Wedge Cut Mattress 2250/2251 and others

[Dp26]

Been looking for a replacement. Wedge cut replacement is not a realistic option for many reasons, main being it would have to have custom flaps added with the snaps, so the foot piece does not move. Secondary is the wedge, at least for us, is right at our hips, where we need more support than a movable wedge seam.

Contacted many aftermarket makers. Some responded well, some, not so well. Most could have made the wedge (usual was at +$125). Ended up ordering (today) a hinge, with the head piece being thicker to fit the bed platform perfectly.

Elected to go with Tochta, as they were very responsive, have made similar custom mattresses before, and have a 100 day trial period. I did not have to "lead" the design, they knew exactly what I needed with a few measurements.

Overall size is standard queen.The head piece is 34" long, and will be the part we flip over before sliding in. If we are in a hurry, we can lift the foot piece a bit, and let the foot piece "climb the wall" when sliding in. We elected an 8" thick for the foot (thus 9.5" for the head) as any taller, and my DW would need a step to get on the bed. Also leaves us a little height left (before hitting head when sitting up) should we ever want to add a 2" topper (DW would step on the nightstand to get on). The hinge will be just above/below our belt lines, and should not be noticeable.

The head piece will fit snugly in the slide, and the deeper part of the bed platform will "lock" the foot piece from moving side to side too much. Foot piece could be strapped to the under bed access flap if desired.

Will need to add some trim to the under bed access flap, as the stock bet snap flaps covered some bare wood.

When folded and slide in, there will me MORE room to pass the bed, as the new mattress will tuck in more instead of overhanging the platform.

When folded, there is an even better platform on the top for someone to lie there with slide in (than the wedge mattress).

For us, we keep the mattress made up with fitted sheet, and for travel, put the other bedding on the top, so folding will not be an issue (nor was the wedge).

The purpose of this thread was to be specific about replacing a wedge mattress. There are many scattered threads, but none quite cover all of the parameters our particular units face (that I have found).

I considered and mocked up a replacement wedge, and a replacement flat, with some sort of piece to "fill the gap". Those ideas failed because of securing the mattress from movement (replacement wedge), and in securing the replacement and dealing with another "piece" in the case of a flat replacement.

We expect to receive delivery in a couple of weeks for driveway testing...

[Roddor]

I have not heard of a solution for the wedge mattress either and am not sure why so many units are going that direction. I've only heard of people putting a manual fold mattress in that you flip before you slide in.

[kenandterry]

The wedged mattress is very popular across a lot of Class C brands because it allows full use of everything else in the floor plan when closed. Sometimes the bed is North-South (lengthwise) and sometimes East-West (across) .....and quite often it’s located in a slide of a floor plan that could not accommodate a 75” to 80” long bed otherwise.

Foam toppers seem to correct the comfort factor for most people.....not everyone....but most.

[brucemc]

Was your original wedge mattress too soft or too firm? Ours is firm, so we needed a bit of softening which was achieved with a 1 1/2 foam topper. We've never had an issue at the wedge - the mattress feels like a single piece, and has since we purchased the unit late 2015.

[PDFOR3]

X2
We added the foam topper to our wedge with no negative impact on comfort.

[Dp26]

Added a 3 inch topper shortly after purchase to resolve feeling the gap (the wedge ares is not as supportive, as it tends to slide apart). The feel of the bed is just too soft for us.


Of course, we have an LE, so we did not expect to be sleeping on clouds - but now - the mattress is actually a hindrance to our trip planning ("what do you mean you want to go out for 3 weeks and sleep in that bed").


Again, most of the custom places will make a wedge cut, but given our experience, how the one half is anchored, and the experience of the mattress manufacturer;s, we went with the hinge. Indeed, it will be more manual work to setup and put away, but not all that much.

[Dp26]

New mattress arrived today. The fit is PERFECT. The thicker part (the head) holds the mattress in place, so not having the foot section snapped is not going to be an issue. For closing the slide, flipping the head over, or lifting the foot (to slide up the wall) both work. The shape of the mattress is better than the stock, with close to 90 deg corners, which should hold the sheets on better. The hinge will be just above our hips, so it will not likely be felt at all. Having the head 1.5 inches thicker has the top perfectly flat.

We'll make up the bed and try it out in the next night or two.

[bclemens]

I believe I started the wedge trend (correct me if someone finds one older)....so here is the "History of the wedge"

The wedge became popular as a "better option" to the hinged mattress. When I was at Sunseeker, the 2300 corner bed, corner bath was the #1 short coach, but was never "mainstream'. The issue always was the #1 objection..."ugh, its got a corner bed". So one day, I thought...what if we could overcome that ONE objection?

Winnebago at the time was doing a 2-piece mattress on their View Sprinter. You had to physically lift up on the rear section to bring the slide in. Which also meant you had to "un-make" the bed. We also knew of some people doing hinged mattresses, but again, people had to "flip the mattress" before you operated the slide and the hinge could be felt.

Also at the time, Fleetwood had a cab over bunk with a wedge. So you just pushed on the front and it slid right up over the back side. The idea was born and I made a cardboard model of the wedge mattress slide out and place it on my engineers credenza to "discuss" when he got a moment.

