Some Bed Platform Support Ideas/Options

Island Jim

Active member
A good way to stiffen your bed platforms is a fore and aft bulkhead under the plywood. You can screw and glue cleats to the top and bottom of a 1/2" to 3/4" piece of plywood then fasten the bulkhead to your subfloor and platform. The closer to the middle of your span the better for support. The bulkhead provides a lot of stiffness, enabling you to use smaller crossbeams and also makes it easier to organize your stowage.
 

220629

Well-known member
It appears that I was wrong about unsupported regular old 3/4" plywood spanning the van.

If some one is looking for basic, I believe that the side support attachment methods used by Cwar would support a simple 3/4" plywood deck.

https://sprinter-source.com/forum/showthread.php?t=56107

There have been a couple members who mention that they used a 3/4" bed deck which is only supported at the sides. It may flex a bit, but the plywood won't break.

vic
Per a recent comment by Jsilver 3/4" Baltic Birch is the better choice. :thumbup:

Indeed, we are using 3/4 ply unsupported. They are full width. I've got 3, a la a 3 panel bed, all about 1/3 the total length. They sit in angle iron mounted to the van walls. Yes, they deflect a bit, but the only breakage was when I had 3 teenagers on one panel, and we were driving (I know, not the best idea to be driving with kids on the bed) on a very undulating road. (No injuries, thankfully). That was regular cheap plywood from a big box hardware store. I've since replaced all 3 panels with 3/4 Baltic Birch ply- much less deflection, very sturdy. I have no concerns.

John
Why even bother with fancy cross supports that take away space?

vic
 

Beer30

Member
Poles are cut to exact length(all different lengths) ends are duct taped(to keep from rattling). Tie downs are attached to the wood platform and strapped down to loops on floor. In and out in 10 minutes.
Thanks,
Beer30
 

jhardeman

New member
Resurrecting this thread. My first post!

I am planning an Elevated Bed at about 40 inches off the floor of the van. The garage box will be a little over 60 inches long to house bikes and be the width of the van. I will use a queen size mattress and cut off the lower 20 inches. My plan is to have a flip up bench seat back of about 15-18 inches in height that will flip up and utilize the cut off mattress as an upholstered seat cushion/mattress extension when in use. (see attachment)

So far I am planning to use 80/20 1.5 inch ready tubing for the bed frame. 80/20 also makes a "P" tube that is 3 inches in height with 1.5 inches of it being attached ready tubing. I want to use this as my side rails (see attachment).

The rear of the bed rails will be attached to the rear of the van. Because there is no sheet metal to attach to at the front of the rails, my plan is to have legs for support. The front legs would be attached to the side wall lower down, at the floor and to the plywood face of the box (bench back). The face and top will be 1/2 Birch plywood sheets.

Questions:
1. If the 2 side rails are attached at the rear, and utilize vertical legs in the front, will I also need to attach the rails to the walls in the mid point? Will the mid point also require vertical support?
2. Is it safe to bolt the cross beam supports (80/20) to the side rails on both sides? Or is "torsional flex" going to damage the van walls?
My plan was to attach the plywood base to the 80/20 cross beams through the side rails (bolt through plywood, cross beam and side rail).
3. Any other design flaws or ideas?

My inspiration comes from "Big Scout" build thread here - https://sprinter-source.com/forum/showpost.php?p=425432&postcount=41

Thank you!
 

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jhardeman

New member
Bump - Any help or feedback would be greatly appreciated.


Resurrecting this thread. My first post!

I am planning an Elevated Bed at about 40 inches off the floor of the van. The garage box will be a little over 60 inches long to house bikes and be the width of the van. I will use a queen size mattress and cut off the lower 20 inches. My plan is to have a flip up bench seat back of about 15-18 inches in height that will flip up and utilize the cut off mattress as an upholstered seat cushion/mattress extension when in use. (see attachment)

So far I am planning to use 80/20 1.5 inch ready tubing for the bed frame. 80/20 also makes a "P" tube that is 3 inches in height with 1.5 inches of it being attached ready tubing. I want to use this as my side rails (see attachment).

