Duvalay or the cheaper alternative. (2 Viewers)

Jan 18, 2016
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We were looking at the cost of Duvalays and the fact that we have everything except the will to sleep on the seat cushions I looked around for a Memory Foam Topper, with cover that would fit onto our seats.
I came up with Carousel Foam UK, they offer a service to make a memory Foam topper 1-3" thick in any size that you want.
Thinking that a 71" x 27" x 2" topper would cost the earth I thought that I would give it a go anyway.
I send an e-mail and got an instant reply with a link to their quotation page:-

http://carouselfoam.co.uk/product/custom-size-mattress-toppers

I filled in all our details and it came up with a surprisingly low price of £19.24 each complete with a cover made to our requirements.
Delivery is only 3-4 days from placing the order (and free to UK mainland) and after a few e-mails when I asked is I could use their name on our MF website, Carl Hestford sent me a voucher code motorhomefun which if applied at checkout we can get 10% discount on all orders.
So now we can use our single Duvets along with the topper and favourite pillow all for £20!

If anyone else is interested, just click on the link, enter your measurements and get the instant quote. Don't forget to use motorhomefun in the voucher box to get the 10% discount.
 

Rob and Val

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Oct 17, 2010
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That seems like a really good offer. We were fortunate enough to be able to buy two hardly used Duvalays at a very good price. They are excellent but we would not have wanted to pay full price for them i.e. £120 each plus £13 each for the covers.

Your idea seems an excellent alternative and it was good of you to negotiate a discount for MHF members.
 

Minxy

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Aug 22, 2007
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Since 1996, had Elddis/Swift/Rapido/Rimor/Chausson MHs. Autocruise/Globecar PVCs/Compactline i-138
I can't tell from their website .. is cover only on the 'top' and held on with elastic, or does it fully enclose the foam? I can't tell from their website

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Feb 27, 2011
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I have just chucked my Duvalay in the bin and gone back to single duvet. Best nights sleep in ages, warm feet, no zip marks down my back and no crease digging into my side. (y)

I am back on plain high density foam as well, I don't really see the need for a memory foam mattress topper. However if you do then this looks like it is much better value than a duvalay.
 

Jim

Ringleader
Jul 19, 2007
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We've tried a couple of different memory foams, but find that the foam used by Raskelf (The Duvalay makers) is very, very good. We've found the cheaper foam is not as comfy and gets too hot in summer. As for the Duvalay, we bought one for our daughter, but she didn't get on with it. So If anyone would like an over-rated, expensive, complicated, sleeping bag, then we have one for sale (y)
 

scotjimland

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It's a sad sated of affairs..

You have spent tens of thousands of pounds on a van.... then have to buy memory foam to get a decent bed..

I appreciate it's probably not a fixed a bed, but made up from seat cushions, but it's no excuse.. and the main reason we bought one with a fixed bed..
It also has a drop down bed .. both super comfy ..

Imagine you bought a top of range car, eg.. Range Rover.. then had to buy foam for the seats.. (n)

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TerryL

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Mar 5, 2010
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It's the density of the foam that makes the difference. We had a look at a lot of "memory foam" toppers but most were of quite low density and would have proved useless - suffice it to say these were the "low-cost" versions.

A good night sleep is important to me so I pays me money and not get too upset about the cost.
 

ABZSteve

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We've tried a couple of different memory foams, but find that the foam used by Raskelf (The Duvalay makers) is very, very good. We've found the cheaper foam is not as comfy and gets too hot in summer. As for the Duvalay, we bought one for our daughter, but she didn't get on with it. So If anyone would like an over-rated, expensive, complicated, sleeping bag, then we have one for sale (y)
Na got one each, we love them(y)
 
OP
OP
Chris+Tracy
Jan 18, 2016
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Hi Minxy Girl.
i believe that they are fully enclosed and zipped.
I get mine later on this week and will be trying them out at the weekend.
I will reply on this thread as to what they are like.
With respect to scotjimland, i agree, paid loads of money for a u shaped lounge and get back ache.
I think that it is a trade off re. Seat durability over a good nights sleep.
But arent all vans a trade off, weight, sleep, living area, length, cost, insurance, tax, servicing, etc etc.

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Minxy

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Aug 22, 2007
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It's a sad sated of affairs..

You have spent tens of thousands of pounds on a van.... then have to buy memory foam to get a decent bed.
We have a decent fixed bed but hubby needs a 'squishy' bed due to a hip problem so we have a memory foam topper on ours.
 
OP
OP
Chris+Tracy
Jan 18, 2016
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Raskelf bronze 40kg/m3 (soft) same as carousel foam.
Raskelf silver 60kg/m3 (harder for heavierpeople) >75kg.
Raskelf gold 60kg/m3 (same as silver but for rich people)
Very expensive. We just need a topper to take the firmness out of the seats.
I suppose 5 years down the line we will be putting hardboard under the seats to take out the sag!,,,,
 

Minxy

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Hi Minxy Girl.
i believe that they are fully enclosed and zipped.
I get mine later on this week and will be trying them out at the weekend.
I will reply on this thread as to what they are like.
In order to stop the duvets slipping off instead of using a single duvet cover you could adapt a double/king sized cover to take the duvet and the topper in 2 pockets - 1 for the duvet to go into (wider) and one for the memory foam (narrower).

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Chris+Tracy
Jan 18, 2016
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Brilliant idea.
will get the sewing machine out of the loft and give it a good oiling
 

Minxy

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yes.. medical reasons aside..

otherwise your bed is fit for purpose.. not a jigsaw puzzle with lumps and bumps that require a topper to smooth out
Ours is TOOOOOO fit for purpose ... trying to evict the dogs when they've had an evening snooze on it because I want to go to bed can be 'fun' as they don't want to budge ... ever tried moving a heffalump who acts like a sack of spuds? :rolleyes:

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kitetraveller

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Jun 18, 2016
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Hi Minxy Girl.
i believe that they are fully enclosed and zipped.
I get mine later on this week and will be trying them out at the weekend.
I will reply on this thread as to what they are like.

