The foam in your mattress can’t solely influence your general sleep high quality however your general well being. Some foams are made with poisonous chemical compounds that you shouldn’t sleep on every night time. Fortunately, many mattress manufacturers create and use unhazardous foams of their mattresses.
CNET’s sleep staff had the chance to tour the 3Z model mattress manufacturing unit in Glendale, Arizona. During the tour of the 600,000-square-foot facility, we discovered from the CEO how 3Z makes all of its beds — six distinctive manufacturers — in-house. Some of essentially the most well-known mattresses from 3Z embrace the Brooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid, Helix Midnight Luxe, Leesa Sapira Chill Hybrid, Nolah Original 10-inch, Birch Natural and Bear Elite Hybrid. We got down to find out how a manufacturing unit that produces six totally different manufacturers makes every mattress really feel distinctive.
Read extra: Best Mattresses of 2024
How does foam differ?
One of the first causes a mattress might really feel totally different from one other is the kind of foam used. For instance, the Tempur-Pedic Breeze Pro mattress feels drastically totally different from the Nolah Original 10″. While the Medium mannequin of the Breeze Pro can be barely firmer than the Nolah Original, Tempur-Pedic makes use of dense reminiscence foam in its mattresses. The foam within the Nolah Original is impartial polyurethane foam (made on the 3Z manufacturing unit). This sort of froth is lighter and extra forgiving — which means that it does not depart you feeling such as you’re caught within the mattress. Poly foam remains to be pressure-relieving, but it surely makes you are feeling such as you’re sleeping extra on high of the mattress than too inside it.
All-foam beds, just like the Nolah Original, are constructed with a number of layers of froth — every barely totally different. Some foam layers are firmer and used for assist, whereas others are consolation layers and permit for strain reduction. The chemical make-up of the froth determines its density, firmness and really feel.
What are the several types of foam utilized in mattresses?
Besides polyurethane foam, different several types of foam embrace:
- Memory foam
- Gel reminiscence foam
- Copper-infused foam
- High-density foam
- Latex foam
Read extra: Guide to Mattress Types: Materials and What to Consider
How is foam made?
Believe it or not, making foam is an identical course of to creating a cake. In quick, you add the components, combine and watch because the product rises. While the chemistry behind foam is not fairly so simple as baking, this analogy breaks down the froth pouring course of in straightforward phrases.
When Owen and I noticed the method, it felt like we had been in a How It’s Made episode. We had been as shut as somebody may get; we fairly actually may have reached out and touched the liquid pouring onto the conveyor belt.
In layman’s phrases, John Merwin, 3Z’s CEO, describes the froth pouring course of as “mixing liquid chemical compounds in exact ratios.” Once these chemical compounds are mixed, they react and rise as the froth is carried down a conveyor belt.
“This combination is fastidiously monitored to make sure uniformity and high quality because it rises and cures right into a strong foam block,” Merwin says. While it takes solely mere minutes for the brand new foam to rise, it takes a number of hours to totally remedy. Once the froth is strong, it is then minimize into actual layers for use in any of 3Z’s mattresses.
If you, like me, thought that the colour of a foam decided its really feel… that is truly false. At the manufacturing unit, we had been advised that the explanation one piece of froth is grey, for instance, and one other is blue is to easily inform them aside.
It’s additionally vital to notice that 3Z’s foam is CertiPUR-US certificated. This implies that the froth is secure, fiberglass-free and made with out poisonous chemical compounds similar to “ozone depleters, formaldehyde [or] heavy metals.” It additionally implies that the froth with this certification “meets stringent requirements for content material, emissions, and sturdiness,” Merwin says.
The solely different foam certification is GOLS (Global Organic Latex Standard), however this solely applies to latex foam. 3Z does have beds that comprise GOLS latex foam (i.e., the Birch Natural), however that is not made in-house. The course of of constructing latex foam may be very totally different from polyurethane pouring; it requires sure uncooked supplies, particular procedures and equipment.
Video: Foam pouring on the 3Z mattress manufacturing unit
Watch my fellow mattress knowledgeable, Owen Poole, and me discover the 3Z manufacturing unit and perceive how they make its foam.
3Z mattress foam
I’ve examined greater than 70 mattresses through the years, and a number of the beds from 3Z are amongst my favorites. I largely credit score that to the supplies it makes use of; primarily the froth.
3Z is exclusive in that not many mattress manufacturers within the US pour their very own foam or, not to mention, personal a manufacturing unit that makes its beds in-house. Merwin says, “Our foams are crafted with meticulous care and a focus to element. What units our foam aside is that it is poured in-house, giving us full management over the standard of the ultimate product.” He continues, “This additionally permits us to create new foam variations which might be unique to our manufacturers.”
Prior to the journey, Poole and I had been very to know the way 3Z makes their beds distinctive if all of the assembled supplies are coming from the identical place. To this, Merwin says, “The distinction in really feel amongst them is because of various formulations and densities tailor-made to every mattress mannequin. We alter the composition and construction of the froth to realize particular ranges of firmness, assist, and luxury to fulfill every mattress’s distinctive necessities.”
While 3Z makes a couple of “common” foams utilized in a number of beds and types, Merwin says that “a lot of the foam we pour is tailor-made to every model,” and “every of our manufacturers has a definite identification… [that] is supported by the supplies used to craft every model’s assortment of mattresses.”
I walked away from my tour of the manufacturing unit with each a greater understanding of froth and the way it impacts the texture and firmness of your mattress.
Why this could matter to you
If you are not within the mattress business like me, watching somebody pour foam won’t sound like a well-spent afternoon. However, for those who worth a premium and high quality mattress, the making of your mattress’s supplies nonetheless applies to you. When searching for a brand new mattress, ensure its foam is Certi-PUR US licensed to make sure your mattress is free from poisonous chemical compounds.
Secondly, the kind of foam in your mattress determines the texture and firmness. If you are searching for strain reduction however are a scorching sleeper, I like to recommend gel reminiscence foam. However, for those who benefit from the really feel of conventional, dense foam, I like to recommend reminiscence foam beds. Neutral polyurethane foam is a center floor that appears to please most sleepers.
If you buy a mattress from 3Z, you’ll be able to relaxation assured that the froth is made in-house, with out dangerous chemical compounds and designed particularly for consolation and assist. Merwin says, “We are continually innovating and growing new sorts of foam that set new benchmarks within the bedding business.”
