Custom twin bed builds, storage galore and weight savings!

[Dano]

All done building! Everything has been disassembled, glued, reassembled, trimmed, filled, sanded and is now paint and clear coat ready. Mattresses to still cut down and fit more perfectly and two tiny pieces of moulding to install now that final measurements can be taken. This was a massive project and I have to say, I'm glad it's over. Everything remaining will really start to pickup steam and won't be anywhere near as complicated going forward so I am excited to get to start something that isn't white that you sleep on NEXT!!

[Dano]

A couple of more similar photos...

[Dano]

You know Blue, the more I look at your twin bed configuration photos, I'm noticing two air vents...I'm wondering if the "sealed" twin bed frame vs. the more "open" couch configuration kind of keeps moisture contained a little more and it might be wise to add in a few access points to keep the air moving?

[HoosierB]

Dano... re: Blue's "twin bed" photos, I think the vents are in place more for the LPG water heater. Leak detection, safety and all that. Much the same as for the furnace side. More air circulation would be a definite benefit since it's a tight box compared to the jack-knife sofa set up. (IMHO) I would at least add an air return vent grille to the cab side of the box, facing the drivers seat. In the same way you did for the passenger side.

BTW, fantastic job on your build!

[Dano]

Thanks for the confidence compliment, sometimes you get so involved you lose track of whether things are looking good because all you hyper focus on is a nail head! That's a good point about the hot water tank. The bed frame ends about 12" from the wall although you can't see it so there is actually a reasonable sized opening right beside the tank, I think that will work just like you suggest so I think I'm good!

[Dano]

Final trimming, sanding and install of the bed backs. Shortened the width by two inches on either side and I think they are perfect now. Just a couple of finish pieces on the bed frames to integrate them into the cabinet and I'm done!

[HoosierB]

Perfect! Now do mine for me...

[Dano]

Mail 'em over!

[Blue~Go]

I love that the Chinooks are now getting old enough that more and more people are customizing them. They were nice enough (and expensive enough) when new (as compared to a run-of-the-mill RV) that of course no-one was just going to start digging in. Good times now

I agree with Hoosier on the reason for the vents. Another one is that as the water in the water tank vs. the air warms and cools, the tank will sweat at times. Don't want that moisture to just sit under there.

Speaking of under the couch, you now have lots of space in case you ever decide to upgrade your main electrical distribution system and want to put batteries under the couch (AGM or lithium, as they are not prone to out-gassing). I did this and there were two big benefits for me (besides now having fused wires...). One is that nearly all the wire runs are shorter and more easily accessible; and the other is that I gained a vented outside storage area (former battery compartment). I use that all the time for things like solvents, smelly rubber chocks, small propane canisters (outside stove), and various sprays (Kroil, etc.). Plus a bunch of other stuff that fits in there. That was more valuable to me than under the couch space, but may not be true for you of course. Before I didn't have a good place to put that sort of thing (the other half of that compartment was already taken, plus it's not already vented; the tire locker is open to the inside space, so not a contender).

[bolerama]

I'm so excited to find this thread. After 5 months solid in our Chinook, we realized that the sofa and dinette didn't work, so we've been discussing how to convert to twin beds. We saw an original twin model at a Chinook rally back in Feb. 2018, so it got us thinking. I also love the 2 videos by Mike Norris on YouTube, but we needed info on the build. Thanks, Dano! You've really helped us out! Your build is incredibly well done. Now, I'm searching all your other threads. Like Blue said, these Chinooks are getting old enough that we feel a little less worried about digging in and changing things. We will likely keep our sofa and dinette in storage -- we lucked out on getting lovely grey leather upholstery, so it seems a shame to get rid of it when it was such an expensive upgrade.
Thanks for sharing your build!
Lisa