A "Murphy" Shower?

[djkeev]

Hey All! 

Yeah, I know, I'm new and posting lots of thoughts and questions.

But......
I am building a Class B camper from a Dodge LWB conversion Van.



I've been thinking about a Class B Van shower. 

Vans are small...... Showers that you can actually fit your body into are BIG. 

Typical RV shower pans are only 23"-24" wide! 
That's small! 

But, I don't have space to devote to a 36"x36" or 32"x32" permanently mounted shower pan.

Let's clear this up before the "you don't needa" group chimes in..... Yes, I DO needa...... 

Road Trek makes a shower that sticks out into the kitchen from the Toilet closet. This makes sense to me but there are a lot of floor modifications and plumbing involved. 
Also, where do you buy their shower pan and how much does it cost? 

But this "hidden" shower pan concept got me thinking......
They make Murphy Beds, a bed that hinges up to a wall, usually a closet. 

Why not a Murphy Shower? 
Say a 36" x 32" shower pan that hinges up to the wall when not needed..... Which is almost ALWAYS! 

It would require a flexible drain hose assembly but that is easily solved with Automobile heater hose. 

Anyone seen such a concept? 

Hinge it behind the drivers seat, when deployed it will block walking past the kitchen area build on the side entry door side of the Van ...... but thats doable.......

Hmmmmm.........

Dave

 

[Tussah]

That's a cool idea.  I look forward to seeing you implement it.  Will you have to do anything special to ensure adequate ventilation?   My personal concern about showers in vans is:

1) amount of required space
2) amount of water used (both clean and gray)
3) ventilation

Sounds as if you are coming up with a clever idea to handle #1.   Will you include a water heating system?   Built-in water tanks?

 

[anewbiewannabe]

There was a photo of I believe a commercially available "murphy" style shower on a thread here, maybe under the products section. So, they do exist. If someone knows how to find that thread or if you want to do a search for fold-up showers you might be able to see an example to use to build your own or purchase. Good luck!

 

[rvwandering]

One of the videos made by Bob or James had a fold up shower. It was ingenious! Unfortunately I can't find the video so it may have been one of the ones that is lost for now.

The man who made it was using his van to deliver stuff. He needed as much free room as possible and most of his furnishings folded up. The shower pan wasn't attached to the floor so it folded up against the wall when it wasn't in use. He had a holding tank installed under the van with a short piece of pipe extending through the floor. I think that he had some type of gasket around the shower pan drain to make a tight connection when he lowered the pan. He made a square loop with plastic pipe to string his shower curtain. This folded against the wall too.

 

[WheelEstate USA]

T&K...Is that the one that had 2 side walls that folded in when the pan was up and looked like a slim closet against the van wall?
Wish I could recall who built it.

 

[rvwandering]

Not sure Jay. I don't recall the side walls but I was really impressed with the way it all folded up out of the way but was super easy to fold down to use.

 

[WheelEstate USA]

However its done, ease of use is the important part of a design.

 

[ArtW]

http://www.weiscrafttrailers.com/ponspecs.html
this one uses that concept, I tried to contact them via phone, no luck, maybe he anwsers emails
http://www.weiscrafttrailers.com/ponderosa.html

 

[SoulRaven]

Here is a link to something close to what you want. But I would think that the hula hoop mounted to the ceiling of the van with a shower curtain attached with shower rings and a square plastic shallow pan on the floor, with a 1 1\2 inch hole drilled through it and through the floor of the van with some sort of hose setup for that, and with using a bug sprayer for the shower water would work pretty well?

http://tinyhouseblog.com/tiny-furnishings/folding-shower-for-small-spaces/

 

[BradKW]

I can't really see a folding unit like that as being worth the expense, basically because I don't think it actually gains you any more usable space than a much simpler solution.

Figure that if you had that folding shower, what exactly would you do with the space when it's not in use? Whatever you do, you'll need to undo it in order to use the shower. Which is fine, even if it's just somewhere to place a couple storage totes, you just move'em back and forth. 

However, you could do the same thing simply by installing a shower pan and making a cover for it...no need to get fancy like the recessed RoadTreks, just let it sit proud. So what are some examples of things that you could not use that space for like that, but would work if it folded? I can't think of much, but maybe you have something in mind.

I think if someone wants fold up, go big or go home:

 

[TMG51]

Easier than folding up a shower pan (and making it water tight) is putting a false front on a shower pan. Recees your shower pan into the van floor and build a removable floor insert atop of it. Many class B RVs utilize this design.

 

[Richard]

Nothing here specifically for RV's but a few cool ideas to inspire creativity:
http://weburbanist.com/2013/07/29/small-space-design-15-fold-up-all-in-one-bathrooms/

 

[Mobilesport]

Easier than folding up a shower pan (and making it water tight) is putting a false front on a shower pan. Recees your shower pan into the van floor and build a removable floor insert atop of it. Many class B RVs utilize this design.

