The history of what we sleep on isn't a universally accepted practice, how that evolved in western society is now the province of marketing. After WWII, the mattress industry was trying to sell two twin beds to married couples, and it has to be asked if all those racy scene's in 50's movies were just product placement ads, more than pearl clutching censors. It's the same era the Queen and King mattress were being pushed as industry wanted to keep the same production levels post war. There are interesting stories of how some projects collapsed after the war, aka the "sheet metal house" which was stamped and could be put up in days. It was based on the cheap sheet metal stamping industry's wartime production, which soured.
The bedding manufacturers were trying to avoid the same. Ergo, sell those mattresses! Since the double mattress was the standard of comfort up to the 50's, imagine something more expensive and then convince the consumer it's the cat's pajamas and they will buy it. There were even marketing campaigns to get homeowners to measure their mattresses to see what they were missing.
Fast forward to now, and this has obviously infiltrated RV's. While it's just keen for kids to sleep in bunks, by no means will anything less than a Queen be tolerated for the grownups. Oh no, tho, road laws and overwidth permits might ensue, which is why the RV Queen is shorter. That 80" or 85" or whatever limit seems to have intruded.
What I'm proposing is that the Queen itself has invaded into floor planning in an RV, to the detriment of the user and the industry as a whole. Once you toss out the concept it is the only option, then certain impositions on floor space, and the mattress being a hog on square footage come into question. This goes double for the shorter, smaller units, to the point where a teardrop is nothing more than a large mattress hauler with exterior pantry.
And nobody questions it?
Same for truck slide ins, and now with shortbed four doors, the issue is even worse. Where is it engraved in stone that a Queen mattress is the only acceptable solution? The RV market will tell us that is what the public wants, they buy them all the time, the public, tho, tells us that is what they buy because it's the ONLY thing available. Do some research online tho, the DIY group exercises quite a few alternatives: hammocks, for a start, internally or a hitch mount, and did you know there are winter capable hammocks with insulation? Futons are common, you can see the slide out frame with interleaved slats as a common feature in vans, minimizing the impact of bedding encroachment for day use as a couch. And there is also the now underused method of just sleeping on the floor. With backpacker to tent inflatables, it's a simple exercise. The 16 hour "day" space becomes an area unencumbered with obtrusive stuffing taking it all up.
I can say in my experience I have never seen a Queen mattress in the field while in the military. It was conspicuously absent, and for the most part, we got along just the same. What we got, was the ubiquitous cot, that Machiavellian instrument of torture, with aluminum tubing corners strategically placed to strike elbows and knees at just the wrong angles. Yet, we did sleep. I still have one and use it. I now prefer the zero gravity type lounger, which is the outdoor equivalent to the Lazy Boy recliner, also known as the retiree's coffin. Growing up we all talked about dad's who finally quit work which resulted in succumbing to the siren song of the recliner in six months.
I note recliners in RV's are a thing, too. Hmm.
Are we allowing suburbia to set the standards on how we furnish or build an RV? Seems so. Little wheeled micro mini me's of the gated community homesite, with wall to wall carpeting, large screen tv, etc etc etc. Or, is it simply because they are purchased because it's all there is? What happened to the simplicity of the Airstream? Sadly, it's no longer the aircraft cabin it used to be, a singularly different look. It seems the decadence of the 80s brass and glass has evolved into the current flip a home styling as shown on influencer channels. Out with the shag, in with the white and gray.
Nobody is building for the function, just a form of luxury, and the more glitz that can be added to impress the neighbors, the better. Even the graphics are now over the top. All because of the Queen mattress being stuffed into the floor plan. This too shall pass, and giving another ten years, we are going to see some significant changes. When toy haulers are the standard, with vehicles inside dripping mud on the floor, then new concepts and how to deal with a different idea of interior decor that can resist mechanical intrusion will require new materials. We will have to give up luan, folks, and the Queen? Good riddance.
The bedding manufacturers were trying to avoid the same. Ergo, sell those mattresses! Since the double mattress was the standard of comfort up to the 50's, imagine something more expensive and then convince the consumer it's the cat's pajamas and they will buy it. There were even marketing campaigns to get homeowners to measure their mattresses to see what they were missing.
Fast forward to now, and this has obviously infiltrated RV's. While it's just keen for kids to sleep in bunks, by no means will anything less than a Queen be tolerated for the grownups. Oh no, tho, road laws and overwidth permits might ensue, which is why the RV Queen is shorter. That 80" or 85" or whatever limit seems to have intruded.
What I'm proposing is that the Queen itself has invaded into floor planning in an RV, to the detriment of the user and the industry as a whole. Once you toss out the concept it is the only option, then certain impositions on floor space, and the mattress being a hog on square footage come into question. This goes double for the shorter, smaller units, to the point where a teardrop is nothing more than a large mattress hauler with exterior pantry.
And nobody questions it?
Same for truck slide ins, and now with shortbed four doors, the issue is even worse. Where is it engraved in stone that a Queen mattress is the only acceptable solution? The RV market will tell us that is what the public wants, they buy them all the time, the public, tho, tells us that is what they buy because it's the ONLY thing available. Do some research online tho, the DIY group exercises quite a few alternatives: hammocks, for a start, internally or a hitch mount, and did you know there are winter capable hammocks with insulation? Futons are common, you can see the slide out frame with interleaved slats as a common feature in vans, minimizing the impact of bedding encroachment for day use as a couch. And there is also the now underused method of just sleeping on the floor. With backpacker to tent inflatables, it's a simple exercise. The 16 hour "day" space becomes an area unencumbered with obtrusive stuffing taking it all up.
I can say in my experience I have never seen a Queen mattress in the field while in the military. It was conspicuously absent, and for the most part, we got along just the same. What we got, was the ubiquitous cot, that Machiavellian instrument of torture, with aluminum tubing corners strategically placed to strike elbows and knees at just the wrong angles. Yet, we did sleep. I still have one and use it. I now prefer the zero gravity type lounger, which is the outdoor equivalent to the Lazy Boy recliner, also known as the retiree's coffin. Growing up we all talked about dad's who finally quit work which resulted in succumbing to the siren song of the recliner in six months.
I note recliners in RV's are a thing, too. Hmm.
Are we allowing suburbia to set the standards on how we furnish or build an RV? Seems so. Little wheeled micro mini me's of the gated community homesite, with wall to wall carpeting, large screen tv, etc etc etc. Or, is it simply because they are purchased because it's all there is? What happened to the simplicity of the Airstream? Sadly, it's no longer the aircraft cabin it used to be, a singularly different look. It seems the decadence of the 80s brass and glass has evolved into the current flip a home styling as shown on influencer channels. Out with the shag, in with the white and gray.
Nobody is building for the function, just a form of luxury, and the more glitz that can be added to impress the neighbors, the better. Even the graphics are now over the top. All because of the Queen mattress being stuffed into the floor plan. This too shall pass, and giving another ten years, we are going to see some significant changes. When toy haulers are the standard, with vehicles inside dripping mud on the floor, then new concepts and how to deal with a different idea of interior decor that can resist mechanical intrusion will require new materials. We will have to give up luan, folks, and the Queen? Good riddance.
