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Bunk mattress is BUNK!

mrbreeze_az
Explorer
Explorer
We just picked up a Salem Ultra Light 261BHXL. We will be taking it out for our first trip soon. The bunk mattress is severely insufficient for sleeping on. I am concerned even for my 7 year old who barely weighs 60 lbs. What have you done to beef up the comfort? The size is 45 x 76 and not standard for a mattress. I am thinking about buying some foam from the fabric store and having DW sew a cover for it. Looking for suggestions. Thank you
2017 Forest River Salem Cruise Light 261 BHXL
2005 F-150 Crew Cab 4x4 Lariat
19 REPLIES 19

bukhrn
Explorer III
Explorer III
dodge guy wrote:
My kids and my FIL have never had any complaints about the bunk mattresses. A 7 year old can sleep anywhere!

Hey, its better than a sleeping bag in a tent!
True, I've literally seen kids sleep very well on rock, with no complaint what so ever.
Check with the kid first to see if he has any complaints.
2007 Forester 2941DS
2014 Ford Focus
Zamboni, Long Haired Mini Dachshund

mrbreeze_az
Explorer
Explorer
atreis wrote:
If you would rather have a good real mattress rather than adding a topper, take a look at these - truck bunk mattresses (Amazon). We went this route for the bunks, and they're quite comfortable.


These look good too. Thanks
2017 Forest River Salem Cruise Light 261 BHXL
2005 F-150 Crew Cab 4x4 Lariat

dodge_guy
Explorer II
Explorer II
My kids and my FIL have never had any complaints about the bunk mattresses. A 7 year old can sleep anywhere!

Hey, its better than a sleeping bag in a tent!
Wife Kim
Son Brandon 17yrs
Daughter Marissa 16yrs
Dog Bailey

12 Forest River Georgetown 350TS Hellwig sway bars, BlueOx TrueCenter stabilizer

13 Ford Explorer Roadmaster Stowmaster 5000, VIP Tow>
A bad day camping is
better than a good day at work!

westend
Explorer
Explorer
I replaced all my cushions and mattresses a few years ago. They were all replaced with 4" firm foam. The Grandkids sleep like angels on the bunk mattresses. I bought the foam at a local upholstery supply house. The foam is easy to cut and glue together with 3M spray adhesive.
'03 F-250 4x4 CC
'71 Starcraft Wanderstar -- The Cowboy/Hilton

Tvov
Explorer II
Explorer II
A Walmart near you may carry memory foam "toppers". We have a 2" one in our TT. As previously mentioned, just get one that is a little large and cut it to fit. Don't get less than 2 inches - the thicker you get, the better.

Our upper bunk's "mattress" is basically rock hard. I realized years ago that it is the same foam that is used for the dinette seating, harder foam than a "normal" mattress would be. Even so, our kids were fine on that mattress for years.
_________________________________________________________
2021 F150 2.7
2004 21' Forest River Surveyor

atreis
Explorer
Explorer
If you would rather have a good real mattress rather than adding a topper, take a look at these - truck bunk mattresses (Amazon). We went this route for the bunks, and they're quite comfortable.
2021 Four Winds 26B on Chevy 4500

BizmarksMom
Explorer
Explorer
mrbreeze az wrote:
Memory foam it is!
Ill start looking for suppliers in the area. I'm hoping the stock mattress cover is zippered and 3" will fit in it. Won't know until I get to storage again this weekend. Likely do both bunks and maybe the queen mattress. Will see after the first trip out. Thanks everyone

My mattress cover is a regular elastic sided one. It works fine for covering both the topper and mattress.

Only issue I had was that the topper would slip a bit on top of the mattress, especially when I needed to get to the under bed storage. A few velcro strips between the topper and mattress fixed it.
2019 F350 towing a Nash 22H

K3WE
Explorer
Explorer
Two comments:

1) As most have said, adding a foam top greatly improves things.

2) Don't forget that some of us got campers because it is a big upgrade from a sleeping bag in a tent (on cold rainy nights). Just a little perspective.

DrewE
Explorer II
Explorer II
Good luck with your quest.

You'll definitely want to let the new foam air out for awhile (maybe a week in someplace with at least a little ventilation) before sleeping on it.

mrbreeze_az
Explorer
Explorer
Memory foam it is!
Ill start looking for suppliers in the area. I'm hoping the stock mattress cover is zippered and 3" will fit in it. Won't know until I get to storage again this weekend. Likely do both bunks and maybe the queen mattress. Will see after the first trip out. Thanks everyone
2017 Forest River Salem Cruise Light 261 BHXL
2005 F-150 Crew Cab 4x4 Lariat

Helmsey
Explorer
Explorer
We have a great "foam rubber outlet" downtown that will custom cut any size foam for you. I went down had had them cut a 3" firm foam and 1" soft foam to go on top of it and have replaced the "mattress" that came with our camper.
KK4PFX
2015 Chevy 3500HD LTZ Dually
2013 Sandpiper 365SAQ

WTP-GC
Explorer
Explorer
Here ya go:

Foam Factory

I replaced all 3 mattresses (2 bunk and 1 full size) in our previous TT. And we've replaced all 3 bunk mattresses in our current 5er. Get a standard size and cut it to fit.
Duramax + Grand Design 5er + B & W Companion
SBGTF

Nicholsfamily05
Explorer
Explorer
We went on EBay and purchased a memory foam block. Was about the size of a queen mattress and was 5 inches thick. The kids loved it and slept so great on it.

Forgot to say we cut it to fit where we wanted it. And had enough left over so if we wanted it thicker we could have cut more
2016 Ram 3500 4x4 Big Horn Crew Cab, SRW. Cummins Turbo Diesel Automatic 68RFE Trans
50 gallon diesel Transfer Flow tank with the Traxx 3 system.
2017 Sierra FLIK 5th Wheel
42' Front Livingroom, 15K
Hydraulic level up system

Bumpyroad
Explorer
Explorer
it would be easy to buy a second mattress from the factory and just double up if foam doesn 't work.
bumpy