This Simmons 10” Memory Foam mattress is replacing a decades old innerspring mattress in our guest room that was suffering from uneven wear, sagging, noise, and poor support. Its medium firmness is ever-so-slightly squishier than our 15-year old ‘extra firm’ memory foam mattress in the master bedroom, but in a good way.
We’re using it on a box spring for now, just for the extra height, but this mattress doesn’t require a foundation; it can be placed directly on a platform bed or over support slats spaced at most 2” apart with a head-to-foot center support with at least one central leg extending to the floor. If the slats are farther apart than 2”, a solid surface like ¾” plywood must be used between the mattress and slats. Using any other type of inadequately supported foundation that doesn’t fit these specifications could result in damage to the mattress and would void the warranty (10 year limited).
The mattress ships rolled up in a box and vacuum sealed in a large plastic bag. The double/full-sized one weighs about 60 lbs; so I was able to maneuver it around on my own, though it’s a good idea to recruit an extra set of hands/muscle if you have back issues. Included in the box is a plastic cutting tool, like a letter opener, that you can use to cut the bag open. Unrolling and removing the mattress from the bag was fairly easy; I recommend cutting a strip off near to the edge of the bag so that you don’t damage your new mattress. The bag can then also be reused to wrap up your old mattress for disposal, as this is required in many municipalities.
After the bag is opened, the mattress starts to expand very quickly, and while you can sleep on it within only a few hours, it won’t reach its full height and designated firmness until about 24 hours later. However, even after several days, the final height of the mattress was slightly under the stated 10 inches by about ¼”. There’s also a bit of off-gassing initially resulting in a mild chemical smell that is part and parcel to all memory foam products. While I typically find that this smell disappears after a few days, after a week and a half on this mattress there’s still a little odor that is lingering, so I suggest keeping the door to the bedroom open and using an air purifier fitted with a VOC filter to help dissipate it more quickly.
As for the sleep experience, it is wonderful. The medium firmness gives a little, though I wouldn’t call it plush; just enough so that my body makes a slight indentation whether I’m sleeping on my back, side, or stomach. I tend to change sleep position often through the night these days, and the mattress lets me adjust my body position as needed without making me feel trapped in a pit. For reference, I weigh about 125 lb, and this mattress does not have any weight limit. In fact, Simmons states that the foundation would give out first before any damage would come to the mattress. As for edge support, when I sit on the sides of the bed, it compresses about half its height, though it doesn’t make me feel like I’m about to slide off.
I usually sleep pretty warm, so I was happy to find that the upper layer, featuring Climate Cool moisture wicking gel foam, helped draw away heat from my body, keeping me cool and dry through the night. If you are the opposite and like to use heating pads or blankets, just know that this is not recommended on memory foam mattresses as it can cause damage to it. There is a motion isolation layer between the memory foam and base layer that absorbs surface movement between sleepers that works really well, so you won’t feel the jostling and movement of your bedmate (or they you). The best part is that it is completely silent. With no moving parts inside and a solid/rigid foundation, nothing moves or squeaks and most movement on top is absorbed by the mattress before it ever transfers to the bed frame itself.
The mattress ships with a cover over the foam that is not to be removed, as doing so will void the warranty. However, this cover isn’t waterproof nor considered a mattress protector, so if you want to guard it against spills and stains, you can add one over top. The existing cover can be spot cleaned with mild detergent and cold water, which works pretty well as mine shipped with a small black smudge that I was able to wipe off with a damp sponge. As for care and maintenance, the mattress is designed to never require flipping, though rotating is recommended to even out wear.
Overall, this mattress provides me a great night’s sleep that leaves me feeling refreshed and energized the next morning. It is supportive with a decent firmness that’s neither too hard nor too soft, and it is compatible with many contemporary bed frames and foundations including adjustable bases. I look forward to using it for years to come and might just start sleeping in the guest room more often.