The Convoluted Foam Airflow Layer Story
“We have taken the trouble to include convoluted foam layers in the base of this bed to increase air flow and keep you from getting too warm.”
Most people grew up sleeping on an innerspring mattress. Foam beds have become common only recently.
Foam mattresses are usually a little warmer than what most people are used to in an innerspring mattress because the layer of foam is thicker. An innerspring mattress with 2-3 inches of foam on top of the springs is going to be cooler than an 8-12 inch, all foam mattress. The springs truly create an airflow layer. In fact, they can be too cold in the winter.
Sometimes when people first switch to a foam mattress from an innerspring bed, they notice the difference in warmth. Most people like the warmth, but a few have to adjust the amount of covers they use at night to get comfortable.
Mattress fabricators and retailers have been looking for a way to keep foam beds as cool as possible. One thing they have tried is to use layers of foam with convolution or channels cut into them. The idea is that it will allow air to circulate along through the open spaces, replacing warm air near your body with cooler air from outside the mattress.I don’t believe the convoluted airflow story for a few of reasons.
First, used in a lamented (glued together) bed, the convoluted bumps will be flattened down when glued, effectively creating a flat, not convoluted layer.
On the outside of the mattress, it still looks convoluted because the fabricators very carefully avoid gluing the edge of the bed. I’ve seen a cross section cut from the middle of a convoluted layer bed, and there were no airflow channels.
Second, even if the airflow layer was not glued (as in a component bed), I don’t believe the convolutions or channels would circulate a significant amount of air (if any at all). The sides of the bed, where the outside air would be pulled into the mattress are covered first by the mattress cover, then by the sheets, then by the blankets, comforter, etc. How will air circulate past that? Certainly it’s not an ideal ventilation system.
Third, I’ve never seen an airflow study presented to show the efficacy of a convoluted airflow layer in a mattress. One could be be done. In fact, there is an airflow study that is commonly done to check the airflow of open cell foam.
I suspect that an airflow study would show a convoluted or channeled foam layer to be merely a fanciful tale.