The rear of the bed rails will be attached to the rear of the van. Because there is no sheet metal to attach to at the front of the rails, my plan is to have legs for support. The front legs would be attached to the side wall lower down, at the floor and to the plywood face of the box (bench back). The face and top will be 1/2 Birch plywood sheets.

Questions:
1. If the 2 side rails are attached at the rear, and utilize vertical legs in the front, will I also need to attach the rails to the walls in the mid point? Will the mid point also require vertical support?
2. Is it safe to bolt the cross beam supports (80/20) to the side rails on both sides? Or is "torsional flex" going to damage the van walls?
My plan was to attach the plywood base to the 80/20 cross beams through the side rails (bolt through plywood, cross beam and side rail).
3. Any other design flaws or ideas?

My inspiration comes from "Big Scout" build thread here - https://sprinter-source.com/forum/showpost.php?p=425432&postcount=41

Thank you!
 

220629

Well-known member
"Bump - Any help or feedback would be greatly appreciated."

I'll offer what I can. I've not determined what your design really entails.

First.
In general supports down to the floor are not necessary for a bed. The walls will carry the loads just fine.

When you span the width of the van from side to side, it is my belief that there should be some "give" included. That designed "give" is less important for single cross pieces vs a solid deck assembly attached to the walls. The single cross pieces are more forgiving. That said, it needs some "give", a gross amount of movement isn't necessary.

Resurrecting this thread. My first post!
...

So far I am planning to use 80/20 1.5 inch ready tubing for the bed frame. 80/20 also makes a "P" tube that is 3 inches in height with 1.5 inches of it being attached ready tubing. I want to use this as my side rails (see attachment).
...
80/20 is quite strong.



...

Questions:
1. If the 2 side rails are attached at the rear, and utilize vertical legs in the front, will I also need to attach the rails to the walls in the mid point? Will the mid point also require vertical support?
...
Not necessarily. It depends upon the strength og the long beams/structure.


...
2. Is it safe to bolt the cross beam supports (80/20) to the side rails on both sides? Or is "torsional flex" going to damage the van walls?
My plan was to attach the plywood base to the 80/20 cross beams through the side rails (bolt through plywood, cross beam and side rail).
...
As I mentioned in the opening comment, too rigid may be a problem, but cross pieces of themselves can be fine.

A ledger board can be installed on the walls at most any height. Ledgers of 2x4 dimensional lumber are possible, or 2x6 if you are conservative. Some prefer angle metal shapes for ledgers.

If you employ down legs for support only, the deck will need stabilizing pieces or attachment to the walls to prevent tip over in a hard deceleration situation. Acceleration in a Sprinter is generally less of a problem.

:cheers: vic
 
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jhardeman

New member
"Bump - Any help or feedback would be greatly appreciated."

I'll offer what I can. I've not determined what your design really entails.

First.
In general supports down to the floor are not necessary for a bed. The walls will carry the loads just fine.

When you span the width of the van from side to side, it is my belief that there should be some "give" included. That designed "give" is less important for single cross pieces vs a solid deck assembly attached to the walls. The single cross pieces are more forgiving. That said, it needs some "give", a gross amount of movement isn't necessary.


80/20 is quite strong.




Not necessarily. It depends upon the strength og the long beams/structure.



As I mentioned in the opening comment, too rigid may be a problem, but cross pieces of themselves can be fine.

A ledger board can be installed on the walls at most any height. Ledgers of 2x4 dimensional lumber are possible, or 2x6 if you are conservative. Some prefer angle metal shapes for ledgers.

If you employ down legs for support only, the deck will need stabilizing pieces or attachment to the walls to prevent tip over in a hard deceleration situation. Acceleration in a Sprinter is generally less of a problem.

