good heavy duty narrow air mattress?

[e9999]

would like to find a good air mattress to sleep in the back of the 80. Limited space cuz of the big fridge. It should preferably be 24", at the most 30" wide. I mean the thick ones you inflate with a compressor, not skinny self-inflating backpacking types. The few I've seen online -mostly intended for camping apparently- seem to be pretty low quality, thin material, and not likely to last long in a rough environment (as in sleeping on top of boxes etc). Anybody knows of a good sturdy one?

 

[Tapage]

second that question .. buddy have a coleman which include the compressor .. I mean build in the matterss looks very good quality but he's just use for 4 trips or so .. not really much experience to tell yet.

 

[e9999]

seen the colemans around but they were much wider than what I need.
I have a couple of Aerobeds in fact and those seem to be decent quality, but also too wide for this use.

 

[greentruck]

Two of the big, phat 30" wide Thermarests fit exactly the width between the cabin walls above the wheelwells = 60".

Of course, you have to be able to take advantage of the full width by having a drawer or sleeper system of some kind. We usually set the 5-gallon jug outside at night...

 

[greentruck]

SNIP
I have a couple of Aerobeds in fact and those seem to be decent quality, but also too wide for this use.

Lately I've seen some ads for airbeds designed to fit around the wheelwells of pickups. Don't know how well that matches up with the 80, but worth looking into.

 

[Butt Ugly Chuck]

Spendy but bombproof, check out Paco Pads from Jack's Plastic Welding
No compressor required.
Butt

 

[tag3]

The thicker Thermarest pads are around 3 inches thick, the outfitter series?

 

[rusty_tlc]

Exped Down filled or Big Agnes insulated.
The Exped is a down filled mat that gets rave reviews from everyone that has one.
The Big Agnes is for those of us who live in the real world of bills and mortgages and is nearly as good. I have the big Agnes and it kicks ass, I sleep much warmer than any thing else I've used.

The problem with most air mattresses is that they sleep cold, not so with the mats that are filled with insulation.

 

[oc cruiser]

pricey but the Therarest dreamtime XL is real comfortable. it is a self inflating type, but it has memory foam on top.

 

[e9999]

thanks all but I'm going to put this on top of some likely uneven storage boxes and I don't think the self-inflating type will be able to handle that as well as a thick air mattress would, which is why I'm looking at the latter first. (I do already have a bunch of self-inflatable.)

 

[Bogo]

I evened out my storage boxes. As in I got all of them the same height, or made some stacks to achieve the same height. On top of them I put sheets of plywood cut to the box size with cleats to center and hold them on the boxes. The primary boxes I used were the plastic shipping cases that have the hinged lids.

The plywood platform pieces were cut to the same size as the top of the shipping boxes. The cleats were placed on the bottom sides to lock into the recessed center of the folding lids. I also had a few 1-1/4" diameter finger holes drilled into the plywood sheets for helping to pick them up when the boxes were packed side to side.

For my pelican cases I had plywood boxes that fit on top of them that brought them up to the same height as the shipping boxes.

The net effect of this is a flat platform that I rolled my rectangular style sleeping bags out on. I always brought three along with different temperature ranges, 40F, 20F, and 0F. I slept in the one appropriate for the night and used the other two for padding.

 

[rusty_tlc]

thanks all but I'm going to put this on top of some likely uneven storage boxes and I don't think the self-inflating type will be able to handle that as well as a thick air mattress would, which is why I'm looking at the latter first. (I do already have a bunch of self-inflatable.)

The two I mentioned are not self inflating, I've slept on some pretty rocky uneven ground comfortably using my Big Agnes. My biggest complaint is that it is narrow, which seems to be what you want.

 

[hkeller]

If you are going to use it when it is cold outside, an air mattress will make you much colder than a foam pad. Just FYI.

Cabelas makes a 4 inch thick, non-inflating pad that would cover bumps as well or better than an air mattress. Might be worth a look.

 

[e9999]

The two I mentioned are not self inflating, I've slept on some pretty rocky uneven ground comfortably using my Big Agnes. My biggest complaint is that it is narrow, which seems to be what you want.

thanks, the big Agnes ones I've found are indeed very narrow, 20", which is great for my app.
The covers are strong then? Not likely to puncture easily?


HK, 4" thick is great but would take a ton of room in the truck , which I'd rather not do. I do have several pads, self-inflating and not and those are pretty cumbersome, which is why I'm thinking air this time. I'm not too worried about cold cuz it's to sleep inside and I'm in the warm part of the country.

 

[hkeller]

Yeah, the Cabelas pad takes up a lot of room rolled up. I think, tightly rolled, it is probably 18 inches in diameter.

Also, if you place it on top of your freind's Excursion and drive away, it will fly off at least 10 miles before you realize it!

 

[rusty_tlc]

thanks, the big Agnes ones I've found are indeed very narrow, 20", which is great for my app.
The covers are strong then? Not likely to puncture easily?


....

Very tough, and it rolls up to about the size of a 1# coffee can. It's the one I use when I camp out of the FJ40 where space is at a premium.

 

[mossback]

For what it's worth I would take Bogo's solution and use a 3" self-inflating pad on top.

I know you don't like the self inflating pads. I have been underwhelmed by them myself in the past. Just picked up a couple 3" REI self inflaters and am actually liking them. Found out that storing them unrolled with the valves open really helps keep the loft.

Can't say I have run across any inflatables that I would trust to hold up on top of a pile of stuff. I used nothing but inflatables for a solid two years in the early 2000s. Notice I said inflatables plural. They just don't hold up to much abuse. Maybe there are some better ones on the market now.

Good luck!

 

[Phil in BC]

The air mattress I use is meant for a swimming pool. Made of a canvas type material instead of plastic. Way more durable and has lasted for 10 years or so with quite a bit of abuse. It is a bit heavy compared to the cheap plastic ones, but it does roll up fairly small. You may want to check along those lines instead of a camping store. Just a thought.

 

[Enigma]

I recall watching a video where they tested their air mattress' by driving over them with trucks, but I can't remember the vendor. It impressed me, but I never did buy one.

 

[rhyary]

I have the 30" extra large Thermarest Dreamtime and the 25" Dreamtime.
Initially I had the 30".
After getting the fridge I had to get the 25" and sleep next to the fridge.
Very comfortable.

I have used air mattress, camping Thermarest and now the Dreamtime (combination of the Thermarest and memory form).