Mattress foam ( for Princess with Pea problem)

[pcatterall]

We replaced our berth foam only a couple of years ago but are finding the foam to firm. We used the green coloured foam which was recommended at that time.
I have purchased a block of white foam ready to cut but it still feels firm although it is regarded as the softest of the range.
I propose to try it out for a couple of nights but meanwhile seek any advice you can give.
We are using 4" thick foam and my 'theory' was that the 'heaviest' part of the body ( ones hip) should compress the foam almost down to the base board. I will be grateful for any practical/theoretical views on this!

 

[VicS]

I think you will find that the soft foam will not give you sufficient support and aching backs will be the result.
Personally changed to a firm foam for that reason

Consider a memory foam / firm foam combination, That should give adequate support, help hide the pea and will not increase the overall dpth like an overlay wil

 

[Greenwichman]

We had the same issue. Took a deep breath and ordered a tailored-fit memory foam mattress overlay from Duvalay. Totally transformed the sleeping experience. The company were ok to deal with, though not quick. Price was fine for the benefit. I have no connection with Duvalay. Just a recent customer.

 

[guyd]

Soft foam for 1" then firm for 3".

 

[grumpy_o_g]

Two things - first is are you OK with the heat problem some people suffer with when using memory foam? If so then are you making it clear that the foam is purely for sleeping on and not for sitting on as well? Foams used for settee berths in the saloon have to be much firmer to cope with a seated person and they are heavily compromised towards that. Memory foam mattresses aren't designed to be sat on (won't do them any harm though) and they need to be at least 6" thick in my experience (I'm not exactly light though).

Last point - many spring mattresses can actually be cut to size. It's a bit of a faff and it needs to be the right type of springing, plus you have to resew the cover of course, but it can be done. Somebody (I think on the MoBo forum) did an excellent post on it a few years back.

 

[Daydream believer]

Following a fall I get a lot of hip pain in bed & whilst away in the boat i bought a 100mm self inflating mattress which i placed over my bunk. It was so good ( I can also blow a bit more air in by mouth if I wish or let some out) that we now have 3 of them on the boat. The daughter has a 50mm th one which she prefers. ( Used in the saloon & less tendency to roll off it) Effectively one gets a soft overlay above the harder foam cushions. The one in the saloon can easily be rolled up during the day & stored out of the way.

 

[jakeroyd]

I bought some of this stuff.
http://www.motorcaravanning.co.uk/shopuk/froli_bed.htm

Worked for me and stopped my problems with numb shoulders and hips when sleeping on my side.
Not cheap.
Will raise you about an inch so consider this if you sleep under the cockpit etc.

You can find Froli cheaper on EBay than this example.

One really good thing is that you can shape it to your berth shape.

Hardness can be adjusted by changing the pitch of each unit and/or adding supplied straps to stiffen up a hip or shoulder area.

 

[Capt. Clueless]

We bought a memory foam mattress and I put a saw through it to make seating/bedding for a camper van....Extremely comfortable and sold the camper solely on the comfort of the sleeping arrangements. (Wife of the buyer laid on it and said "this is the one" after viewing a few.

 

[Guise]

We had similar problems with the foam being too hard for us. First we tried a memory foam topper and couldn't get on with it, we then bought a thick fibre filled topper from John Lewis which has transformed the bed completely.

 

[BlueChip]

IKEA do a good range of mattress toppers

 

[KINGFISHER 9]

I use a rectangular 3 inch memory foam mattress on top of the boat mattress ... not so thick that it gives you a back problem, for me anyway. Very comfy night's sleep.