Ready for Testing
I take sleeping very seriously. As the days get longer and the nights get increasingly shorter, the time I have to sleep becomes more precious every day. If I don’t get a solid six hours of quality sleep a night I am irritably, groggy, sore, and basically a drain upon society. That is why choosing a mattress can become a monumental challenge. If I don’t choose a good mattress then I can say ‘good night’ to a good night’s rest, and that does not sit well with me (or my wife for that matter). So when Relief Mart contacted me about testing and reviewing the Tempflow Mattress for RVs and home, you can imagine my hesitation. Before I even took the mattress out of the packaging, I wrote up a list of the qualities I wanted in a mattress, and I decided right then and there that for me to recommend this Tempflow mattress, it would have to meet all these criteria.
Support
I have had my run-ins with lumpy, droopy, hard-as-rock mattresses in the past, and they were not pleasant experiences. So right off the bat, I wanted to make sure that this Tempflow Mattress had the right amount of support so I don’t fold in half, but also have enough to provide comfort. Experts at the Spine Universe research firm state that a mattress should allow the spine to assume its natural curve. Too hard a mattress, and the spine is forced into an unnatural position, but too soft, and the spine sags, and you can experience painful back aches.
Tempflow Mattresses are made from a special Biogreen Memory foam, which cradles you body, and keeps your spine in a natural position. My wife and I laid on the bed, and instantly the memory foam took an impression of our shape, and we sank in. The mattress supported all the bumps, bulges, and curves of our bodies, and it eliminated the rebound pressure of hard springs or rubber that is in a lot of other mattresses. We both laid on mattress for a good bit, and then we both rolled over and said ‘Wow…This is comfortable!”
Airflow
Patented Airflow System
Patented Airflow System
Many good quality memory foam mattresses are made from very dense foam that doesn’t breathe well, due to its heavy weight and compact cell structure (that is why many foam mattresses feel so ‘dense’ when you lay on them). This leads to ‘night sweating’, of which I am not a fan. I hate waking up in the middle of the night feeling like I just ran the Boston Marathon. So I needed to test whether this Tempflow Mattress with Biogreen memory foam could keep me cool at night. Researching the mattress I discovered that Tempflow mattresses are covered in these little cells that use a patented airflow circulation technology that expels body heat out of the mattress, and circulates cooler air though the layers of the mattress. The mattress even has a bamboo fabric cover that further increases breathe ability.
And those little cells really work! Even though it was memory foam, the mattress stayed cool throughout the night, and we didn’t break a sweat!
Material
Bamboo Mattress Cover
Bamboo Mattress Cover
My third criterion for the Tempflow mattress was more of an ascetic one. Not only do I want a mattress that is comfortable, but I also want to know that by buying one I am doing right by the environment. I want to be confident that the products I buy will not harm me or harm the environment 20 years from now.
On the ‘green’ front, Tempflow mattress came out on top. The Biogreen Memory Foam contains no harmful chemicals like:
- PBDE (Harmful fire retardant)
- TDI (can cause asthma)
- Boric Acid (Harmful industrial cleaner)
- Bromine (an oxidizing agent)
All the Tempflow mattresses are hypo-allergenic, environmentally friendly, and non-toxic. Even better, Tempflow is 100% American made. Many other mattress companies say they are ‘American Made’ but purchase their foam or other products from over-seas manufacturers because it is cheaper. But Tempflow uses high-quality American Foam to build a high-quality product. Tempflow is so sure about how the build their mattresses, the offer a LIFETIME warranty on them. A LIFETIME! That is quite a long period of time (unless you like to sky dive or bungee jump a lot). The fact that Relief Mart—who is an industry leader in pain relief, comfort management, and memory foam products—carries Tempflow mattresses also gave me piece of mind about the product as well.
