We've had our Sleep Number for almost a year. Comfortable as hell, the only problem seems to be that when both sides are on low settings we sink towards the center of the bed.

How do those Sleep Number beds work? Is it basically an air mattress that you control the amount of ifaltion in the little chambers?

I have also heard from several people that those memory foam mattresses (some of them) cause them to sweat more at night thn they used to, which is the main reason I dismissed them out of hand when buying a bed.

Yeah, that's basically it. It's a scale from 5-100 (in 5 step intervals) for the firmness/softness of the bed. The idea is you start at 100 and work down. Air is released from the chambers where your weight is, forming to you however much you want it to. It's split down the center with a remote that does each side.

I'll put in a vote for a latex foam mattress. We finally bit the bullet and bought a new mattress over Xmas, and we're really happy with this one. It's not the memory foam-type material, like Tempurpedic; it reacts only to weight, not temperature. Hypo-allergenic, apparently more resistant to dust mites, mildew, etc. They tend to last longer than an innerspring mattress. Does not sleep hot. Is very comfortable. My back pain used to wake me up in the morning--I can stay in this thing much longer.

Worth looking into--good luck.

the reason i never posted in the 'two things you unconditionally endorse' thread, is because i could only think of one thing:

VERLO mattresses.

i would stay away from memory foam beds. its just some foam technology that nasa developed and somehow it ended up becoming this sensationalized product. you want a bed with a good innerspring possibly and some latex foam. Ill bet you will sleep like a baby after that.

i used to make beds from scratch for a living!

Well we bought a Tempur-Pedic mattress three years ago now and my back and allergies thank me for it every night. It is super comfortable and the primary downside is I have serious problems sleeping elsewhere now.

As to the sweat question, yes I do find myself a little warmer than I used to but my temperature is generally higher than usual anyway so it doesn't really bother me that much.

You definitely sink in a little but it's more like being cradled and less like sinking in and suffocating and absolutely no tossing and turning! My wife is a terrible claustrophobic and agreed to test drive it for 30 days after her initial terror when laying on it in the store. She decided after two days we would be keeping it and has agreed it is most likely the best purchase we've ever made.

I don't think I ever slept through an entire night before I slept on one.

I was posting about this dilemma a couple of years ago, and I decided to splurge for the pricey Sultan Furudal from IKEA. It's the best $500 I've ever spent (I bought the full mattress). Very firm, cozy, and I sleep soundly.

Mr. Arrison, you're making a wise decision. Getting a brand-new, well-made mattress can be real life-changing event. I've never slept so soundly in all my life. Makes a huge difference.

A couple months ago I bought a full-size Sealy Posturepedic (box spring and mattress) for $500. The one I picked out was the second one down from their top-of-the-line and it's a great lay. I bought it several weeks after President's Day and it was the last full-size unit of last year's model left in stock, so they wanted to get it out the store room to make space for this year's models.

Like Burun said, it's very important when shopping to actually get up on the thing and test it out. Try all your favorite sleeping positions, roll around, get the wife on there with you and bounce around a little bit (after all, you will hopefully be doing more than just sleeping on it, no?). After all, this thing is going to be a major factor in your quality-of-life for many years, so you better make sure it's a good one.

burun wrote:
I have also heard from several people that those memory foam mattresses (some of them) cause them to sweat more at night thn they used to, which is the main reason I dismissed them out of hand when buying a bed.

It's true. We got a memory foam topper for our regular mattress. I'm already like sleeping beside a pottery kiln. On that thing, I probably glow in the dark.

But I don't get cold in winter, that's for sure. And I sleep 6 inches from a drafty window.