:cheers: vic

Thanks for your feedback. I think I will keep my design for the side ledger rails (attached in the back of the van and support legs out front where there is no sheet metal at 38 inches. I will go with something more like you suggest for single piece cross beams using Ikea Skorva supports bolted to the side rails rather than a full frame of 80/20 on top of the side rails. Should be lighter, less money and have the "give" you mention.
 

cbjr

New member
I've been reading so many threads on different bed designs, and figured I'd start listing out all the ideas I'm having for my own Sprinter.

The van:
2012 144" High Roof Passenger model, two rear benches removed

I started a thread a month or so ago asking whether a passenger model would be a good fit for me. The advice given was to hold off for a cargo model, but like a petulant child I jumped at the first van I drove and started my journey into Sprinterdom. So, here I sit trying to figure out how to work around all the panels and windows in the way of my potential bed mounting locations.

My needs:
#1 - Motorcycle roadracing.
I bought the van to replace the need for an enclosed trailer, as I live in an HOA neighborhood that prohibits them. When I go to the the track, I have access to showers and bathrooms, so I don't need to build this thing into a full blow RV. MY racebike is about 44" tall, but I could minimize this to 42" if I remove the windscreen. For most race weekends, we'll be able to drive to the track and unload the bike and equipment, then make our sleeping area. There are a couple instances, where the track is so far away that we'll have to sleep in the van on the way to/from the track somewhere on the road. We're also thinking about heading down to one race a few days early to check out the beach, and it would be nice to not have to unload the bike at night.
#2 - general motorcycle/MTB hauler. It would be nice to pull the beds for this, so I have more room to move around in the van. I need to be able to carry my KTM 1190 Adventure which is about 6' tall in case it need to be transported somewhere, but I'm not worried about sleeping above it. I got rid of my truck, so this van has to be able to carry any/all of my bikes. One of the main reasons I had for getting the passenger model is to be able to take trips with ~3 other guys to ride mountain bikes, and I liked the idea of the middle bench and windows.

Ideal implementation:
I'd like to build a bed system that can be positioned at a comfortable height (~35"?) to an upper position of 45" of clearance. I'd also like to maintain a wide enough rear opening to be able to carry two bikes inside, though this will be very rare. For now, I'm pretty wary of tearing the van down too far to prevent any possibility of resale, but I don't mind drilling rivnuts or holes where needed. I'd like to stay away from stripping the interior panels or welding too much. I'd also down the length of the van, not side to side. My wife and I are both short, but I still like this idea better.

Inspiration:
I like the sliding bed design here, and actually purchase some Skorva beams in case I could make them work recently:
https://creatid.com/news/sprinter-conversion-adjustable-bed-system/

I also like the idea of using L-track for vertical beams, as I'm sure it would come in handy for attaching other items later on. Inertiaman had a clever idea for this, where he made his track perpendicular to the horizontal:
https://sprinter-source.com/forum/showpost.php?p=433645&postcount=77

He mentioned a couple limitations of installing rivnuts at greater heights along the D pillar area, but it seems like I've seen other people mount rivnuts at the ~45" height, so I'm not sure what that will entail.

So, I suppose the design comes down to a few components:
1) Wall support, for adjustable height these would be vertical
2) Rail, front to back
3) Cross members, side to side to support mattress/platform

My ideas:
1a) L track mounted flush to the wall of the van. This would require bending the track to make it match the profile but I feel like this could be done semi-easily with some perseverence.
1b) 8020 rails similar to what was used in the creatid.com link above. This seems like it would be hard to bend to match van walls. This would require either professional help or cutting the extrusions to create weak areas to bend about.

2a) 8020 in that double profile height
2b) angle iron

3) for now the Skorva rails. For the 8020 side rails, I was considering making mounts similar to the Ikea mounts that just have a simple lip to catch the end of the Skorva rails. It seems like this system would be conducive to accounting for the angle change along the vertical path from the higher to lower bed rail heights.

