Forum Discussion

cbowie1964's avatar
cbowie1964
Explorer
Jun 03, 2019

How to add support to my Short Queen?

We have our brand new Jayco Jay Flight SLX 8 212QBW.
You can use the link to see the floor plan.
https://www.jayco.com/products/travel-trailers/2019-jay-flight-slx-8-west/212qbw/

The bed is an island short queet. Underneath the bed is the bow storage. By lifting the foot of the bed it will hinge upward and hold by two pistons so you can access the bow storage from inside. Kind of neat.

We are complete newbies and are slowly trying out all the features while it's parked in the driveway so we figure out any major problems before hitting the road.

Recently we slept for the first time in the trailer. No surprise we find the mattress on a board is just too uncomfortable. I've ordered a 4" topper to try and solve that.

My issue I'm trying to address next is the board used under the mattress is a single plank of composite wood. There is no support structure other than the 2" frame of the cabinet/storage area under the bed.

With both my wife and I on the bed there were a couple "pops" in the night from the wood. I did inspect it in the morning and there were no obvious splits or cracks but it drives me to ask how I could reinforce this.

My problem is just putting in a thicker piece of would will likely exceed the lift capacity of the pistons that hold up the bed.

I'm imagining something under the wood on the frame to create support would be the best approach but I'm looking for suggestions.

Has anyone dealt with this issue and what did you find successful?

19 Replies

  • Boomerweps wrote:
    Forget the topper. Just get a new Zinus short queen via Amazon.


    Great advice! We did this with the 10" Zinus. Best investment we've done. Do this.
  • MURPHY55347 wrote:
    Take 3 or 4 2x2's and run them the length of the bed and screw them down from the top.


    Actually, the 2x2's should be put both lengthwise and crosswise because there is flex in both directions. Placing the partition between the under-bed storage area and the pass-thru storage will provide at least part of the cross bracing needed.
  • I took out the short queen and put in new 5/8 plywood for a full queen. I put in a memory foam mattress from amazon. (Dont open the mattress until in the trailer - it is much easier to handle while it is still vacuum sealed in the box.) I use a prop rod to support the deck while it is in the up position. Full size queen with better mattress has been way better! Longer mattress cut down on some walk around length but it did fit.
  • I modified the bed in my Forest River. I took out the original king torture device and threw out the platform. I built a new platform out of 5/8 plywood and put in a high quality queen bed.

    As others have said you can reinforce the chip board with 1x2 or 2x2. The mattress is a lost cause.

    I have bought several new RV'S and have never left a dealers lot with the factory mattress.
  • MURPHY55347 wrote:
    Take 3 or 4 2x2's and run them the length of the bed and screw them down from the top.
    I would say, wood glue and then screws.
  • Take 3 or 4 2x2's and run them the length of the bed and screw them down from the top.
  • I would cut a piece of 1/2 ply and put it on top of the original wood. Or remove the original wood and replace with 1/2 or 5/8 plywood. I doubt you'll overload the original lift supports. If you do overload them they don't break, they just let the bed lower back down. You can buy stronger lift springs on Amazon as well.
  • That is a common problem in the Jayco. You can add ribbing to the underside to strengthen it up and you can add a partition where the pass-through storage area meets the under bed space. Go the Jayco forum where you will find info on the subject: Underbed Partition