For those in Cargo Vans... what's your preferred bed height?

[One Awesome Inch]

Its a ways off before I build my bed, but one thing I am wondering is what is the optimum height of the bed if its in a standard cargo van... no high top.

I have PA speakers that are 13 inches deep and I'm very likely going to put those under my bed so that means my bed cannot be less then 13 inches tall. Ideally I'd like to be able to sit fully upright in bed. I sat on an upside down 5 gallon bucket, which was 14 inches tall, and I barely cleared the roof... maybe by an inch or so. This was under one of the ribs in the middle (tallest spot) of the interior of the van. So 13 inches should be okay. But then I also have to consider the thickness of the foam bedding. I wonder how much it will compress?

What have you found works for you in terms of bed height?

 

[Oberneldon]

Worry about your comfort over the speakers as you can always find a way to have speakers.

 

[One Awesome Inch]

Thanks for the thought but these aren't just regular speakers. They are PA Mains which are part of the PA system I own. I'm a musician and my PA is a necessary tool for my band to play shows. Being in a band is not only my main hobby, but my main passion, plus I can make money from it. A win/win. A couple years ago my former band made about $6000 in a year, which is not bad for a parttime hobby. While my music gear does take up space, I am minimalist at heart and aside from my music gear, I own only the bare essentials.

 

[Oberneldon]

Since the speakers are a must and there may not be another way of storing them then I would use a steel angle iron bed frame to reduce the thickness of the bed frame over 2x4's thus giving you the most room possible

 

[akrvbob]

Oddly, to answer that question you have to first ask another question; what will you do with your passenger seat?

If you take it out, can you build a box there and hold some or all of your PA gear?

Where will you spend your time lounging? Most of us use our beds as our office and our Lazy Boy. If so, the bed, including mattress MUST be low enough so you can sit comfortably and not hit your head on the ceiling. However, if you turn the seat around, or get a swivel seat then you can sit very comfortably there and let the bed be higher.

The first thing to do is measure to see how much room you need to sit comfortably without hitting your head. Then you have to decide if you can sleep comfortably (or feel clasustraphobic) if you do make the bed too high.

Bob

 

[One Awesome Inch]

Yeah, at this point I am undecided on the passenger seat. I was thinking of putting a car seat in the back with some casters for ease of movement. The passenger seat is an obvious candidate, but if the passenger seat is missing, that would likely hurt stealth. Then again it would be alot easier to get into the back without that passenger seat there.

Having a car seat in the back to act as a recliner would definitely increase comfort so I will likely do that one way or another. My gut says to leave the passenger seat up front at least for now. Once I get more comfortable with this lifestyle/stealth, I may remove it then. At this point I get nervous just working on the van in the walmart parking lot. Hope that changes.

 

[Reducto]

My bed is as high as I an get it and still sleep comfortably to maximize space. I have an office chair with a modified base to sit in, I don't need to be able to do that on the bed too. Are you ok with having to do a bit of contorting to get in and out?

 

[Luisafernandes]

I set my bed hight, not by what could fit underneath, but by how comfortable I would be sitting in bed, with the mattress in place. It was adjusted to a compromise, to where I could fit a thick foam mattress (in my case two), still have room under the bed, and be able to sit without hitting my head.
I accomplished this by making the frame only 1 1/2 inches thick, or as thick as a stock piece of 1 1/2 by 3/4 piece of poplar I bought at Lowes.
The two mattresses together equal 7" inches, and under the bed I have just about 12"inches of space, big enough to fit plastic boxes.

Can you fit the speakers behind the bed, in-between it and the rear door?

 

[freenez2]

As I had sound deadened, insulated, and built boxes over the wheel wells, the bed already had a minimum height. As the bed frame legs rest on the wheel well boxes, I made them long enough to accomodate the height needed for containers as well. Coincidentally, the bed height just happened to be correct for my leg length so can sit comfortably on it.

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

ive built really high, and it was a bit of a pain. i basically wanted to get a large tote under.
with my thick mattress is say 14 inches or so is a good height, just above the wheel wells, and go with the more lower profile totes.
This van has boxes built over the wheel wells and no frame for the bed otherwise. he took thick ply and upholstered custions right to it, and that sitas across. very sturdy as the distance between the wheel wells once boxed is not enough to sag. I threw my 8 in memory on top of that. still plenty of headroom and fit some low profile totes under. Maybe go few inches higher without the upholstered cushion.

