and love it. Has helped my wifes back immnesely. Easy to set up, all your standard sheets and stuff fit fine. Biggest problem is it makes me sleep almost too hard. After getting it, had hell waking up in the mornings, sleeping deep. Also you will get spoiled to it and hate staying in most hotels with cheap mattreses. We paid about $1100 for ours, queen-size. Its the mid level pillow top, and we caught it on sale.
I know of no one whos bought a temperpedic.
Can I ask you guys a question? Why is it that people will spend $25,000 on a car without thinking twice, but will baulk at spending $3,000 on a bed. I spend, at most, about 1 hour a day in my car, and at least 8 hours a night in my bed. Does this make no sense to anyone else?
Massif, although I agree with you, I think the question is whether the Tempurpedic is worth the money. In other words, is a $3000 Tempurpedic better than a $3000 conventional mattress?
Well, that’s my question anyway, though the original poster kinda asked both.
you mean about 4 or 5 conventional matresses^
[quote]michaelv wrote:
Massif, although I agree with you, I think the question is whether the Tempurpedic is worth the money. In other words, is a $3000 Tempurpedic better than a $3000 conventional mattress?
Well, that’s my question anyway, though the original poster kinda asked both.[/quote]
The only way you could create a $3,000 conventional mattress would be to buy a normal mattress and put four prostitutes plus a pound of cocaine on it 
I reread the original post, and I still think he is hung up on the $3,000 price tag.
I reckon just buy the bugger, but get an agreement where, if in six months you don’t like it, you can return it and get store credit or something like that. That way, if it doesn?t live up to expectations, you can try something else.
[quote]Massif wrote:
Can I ask you guys a question? Why is it that people will spend $25,000 on a car without thinking twice, but will baulk at spending $3,000 on a bed. I spend, at most, about 1 hour a day in my car, and at least 8 hours a night in my bed. Does this make no sense to anyone else?[/quote]
I have used a very similar analysis myself–if I spend a third of my life in bed, isn’t it worth spending the money on quality?
I am just looking to get some input before I spend an extra $1500 for a tempurpedic, b/c while I am willing to spend the money, I would like to think that I am getting something more for that money.
The only person I know who actually owns a Tempurpedic swears by it for her back, and says she went through several different kinds of mattresses before settling on this one. My wife has two herniated discs, and we’ve thought about the Tempurpedic; the price has slowed us down on making the decision.
But I tell her: if it is going to make your back feel better whil sleeping, it’s worth the price. It will last for years, I’m told.
My cousin and her husband got 2 tempur twins for their RV, they love them but she tends to get a little over-hot. Apparently the foam doesn’t dissapate heat all that well.
Worth thinking about if you’re like me and want the bedroom to be about 60 degrees and sleep with just a sheet.
I was checking out reviews of the Tempur-pedic on epinions.com and they vary, although mostly good. The people who did not like it felt like they were locked into the bed.
(Small hijack alert) But this is what I love about the information overload so prevalent in the Internet age. You go to a site to get a review of something (say, cnet.com for computers or a digital camera), you will read 10 great reviews… but it is that 1 negative one that sticks out in your mind. Hate that. (Hijack over)
I am not sure (from what I’ve read) that a Tempur-pedic is worth double what you would pay for a top of the line Sealy or Serta in which you might sleep just as well.
Kuz
Guys,
I was looking at the Tempur-pedic bed. I discovered by the reviews that the major complaint was that there is a plastic coating on the outer layer that causes you to sweat a lot at night. In researchin my options, I bought from “Absolute Comfort” (online- do a google search). The memory foam is the same material as Tempur-pedic, with no plastic coating. It was half the price of Tempur-pedic. My wife and I love it. She is pregnant (due in 2 weeks) and had trouble getting comfortable through most of the pregnancy, which is why I bought the bed. Not a problem now.
Another bonus, which you would also get from Tempur-pedic, is that on her most restless nights, or when she gets up to pee at night, motion is not transferred to disturb me like it does with an innerspring mattress.
