Bunk mod?

[lukenick1]

My son wants to have a bunk to sleep on instead of the dinette. What do you all think about building a bunk over the sofa? I know it would require removing that cabinet but do you think it could work? Don't want to ruin the resale value though. How would we secure it?

 

[Seann45]

Doesn't the sofa fold out?

 

[Aero_Dave]

Not trying to be a Smarta$$, but why not just upgrade your camper? We've all been there before. Sounds like its time for something bigger. Not sure how old or what your son weights, but any bunk you build on that wall probably won't hold a lot of weight. Any your son is only going to grow, so not sure its worth all the effort.

Dave...

 

[lukenick1]

Lots of reasons not to upgrade.....

Just bought the trailer in August. Completely smitten by my little Jayfeather. Love the layout and the huge linen closet in the bathroom. Something I would have to sacrifice for bunks. My oldest son isn't a camping fan so he won't be coming much longer and I usually go without hubby. I am pulling with a very old 1/2 ton Tundra and don't have much more wiggle room with weight plus I am intimidated by something even bigger than my 22Y. It has plenty of room for us but DS12 is tired of breaking down the dinette and setting back up again in the morning. It was just a thought but obviously probably isn't a great idea.

 

[lukenick1]

Doesn't the sofa fold out?

Yes but my other son occupies the sofa bed.
I have two boys ages 12 and 15 both small boys.

 

[Jagiven]

Anything is doable. It looks like a lot of work and having it match, could be very difficult. It looks like the sofa is alone an inside wall with an opening. The wall would have to be opened up and reinforced. A lot of work. We had a tt when I was a kid where an overhead cabinet along the front of the tt, that converted to a bed. Basically the cabinet front folded down, and landed on a few metal tabs on each of the side walls.

Here's another option, how about a tent? It would give him lots of independence. Get an air mattress to sleep on, maybe an extension cord for a fan.

 

[Griswald One]

I think the age of the boys really answers your question.... The 15 year old is creeping up on not coming camping with you for a multitude of reasons, the most obvious being Girls and Work. You noted yourself he does not like camping, so he will take any excuse he can come up with.

Don't do it! 2 years from now you will be tearing that bunk back out to make the space more usable for for the adult travellers.

 

[Paintinfool3]

another option is an air mattress in floor at night ... then in morning pick it up

 

[lukenick1]

another option is an air mattress in floor at night ... then in morning pick it up

Not enough floor space he would block our way to the bathroom.

 

[nolimits76]

We just recently bought a 26bh. Your layout looks similar to ours. Personally I couldn't imagine adding a bunk bed at that location from a functionality standpoint. Is it possible? Probably, anything usually is with enough time, money and engineering. I'm just not sure it's worth it for the small value it adds.

I know you said you weren't considering an upgrade, but if you did, here is a layout of the 26bh. It has bunk beds in it and would solve your problem. We took our 20yr old daughter with us camping this past weekend, and the bunk bed setup was perfect for her. While no one was above her, she used the larger double bed below to sleep in and had her own space separate from ours.

FYI, someone mentioned a tent, and I honestly don't think that's a bad idea. I keep our old tents in the TT in case we have unexpected visitors that wants to stay and we can't accommodate them. I've had friends set tents up for their kids for years. Most kids like the independence and find it cool to have their own space.

 

[jimknoch]

Here's another option for you ... Put a substantial screw in hook or eyebolt in the wall under the cabinets and another in the opposite wall. as high as you can. Hang a hammock between the hooks. You could duck under to make a bathroom run and it would come down in the morning. When I wqas a kid, I used to love sleeping in a hammock tied to two trees out in the open in a sleeping bag. It takes a bit of getting used to but here he would just fall on his brother and not get hurt.

........... Swampy

 

[Seann45]

How about letting him sleep in a tent? cheaper easier and most kids prefer that to being in the RV with the parents..

 

[lukenick1]

Neither of them want to sleep in a tent, been there done that. lol

 

[Guntr]

I considered building a bunk on legs to stand on my parents' folded down dinette so they could take both my daughters camping with them. This way it could be easily removed with screws or damage to the trailer.

 

[Edd505]

Army cot in an isle way? Fold and store when not in use.

 

[JPBeck]

I say go for it! Just take down that overhead cabinet and cut it right so that it does look funny. I'd buy a prefabbed bunk bed like this (see link below), and take the old couch out. Then just bolt the bed frame to the floor.
Better then a new trailer payment. Silver Screen Bunk Bed - Contemporary - Bunk Beds - by Home Source Industries