I admit that at first, I was incredibly skeptical about replacing my old mattress with any ‘new’ mattress. But I had to eat humble pie this time, because the Tempflow mattress was one of the most comfortable mattresses I have ever slept on. If you don’t believe me, try it for yourself. Be warned though—you will fall in love with this mattress!
My Wife Loves Her Tempflow Mattress!
Ken
My review of the tempflow mattress:
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TEMPFLOW
The following is my review of the Cal King Tempflow Salene mattress that I purchased in January 2012. Before purchasing the Tempflow Salene I also considered the Serta Icomfort (Genius), the Temperpedic (Cloud) and Tempflow Harmonia. The main reason I purchased a Tempflow over the more well known competitors was the claim that their product keeps you cooler than traditional open cell memory foam, has no VOC’s (more on that later) it is made ENTIRELY in the U.S.A, 120 night REFUND (not Replacement) policy, quality of materials used, and it didn’t have a “sinking” feeling like the Serta did. We chose the Salene over the Harmonia because it was a little firmer.
Difference from Showroom:
Most memory foam mattresses will feel different at home than at the showroom .This is due to the store mattresses being broken in by all of the people that have tried it out. That’s why most have a 60 night policy before you can return it. It has taken about 6 months but it now feels more like the one my wife and I tested on the showroom floor. The tempflow requires rotation which the others didn’t.
Ventilation- I am a hot sleeper and the ventilation of the mattress was very important to me. The ventilation on the Salene works as claimed. Tempflow has a patented air flow system that has air channel layers between the base and support layers as well as small ventilation holes in the top and sides of the mattress. The mattress is covered entirely in a removable bamboo covering (ticking) which allows it to breath. Both Temperpedic and Serta also have air channels built in but no ventilation on the sides and top of the mattress which I believe would trap the heat in the mattress. Besides how a mattress is constructed heat buildup in the foam is also dependent on the mattress protector, sheets and covers that are used. I wanted to protect my investment as well as make it easy to clean and not have to always remove the bamboo covering. I tested two protectors one which didn’t work as advertised (by a company called Luna) and the other sold by Relief Mart (the maker of this mattress) which is a natural organic cotton protector. This cotton protector worked as advertised and did not heat up.
Warranty- Read warranties carefully most are worthless marketing gimmicks. Tempflow’s warranty is 40 years (but it is pro-rated after 11 years) that is the longest I have seen for a memory foam mattress. You do have to rotate this mattress as instructed for the warranty to stay in effect. I don’t expect to keep mine for 40 years, but hopefully I won’t have to test the warranty after a few years.
VOC’s/Off gassing- Tempflow advertises that the foam they use has no volatile organic compounds which are chemicals such as PBDE, TDI, Boric Acid and Bromine. Not stuff that you really want to breathe in every night. They also state that the adhesives and fire retardant used in their mattress do not contain any noxious chemicals such as ammonia or formaldehyde. When I asked sales people about if their beds contained these most had no clue what I was talking about and the salesmen that did know were selling “organic beds” at 2 times the price with no return policy! All memory foam will have some type of smell when you get it in your house since it is usually packaged in plastic which does not allow it to breath. The question is how long will that smell stay around, what chemicals will you constantly be breathing and absorbing into your body, and what long term health effects will that have?
Upon delivery after it was taken out of its plastic covering (it’s delivered in its full size not in some small box) we did notice an odor. The odor was significantly less than when we had a gel memory foam topper we bought at Costco for our last bed. Since there are no VOC’s I was not worried about the odor. The odor did linger for about two weeks but my wife who is more sensitive to smells noticed it for a longer period of time. It was not an over whelming odor like I have had some friends tell me they had with their Icomforts or Temperpedics. The smell also did not cause my wife or I to have headaches as some have complained of with other brands (Google headaches and temperpedic’s also try the same search with Serta Icomfort) .