Definitely check all of your options, but we had a great experience with the memory foam mattress.
btw- I forgot to mention, but both Tempur-pedic AND Absolute Comfort offer the “90 day risk free trial” thing…
Buy a very firm mattress, sleep on your back, roll two towels and place one under your neck and the other under the curvature of your spine. No pillow! Greatest night sleep you will ever have. Its the best position for your neck and spine to be in while sleeping.
<edited DOH!>
I usually recommend either Select Comfort or Tempurpedic.
There are some newer companies making the memory foam beds now that are cheaper than Tempurpedic. Just make sure that the density of the foam is the same so that you are comparing apples to apples. If the foam density is the same and similar warranties/etc apply, get the cheaper one.
As far as Select Comfort, you can get a Sleep number bed without a pillow top and then add a 2 inch memory foam mattress topper (Sam’s was carrying these earlier this year for less than $200).
No matter what you buy, ask your doctor to write you a prescription for one and you will not have to pay sales tax on it. Also, these can sometimes qualify as a tax deduction, but since I don’t know exactly how that works, I’ll let someone with more experience on the tax end chime in.
Take care,
Ryan
my husband and i bought a Temperpedic mattress last year and absolutely love it. when you first receive it, it is a little firmer than the one in the store but then after a month it becomes softer. it is very much worth the money and we wouldn’t trade it. my husband does seem to sweat a lot sometimes b/c of the plastic…but nothing horrible. if you are looking for a mattress that you don’t have to worry about for 20 some years and don’t want to have to turn or flip it ever (crazy i know) than it is something to think about.
My dad had a Tempurpedic pillow and after afew years it seemed to stiffen up. Maybe it was all in my head but this was one reason I never looked at them when I hurt my back.
I got an air bed (by Comfortaire) which has a wooden box spring as opposed to the plastic stand Select Comforts have. It also didnt have the numbers on the remotes, that didnt matter much to me anyways. Best thing I’ve ever had, alot of my back problems have gotten 10x better. And I generally just sleep better all around.
So if tempurpedic is the right thing for you I’d say its definitely worth the money. Its good youre researching first though, I spent at least afew months researching before I made my decision about what type of mattress I wanted.
I started out with select comfort. Eventually I had to get rid of it because of the stupid pillow top which compressed after several years and was uncomfortable to sleep on (don’t get any bed with the pillow top option).
I’ve had the temporpedic for…a bunch of years and love it.
“I discovered by the reviews that the major complaint was that there is a plastic coating on the outer layer that causes you to sweat a lot at night”
I have no idea what he is talking about unless they changed things in the last few years. As for:
“The memory foam is the same material as Tempur-pedic”
I would do my homework to make sure this is 100% true and not oh it is just as good.
Great comments everyone. I appreciate it.
[quote]Dr. Ryan wrote:
I usually recommend either Select Comfort or Tempurpedic.
There are some newer companies making the memory foam beds now that are cheaper than Tempurpedic. Just make sure that the density of the foam is the same so that you are comparing apples to apples. If the foam density is the same and similar warranties/etc apply, get the cheaper one.
As far as Select Comfort, you can get a Sleep number bed without a pillow top and then add a 2 inch memory foam mattress topper (Sam’s was carrying these earlier this year for less than $200).
No matter what you buy, ask your doctor to write you a prescription for one and you will not have to pay sales tax on it. Also, these can sometimes qualify as a tax deduction, but since I don’t know exactly how that works, I’ll let someone with more experience on the tax end chime in.
Take care,
Ryan[/quote]
Dr. Ryan, is there a scientific basis for your recommendation of these beds to those with “bad backs” or is it more of a anecdotal people-tend-feel-better thing? Just curious. I’ve heard reference to a recent study that indicated that a very firm mattress isn’t actually the best option for those with back pain, but rather a medium firm mattress–contradicting years of recommedations from health professionals.
You want cheap? Throw a blanket or two on the floor… 