Bed platform - plywood thickness?

[vagari]

When building a bed platform what thickness of plywood is sufficient? 7/32? 7/16? 19/32?

What about legs? 1x2? 2x2? 2x4?

 

[Luisafernandes]

When building a bed platform what thickness of plywood is sufficient? 7/32? 7/16? 19/32?

What about legs? 1x2? 2x2? 2x4?

It all depends on the space you have to work with. I have a cargo van so I'll probably use 1/2 plywood for the bed platform as well as the support running from either side of wheel well to opposite side wheel well.

 

[user 423]

I used 7/16" OSB from Home Depot as it's a little cheaper. Mine is 36" x 75" and the 12" piece was used along with 2x2s to make the box underneath. HD will cut it to size for you.

 

[MrNoodly]

It depends on how many cross braces you use. The fewer you have the thicker the ply will need to be.

And I guess it also depends on your weight.

 

[Patrick46]

And I guess it also depends on your weight.

Hmmmmmm..... :blush:

 

[Lostinspace]

And it will be better if you can rig up some kind of slat system to allow the mattress to breath. Otherwise the mattress will get wet underneath and mildew on the bottom.

 

[wagoneer]

I have used wood trellis cut to size from any garden center with slat support 3" nat foam xx firm topper I weigh 165 lbs wet after just eating. But thats just me.( no horizontal Mambo allowed )

 

[vagari]

I saw another post here where someone said a wool blanket between the plywood and mattress would prevent wet/mildew.

And it will be better if you can rig up some kind of slat system to allow the mattress to breath. Otherwise the mattress will get wet underneath and mildew on the bottom.

 

[caseyc]

Wagoneer...what?! No horizontal mambo? I hope you've arranged other provisions.

I have used wood trellis cut to size from any garden center with slat support 3" nat foam xx firm topper I weigh 165 lbs wet after just eating. But thats just me.( no horizontal Mambo allowed )

---

As for leg length, I would consider 2 things of importance:
1) How much storage space you want underneath the bed (ie: to fit storage containers, etc)?
2) Will you be able to fully sit upright on the bed without hitting your head on ceiling?

I have a low top conversion van myself. But I find it important to at least be able to sit upright on my bed, even though I can't stand up. Plus I like having storage space underneath my bed. I keep 4 medium size rectangular shaped plastic containers under the bed to hold all kinds of stuff.

 

[MrNoodly]

And it will be better if you can rig up some kind of slat system to allow the mattress to breath. Otherwise the mattress will get wet underneath and mildew on the bottom.

This is much less important in an arid climate, like the desert.

You can also put a mattress in a "bed wetter" cover. I did it because living in tight quarters there's a greater chance of spilling things on the bed.

 

[Seeker]

Please see my post under milk crates for bed if any one has seen or used the IKEA bed slats.
Thanks A SEEKER

 

[Bdog1]

The first platform I built was with slats because of dampness fears that I had seen mentioned. Fast forward: now it's 1/2" OSB all round with "weight mat" between the mattress and platform.

Platform is plenty sturdy and free stands (doesn't attach to walls) to stop squeaks. No moisture issues in 100% humidity all the time! Welcome to Florida!

 

[akrvbob]

This is the easiest, cheapest bed I've ever seen:

http://www.cheaprvliving.com/blog/convert-van-50/

It's just my personal prejudice, so take it as that, but I would not use OSB inside my van. I'm worried it will off-gas some bad stuff for years to come. The little money you save isn't worth it to me. Having my nose 3 inches away from it every night does not appeal to me.
Bob

 

[Bdog1]

I'm fortunate to not be sensitive to VOC's myself, but I imagine OSB, plywood ,MDF and paneling would all be in a similar category for those that are. The glue is probably the same.

 

[Seeker]

Bob, Thank You so much for posting the cheap bed build link. I may just do something like that for a quick build with out trying to overthink and stress about how to build. Then I can get ready to hit the road quicker and after being in the van for awhile I will know more what to change.
Thanks again
A SEEKER

 

[freenez2]

Folks tend to over design their bed... I did and made the thing unnecessarily heavy. The new bed frame I made has a much lighter frame now, but still use a 3/4" sheet of plywood as the bed top. There are no horizontal supports other than the rectangle frame the plywood is attached to and no sag after years of use. The bed is free standing as was basically designed with the idea most forces would be vertical in nature. The frame and 6 legs are all 1.5" redwood. The advantage to making the bed free standing is it can be shimmed on any side to make it level when parked on a non-level surface. I use wood blocks for that.

 

[MrNoodly]

A free standing bed also means you can remove it when it's time for a periodic deep cleaning of the van. Or you can sleep outside when the weather is nice.

The other alternative is to pare down your possessions, fit it all into vertical shelves, and just put the mattress on the floor between the shelves.

 

[akrvbob]

A SEEKER, you're very welcome. I thought that bed so was simple and cheap that almost anyone could understand and build it.

It's strange that we are doing this massive simplifying of our live but we still tend to think in terms of complicated builds for our vans.

Of course there is no BEST way, just whatever works for you at this moment.
Bob

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

im in west virginia and you can drink the air here. i just have regular ply, no slats, and even have a leak back here near the bed (tho not on it) and my foam mattress doesnt have a mildew problem. this is after only a year tho.
maybe shooting the bottom with lysol monthly will prevent mildew as well.

 

[Duck]

A lot of the mold under the mattress issues are less to do with humidity and more to do with condensation, it's why it's much more a problem in smaller boats, as the space under the bed is typically a locker against the hull and always cold.
The two ways to fix it are to improve the movement of air, or stop the condensation all together.
I've used the 1/2" mesh to keep the mattress up off the surface, and it mostly just gave the water a space to condense without soaking the foam, but it still formed constant puddles that had to be mopped up.
Insulating the UNDERSIDE of the lockers with enough thickness to keep the dew point within the foam meant no condensation on either side of the plywood, and the mesh still fit under it to allow it to breathe.

When things were constantly damp during a particularly miserable winter, before insulating the bed(it was too wet to stick anything on) I used the very thin plastic painter's drop cloth plastic, wrapped the foam in it, and "stitched" the edges together using short strips of tape every couple inches, I faced the stitched edge towards the center of the cabin, not the outside edge. This allowed the mattress to breathe and move normally, while protecting it from water underneath, and spills on top. The foam I did this to stayed mold and moisture free. The bed also felt drier all the time, and the thin plastic was not noticeable at all. After a year it was still working perfectly.

I saw a great possibility in combining the insulation with the ingenious map and large flat document storage compartment someone came up with here, but I can't find the link for that. That air gap would reduce the insulation requirement a lot.