Tilt a bed issues

[twinegar]

Just purchased a 2019 Aria 3901. New to all this so please bear with me. The tilt-a-bed (king) does lift properly but the mattress doesn't follow the bed causing the mattress to hang out over the foot of the bed. There are two small brackets that I guess are supposed to hold the mattress in place. They don't!! Is the mattress supposed to be attached to the wooden base under the mattress to keep this from happening?

We have had to rig some straps from the brackets at the foot of the bed board, run them under the mattress and pull them taught over the top of the mattress to get it to go as high as it can so the mattress does not overhang the bed board. If you don't, the mattress is pushed very hard against the wardrobes when the slides are brought in. We are very concerned that the pressure and stress on the wardrobes could eventually break the glass/mirrors or cause the slide to come out of alignment. We are worried storing and traveling with these straps as they are, will eventually hurt and maybe rip the mattress.

Has anyone had the same issue? It would seem larger brackets would help the situation.

[m1noel]

We have the same issue. I just bring the bed slide in first, shove the mattress where it should be, then bring the full wall slide in. I've thought about extending the stops to make them taller, but thinking about it is all I've accomplished. Welcome to the Aria owner's club. Enjoy.
Mike

[javelin]

Welcome to the forum. I do not have the tilt a bed system nor am I familiar with it, but if it is the Lippert system (which Thor typically uses for almost everything) there is a link attached to open the install manual info for the bed tilt mechanism. In the install instructions it says the mattress is held with a strap but the picture does not show where or what that strap looks like. I would assume it would be at the foot of the mattress otherwise you would be laying on it.....or perhaps it goes where the mattress actually deforms and bends up towards the head end. I am sure someone else with the system will respond to this so we can all learn.


https://www.lci1.com/bed-tilt-system

[jtyphoid]

Ours slips over the brackets occasionally, too. I now start the bed lift then step over and gently assist the lift to keep the mattress engaged with the brackets. Ours has always stayed put once fully tilted.

Another problem we had was that the bed lift button on the multiplex panel didn't actually lift the bed when we first got our Aria 3401. Power cycling the Firefly system resolved that.

Editing to add that tucking covers under the foot of the mattress makes the problem worse, so we just tuck the sheets then make sure that the mattress is fully engaged with the brackets.

[twinegar]

As promised I will pass on what I found out today about the tilt a bed in the Thor RV's.

I called Lippert Components which is the booklet I received form Thor Support. After 35 minutes on hold I was told that they (Lippert) were not the installer of the bed and it was Thor who installed and built the bed. Nothing was ever said about being the wrong/incorrect bed I was asking about.

I did call Thor support and after another 30 minutes on hold got a person who advised that the tilt a bed was not Lippert's or a Schwintek bed, counter to all I had heard to that point. I just hung up and scratched my head after this support agent promised me that the bed was not what I had been told. When I told him I had been sent the manual from a peer of his, he expressed that sometimes his peers don't do enough to research these issues. In other words, under the bus went his peers.

I now have very little to share with those interested in finding out how to fix any issue that might be inherent in the bed. This support rep also advised that the bed comes with no straps to keep it staged properly on the plywood base. He told me I had to go to our local service department.

Soooo, I am further in the dark today than I was yesterday. I don't even have any "real" information to pass on. Hopefully, I will if I stick to it. Keep you advised.

[jtyphoid]

I took ours apart enough to see the mechanism and our 2018 Aria 3401 bed tilt doesn't look anything like what is pictured in the LCI Schwintek installation manual.

I didn't see any manufacturer labels so I wasn't able to determine who made ours, but I'm convinced that it's not a Schwintek system.

[Beau388]

If Thor MC bought the bed frame and mattress from a vendor, the vendor should be listed in the installed equipment list on inside of one of your bedroom wardrobe doors. At least the coaches from plant 750 have such a vendor list so I would assume the plant 850 coaches have the same list.

[rpitch47]

Please, you are all over thinking this whole thing. I have a 2018 3901 and this has always been a problem from day one. There are two sets of bars that hold the mattress in place, one set at the top and one at the bottom, when the bed is raised the ones on top force the mattress down and so all you need to do is have your partner stand at the base of the bed and hold it in place wile you raise the mattress up, not a big deal. it is part of our standard routine.

[twinegar]

Thanks for the note. Ironically enough, I got two different schematic drawings from tech support on what I am supposed to have on the Aria 3901. Both different than what I have. Tech support told me to have my service center call in and they were authorize a solid piece of wood the length of the mattress at the bottom of the bed. That was one of the schematics they had, so it was tough for them to turn it down. My center was turned down and I had to get involved. I am now getting a solid board installed at the base to hold the mattress. While I don't have it yet, it was authorized by the support group as I was on the phone with them. They admitted I was right (hooray) and were not aware of what I actually had, nor why it was different than what they saw in their records. Crazy, huh!

[RGarlick]

OK. So here is my solution. I went to Lowes and bought four 4 inch by four inch L shaped brackets. I screwed them to the board at the foot of the bed, and my mattress goes up and down as it was designed to do. Just cover them with Duct tape, so they don't rip your mattress when you move it.

[m1noel]

This is what I did. Attached a piece of 1X6, screwed into the steel frame. Working great.

[m1noel]

Originally Posted by m1noel

This is what I did. Attached a piece of 1X6, screwed into the steel frame. Working great.

Here's a picture