Froli RV Travel Bed System Vastly Improves Sleep

Truck camper mods can be fun. They’re even better when they can improve one’s fitness and health. One such modification is the Froli Modular Sleep System. Sleep can be elusive when you’re on the road. This is because most of the mattresses found in today’s RV are awful. Sure, you can buy a pretty good aftermarket mattress for your camper, but this is often not enough. What is needed is a good support system underneath to relieve the pressure points in your shoulders and hips. That’s where the Froli comes in. Not only does the imported sleep system improve your sleep while you are on the road, but it also reduces condensation underneath the mattress with improved air flow.

You may have heard of the Froli Modular Sleep System. It was first introduced to the US boating market in 2005. But Froli has actually been around a lot longer than that—the history of the German company actually starts in 1962, but it’s bed systems weren’t released until 1994 when the German product was first introduced to the European market. Since that time the sleep system has become incredibly popular in the boating community due to the system’s ability to conform to the odd shapes and slopes found in many berthing compartments. Popularity of the Froli has taken off in the American RV community as well simply because it works. Several RV companies now offer the Froli as OEM, including Winnebago, Thor, nuCamp, Jayco, AT Overland, and Nimbl Vehicles, along with several other companies offering it as an option.

How the Froli Modular Sleep System works is pretty clever. The system consists of a grid of high-tech plastic springs, which work together like a standard box spring mattress. Each spring, measuring roughly 5×5 inches, is made of a thermoplastic elastomer, a high-tech material that combines the flexibility of rubber with the strength of a durable, space-age plastic. This material provides a memory-like effect for precise flexing while returning the spring to its original shape at rest.

The firmness of the Froli can be set in three ways: by the spacing between the individual springs, by the color of spring firmness used, and by the use of red tension spring inserts shaped like four-leaf clovers that provide even more firmness. This variety allows owners to set the firmness levels in countless ways and combinations. One side of the bed can be set for a firm setting while the other side is set for a softer setting. Indeed, no other RV sleep system can do what the Froli can do. Like we said in our 2019 Froli review, “it’s a clever and ingenious design, unrivaled by anything else in today’s market.”

Froli sells three sleep systems for RV, boat, and home use—the Travel, the Star, and the Zona—with some differences between the three. Both the Star and Travel offer short spreading springs, while the Zona offers a taller baffle-type spring that is more appropriate for home use and will no longer be mentioned here. The firmness and spring heights differ. The Travel springs, which are 1-3/8-inches high are dark grey in color, are stiffer due to the lower height, whereas the Star’s springs, which are 1-3/4 inches high are light blue, and offer a medium firmness that is more “cushy.”

So does the thickness of the mattress matter when buying the Froli? It does. The Star version works best with foam mattresses between 4 and 8 inches thick. The Star’s flex height is just right for this type of mattress and gives a very comfortable feel. The Travel version, since it’s firmer, supports even thinner mattresses and pads, which makes it better for use in pop-up truck campers and truck toppers with collapsing roofs.

So which version are we currently using? In our last camper we used the Froli Star, but in our new camper we decided to try out the Froli Travel to see if there are any differences between the two. So are there any differences? From our perspective as a truck camper owner, not really. Yes, the springs used in the Travel version are firmer and an inch larger meaning you might have a spring or two less under your mattress, but that’s about it. We haven’t noticed a big difference in the firmness or the quality of our sleep, but that might be due to the different 6-inch mattresses that we used in both campers.

The Froli Modular Sleep System is a great truck camper mod. Without a doubt, it’s one of the easiest and best mods we ever did to our camper. If you have any doubts about your ability to retrofit one of these systems in your RV, don’t. For most people, the installation only takes about an hour and doesn’t require any tools. You may need to tweak the resistance of the springs from time to time, but that’s to be expected for an adjustable system like the Froli.

So what’s the bottom line? After using both the Travel and Star systems we can honestly say that the Froli works. We sleep so much better now on the road. As a matter of fact, we actually sleep better in our camper than we do on the $2,000 mattress in our home. If you’re still skeptical, that’s good. We were too. But if you find that your current setup isn’t working in your rig, you should give the Froli a try. You’ve got nothing to lose besides a sore back and aching hips.