Feasibility of a twin bed raised and at an angle?

[S. Heisley]

The cards would be used to make a scale model while comfortably seated at a table or desk.

Your latest model looks like the person in the bunk would be sliding to the one end all night?

[S. Heisley]

Something else you can do is cut off the corner(s) of the bunk, thus allowing the bunk to be moved closer to the end wall. The head doesn't need as much room as the rest of the body, plus you will find that most people don't use the top 6 inches of te bed. One side of the tops of my cots are less than 19 inches and then tapers out for 9 inches to the body of 22 inches. That doesn't sound like much but it really helps. This is where making a scale model may help. You can try all sorts of things without messing with wood or cardboard.

[Will Forsberg]

Tom - For the area you mention I was planning on adding some cabinetry and shelving to hold clothing and other items. Is that along the lines of what you mean?

Bill - I found mentions of Woodbutcher building a standrop from 2017 but not photos. I looked in his gallery and the most recent is from 2013 - do you know where they might be? Sounds like a neat idea

Sharon - Thanks again for all your expertise! Cutting off the corners is a great idea - I didn't even think about shaving a few edges off the mattress to make it more rectangular. However, it probably can't be a full rectangle because that would be too short - do you mean cutting off some of the width so I can move it back without colliding with the front? That sounds like it could be a great idea

Thanks again everyone for all the help!

Here's a few more photos since that first one didn't show everything well

[Tom&Shelly]

Tom - For the area you mention I was planning on adding some cabinetry and shelving to hold clothing and other items. Is that along the lines of what you mean?

I was actually thinking of making the left side of the bed larger, so the far edge of the bed was up against the front, then use that space for "less formal" storage, shall we say. But if you have ideas for cabinets and shelving, that's great. As you know, space is so precious in a camper, you want to make use of as much of it as possible.

Tom

[S. Heisley]

Looking at your SketchUp, it appears you may be using 2x4s or even 4x4 boards. You can probably get away with using less, depending on your final configuration. Flip your couch and look at how little support it has. I know you aren't finished yet, but keep it in mind.

Additionally, I believe you could cantilever part of the upper bunk so that you could move the support boards back a bit. That might 'buy' you a foot or more of movement ease. There are two things I'm thinking about with that: 1) Keep in mind where you are going to put the door and whether the support boards will interfere with that opening. 2) Think about how low the bottom bunk will be and if that will interfere with movement (getting in and out of the bed(s), sitting up, etc.)

Also, I would plan on the head in the top bunk being the opposite of those in the bottom bed. This is because you can fix a broken bone or other such injury but you can't always "fix" a cranial injury. Not that it will probably happen, but you want everyone to be as safe as possible. Even if bodies stay put in their beds, a book, phone, flashlight, or other such obstacle could fall on those below and give someone a black eye or worse. ...Just a few thoughts....

[Will Forsberg]

Sharon -

I currently have the bunk modelled with 2"x2" supporting beams because I thought 4" beams would take up too much space. I do have two 2x4s in the design - one on each side of the bunk, but I may replace these with more 2x2s at your suggestion - I'll see how it looks in the CAD. I mostly just guessed at what looked right based on bunk beds I've seen previously.

I'm not quite sure what you mean by cantilever - do you mean getting rid of one of the supports that will run to the floor? That's what came to mind, but I am not sure how I would accomplish that. I've already planned one door:


I'm planning on using the support beam to help support the 26x36 door (also, doors are crazy expensive!). For the bottom bunk height, I moved it up as high as I could - 15" instead instead of the 11" I had previously. Plus, it does not cover anywhere close to the entire area of the queen, so that may help. The bunk bed only has 16" clearance at its highest - it may a rotating position during the trip haha. I would cut off some of the corner that is touching the front end of the trailer in order to move the entire thing closer to the front, however I believe that may end up giving the occupant too little room to comfortably sleep.

Good point on the sleeping arrangement! I'll be sure to keep that in mind for later.

As a side note - I've started researching amenities such as electricity and basic plumbing + hot water for the galley and a shower - it's a whole other rabbit hole! Also started looking at wood and foam pricing- a lot more expensive than I thought, the best foam costs almost as much as the wood, so probably going to go for 2" EPS foam.

Thanks for all the help!
Will

[S. Heisley]

Hi, Will:

No, I didn't mean getting rid of a support. By using the support beam as support for the door as well as the bunk, you've done some smart thinking! No, after you explained that, I think you are okay with what you're doing. Carry on!

[pchast]

I think in use a 1 by 4 is stronger than a 2 by 2 to resist bending forces against the width.
Experimentation is the key to proving much of this.

[Will Forsberg]

Pete, thanks for the tip! Would you suggest using the 1 x 4 everywhere I'm using a 2 x 2 or just on one axis?

Will

[Will Forsberg]

Also - unrelated to the bunk but what is everyone doing for flooring? I heard a plywood - foam - plywood floor for good insulation, but plywood is already the largest cost as I have to buy two 4 x 8 sheets to create the flooring. What do y'all suggest?

[Pmullen503]

Also - unrelated to the bunk but what is everyone doing for flooring? I heard a plywood - foam - plywood floor for good insulation, but plywood is already the largest cost as I have to buy two 4 x 8 sheets to create the flooring. What do y'all suggest?

Pay the money and insulate. It only hurts once. Better than regretting your choice forever.

[Will Forsberg]

Makes sense. I guess i can just do a thinner sheet of wood for the top layer. Could i do 1 inch foam or stick to two?

Thanks!

[pchast]

I was talking about your twin bunk.... stretch a 2x2 between two sawhorses and sit on it. It bends. Try the same with a vertical 1 x 4 its almost ridged. If you are concerned make I beams. Use a thin deep web and stiff top and bottom...... Test it out'

[S. Heisley]

Makes sense. I guess i can just do a thinner sheet of wood for the top layer. Could i do 1 inch foam or stick to two?

Thanks!

If you're planning on sandwiching the Styrofoam between plywood, and one piece is thicker, I'd put the 1/8" on the underside of your deck and the thicker piece on the side you walk on, especially since your bunk buddy will be sliding down feet first onto that deck.

I was surprised at how little the underside of the deck is affected by the roads. But I did mine a little differently. Mine is plywood on top, Styrofoam under that, and then metal hardware cloth on the very bottom, followed by 3 coats of undercarriage spray instead of roof coating. (But, as I've written before, I got a little carried away with the build.) Recently, I got lost on forest roads right after a snow thaw and had to go through tons of mud plus drive through a muddy stream. I was impressed with how well the undercarriage seems to have held up. Even before that, all looked really good.

PS. My framework is almost all 1x2" poplar, with the exception of a couple 1x3" poplar boards in such places as the door frame. But I used 3/4" Styrofoam in my walls. I think you are using the thicker Styrofoam, and if you don't use the equivalent in wood, you'd need to make up the difference with a little extra Styrofoam filler. Using the thicker 2x2" for the door frame makes it easier to insert knobs and locks. (I used metal mending bars to make up the difference there.) Whatever you do, I suspect it will turn out fine. Just remember that the weight of the wood adds up quickly.

[tony.latham]

Could i do 1 inch foam or stick to two?

3/4" of foam in the floor is fine.

Tony