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Is natural rubber the same as latex?
1) Is natural rubber the same as latex?
Latex is the raw material, the white protective sap of the rubber tree.
The sap consists of a white dispersion of rubber, water, proteins, sugar, ash, dirt and other impurities.
Natural Rubber (NR) is a component of the latex sap.
Rubber is the product which remains after the latex dried out.
However, most of us use the words "latex" and "rubber" interchangeably thus the confusion.
2) My daughter has severe eczema and we are never sure the cause and I am worried about potential allergic reaction to latex/ wool in mattresses. What are your thoughts on this? At the same time, I want to get her a natural mattress.
If you are concerned with wool / latex related allergies, one option is to consider Naturepedic's 2 for 1 Ultra mattresses - made with innerspring coils and with organic cotton, they are Greenguard certified but contain food grade polyethylene to provide waterproof layer - if you want a completely organic option, try our Organic Lifestyle Exclusive mattresses - they do contain organic wool (as it acts as a natural fire retardant) - however, we could provide test natural rubber with organic cotton samples that your daughter could place under her arm and sleep with overnight to gauge her sensitivity to the mattress itself.
There are pros and cons with the 3 types of mattresses we carry.
Here is a link to a comparison chart that might be useful to see the differences and allowing you to make a decision based on what is important to you.
3) If we buy the foundation with the mattress, does it need to be elevated on a bed or is the foundation enough. We would like it as low to the ground as possible.
It depends on the mattress. If it's the natural rubber mattress, then you will need to ensure that the rubber mattress can properly ventilate to reduce the mildew / air stagnation with the open rubber cells. We recommend a slat foundation (each slat about 2" apart) on top of the bedframe, elevated off the ground. If you have a platform bed, you can drill holes the size of a loonie to ensure ventilation. De facto standard is 7.5" slat foundation but 4.5" foundation can be custom ordered on request.
If it's innerspring mattress, ventilation of the foundation is not required. However, we recommend that you monitor the mattress for any potential development of mildew.
Summary:
Path of least worry (zero/reduced potential exposure to latex/wool allergy) and not concerned about potential off-gassing of food-grade waterproof plastic - Recommend Naturepedic
If concerned over plastic in the bed - go with Organic Lifestyle's innerspring mattress.
If you have dust-mite allergy concerns - consider rubber mattress but get test sample kit prior to purchase.
4) What's the difference between the twin and twin XL sizes? Does one size fit better with twin beds in general?
Twin XL is 5" longer than twin mattresses.
Twin XL is 39" x 80"
Twin is 39" x 75"
Customers typically by one or the other depending on their existing bedframes eg., bunk beds, crib / toddler converter beds etc.
We sell bed linens for both Twin and Twin XL. However, Twin sizes are much more easily available.
What is a mattress topper and can I use it with my existing mattress?
A topper (aka pillowtop) is made out of the same material as our mattresses. [ Details]. The main difference is that the topper is 2" thick versus the mattress is 6" thick.
Some reasons why Customers buy a topper:
1. To provide additional comfort to the mattress, making it feel even softer - eg., the wool topper and natural rubber mattress combination has been described by many as "sleeping on a cloud". BTW in this combination, you are sleeping on 8" of "cloud"
2. To essentially provide an organic barrier between themselves and their existing (typically non-organic) mattress - they can rest assured at night knowing that they are sleeping directly on an organic topper. This is also a cost effective option.
3. If you're already purchased a topper and ready to upgrade to a new organic mattress, you can always use your topper as a spare bed for the cottage, camping or on top of your new mattress (see #1).
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