F.A.Q

Even though they’re both latex, there are significant differences between our Talalay latex and Dunlop latex. They’re manufactured using different processes; it takes 14 hours to make a Talalay latex mattress core, but less than one hour to make a Dunlop mattress core.

But the most important differences are benefits to you. Here are six ways Talalay latex better serves you:

1. Breathability
   Talalay latex is FOUR TIMES more breathable than Dunlop Process latex. Why? Talalay latex is aerated and has a large cell structure. Dunlop latex is denser latex and has a small cell structure.
2. Pressure Relief
   Talalay latex is 33% more pressure relieving than Dunlop latex. Why? The vacuum process used in making Talalay latex allows for the latex to stretch like a rubber band so it conforms to your body. Dunlop latex is a poured process that creates latex which is less flexible. The rubber is more like the rubber in an eraser.
3. Durability
   Talalay latex is THREE TIMES more resilient than Dunlop latex. Why? The Talalay latex process creates a round cell structure. As the latex is compressed, a round cell structure does not break itself down. The Dunlop Process creates a snowflake cell structure. As you might imagine, as you compress a snowflake cell structure, the material breaks down.
4. Consistency
   Talalay latex is the same feel from top to bottom and consistent from side to side. Dunlop process latex is softer on top and firmer on the bottom. Why? The Talalay process uses flash freezing that prevents the particles from settling after curing. Because there is no freezing in the Dunlop process, particles setting in the latex during curing creating firmness on the bottom.
5. Clean
   Talalay latex can wash out more proteins (which is a primary cause of latex allergies) than Dunlop latex. Why? The Talalay latex process uses a five-stage fresh water rinse process.
6. Support
   Talalay latex provides not only pressure relief, but also support. Why? Talalay latex is a two dimensional material. It offers support and pressure relief. Dunlop Process latex is a one-dimensional material. It primarily offers pressure relief similar to foam.

Both Talalay latex and Memory Foam are marketed as the premium mattress materials, but they are very different.

• Talalay latex is a rubber. Memory Foam is a foam, which doesn’t provide both support and pressure relief.
• Talalay latex rubber is a natural material derived from the rubber tree. Memory foam is a synthetic material and is a petroleum-based product.
• Talalay latex rubber has a breathable design and cell structure that provides a temperature neutral environment. Memory foam is a dense material, which needs heat to activate its pressure relieving quality. It usually sleeps warmer.
• You “sleep on” Talalay latex rubber and it has an uplifting effect. You “sleep in” memory foam which provides a “sinking” effect.
• Talalay latex rubber is two dimensional material. It is both supportive by being uplifting and is also pressure relieving. Most memory foam mattresses use memory foam in the pressure relief layer and traditional poly foam in the support layer.
• Talalay latex rubber is “bottomless.” Even when you lay on your side, your body does not “bottom out” into a hard layer in the mattress or on the foundation. Memory foam allows you to bottom out onto what is underneath it.
• Talalay latex rubber is a fast response material. When you move, it immediately responds to your new position. Memory foam is a slow response material.
• Talalay latex rubber is hypoallergenic and does not off-gas. Memory foam is a petroleum-based product.
• Talalay latex rubber is extremely durable. Because it is vulcanized, it is the most resilient material available in a mattress.
• Talalay latex rubber is inherently antibacterial and antifungal.

The difference is in the chemicals. Many mattress adhesives contain a variety of toxic chemicals. Solvent-based mattress adhesives are filled with 48 toxic chemicals and foam has an additional 7. A Talalay latex mattress is just that, 100% Talalay. Our beds are made with water-based adhesives and contain 6 non-toxic chemicals (acrylate resins, diphenyl diisocyanate, Phenol-melamine resins, Phenol-urea, Polyvinyl acetate and waxes styrene- butadiene copolymer) and 3 natural materials (fats, hevea brasiliensis milk, and water.)

You spend about 1/3 of your year in bed, so it’s important to know what you’re sleeping on.

Our Talalay latex Products are Oeko-Tex certified, Class I. Our Talalay is manufactured in Shelton, CT.

Oeko-Tex Association is an independent, third-party certifier. Oeko-Tex certification is widely recognized in most of Europe. It’s awareness in the United States is rising.

