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Old 08-10-2022, 03:30 PM   #1
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22MKSE Bi-Fold Murphy Bed - need help making this comfortable

The only thread I found on this was over a year old, so it warned me it was a bad idea to reply to that thread.

We just stayed the first night in our first RV, a 22MKSE. And the Queen Bed is terrible. I felt like I was sleeping in a tent on the ground on roots. Really!

It is a "Bi- fold Murphy Bed" as they call it. It folds out when you fold the sofa down.

The problem is from head to hip mattress half rests on a wood platform, the other half, hip to foot, rests on the soft folded down sofa. Also the bi-fold split is right at the hip, so the foot end of the mattress just drops down about 2 inches. This kills my hips and back.

It needs a platform that goes all the way head to foot. Any ideas how to do this and still use the sofa?

The only solutions I have seen are:

Replace the mattress. - Good luck finding a Bi-Fold Mattress anywhere that is quality. If we go with a solid mattress, goodbye sofa.

Rip out the sofa - My first RV and I don't want to Rip out anything! IT's a great idea just needs some mods.

I thought of using a tri-fold, but I cannot find one thicker than 4 inches. That won't cut it.

Has anyone accomplished making this more comfortable and still being able to use the sofa?

Thanks all. It's out first RV and I was hoping for a better experience first time in it.
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Old 08-11-2022, 08:11 AM   #2
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We have a Wolf Pup16FQ, with the same type of mattress. I cut a piece of 3/8 in. plywood and covered it with an old "egg crate " mattress pad- to protect the sofa. When we fold up the mattress to use the sofa, we have to lift the board and place it on top of the folded mattress. It's a PITA, but the bed is much more comfortable, especially since we put a 2 in. topper on it. We recently took a 3 week trip and slept comfortably- with no back or hip pain. Hope this helps.
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Old 08-11-2022, 08:16 AM   #3
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Bobby and I were chatting on PMs, but for the good of the community, I'll post my fix that I sent to him:

What I did was to remove the sofa completely, and then add a section of 1x4 or 1x3 finished wood to where the hinges were originally attached (can't recall the exact dimensions now). Then using longer screws, I reinstalled the sofa in the same place, only an inch higher. This made a big difference.

And we bought this mattress: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

That probably made even more of a difference. It sits on top of the stock mattress, and folds up nicely. It was only $150 when we bought it two years ago... But you know, inflation...
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Old 08-11-2022, 08:18 AM   #4
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We've now got close to 150 nights on this bed since making those changes. While it's still a terrible mattress and a terrible design, it works and is much better, and the couch is still fully functional.

And add a few drinks around the campfire before bed, and it's actually downright plush.

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Old 08-11-2022, 09:10 AM   #5
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Thanks for the answers. I think I am going to give the sofa mod a try first. We have a 2inch topper already, but the mattress is really bad so will probably go for the replacement recommended.

For others searching for replacement mattress, don’t bother looking for bifold or even trifold, look for a sofa bed mattress like GravelRider recommended. It will fold up also. You’ll have better luck finding something.

I’ll update the post when we get this done and try it out.
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Old 08-12-2022, 06:59 PM   #6
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My solution

I removed the sofa. Added a 1x1-1/2 inch board on top of each board that the sofa sits on. See photos. If you can make them out. It seems to have rotated them.

I screwed the sofa back down onto these boards. The sofa is now more of a normal sofa height. The top of the sofa is now higher than before when folded down. I thought it would not be high enough, but when we put the cheapo mattress back in it. I could not feel the problem anymore.

With the mattress recommended above and out two inch topper, I think it will be awesome.

Thanks for the suggestions. I was really feeling let down when I woke up hurting the first night. Now I feel good about my purchase again!
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Old 08-22-2022, 07:48 AM   #7
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Alright slept on it one night with just 4inch memory foam and two inch topper. My hips sank 6 inches to hard board. I am 6’1”, 200lbs, so only about 5 extra pounds. Not very comfortable.

We are going on our first trip this weekend. We are going to try an air mattress under the 4 inch foam mattress. The 2 inch topper is just too squishy.

If we put the foam on top of the original folding mattress we feel like we are rolling to the middle. So we will wait on that one.

I’ll report back after this weekend.
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Old 08-22-2022, 11:31 AM   #8
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The foam on top of the factory mattress works for us. Hopefully the air mattress will do the trick for you. Keep us updated.
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Old 09-11-2022, 05:18 PM   #9
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Okay, so we used the foam on the inflatable queen. It was like sleeping in a bowl, but I think that was the air mattress. So we are trying a different one this weekend. Super convenient so long as you don’t spring a leak :-)

I did notice the center of the couch now seems springy. I think the front board was actually giving some support to the front of the couch. So I have to think about how to add some support to the front.
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Old 09-12-2022, 08:11 AM   #10
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Keep us updated.
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Old 09-16-2022, 04:12 PM   #11
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Hybrid fix?

Thank you for this thread. I'm going forward with an attempt at a mix of these suggestions for our 35' TH
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Old 09-18-2022, 02:16 PM   #12
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I found a mattress

We have the Cherokee wolf pup 16FQ with the same murphy bed set up we put in a Tochta mattress that solved the problem. we had the mattress made into a trifold with the section over the couch 1 inch thicker, Reason for trifold was I worried the mattress being so thick (8 inches) I would not be able to fold it. without hitting the storage above the bed. If I was to do it again I would make the mattress 1 inch narrower making it easier to fold up and down. It was expensive $1000, but what's a good night sleep worth

https://www.tochta.com/

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