I was wondering about a REAL mattress

[Monica M]

I was wondering if anyone has found a way to put a real mattress in a Scamp? I just cannot get my bed to be comfortable and that little board under it is driving me nuts (actually, the one that came with it broke, had to replace with plywood). I have a 3" memory foam, but it isn't really helping, a "real" mattress would be great, any ideas? Thanks in advance for any advice or suggestions...MM

[Joy A]

Monica,

I've known of people having a mattress made for their trailer. Southern Mattress Co.
Contact them, they must have the dimensions for a Scamp with the rounded corners. Or, you could make a template and send it to them.

[peterh]

We bought a Queen-size 6" memory foam mattress (4" conventional foam + 2" of memory foam) from Sleepy Mountain on eBay for about $180. When it arrived I let it expand for a couple days, then made a 5' wide ("queen" size width) cardboard template of our Scamp 5er loft, transferred the arc of the walls to the memory foam using a Sharpie marker, and carved the foam with an electric carving knife. We didn't use the mattress cover that came with, just a jersey sheet. Here's what it looked like just after I wrasled it into the loft space.





And now it's settled into place and the rest of the loft finished.

[Bobbie Mayer]

Can't help you with a Scamp, but I put a real mattress in my Campster and it is wonderful. Definitely worth doing- and cutting a memory foam mattress to fit is a good idea. I happened to have a three-quarter mattress just the right size for mine. Mine does make it hard to get to the storage under the seats especially since I also put a solid plywood board under the mattress (instead of the table top as the only space-filler) as this also made it more comfortable.

[Monica M]

Cool, thanks for the ideas. I will bookmark this page so keep them coming. Peter, thanks for this idea, foam is cutable and I think 4" of conventional foam would work better than my 3" of memory foam. My memory foam has already remembered me, so I have a big dent in it on one side.

Joy, will google Southern.

Bobbie, I know it has got to be much better than what I am dealing with now. As for the storage under the seats, I thought of that, but I have only gotten in there once in a year. Of course, as soon as I make it difficult to get into, then I will need to get into it all the time, just how life works I suppose...

[Raya]

Handcraft Mattress with also make custom-sized mattresses; they build them for boats (talk about odd shapes).

That said, I had one on a boat and I was not fond of it. For one thing, it was rather soft (but of course that part is subjective, and they may make firmer ones). But the main two reasons I did not like it were as follows:

1) It was very heavy, floppy, and bulky to move around. Such as when you want to get to the bins underneath, and/or when you want to air it out.

2) It absorbed moisture -- especially in the little "tapes" around the edges. So then it needed to be aired out (more often than foam). See #1 about how un-fun that was.

The "usual" berth cushions on a boat are made of high-quality foam of about 4" to 5" that is split into sections (but held captive by the hull, bulkheads, and/or a small "fiddle"). This way they are light and easy to handle, plus you can lift only one section to get to an under-berth compartment, and not the whole bed. They are also less heavy to move around, and seem to absorb less moisture.

(The Handcraft mattress was in sections too, so that is possible with a custom mattress, but they were still quite heavy. Weight in general was not an issue on the boat - like it may be in a camper - but it made them a pain to handle.)

Now, depending on where you camp and etc. your trailer may not be as damp as a boat, so #2 might not be a problem. And maybe you don't have compartments underneath that you want to access. And maybe you just want a "real" mattress I'm just relating my personal experience and opinions (which may be quirky).

Edit: Oh, I wanted to come back and add that if you are using the stock foam cushions for your bed, well, you can do a LOT better. A high-quality, dense foam will be a completely different world. I couldn't sleep on the stock foam for more than a couple of hours. A memory foam pad on top may give a nice feel, but it won't cure a bad base. And note that density does not equal firmness. Density is more about how much... foam.. .there is in the foam, if that makes sense. A high density foam could be soft, medium, or firm. It will also last a LONG time with no imprinting, sagging, or etc.

You may not like foam, but if you are using the stock foam, don't write off foam because of it.

One thing I like to do is order high-density foam in 1" thicknesses. Buying four 1" thicknesses is not any more costly than ordering one 4" thickness. This way you can get a few different firmnesses and then rotate them to get it just right. Or, at worst, maybe order one more 1" piece in a very firm or very soft if you find you need it, and tweak your bed to 5" (or etc.). The foam tends to stick together just fine, and with a cover on it, I have never found the need for gluing them together, although that is possible with a spray glue (you won't notice the glue).