Does anyone have any opinions on this rambling? I'd post more detail, but my flight is about to take off.
 

MotoXPress

Active member
Look at the Adwagon stuff- MOAB and MONK beds and Mule storage.

https://adventurewagon.com/collections/all-products

It's not cheap but it's flexible and high quality that allows many configs.

BTW - I'm doing the same with my 144". I've carried two big ADV bikes (1290 and 1090, two 990's) inside and it also hold three dual sports inside with three other guys. Going to DV next month and will try four dual sports (three inside and one on hitch with four guys). Love the van.

I use the HF wheel chocks than are easily removable and have a gear shelf above the bike seats for more storage.
 

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slamit

www.cacampervan.com
Agree with MotoXpress - don't reinvent the wheel for what you want the MOAB is perfect and you wont hack up your interior on a passenger van. It seems like a lot of $, but you can't build anything like it for what they sell it for and most importantly you can still use all your seats and resale will be higher because you did it right; no hack job. EASY DIY install as well.

Link to Photo Album likely what you want to do:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/fUiKR8aC11ooGqN26
 

cbjr

New member
The MOAB setup is awesome, but it's just too far outside of my price range right now. Honestly, racing will be sucking all of my money. If I can't afford to build something, I'll just end up with an air mattress for a while, and maybe have to deal with moving the bike out to sleep or whatever.

I love your van setup though. From the seating arrangement with table, to the bed and overhead storage. Nicely done.
 
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cbjr

New member
Look at the Adwagon stuff- MOAB and MONK beds and Mule storage.

https://adventurewagon.com/collections/all-products

It's not cheap but it's flexible and high quality that allows many configs.

BTW - I'm doing the same with my 144". I've carried two big ADV bikes (1290 and 1090, two 990's) inside and it also hold three dual sports inside with three other guys. Going to DV next month and will try four dual sports (three inside and one on hitch with four guys). Love the van.

I use the HF wheel chocks than are easily removable and have a gear shelf above the bike seats for more storage.
Impressive packaging. I've got some buddies that have been talking about doing an out west trip maybe next year. I figured if there was 4 of us, we'd end up taking two bikes on trailers, but maybe your idea of 3 in and 1 on a hitch carrier is the way to go.

My plan was a piece of e-track cross ways on the floor and the following wheel chock to start for carrying bikes that I don't have pit bull pins for:
https://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200658559_200658559

I guess I'd need a second piece of etrack if I wanted to get a third bike in the middle to offset the handlebars.

I already have a pitbull trailer restraint system, so I'll use that primarily. When I was first sketching up ideas, I figured I'd put it on the passenger side, but I'm starting to rethink that. I figure if it's on the driver's side it will be easier to get in/out of the back door that opens passenger side first. I know the van won't be as balanced that way, but the convenience seems to trump that.
 

Shawn182

Well-known member
I just got the parts for my fixed platform bed above rear garage and about to install...stealing a brilliant idea I saw on a youtube build and adapting to aluminum...using 1 5/8" aluminum slotted strut channel (vs more common steel strut from Home Depot to save weight). Commonly used to attach electrical, plumbing and mechanical to buildings. Much cheaper and stronger than 8020. Stuff is strong as hell. Gonna bolt two strut rails to the van walls with the channel facing inward, then 4 spanning strut runners sit on top of the rails with channel facing down and connect with basic unistrut hardware and corner connectors adding in some rubber spacers to allow a bit of flex. Gonna screw on 1x3 wood slats on the runners with ventilation spacing for mattress. Will hold the entire family and dog with no legs into garage plus provides an entire slot system on the bottom of the bed for mechanical and gear attachment!

Easy peasy. I should be into it for about $300.

