Replacement of Bed (was RV King Sleep Number)

[DBRV.0]

This is my attempt to document what we encountered when changing out our mattress for a different size.

Late last year, we replaced the 'RV King' sized bed that appeared to be OEM; circa 2008 = 2009 model coach.  These are 72" wide.  A regular King is 76"; a regular Queen is 60".  We like a queen for it's size, plus liked the idea of extra space on the sides.  Kings and Queens are all 80" long.

First order was to recognize that the original plywood was 70", IIRC, and at least 2" too short to support an 80" long mattress.  Therefore the edges of the bed were always drooping.  In my mind, that had to be fixed, which means our decision was new plywood, as opposed to tacking something onto the end to lengthen the plywood.  If we kept the original, the sides would not be a problem, for we would need to trim down to 60".

The original platform top was composed of 3 plywood pieces.  A head piece under the pillows, a narrow strip, then the large plywood piece that lifts to reveal the storage area:

The above pic shows the first two mentioned plywood pieces, in gray felt, then my new bare plywood replacement (60" wide).  I believe the new bare plywood is 57" long, which is longer than the original.  Be sure to confirm your maximum length by closing the sides, and allow at least one inch of tolerance!  Because plywood comes in 48" wide pieces, I had to buy two 3/4" sheets and connect them down the center.  I trimmed the corners to save knees.  Beneath the bare plywood are 3 pieces of 2x4, shown above in red outlines.  I think I cut up a single 8 foot piece.  The center is to keep the edges aligned.  The top under the hinge is to keep the plywood edges aligned, but mostly to keep it from warping.  The longest 2x4 is at the feet for the same purpose.  The one at the feet is 2 to 3 inches away from the bottom storage wall to prevent finger damage.  It turns out to be a good handle when lifting.  To know where to drill holes, I used a pencil to sketch out the 2x4 perimeters, and used drywall screws.  1.5" works.  2" works if you barely sink them.

The underside is shown below.  Note at this point the gas shocks had been installed.  Carefully measure the distance from hinge on the old plywood, and ensure they are fully inside the storage walls.

More detail:

The small gray strip was cut in-place.  I ran the blade into the top piece a few inches to mark that piece:

This is then what it looks like:

Then I took it to my saw horse to complete the cuts;

I purchased some gray felt to cover the bare plywood, but the felt ($60+) came after the new mattress was installed, so it is still sitting in a box.  We're currently using a couple of blankets over the new edges to eliminate snagging.

Be careful when ordering a new mattress.  My wife insisted on a particular bed, thinking it would be the most comfortable.  Coil spring, "hybrid".  When it was ordered, there was no mention of height.  Turned out it was 15" high.  Therefore the top of the mattress on the platform is 36" high.  That is higher than counters!  Comfortable, yes, but I had to re-learn how to get in an out of bed to stop knocking my head on the overhead cabinet.  She had to add a stool on her side.

- Jeff

 

[Joe Lee]

Great project!  I really need to follow your lead. I appreciate your willingness to document this for all of us. 

[1nolaguy]

Great project. How much weight (net) do you think you have added? Not so much an issue for DP but might add a strain on the slide motor. Just curious.

[DBRV.0]

8 minutes ago, 1nolaguy said:

How much weight

Hmm.  Just a guess here - - - the Sleep Number weight is maybe 50 pounds with compressor.  The Brooklyn Bedding Sedona Elite model in Queen is 115 from their website.

[Mike Barrett]

the new to us has a new mattress which is 18" think and ways WAY more than 120 lbs.  I was thinking of trying to put back in a sleep number queen.  The sides are just too tight for moving around etc... and I like my lovely just that wee bit closer. 🙂