The Oeko-Tex 100 standard is concerned primarily with health and safety of textile products.

Textiles considered for this standard are classified into four categories listed below. Our Talalay latex is certified for Class I.

Product Classes

• Product Class I: Products for Babies – all textile products and materials used to manufacture such textile products for children up to the age of 36 months (leather clothing is excepted)
• Product Class II: Products with Direct Contact to Skin – worn articles of which a large surface touches the skin (i.e. underwear, shirts, pants)
• Product Class III: Products without Direct Contact to Skin – articles of which only a small part of their surface touches the skin (i.e. linings, stuffings)
• Product Class IV: Decoration Material – this may also be thought of as housewares, as this category includes table cloths, wall coverings, furnishing fabrics, curtains, upholstery fabrics, floor coverings, and mattresses.

 

Textile products bearing the Oeko-Tex 100 certification mark are:

• Textiles that do not contain allergenic dye-stuffs and dye stuffs that form carcinogenic arylamines of the MAK-groups III A1 and III A2 (see the Oeko-Tex website for a list of chemicals included in these groups).
• Textiles that had been tested for pesticides and chlorinated phenoles.
• Textiles that have been tested for the release of heavy metals under artificial perspiration conditions.
• Textiles free from formaldehyde or containing trace amounts significantly lower than the required legal limits.
• Textiles with a skin friendly pH.
• Textiles free from chloro-organic carriers.
• Textiles for garments free from biologically active finishes.

The manufacturing process does not use solvents and does not damage the ozone layer. Talalay Global’s Talalay latex is certified by Oeko-Tex (Europe’s highest environmental consumer product standard) to be free of harmful substances or chemicals.

• Talalay latex rubber is made using an eco-friendly production method.
  The Talalay process features natural, biodegradable ingredients that come from renewable resources and water-based raw materials: natural latex, air and water. Latex is a rubber-based material that comes from the tropical hevea brasiliensis tree. These trees have a 25-year productive life and they have a strong effect on the environment as they quickly absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and help reduce greenhouse emissions.
• Talalay latex rubber is made with energy and water conservation in mind.
  • Energy: Talalay Global’s manufacturing automation optimizes energy usage for the molding stage (freezing and vulcanization portion) of the Talalay process. The state of the art factory in Shelton, CT, USA also features energy efficient lighting.
  • Water: Talalay Global has engineered its multi-stage washer to minimize the amount of water consumed.

1. It offers “bottomless” pressure relief for your body. Whether you are on your back or side, you will have less pressure on more inches of Talalay latex. Did you know when you lay on your side, your shoulders and hips have 7 times more pressure on them than when you lay on your back? Pressure relief is important to your muscles and it keeps the blood flowing to your extremities so you don’t have numb fingers, hands and arms. But more importantly, your body responds to pressure by moving during the night which will likely lessen the quality of your sleep.
2. It offers “uplifting” support for your body.Your body needs support. It needs it for ideal body alignment and ideal spinal alignment. The benefit of good support is good posture. We love the phrase, better posture at night equals better posture during the day. Talalay latex offers an effect that is not found with traditional bedding materials. Talalay latex is uplifting and it is also pressure relieving. All other materials in a mattress are either one or the other, but not both. Most people think they need a firm bed, but that is only partially true. They need a bed with strong support, but they also need a bed that offers pressure relief on top of that. Firm on the bottom and soft on top is probably a more ideal formula.
3. It offers a “resilient” natural rubber construction.Most people want a mattress to last a long time. It is a big investment. Simply put, you can buy an $1,000 mattress three times over the years or you can buy one $3,000 mattress and have it last 15 years. Talalay latex is incredibly resilient. The easiest way to understand that Talalay latex lasts longer is to understand that Talalay latex is a rubber not a poly foam. Rubber is more resilient. It’s the nature of the material.
4. It is Healthy By Design

• It is naturally breathable so it dissipates body heat
• It is naturally mold and mildew resistant so it may help your sneezing and wheezing
• It is naturally dust mite resistant if you have asthma
• It is inherently antibacterial and antifungal
• It is naturally hypoallergenic so it doesn’t off-gas
• It is naturally motion isolating so you will feel less of your partners movement