Hi Keypresser,
Any update on the quality and effectiveness of the mattress toppers yet please?

Thanks
Andy & Christine
 
Feb 25, 2013
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It's a sad sated of affairs..

You have spent tens of thousands of pounds on a van.... then have to buy memory foam to get a decent bed..

I appreciate it's probably not a fixed a bed, but made up from seat cushions, but it's no excuse.. and the main reason we bought one with a fixed bed..
It also has a drop down bed .. both super comfy ..

Imagine you bought a top of range car, eg.. Range Rover.. then had to buy foam for the seats.. (n)


Unfortunately we hadn't got tens of thousands of pounds to spend on a van so we just have a memory foam topper to stop us slipping through the joints in the cushions, and it's fine. And I cut down an old duvet cover to make a cover for it.
 

scotjimland

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Unfortunately we hadn't got tens of thousands of pounds to spend on a van so we just have a memory foam topper to stop us slipping through the joints in the cushions, and it's fine.

indeed.. that is understood..

I was referring to new vans that need 'toppers' to make a decent bed ..

a seat can never be a good bed.. and visa versa..

that is the conundrum that converters have grappled with since they fitted seats in the Ark.. and why many buy vans with fixed beds.. including myself... and it wasn't a new van nor did it cost 10s of thousands.. it's 15 years old.. and has super comfy beds..

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Geo

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Jul 29, 2007
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You can buy Raskelf and lay pondering why you spent so much(y):sleep:
Or pay less and Know why you should have paid more;):whistle:
 

RitaG

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I bought my 2 inch deep topper from here https://www.memoryfoamwarehouse.co.uk
and also bought a cool-max cover for it, very pleased with the comfort.

Mr G likes a sleeping bag but I don't so I cut down a double silk duvet and a soft cotton duvet for my bed.
 

Forestboy

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You can buy Raskelf and lay pondering why you spent so much(y):sleep:
Or pay less and Know why you should have paid more;):whistle:

Absolutely spot on 8 years on our Raskelf topper is still the best addition we ever bought for the van.
Quality is remembered long after price is forgotten.
A good night's sleep is priceless.

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JockandRita

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Aug 2, 2007
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It was @Jim & Sian who put us on to the Raskelf topper, and we are pleased that we took their advice and recommendations. It is so comfortable. (Y)

Cheers,

Jock. :)
 
Oct 19, 2013
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Hi all. We sleep with a double duvet on our van but the seat bases and cushions are uncomfy

I was thinking of trying to get something to roll out on-top of the bases to sleep on something like one of those blue roll out mats you can get for backpacking - but these sound better - do you think they would easily roll up to store on one of the bench seats while travelling?

Richard
 

Rob and Val

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We roll up our Duvalays and store them, one each, behind the driver and passenger seats. We secure them with bungee straps to the seats.

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Jenben

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do you think they would easily roll up to store on one of the bench seats while travelling?

We bought duvalay mattress toppers for our panel van, they were stored rolled up in a cupboard and unrolled each night. They still look great 7 years after we first bought them, the foam doesn't appear to have degraded and we have no holes or wrinkles in them. Expensive but they appear to do the job.
 
Feb 15, 2016
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When we bought our van, we were recommended to turn the cushions upside down to get a flat surface. We then bought a good quality, fairly thick mattress protector and find that the bed is very comfortable.
So far we have only used the rear lounge as a bed, so the cushions are still reasonably firm.
 
Sep 26, 2010
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Absolutely spot on 8 years on our Raskelf topper is still the best addition we ever bought for the van.
Quality is remembered long after price is forgotten.
A good night's sleep is priceless.

We're going to go for the Duvalay/Raskelf (same thing?) mattress topper - especially as their appears to be a 25% sale on at the mo.
But, what have you gone for please? Is the 'Gold' worth the extra £50/60? What's the difference between 'Silver' and 'Gold'.......except the price!!
Thanks
:sleep::sleep:

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Forestboy

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We're going to go for the Duvalay/Raskelf (same thing?) mattress topper - especially as their appears to be a 25% sale on at the mo.
But, what have you gone for please? Is the 'Gold' worth the extra £50/60? What's the difference between 'Silver' and 'Gold'.......except the price!!
Thanks
:sleep::sleep:

Really can't remember as we've had ours at least 10 years, it was horrendously expensive so probably the Gold but as its still perfect and the best nights sleep we ever have not so expensive.
Hope that helps(y)
 

Wombles

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Oct 28, 2013
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We're going to go for the Duvalay/Raskelf (same thing?) mattress topper - especially as their appears to be a 25% sale on at the mo.
But, what have you gone for please? Is the 'Gold' worth the extra £50/60? What's the difference between 'Silver' and 'Gold'.......except the price!!
Thanks
:sleep::sleep:
Think the Gold is denser thicker foam & it works great (y) Only downside is being thicker it is more bulky to store if not in constant use. Uni halls beds have no padding :( so the Gold topper must be good as it makes even those beds comfortable! Duvalay don't often reduce their products other than at the NEC Show & normally 15-20% on selected items so 25% is good & the more expensive the item is the bigger the saving so another reason to consider buying the Gold perhaps.
 

Pia

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We hate sleeping bags as we like to cuddle in bed so Raskelf does not appeal in the least. we've bought a used van and the idea of sleeping on a used mattress does not appeal so we shall use the foam topper we had in the caravan which will need a bit of adjustment.

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