Raya

[floyd]

I was wondering if anyone has found a way to put a real mattress in a Scamp? I just cannot get my bed to be comfortable and that little board under it is driving me nuts (actually, the one that came with it broke, had to replace with plywood). I have a 3" memory foam, but it isn't really helping, a "real" mattress would be great, any ideas? Thanks in advance for any advice or suggestions...MM

We have done just what peterh did only we ripped the seams on the cover on one side of a foam mattress, then cut the foam and resewed the cover after trimming the material to fit. It looked totally stock when finished. This was a standard fullsized foam mattress, If I remember it worked well placed over the stock cushions... very comfy.
OH I forgot to mention what a near perfect fit that a mattress from a fold out couch is.
It works great and many times it is free. We got one from a friend's couch which they were throwing out.. it still had the plastic on it, having never been used. They are of course far lighter and more flexible than a conventional mattress which allows you to flip it back to gain access to underbench storage. It is much more comfortable than when on the couch frame since it has much better flat support. Just another option!

[Perry J]

Cool, thanks for the ideas. I will bookmark this page so keep them coming. Peter, thanks for this idea, foam is cutable and I think 4" of conventional foam would work better than my 3" of memory foam. My memory foam has already remembered me, so I have a big dent in it on one side.

Joy, will google Southern.

Bobbie, I know it has got to be much better than what I am dealing with now. As for the storage under the seats, I thought of that, but I have only gotten in there once in a year. Of course, as soon as I make it difficult to get into, then I will need to get into it all the time, just how life works I suppose...

Monica, I'm lazy! I bought my 16' scamp to have a permanent bed.
I solved the access to the water tank shut off valve with a deck plate that's available at most any boat store.
On the other side I had to move the power cord hatch and the city water supply. Then I installed the storage access door.
I hope this helps if you need additional storage,
John

[william russell]

You might try this place...If you call them they can probably accommodate you in cutting a mattress to size. this is edited...and to shape
...I live 160 miles from them so I just drove over there and told them what I wanted. they have a "mattress room" which consists of MANY small mattresses of various density and thickness foams....soft, medium, firm regular foam, high quality foam, fast recovery memory foam, slow recovery memory foam....just about any combination you'd like. If you are close enough they will help you pick out the combination that feels best to you. If you have time to allow the memory foam to acclimatize (about 4 hours) they'll make the mattress while you wait, if not, they will ship the mattress. I had two 75" X 27" mattress made...2" medium base foam and 3" top layer of memory foam. I laid on their combination of mattresses to get this selection that felt best to me. I had a 54" X 75" mattress with the same foam combination but had them cut into 3 pieces, 54" X 25" each....this will accommodate easy moving and at the same time give me a full size bed....these three pieces are "captured" so they won't move on their own. The reason I picked 5" thickness is that my beds fold up against the wall and 5" is all the folded bed area can handle. By the way, they have a pretty good selection of covers for your mattress, to choose from.

Russell


http://foambymail.com/

[lindsay]

I've been dancing with this topic too. I'm still sorting through the various options but here are some I'm considering:

(1) Thanks for all the new sources for ordering foam mattresses. Foamsource.com has a good website with lots of information regarding different kinds of foam. They also custom make laminated foam mattresses to your specs. So you can design your own configuration - memory foam on one side, stiffer foam on the other side - so you have a soft side for the bed and a stiffer side for the dining cushions, etc. A little on the pricey side though.

(2) For those of us who have to stash their bedding to make room for daytime living I really really like the Therm-a-Rest Dream Time sleeping pad system. This is the super-duper, self-inflating, 3 1/2 thick with memory foam topping yet still very compact-able & stow-able end of the Therm-a-Rest sleeping pad series. Two of the XL's strapped together make a queen-sized bed. Very comfortable, very stow-able, low-profile (which is a plus in a small trailer) but also expensive.

(3) Quad and Tri-Fold Hide-a-Mats are an interesting option too. Much cheaper but a little more bulky. But they still fold-up into a manageable size.

I also really like the idea of stealing a mattress pad off a fold-away sofa bed. Sounds reasonable.

[Al and Cindy K]

Hi Monica,

We have an 02 S16 with side bath and had Southern Mattress make a custom mattress for it about five years ago. We leave it in 'bed' mode full time and its worked well for us. I'm pretty sure they still have the pattern they used for ours but, if not, they're only a couple of miles from our home and I'd be happy to carry the Scamp back for measurements if you want to go that route. It wasn't cheap even without having to pay shipping but we'd certainly do it again.