Available at McMaster Carr and most electrical supply houses. McMaster has 6' and 6'8" lengths so you can order exactly just what you need and shipping was cheap...usually you have to buy it in 10' chunks.

https://www.mcmaster.com/struts
 
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I've been reading so many threads on different bed designs, and figured I'd start listing out all the ideas I'm having for my own Sprinter.

The van:
2012 144" High Roof Passenger model, two rear benches removed

I started a thread a month or so ago asking whether a passenger model would be a good fit for me. The advice given was to hold off for a cargo model, but like a petulant child I jumped at the first van I drove and started my journey into Sprinterdom. So, here I sit trying to figure out how to work around all the panels and windows in the way of my potential bed mounting locations.

My needs:
#1 - Motorcycle roadracing.
I bought the van to replace the need for an enclosed trailer, as I live in an HOA neighborhood that prohibits them. When I go to the the track, I have access to showers and bathrooms, so I don't need to build this thing into a full blow RV. MY racebike is about 44" tall, but I could minimize this to 42" if I remove the windscreen. For most race weekends, we'll be able to drive to the track and unload the bike and equipment, then make our sleeping area. There are a couple instances, where the track is so far away that we'll have to sleep in the van on the way to/from the track somewhere on the road. We're also thinking about heading down to one race a few days early to check out the beach, and it would be nice to not have to unload the bike at night.

Ideal implementation:
I'd like to build a bed system that can be positioned at a comfortable height (~35"?) to an upper position of 45" of clearance. I'd also like to maintain a wide enough rear opening to be able to carry two bikes inside, though this will be very rare. For now, I'm pretty wary of tearing the van down too far to prevent any possibility of resale, but I don't mind drilling rivnuts or holes where needed. I'd like to stay away from stripping the interior panels or welding too much. I'd also down the length of the van, not side to side. My wife and I are both short, but I still like this idea better.

Inspiration:
I like the sliding bed design here, and actually purchase some Skorva beams in case I could make them work recently:
https://creatid.com/news/sprinter-conversion-adjustable-bed-system/

I also like the idea of using L-track for vertical beams, as I'm sure it would come in handy for attaching other items later on. Inertiaman had a clever idea for this, where he made his track perpendicular to the horizontal:
https://sprinter-source.com/forum/showpost.php?p=433645&postcount=77

He mentioned a couple limitations of installing rivnuts at greater heights along the D pillar area, but it seems like I've seen other people mount rivnuts at the ~45" height, so I'm not sure what that will entail.

So, I suppose the design comes down to a few components:
1) Wall support, for adjustable height these would be vertical
2) Rail, front to back
3) Cross members, side to side to support mattress/platform

My ideas:
1a) L track mounted flush to the wall of the van. This would require bending the track to make it match the profile but I feel like this could be done semi-easily with some perseverence.
1b) 8020 rails similar to what was used in the creatid.com link above. This seems like it would be hard to bend to match van walls. This would require either professional help or cutting the extrusions to create weak areas to bend about.

2a) 8020 in that double profile height
2b) angle iron

3) for now the Skorva rails. For the 8020 side rails, I was considering making mounts similar to the Ikea mounts that just have a simple lip to catch the end of the Skorva rails. It seems like this system would be conducive to accounting for the angle change along the vertical path from the higher to lower bed rail heights.

Does anyone have any opinions on this rambling? I'd post more detail, but my flight is about to take off.
We're planning to do the same thing but in a 170 or 170 extended model. 44" is the number we keep coming back to.
 

Timtim518

New member
Impressive packaging. I've got some buddies that have been talking about doing an out west trip maybe next year. I figured if there was 4 of us, we'd end up taking two bikes on trailers, but maybe your idea of 3 in and 1 on a hitch carrier is ..... but the convenience seems to trump that.


The TRS is life changing. I’m following along trying to decide on a bed design. I want it to collapse and store on the wall. The atv ramp / plywood/ air mattress / may be the route I take. Would like to use my l track as the main support.
 

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