What is a false front on a shower pan?

 

[Mobilesport]

Easier than folding up a shower pan (and making it water tight) is putting a false front on a shower pan. Recees your shower pan into the van floor and build a removable floor insert atop of it. Many class B RVs utilize this design.

What is a false front on a shower pan?

 

[SternWake]

Post surf session,

I throw my warm to hot sunshower bag on top of my fiberglass roof over front passeneger seat.

With the door limiter removed from side cargo door, and front door open,  and window shades in place,  the doors form a triangle, and there is pretty good privacy.  I could utilize a small tarp and some spring clamps if I wanted to get full on Naked and soap up and have more privacy but mostly it is a crevice and face wash while i peel off wetsuit.

I've never considered fully bathing inside my Van itself, but I could do So.

My 3/4 inch plywood shelf over my front seats is strong enough to support my 5 gallon shower bag.  the Tubs they sell at Home stores to mix concrete in are big enough to catch most run off.  I'd get a stool so i could sit and scrub or perhaps kneel within.
If I could not dispose of grey water properly then and there, perhaps i'd use much less water and put it in a gallon bottle or a 5 gallon bucket with the screw top lid.

My regular parking spot I have a tarp set up under a tree in Teepee fashion with a hook at top to hang bag and sit and scrub on a milk crate with some padding. I have access to a stick and brick shower but prefer to shower in sun heated water and sit down and pumice my feet hands and brush under nails, use a long brush on my back for the full body scrub.  

To shower, one does not need to stand.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Plasgad-Black-Large-Concrete-Mixing-Tub-887102C/205451585

 

[anewbiewannabe]

I have that shower stool!! Or one close to it---it folds up nicely to take up less space.  Definitely plan to take it with me when I hit the road.

 

[coffeewitholiver]

I'll keep looking for a folding shower I saw somewhere, but in the meantime there's this: http://thetinylife.com/antique-folding-bathtub-ready-for-for-primetime/  It's a collapsible bathtube.  Ingenious, but would need floor space that's precious.
Parker

 

[DannyB1954]

I was thinking about a semi outdoor shower. Open the side doors of the van and build a curtain to hang from the ends of the doors. One side would be open to the van where you could have a heater pointed at you, the sides would be the van doors, and the 4th wall a shower curtain. For something to stand on a grate, or make something like one of those oil drain pans to contain the water. You could protect the side door panels with a shower curtain as well.

One could make a 4 sided shower curtain rod that is held in place by the top of the doors. On the side facing the inside of the van you could use two overlapping sheets with the split down the middle so you could get back in the van easy.

 

[djkeev]

Thanks for all the replies so far!

This isn't an easy thing to do and I may not be able to fully pull it off.

Space IS limited for sure.

2003 Dodge, Long Wheel Base at 127" but no extended body.
I see the Current Chevy's being produced for Service or Camper use have a 155" wheel base.... 27 extra inches to play with would be nice indeed, but the $30,000 + entry fee for a bare Van? Not so nice!

I'm rethinking my bed.
I wanted a short Queen size but I'm entertaining a Double right now. That brings me from using 60" of space to only 54" of space.

Gaining 6" in an overall useable cargo length of 112" is huge! I now have 58" of space to play with. Though that 112" is along the floor, the front seat backs eat into the space above the floor.

I still favor this basic layout with the bed across the rear......



This is Sportsmobile's floor plan so it has that extra 27" of wheelbase in it. 

Still thinking........
IF.... I gave up the real innerspring mattress and used a two piece foam, the shower pan could extend under the bed to the rear wheel well. I would need to have a lift up portion of the bed platform to pull this off though. 
Not only that, the bed would need to be unmade and remade to pull this off. 

My concern is the foam bedding. I've never slept on a foam bed and rested well. 

Anyway, keep the ideas flowing along! 

Dave

 

[Vagabound]

...
Still thinking........
IF.... I gave up the real innerspring mattress and used a two piece foam, the shower pan could extend under the bed to the rear wheel well. I would need to have a lift up portion of the bed platform to pull this off though. 
Not only that, the bed would need to be unmade and remade to pull this off. 

My concern is the foam bedding. I've never slept on a foam bed and rested well. 

Anyway, keep the ideas flowing along! 

Dave

I also like the collapsible shower idea.  Thinking hard about finding some way to include it.

Unfortunately, the two best videos that I know of with collapsible showers are both missing.  Victims of the Great Video War of 2016.  Too bad.  I was hoping to use those as references during my build-out.  

However, Bob did a write-up about one of them.  Van and shower belong to a guy named Sameer.  You can read about it and see photos here.

Vagabound