Construction/Quality of foam- The Salene uses 5lb density memory foam which they call a biogreen foam. Their website says this foam is environmentally friendly. They also use a 5lb HR poly support foam underneath for support. This is important because some people just look at the density of the foam in the first layer but the support layer is what will make your mattress stand up over time. 4 lb foam for a support layer will break down over time. With the Icomforts it’s hard to figure out the exact density because of the gel beads used. I was told tempurpedic also uses 5lb foam. Both the Tempflow and tempurpedic’s are heavy this is probably because of the foam density. With Tempflow you can even customize your mattress if you wish.
Made in the USA-The entire Tempflow mattress (including the ticking) is made AND assembled in the U.S. Some other brands will only guarantee that the top layer of foam is made in the U.S.A, not the entire mattress, adhesives and ticking. If the foam is made in another country, assembled with glues from that country or have a ticking with chemical compounds there is no telling what is in it. This was a major selling point for me.
Availability- Since they don’t mass produce it takes a while to get your mattress. Our bed took about 6 weeks to arrive, we did order around the holidays but I have heard this is about average. You should be aware of this when you place your order. For me this was a major investment so I was willing to wait.
Customer Service –Customer Service is exceptional. They only have one location but they have been very helpful when responding to my e-mails and phone calls. I have even had responses from the owner of the company! I also am lucky enough to live in the Los Angeles area so I have stopped in on two occasions. I would recommend calling first because they do most of their business by the internet and have a very small showroom and their staff has to walk over from the sales office to the showroom. The negative to their showroom besides the size is that all the beds in the showroom are twin size and not all their product lines are displayed, such as their latex model and select a bed lineup .Because I didn’t want a foundation I also needed a bunky board and Tempflow made one just for me! Ask Serta or Temperpedic to do that!
Price-. I was able to work out a good price that included delivery, a bunky board, and two pillows. I didn’t want a foundation. The Salene was a few hundred more than the Serta Icomfort Genius and a little less expensive than the Tempurpedic cloud line. Tempflow has a sister company Select-a-bed which may offer better prices but a differently constructed product. I believe Tempflow offers a quality product at a reasonable price.
So after 7 months am I still satisfied?
Yes, I think it’s a good product and a better product than both the Temperpedic and Serta. In fact it’s better than most of the brands I saw at the large mattress stores (and I saw a lot!). When I meet people that tell me they bought a Temperpedic or Serta I ask them why and what did they look for in a bed. Most bought based on how the bed felt at the store and what the salesman told them they should buy, most likely what gave the salesman the most commission or the store was trying to push. Then I tell them I did a lot of research and why I think the Tempflow is a better mattress and as well as my experiences with Relief Mart. I think those people will be looking at Tempflow in the future. I highly recommend Relief mart and this mattress as well as the organic cotton protector.
Sharon Rasch
Prissy writeup Corey, that was utile info, makes me deprivation to buy one. me and the fam are in the market for a new mattress. Ample to see pics of the clan. Thanks!
Matt
Nice writeup Corey, that was useful info, makes me want to buy one. me and the fam are in the market for a new mattress. Good to see pics of the family. Thanks!
Isabelle Lussier
I want to review one of these – in the King Size format….
Sweet product to review.
Corey Grant
Hi Butterbean~
Thanks for the kind words. Luckily, Relief Mart gave me the mattress, because if they had asked for it back, I don’t know if I could have parted with it.
They do make a special Tempflow Mattress for RVs. We are still humble tent campers at this point, so I didn’t get the RV Mattress, but I would recommend getting one for any RV you might have.
Hi Patti~
Yes, I would have to agree that my wife is adorable. I am a very lucky man.
butterbean carpenter
Howdy Corey,
Did you keep it after the trial?? Do they make the goofy-size for RVs?? You gave it a real good review
and wrote a good article about it.. Now go to bed !!!
Smooth roads, clear skies & balmy breezes !!!!!!!!!
Patti F.
What an adorable wife! Oh…and your blog is good, too!
Happy tales, Patti