Community Forums

Lloyd in S.C. · 11-01-2015, 07:04 AM

Greetings!

Our coach has a really nice sleeper sofa for sitting. However the mattress in it is horrible cheap junk.

In a couple weeks we are taking another couple with us for a 2 day weekend trip. We need to do something to increase their comfort.

Did I read someplace on here that others have replaced the sofa mattress with an air mattress? We have one of those portable air mattresses that comes with the pump and all.

Did you simply remove the mattress that came with the couch and discard? Then put the air mattress in the couch and fold it in? Leave the air unit in there?

Or did you just simply use the air mattress ontop of the couch mattress?

L.

G.G. · 11-01-2015, 07:24 AM

Agree that most of them are junk. We didn't replace anything. We put a memory foam topper on it. Son & DIL bring sleeping bags and put on top of the topper. Works out great for them.

Triatik · 11-01-2015, 07:31 AM

After many good reviews on the air dream , part mattress, part air bed, we got one and removed our old mattress. It is great! I slept on it for a month on our last trip. It really inflates fully in 35 seconds with the supplied pump. It deflates as quick and easily folds up in our sleeper sofa. I highly recommend it to give you a firmer mattress with no bar or sag in the middle. Do an Amazon search for air dream, then select full or queen size, whichever fits your sofa.

MSHappyCampers · 11-01-2015, 07:43 AM

I think the air mattress is the answer!

gatorb8 · 11-01-2015, 07:58 AM

just add an air mattress on top of what you have when you need it.
fold up and stow when you don't

RDG · 11-01-2015, 08:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Triatik

After many good reviews on the air dream , part mattress, part air bed, we got one and removed our old mattress. It is great! I slept on it for a month on our last trip. It really inflates fully in 35 seconds with the supplied pump. It deflates as quick and easily folds up in our sleeper sofa. I highly recommend it to give you a firmer mattress with no bar or sag in the middle. Do an Amazon search for air dream, then select full or queen size, whichever fits your sofa.

X2. The Air Dream is GREAT! https://www.airdream.net/full-c-24.h...393o457orebq57

Fast shipping.

Bob

Dogpatch · 11-01-2015, 08:13 AM

The air mattress add-on works great. Folds into the couch. The air mattress negates the lump of the bar in the middle of your back.

Also of note, if your slide with the couch in it stays raised when extended and doesn't "flush" with the floor, the leg section drops lower than the rest of the couch creating an undesirable arch in the bed. You may want to put something under the front support to help this. ie: 2x4 on the flat would be close.

bluegiller · 11-12-2015, 11:29 PM

I came here looking to solve that exact problem. In the process of buying a Bounder 35H with the sleeper sofa, and it's horrid. Not just to sleep on, but even to sit on. Love the rest of the motorhome, though :-) Our first plan was to get a sheet of plywood, cut it into appropriately sized sections, screw them into the frame of the sleeper, and see if it will still close - something we might still try to get better foundation support than what it comes with.

Plan B, if that didn't work, was probably going to be a trifold replacement sofa. I think I'll take a chance on an Air Dream first, though. It's cheaper than a sofa, and even if we wind up with a trifold anyway, there may be times when we need a mattress on the floor for a sixth traveler.

This forum is the best! :-)

Lloyd in S.C. · 11-13-2015, 04:32 AM

We ended up going the air matteress route. Our couch is comfy to sit, and matches the other furniture. So we unfolded it, and added one of those queen air matress with the pump built in it (can't recall the name) right ontop of the sleeper sofa matress. The pump will also deflate the matress, sucks the air out and makes it very flat. We then fold it up right in the bed.

We considered throwing out the couch matress and just using the air,,, but if it ever got a leak, that would leave our guest with nothing. At least now our guest would have a matress to sleep on even if uncomfortable in the event of a air matress failure.

We are headed out this weekend with guest, going to give it a try!

L.

NMRVer · 11-13-2015, 12:11 PM

We have an air mattress also. They are better than the cheapy foam ones, but still not ideal. Went with a foam topper on the air mattress. Works. You may want to try just putting a topper on the mattress you have now, a 4" one may be a pain to store, but make a world of difference. If you decide to go air, just make sure the sofa will support the mattress, if you only have bars space every 10" you'll need to support it better. Best of luck.

CarlAda · 11-13-2015, 12:19 PM

I have an Air Dream air mattress on my sleeper sofa. While it's not a SleepNumber or Memory Foam mattress, it functions perfectly fine. I sleep on it comfortably.

bluegiller · 12-15-2015, 11:18 AM

Circling back here, with what I finally bought:

Modern Sleep 4-1/2" Sofa Bed Memory Foam Mattress, Multiple Sizes - Walmart.com

4.5 inch gel memory foam. It's much better than the super cheap mattress our sleeper sofa came with, although it's an inch or two wider and so sits on top of the side rails of the sleeper, which causes it to bow down in the middle. To make it flat, I'm putting a piece of wood underneath it in that location. The wood stores nicely behind the sofa during the day.

For extra capacity, I ordered an AeroBed air mattress from Costco. Still waiting for it to arrive so I can test it. Reviews indicate that, basically, all air mattresses stink, but AeroBed seems to stink less than most. I'll post my review after it arrives and I get to try it out.

Dutch Star Don · 12-15-2015, 06:25 PM

When we bought our Diplomat in 2005, we upgraded to the air/mattress made (or sold) by Flexsteel. It was similar to the Air Dream and came with a quick inflating pump. It was extremely comfortable.

z3406 · 12-16-2015, 07:51 AM

A less expensive alternative is to get a large piece of corrugated cardboard and put it between the mattress and the supporting wire/spring support. It spreads the load out and keeps the crossbar from digging in. A lot depends on the quality of the mattress itself as to how well this works. In every case where I have tried it, it improved the comfort of the sofa.