As anyone who has tried sleeping on a bad RV mattress or lumpy couch knows, it’s hard to get quality sleep on an inferior sleeping surface. That’s true whether you’re sleeping in a camper van or a house with central heating. Unfortunately, sometimes getting better sleep means buying a new rv replacement mattress.
If you’re reading this article, you’re probably wondering whether your RV mattress is worn out and if it’s really worth replacing. After all, you may not even sleep in your RV most nights. But even if you usually don’t sleep there, you still want to get a good night’s rest on your RV mattress. You don’t want your mattress to interfere with your good mood or the day’s adventures!
10 Signs It’s Time to Get a Replacement Mattress
You’re the only one who can decide when it’s worth it to get an RV replacement mattress. However, there are a few signs to look for to help you determine whether a new RV mattress would help:
- You frequently wake up with stiffness, back pain or neck pain.
- Your mattress just doesn’t fit your body characteristics
- Your mattress visibly sags.
- You think your mattress may be contaminated by bed bugs or dust mites.
- You have different needs than you used to due to aging, pregnancy, an accident, or other physical changes.
- Your mattress is more than 10 years old.
- You experience worse allergy symptoms after sleeping on your RV mattress.
- Your mattress smells bad.
- You can feel your partner constantly shifting around in the bed (or they can feel you).
- You sleep better on a different mattress (such as the one you use in your house or a partner’s mattress).
These are just a few of many reasons why you may want an RV replacement mattress. Ultimately, any kind of wear and tear or sleeping incompatibility can be a reason to get a new sleep surface. If you think a new mattress could help you sleep better, it probably would!
What Is the Best RV Replacement Mattress?
The best RV mattress is nearly always going to be a custom-fit mattress, not one from a big box store or an online seller. When you work with a custom mattress manufacturer, you can get an RV replacement mattress that is perfectly designed for your space, comfort, and body.
What are the characteristics of a great RV mattress?
A great RV mattress will:
- Have the right type of support and consistency to help you comfortably fall and stay asleep
- Help with any pressure point or chronic pain issues you may have
- Avoid excessive motion transfer from one side of the bed to the other
- Combine sufficiently supportive base layers with surface layers that work with your body curvature
- Fit in the space in your RV
- Work for both you and your partner, even if you have very different sleep surface needs
- Last longer than the cheap mattress that came in your RV
Types of Mattresses
Most replacement RV mattresses are categorized by the material they are made from as well as the size. Regardless of where you are buying your RV mattress, it helps to go in with some idea of what you may be looking for.
The most common type of RV mattress is foam. (This is usually what comes in your RV.) However, there are different types of foam, and some are much higher quality than others. There are many different comfort options you can choose from.
A high-quality polyurethane foam mattress with a minimum 1.8 density level is supportive and won’t dent very fast, but it will definitely cost more than a cheap, low ILD (inflation load deflection) foam mattress. Allergy sufferers may especially want to consider latex foam, which can be hypoallergenic.
Many RV mattress buyers initially seek out a memory foam RV mattress. Some memory foams are higher quality than others, but most people who try out different mattresses find that they feel best with either another type of foam or a combination of memory foam and other materials.
Innerspring or coil mattresses are more popular in houses and apartments, but occasionally seen in RVs as well. Unfortunately, they tend to be rather cumbersome, heavy, and hard to compress, so they’re often tricky to use and install in an RV. Innerspring mattresses are also harder to design for cut or custom corners.
The final mattress type we sometimes see in RVs is air mattresses. These are easy to bring along and move around, but have a tendency to easily break and leak. If you plan to sleep in your RV fairly often, we do not recommend this mattress type. Custom sizes are very limited.
Can You Use a Regular Mattress?
Regular home mattresses are rarely a good option for an RV. They tend to be a different shape from a standard RV bed area, which is often shorter, narrower, or more rounded than the standard bed equivalent due to the need to conserve space.
What Size Is an RV Mattress?
There are a number of different RV mattress sizes and shapes, just like with regular mattresses. Here are some of the most common ones:
- Short King: 72” x 75”
- RV King: 70” x 80”, 72” x 75”, or 72” x 80”
- California King: 72” x 84”
- Short Queen: 60” x 74” or 50” x 75”
- RV Queen: 60” x 80”
- Olympic Queen: 66” x 80”
- Full: 53” x 74” or 53” x 75”
- Short Full: 48” x 74” or 48” x 75”
- Twin: 38” x 74”
- Twin XL: 38” x 80”
- Crib: 38” x 52”
Keep in mind that RV mattress dimensions are usually a little different from regular mattress sizes, even if they share the same name. For example, an RV queen mattress (and bed frame) is usually about half a foot shorter than a standard queen mattress.
How to figure out what size you need
If you’re not sure what size RV mattress you need, measure the inside of your bed frame with a yardstick or measuring tape. Remember to measure across the middle of the bed if your frame has cut or rounded corners. You can compare the dimensions with our size chart above or simply give them to your custom RV mattress manufacturer.
Where Can I Buy an RV Mattress?
There are a number of places you can buy RV mattresses, but in our opinion, the best option if you are looking for a quality custom mattress is Slumber Ease Mattress Factory. Slumber Ease has been making mattresses in the U.S.A. using a combination of traditional and modern manufacturing techniques since 1962. If you are interested in exploring the custom fitting process, you can contact the store or visit the factory showroom in Marysville, WA.
Recent Comments