Mattress Foam?

[Frenchy]

I'm hoping someone on this board has a good suggestion for berth mattress foam. I made some cockpit and berth
cushions from Sailrite's 4" "dry-fast" foam. For sitting, it's fine. But for sleeping, it's way too stiff. To compensate, I bought some
2" latex foam for a topper-but it's heavy, shreds easy and is not all that soft when laid atop the "dry-fast".
Is there something better? Thanks, Jean

[Paul D.]

I think Don Casey's This Old Boat book had a good recipe for comfortable foam for berths. It described using a hybrid approach of open cell foam on top bonded to an inch of closed cell (like the old ensolite pads) foam below to prevent bottoming out. You could try using all open cell foam as in something like this from Defender or A1 foam.

http://www.defender.com/product.jsp?nam ... id=1255259

http://www.a-1foam.com

You could see how that feels, and/or adjust with a layer of sailrite Polyester batting

http://www.sailrite.com/Batting-83-Thick-55-Wide

This could take some trial and error. If it's any consolation, I have our saloon berths cushions to remake as the foam is way too spent. Sleeping in the V berth is much more comfortable due to the either newer or less abused foam. Good luck!

[Frenchy]

Thanks, Paul. You've given me some things to think about. I wish there was a way to test the comfort before purchasing. For now,
I'll probably buy some 3" open cell and batting and combine that with the 4" dry-fast for a test mattress. - Jean

[John Stone]

We went with 2" of medium and 2" soft glued on top. On our pilot and quarter berth. For the forward double we did the same but added an 1" of stuffing on top of the soft for a total of 5". Luxury.

[Doug Gibson]

I've been slowly replacing foam in cushions. I found a local futon shop that has different densities of 4"and 5" foam. In was able to lie on the futon, trying out different densities. Once I found one just right, they cut new foam using old foam as a pattern. They sell the foam by standard matress sizes (twin, double, queen)

[steveg]

Hi,

I have had good experience with the outdoor foam from an outfit here in Michigan. It does not retain water. Water literally flows right through it. The web site is foamforyou.com.

Price is decent as well.

[Frenchy]

Thanks everyone for your inputs and hopefully sending me on my way to dreamland. - Jean

[Frenchy]

Well, after using up fabric, foam and money, I've come up with a mattress that is "sorta" comfortable. They say that few problems
won't yield to the generous and frequent application of cold cash and I'm proof of that. My first mistake was
sewing up interior cushions with the 4" dri-fast. Too hard. Then I bought some 3" medium from Defender and glued that
atop the dri-fast, bought some more material $$ and re-sewed the cushion covers. They're now 7" thick. The cushions felt
comfortable after a five minute lie.
Better, comfort-wise, but still not good after spending a night on them. Also, the thicker cushions made it hard to turn around on the two mid-ship berths as the cabinetry overhead is low. Plus, the back rests hit the cushions before they could swing all the way down.
I decided to remove the 4" dri-fast, which wasn't really doing anything anyway and added some 1" soft V24 Everflex from Foamorder.com
to the 3" medium. Back to 4" thickness. I also bought the Froli system to put under the two mid-ship berths and that made a
difference. Besides circulating air under the mattress, it acts a bit like an inner spring mattress.
Anyway, here's my subjective feeling - I think a 4" medium open cell foam would be good for a back sleeper.
For most side-sleeping people, like me, 2" medium topped with 2" soft as suggested by John Stone, would be good. Even better
would be adding the Froli.

[jen1722terry]

Hi Frenchy,

We also had foam sleeping issues when we bought our 31 in 2013. Making the saloon cushions thick enough would cause other problems.

We now sleep in the V-berth on custom cushions made for us by Gemini in Rockland ME. 5" thick with two different layers, thick enough to project up over the wooden fiddles so you don't roll on them. They seem to be very mildew resistant also.

But V-berth sleeping is not for everyone, and requires some dexterity to get in an out. Also, not the best place for tall folks (we're both 5'9").

We used the draining foam in the cockpit and we don't like them. The 3" version gives we a numb bum after a half hour of so. Jenn is thinking of replacing them with 4".

Happy sleeping/sitting!

Jenn and Terry

[Frenchy]

Thanks for the info. I have the 4" dri-fast from SailRite in the cockpit and it's just fine for sitting. I've read most
people recommend 2" closed cell because it's better to walk on when you're fumbling with the main and its controls.
But I had that in my last boat and it was a bit hard on the bum. The 4" dri-fast is just fine. I swing the cushions up if
I have to walk on the seats.
A pleasant, restful sleep helps keep the "grouchies" away- for me, anyway. Regards, Jean

[Nebe]

A friend just went to Ikea and bought a couple memory foam mattresses and used his old foam as templates and made some incredibly comfortable V birth cushions for his boat... He also found some awesome solar powered chinese paper lanterns that were not paper but a synthetic material. they are a perfect cockpit light.

[John Stone]

I don’t know if this is relevant or not. We have a tempurpedic bed at home which we absolutely love...it’s softer than what’s on the boat. The foam on our boat bunks is firmer than I originally anticipated. And it takes a little getting use to. But when I do—it takes about a week—I sleep better there than on a softer bed.

After living on the boat for six months in the West Indies I had trouble sleeping back at home on our tempurpedic though I have since adjusted.

So the moral of the story for me...I think it can be an endless struggle trying to pursue a bunk on the boat with similar feel to what you have at home. After all, a home mattress is 8-10” and is super high quality foam and often with box springs. The foam on our boats is generally 3-5” thick. They are two different animals. But, I think our bodies adjust. The studies I have read indicate a firmer bed is “generally” better for you. That’s not to say you should not have what you want but we are more adaptable than we sometimes realize.

After 26 years of service as a Marine infantryman I learned to sleep anywhere...night or day. Soaking wet or dry. On the ground, in the bed of a truck, on a cot, on a 1/2” hard pad, in the rain, freezing cold, scorching heat etc. That’s not to say I liked it, but I learned I could adjust to it.

So give your mattress ideas a little time before you decide it’s no good. You might be surprised at what you decide is quite comfortable.