The IDEA at the time was...
#1. eliminate the corner bed objection and end up with a walk-around queen in a 23' unit. Never been done before.
#2. If we have a wedge, the separation/hinge was not the full depth of the mattress so it would not be as easy to feel the gap. (I tested it to confirm)
#3. It would require ZERO steps before operating the slide. If you press the slide button, it would not require you to flip the mattress before hand, or do anything frankly. The mattress would ride up and over the foot section automatically.
#4. Leave the bed made. This was also tested and confirmed. When the slide goes back out, just push on the mattress and it drops into place (we did try snaps at the head of the bed...but that never really worked like we wanted)

That became the #1 selling floor plan for Sunseeker and then multiple other OEM's that copied it.

There were still some minor objections to the wedge...it was not as easy to replace and people still did not quite understand it...and we fear what we do not understand.

So when I came over to Dynamax, I decided to use a hinged mattress. No one cared about flipping...but the hinge was still easy to feel, even after 2-3 version (many wondered why we didn't just do the wedge instead...lol). I too have finally settled on the Tochta and we are testing it now. The key there is, instead of just a "fabric" hinge, they put 1" foam in the top, the hinge is also 1" foam. It's like the memory foam topper is already built in. The next step is to see about moving the hinge further down (to get it off the hip), we are testing that set up on our Europa.

Anyway...way more information that anyone likely needed....its just funny that we try to solve the issue by going back to the issue we were trying to solve in the first place.

[Dp26]

BC, Thanks for the clarification and reminders. One of the reasons we went with FR was the fact that someone who had the ability to take action was so readily available (you). In our case, we have only so much space in our driveway. We did not want a corner bed. We looked at the small ACE, but the CCC and towing capacity of the 2250 (we found one of the early ones in the E450) was important, so a 2250 was the choice. We took out the dinette to have flexible living space, usually with three greyhounds taking residence.

The same things you found, we also found. The wedge is easy for setup/close, especially since we keep out blankets "loose" on the top, and flip them onto the head piece.

The wedge idea is not bad. The main issue was keeping the two pieces in place so we did not feel the wedge. We ended up with towels rolled up at the head, to keep the head pressed against the foot. When the mattress started feeling soft, we added a topper. The topper made it a bit high for my DW to get up and down easy.

Since our unit is a "starter" I understand the stock bed was not high dollar. At first, we did not notice, but after time, it is just too light/soft. (Weight may be a factor on some units, just not ours.)

We finally decided to look for something else. We contacted many, and most or all of those referenced by others online. Most would make whatever I asked for, wedge included. Tochta was the only responsive company who offers a return option (for hinge, not wedge), so we went with hinge.

It fits perfectly, stays in place, and while not as easy as a wedge, does flip up easy enough. We can leave the fitted sheets on (found a XL stretchable fitted to protect the bottom) and still folds well, without compressing the mattress. It also works easy enough to unhook the fitted sheet off the head piece, as it it easy to put back on when laying out. The hinge, in our case, is above our hips, so we do not feel it at all, compared to where the top of the wedge cut ended up.

In case my wife has to close up, we tested sliding in flat, and "helping" the foot piece slip up the wall, and it works too.

Closed up, I now have more room to get around the bed. I keep folding chairs, and ice maker, and a coffee maker against the rear wall.

The one item left to do is get and attach trim on the slide platform where the foot piece snaps are, to cover the bare plywood. I will also be adding the same trim to the edge of the slide platform which is under the mattress (also had snaps).

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If I were building a hinge mattress which flipped from the foot, I would include a couple of handles. If I ever get to where it is hard to flip, I will add handles or a strap where needed.

Our plan was to keep out current MH until we decided to live mobile, or get a second place with room for a super C (we like the cab safety of the C type). Now, we will likely keep this one until we stop traveling, since we can drag along whatever does not fit, and being small gets into many places we could not with a super C. If, we do ever become full time, a super C will be the one, as we will need to drag a stacker trailer, to be able to bring my toolbox and toys (and enough closet space for DW).

[bclemens]

Tochta has been great and that is a great solution. There is no perfect setup, both the wedge and the hinge offer different challenges.

I do think the Tochta hinge may be the "closest" to perfect solution. We hope to conclude testing soon and maybe offer it in 2022 MY.

We are also working with them to have part numbers for each model we build so that others can easily upgrade. The owner has worked with me and unlike "sales people" he knows his stuff. I have FAR too much time over the years discussing foam density and compression and he was the first one that I felt like knew what they were talking about and explained why they use what they use. First sample was really well built.

[Dp26]

I shared my model info with them 2250/2251, so they can keep it in their records. Once I come up with the trim and install, I will post that as well. IIRC, the 2251 is still available, and there are probably others with similar measurements. The key is remembering the head piece is thicker than the foot, not only for keeping the top level, but for locking it into place.

[Duckogram]

I have been in touch with Tochta and it seems that they want me to reinvent the wheel. I gave them all the dimensions and they sent me a drawing of the wedge I have. Finally got the desire for hinged mattress across (3 emails) but now they want me to tell them where the hinge goes. They also seem to be stuck on 7” thick head and 6” thick foot sections but I am looking for plush and comfort.

So my questions are:
Dp26, Can you verify the depth of your slide please. Mine is 35”. Also what thickness did you get and how do you like it?

Brian C, Have you made any progress with them? If so, is there a standard I might be able to use? or should I just thrash with them and have them make a custom mattress that would meet my needs?

Appreciate any input available.
TIA
Ducky

[DBlake]

I woke up with a backache this morning from the factory installed wedge bed in our 2250LE. My DH has been complaining about sleeping in a divot for a few weeks now. How has your new mattress worked out for you? We need a solution.