AT reader Rich wrote us asking: "Can you tell me how to make my own memory foam mattress?".
Constructing a DIY memory foam mattress requires a high resiliency foam (known as HR foam) with a density rating of 2.5 - 3lb/ft³ with an indentation load deflection of 26lbs or 31lbs according to Healthy Foundations, a memory foam specialist.
You can follow the materials formula and resources under the cut to create your own budget Tempur-pedic memory foam mattress...
The Nobot made his own memory foam mattress using the following materials from wholesale memory foam dealers:
From top to the bottom layer:
Total price, shipped, was less than $450.
As you can see, memory foam density is a highly subjective choice, as some may prefer a higher density, while another may prefer a cushier ride. Your best bet is to contact a foam dealer for small square samples to get an idea of each density rating and create a mattress accordingly. And if you don't like it, you can always use the memory foam for other projects.
*we'd like to note we dropped by our local Target and noticed starting Monday all the way through Saturday, Target is having a sale on all their memory foam products.
© 2009 Apartment Therapy
I bought me a cheap memory foam knock-off from eBay for $200. Love it. Even if it falls apart...at that price, I can just get another one. ;)
view Nevanna's profile
I just purchased a cheap-o full sized one at Target over the weekend for $27.00. It may not last forever, but it is incredibly comfortable and feels better than the higher priced one I considered purchasing from Macy's.
view twenty twenty-one's profile
i just recently bought a 3 inch serta memory foam mattress topper from overstock.com for 120 bucks shipped and it came with 2 free memory foam pillows too.
its my opinion that 3 inches is thick enough to make your crappy mattress feel like its brand new and will save you a fortune compared to the alternatives.
a tip: every size is the same cost, so when ordering, get a california king and cut it to fit your mattress and use the left over for some other project.
a dog bed?
pillows?
whatever.
view quidproquo's profile
i love the inexpensive one that i got from Costco!
view MoxyThunder's profile
I made my own, too! Tempur-Pedic doesn't have a patent on visco-elastic NASA foam (they went the "trade secret" route), so it's pretty easy to find their exact density specifications with a few determined Google searches.
The important thing is to have a firm core, like latex, since you sink into memory foam - that's why the toppers work so well as a quick fix (although you're still subjecting your back to metal coils and potentially toxic fillers, so ultimately, you're not getting the full experience).
While I ended up using a local foam wholesaler, this site was invaluable: http://www.foamorder.com/
view firecracker's profile
Seriously, you're not going to do better than IKEA. I bought their foam mattress for my weekend cabin because a regular mattress wouldnt fit in my car (the foam ones roll up), and after a few months gave away my relatively new W Hotel mattress in my regular house and replaced it w the IKEA. So nice. You can use their foam mattress topper too for extra comfort. I cant remember the price but they arent that expensive -- cheaper than this DIY I think...
view greeps's profile
I ended up doing something very similar to firecracker - made my own on the cheap with a memory foam topper with similar specs, and an IKEA base foam layer.
I've got a website up about it for those who are interested: http://www.gmilburn.ca/memoryfoam/
view gmilburn's profile