Bed Mat Base

[egarant]

I want to start off first by thanking FORD for making their bed sides/rails higher than most, certainly higher than my pervious RAM, necessitating me raising the camper in the bed of the truck.

I did search and read PAGES of info on different methods…I think I have settled on the plywood, high compression foam, bed mat solution.

My question or observation is, using the above method, I didn’t see a recommendation that a sheet of plywood be first put on the truck bed floor as it is not completely flat, before putting the foam board down.

So plywood/foam board/plywood/bed mat…..a foam board sandwich screwed together, that seems more logical then letting the bottom of the foam board get destroyed on the unevenness of the truck bed.

Or is making a 2x4 frame with the foam in the middle with the bed mat on top the better way to go?

What do you think?

[srschang]

Our 2019 Northstar came with 3 2x4s running from front to back. That's all that contacts the rubber mat I have in the bed of the truck. The "Floor Joists" appear to be 3/4" Trex. The 3 main "Beams" which are doubled 3/4" Trex run front to rear above the 2x4s. Then the 'Joists' run between the "Beams" from driver side to passenger side of the camper. There is 2" pink foamboard insulation glued to the floor of the camper between the 'Joists'. If I needed to raise the camper higher, it would be easy to add 3 more 2x4s to the bottom of the existing 2x4s.

[Camper_Jeff___K]

As 2 or 3 people may have noticed,I just made a 2x4 frame with a pink foam center, replacing the 5/4x6 frame with 1 inch foam center I had used for several years. The frame supports the weight of the TC and the foam basically insulates the basement. The foam never showed signs of sinking into the bed sheet metal. I made the new frame to get additional height so I could slide my rear deck in without interference from the bumper. I also wanted more clearance over the cab roof. There were a couple additional things I wanted to add to the new design, I'll call them improvements. We've been on the road about 10 days with the new bed lift setup and it does work better than the old one keeping the TC aligned and centered straight. This frame and foam is not too heavy. Weight always being a consideration. This setup is working well for me. I have no need for a bed Matt. There are many ways to achieve the desired amount of lift and stability. Whatever works for you is the answer.

[StirCrazy]

egarant wrote:
I want to start off first by thanking FORD for making their bed sides/rails higher than most, certainly higher than my pervious RAM, necessitating me raising the camper in the bed of the truck.

how old was your dodge, they all have changed now just ford. I use a 2x6 lattice frame as I have to raise my old slumber queen 3" so I have 2x6 that run the length of the bed, then cross supports. I am going to be permanently attaching this with some insulation to the camper this spring if we decide we are not upgrading to a newer one.

[Killingsworth]

On mine I have a bed mat (black rubber) and a sheet of 1 1/4 foam insulation board. Thats it. Light weight, never a problem with camper movement, and its inexpensive. I have had this set up for the past 3 years, if the insulation board compresses or anything else happens to it, I'll just get another one from Home Depot.
2006 F350 and a 2002 Lance 1130

[egarant]

I think the belly of the camper should have something under it, like the foam, and it is the lightest of the components. I like the bed mat as the final top piece as it levels everything out and is non slip.

[Grit_dog]

Or what Eric said in one sentence.

[Grit_dog]

I haven’t had to do either method.
But either will work just fine IMO. I think the biggest thing is to keep whatever method you use to build up from being able to shift or move around.
To that end, I’ve thought about it if I had to do this and I’d seriously consider attaching the plywood foam sandwich or frame to the bottom of the camper itself.
In years of owning older campers I’ve only had to get into the bottom of one, once. Water tank supports finally cut loose from being used off the truck with full tanks and only sitting on the jacks.
To my thought above, if ya did it right, the buildup attached to the bottom of the camper would not only be more convenient for loading/unloading but could also easily be designed to provide additional support to the belly and still be removable.
And unless you already have or want a rubber bed mat in the truck bed, you could attach the mat to the bottom of the camper as well and the whole mess just stays with the camper.

[EricCO]

How about just the 2x4 frame, but secure it to the bottom of the camper. Then you can leave out the foam and bed matt?