Al

[Bill MacDermod]

Although we ordered the southern mattress we didn't have it shipped, one of our kids lives in Richmond Va and we just picked it up on the way by, we have been very satisfied as we like the bed up full time. On the other hand there are a bunch of folks who have ordered the foam mattresses from Walmart for about 1/3 of the So Mat price and are pleased with them. No delivery charges as you pick it up at the store

[Penney H. & Mike E.]

I guess I'm a 'bed snob', I don't sleep well, so investing in a good bed in the trailer was high on the list.

We have natural latex, mine is a 3" (I think) piece of foam, on top the the existing cushions and topped with a wool mattress topper. I LOVE it! It is very comfortable. We keep it set up as a bed. Personal confession: Mike & I don't sleep together in the trailer, the bed is just too small for two tall folks, one who snores very loud and one who doesn't sleep well. Mike can sleep on anything, but he also has a natural latex foam pad, just an inch, on top of trailer cushions. Easy to roll up and when we want an inside table we use the one on that end of the trailer.

I shopped around quite awhile to find the most affordable natural latex I could find and found a place that sells 'seconds' but still good quality. It's an investment, so I put an in expensive cotton zipper cover on it to keep it clean. I could look up the web site if you are interested. They cut it to size and I cut the curved corners.

I highly recommend this combination for comfortable. Latex foam comes in different firmness, I think mine is medium. If you aren't familiar with natural latex before investing through an on-line store it is worth finding a local source and go try it out - it is divine! It's what 'foam rubber' was before they started making it with synthetics and fortunately it is making a come back. Those sensitive to chemicals find it much better than the "fake" foam mattresses and pads.

Gook luck finding the right mattress combination for you Monica.

Penney

[Raya]

Good point on the latex, Penney. I, too, think it is a better product than polyurethane foam (and like foam, it is layerable and customizable that way).

I got a bit lost in my looking because there were SO many places (and nearly all trying to "outgreen" each other). Also, not that many of them have thin latex in firm (but I did find a couple). If I had a place nearby where I could try it out I would own a latex mattress by now, I'm sure.

Raya

[Vivian]

IKEA is another source for mattresses that are not quite as expensive as custom made. If one is near a retail store, you can try them out in person.

[Nancy]

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/categori...9?filter=online

Scroll down.

Hi Vivian, thanks for the Ikea idea. If the above link works people will find the latex is more expensive. I'll have to get Fred to take me down to Ikea so we can see if they have the different latex models on the floor. Would really like to give this a try in the home, bit expensive for the Scamp.

Thanks all for talking about latex. I have taken my 3 inch memory foam topper off one of my beds, it was just too soft. Been thinking about a new foam mattress but have been shy.

Nancy

[Vivian]

Nancy, Thanks for posting the Ikea link. You are right...latex is more expensive, but it is really comfortable. The problem we have with the Scamp bed is the width which is between twin and full, but longer than a regular bed, and really annoying!

[SherryNPaul]

Monica,
Part of your problem may be the plywood replacing the broken board in between the bench seats. Is it the right thickness, or does it create an indentation because it doesn't meet the top of the built in benches? If not the right thickness, you could build it up with a second board, glued on top, of the right thickness and improve your sleep.

You may definitely benefit from replacing the cushions with a mattress, especially since you "full time." You might consider a really good quality twin, and use the leftover space on the bench top for drawer units or a "night stand." One of my friends did this, and loves the extra space. Her Casita, with a twin instead of the full, feels like a veritable dance hall with the extra floor space! Again, even more important since you full-time.

Even a great quality twin is not too heavy to lift up for bench storage access.
Sherry

[Monica M]

Wow, so much info and insight. Thank you EVERYBODY! I am floored at the options. I figure since I full time, I may need to spend some money to be comfortable. I would love to respond to each, but now I am in research mode with all the ideas. I will let you know what I found that works for me.

SherryNPaul, I took the broken piece and they matched it, it is actually better than the original, it doesn't "fall off" nearly as often.

If there are any other ideas, please keep them coming. Monica

[Rachaelholland]

Hey Monica,

We also have the Ikea mattress ($90) and it is AMAZING!! It is made for a futon, but it's lightweight and actually folds into 2 pieces. It fits perfect in the back bed of the Scamp 13, not sure if the 16 is the same size? Anyway, its a good, cheap light weight option that we are very happy with.

P.S... retired at 37? Wow...what did you do? lol...that's awesome!! Happy trails