Gel mattress

One of the most recent innovations in mattress construction is the use of a gel cushioning layer. This material is often seen in orthopedic and orthotic shoe insoles and therefore it has a proven track record in high use and high load application personal products.

What does the gel do

The gel is usually positioned at the top of the mattress, i.e. immediately below the surface, and it works in a similar way to visco elastic memory foam and Latex by providing a soft moulding layer that contours around the shapes and bumps of the human body.

The gel is not a liquid, but a moulded and highly flexible material that is typically produced in a box like construction that lays horizontally on top of another mattress material.

The advantages of Gel

With so many different reflex and shaping materials now available in mattress construction it is difficult to decide which is the best one, or which combination provides for the best supportive mix.

The advantage of gel is that it is usually manufactured in a box or honeycomb structure for use in mattress applications. This profile, combined with the intrinsic cool properties of the gel, mean that this material offers the best "sleep cool" characteristics of any current mattress product. The gel has high air circulating properties and a natural cool feel.

Cheap memory foam has the potential to get very warm which, whilst some may see as an advantage, others find disruptive to their sleep. (The more expensive memory foam beds use advanced combinations of foam and mattress ventilation systems that avoid this.)

Latex is cooler and also more springier than memory foam, but even so gel appears to offer the perfect combination of body contouring, a cool performance (i.e. it will never be warmer than the human body), and it is also claimed to offer a mild massage sensation which results from the internal profile of the gel’s nested box like construction.

Conclusion

All told gel would seem to offer a near perfect sleep solution with the single disadvantage that gel beds are expensive, new to the market, and comparatively untested in the real world.

All gel beds will, in effect, be composite beds that include other materials beneath the gel moulding layer. Current options see gel with memory and reflex foams, gel with springs and gel with springs and memory foam.

I myself have recently purchased a bed that mixes pocket springs, memory foam and gel and I will offer some feedback here once I have had a sufficient time to adapt to it, assess it and make some kind of judgement as to it sleeping properties.

Having spent a significant amount of money on the bed I hope my conclusions prove positive!