 

[Bdog1]

I think you could build with that 13" clearance in mind and do well. I have 15" clearance in the center, and it's a tad too tall for me to sit on comfortably. Since I "camp" not stealth, it's okay. Keep you bed frame thin and mattress height reasonable.

If I was starting over, I would use a heavier platform that required less support underneath, for more flexible under bed storage.

 

[LeeRevell]

Fit the van for living in, carry the speakers and other gear in a small trailer. Sounds like the small Harbor Freight trailer in about a 4'X4' size would work well.

 

[akrvbob]

You can get a swivel seat base now for most vans and that regains all that wasted space and you can make the bed as high as you want and can tolerate.

Bob

 

[One Awesome Inch]

Yeah I think for now, I am going to leave the passenger seat up front (I'll have a partrition up front, so no swivel unfortunately), and the height of the underneath section of the bed at 13 inches... maybe a tiny bit higher to facilitate easy removal. Once I am in the van with all the stuff, including foam mattress, I can see how things go. Worse case scenario I get out my tools and make the legs longer. Nothing some elbow grease can't fix. Thats the beauty of working with wood.

 

[ccbreder]

Your comfort and your needs for storage should be the only factor. Stealth is really just an illusion of the stealther. Everyone else that maters knows you are there.

 

[One Awesome Inch]

I know the police will figure me out in short order. However, the general public is my main concern. The less they know whats going on, the less they call the cops who then have to respond. If I have a standard cargo van, and rotate my spots often enough I dont think your average John Q. Public will figure it out. I have to do my utmost for my own peace of mind, at the very least.

 

[gypsychic]

With shadows and darkness and John Q Public being preoccupied with their own problems, very few if anybody will notice a passenger seat missing. It may enter their mind that something is different but they'll be onto another line of thought before it occurs to them what it is. I understand having your own peace of mind but most people are so focused on themselves they don't give you much more than a second thought. For once, it will work to your advantage instead of your detriment.

I'm planning on putting a swivel in mine and and a partition. I'm trying to figure out how to make my partition retractable enough for the seat to swivel around. I had been thinking about it for a while and then I saw somebody on here mention the same thing so it might actually be doable.

 

[Almost There]

I'm planning on putting a swivel in mine and and a partition. I'm trying to figure out how to make my partition retractable enough for the seat to swivel around. I had been thinking about it for a while and then I saw somebody on here mention the same thing so it might actually be doable.

Because stealth is rarely a concern of mine I'm putting in drapes that go around the driving compartment as well as a drapery panel that will section off the driving compartment from the 'living area'. Since the front edge of the kitchen area will be directly behind the driver's seat I'm putting a floor to ceiling partition there, so the 'behind the seats drape will only have to be 2/3 +/- wide. I'll use an insulation fabric as a core on that one so it can be deployed in colder weather as a heat keeper.

On occasion I like to have the front drapes open but still need privacy screening - like using the pottie in a parking lot...I can easily pull the partition drape. It's much easier to pull 4' of drape across than it is to move 10' of drapery around the 3 front windows.

If you're determined to have a solid partition AND a swivel seat you might consider having sliding panels that retract to behind the drivers' seat. They could be framed with 1x2 on their narrow edge and paneled with 1/4" plywood so they'd only be 1 1/2" thick each. Wish I could draw pics of what I'm talking about but think of the sliding panels that are used in banquet halls to open up or divide the room.

 

[akrvbob]

I know the police will figure me out in short order. However, the general public is my main concern. The less they know whats going on, the less they call the cops who then have to respond.

I agree totally with OAI, the great majority of times I've had problems with an LEO the conversation began with "We got a call...." When I look for a boondocking spot, one of the things I take into account is neighbors who will call me in, same with camping in the city.

Your job isn't to fool the cops because that's nearly impossible. Your job is to keep the public from calling the cops who then MUST knock on your door.
Bob

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

an observation i had, rotating spots doesnt help much. if someone sees you parked there one day. you leave for 2days but they arent there or dont notice until you return the 3rd, they are gonna think you have never left. Had this actually happen to me. Guy said 'ive seen you hear every day' , and i could tell he really thought this was the case, when i actually rotated a few days. Not sure if im explaining it well...