Milk crates and plywood for my first van bed???

[Jack Grit]

I have quite a few old school milk crates but they want $49.95 for the plywood. 3/4" cabinet grade plywood is the only kind that doesn't warp according to the Hope Depot folks. They said standard 3/4" plywood is warped to one degree or another.  Have any of you found that to be gospel? Would thinner plywood be viable? Would the "warp" be noticeable? I want to take the milk crate route for several good reasons, one of which is if it fails I have spent very little money and effort. A bed in as Astro takes up quite a bit of space. I am 5' 10"+. I plan on having the wood cut to 36" wide and 72" long. Has anyone else used milk crates for the base of a bed? Have you used standard plywood? I can't use anything taller than milk crates and at most an inch of wood as my head would hit the ceiling. I don't want to build a 2x4 base yet as I'm not sure a bed would work. Oh, one more piece of info; I have beefy metal cabinets that came with the van and are very useful. They rule out building the bed across the back as they would be in the way.

 

[TMG51]

What are you going to put on top of the plywood? I would think any reasonably bed-like padding would take care of any slight warp... Just pick through a couple pieces and look at them. And make sure your bedding doesn't promote moisture underneath.

 

[GrantRobertson]

I have had two people sleeping on about 12-16 cardboard boxes with a couple of sheets of 1/2" OSB laying on top of it. You would be surprised how sturdy a 1/2" sheet of plywood or OSB is. When you are laying down, all your weight gets distributed pretty well. Heck, I could even stand on the bed without crushing the boxes. So, your milk crates should do just fine.

As long as the same amount of humidity gets to both sides of the plywood, it should stay pretty flat. Since you aren't fastening it down, you could even flip it over if it did start to warp.

 

[BradKW]

Basically all plywood can warp, and spending more on B/C or A/B doesn't necessarily change that. The problem is a few things:

1) plywood is made mostly from young growth trees, 3" to 4" diameter. When made from larger trees, its much more stable.
2) moisture content changes from mill to shipping to storage to install...and this causes warping.
3) the veneers are made by unwrapping a tree instead of cross cuts, which means one side always has tighter grain than the other.

In general though, if you find a good piece of B/C that is flat in the store, it'll be likely to behave itself once you get it home. For what you're doing, I'd suggest using 1/2" due to weight, and screw a couple 2x4's along the edges to act as stiffeners to prevent warping. Check the crown on the 2x4's and match the crown when you attach it...

 

[Almost There]

Whether something as light as 1/2" will warp will depend on how many milk crates you're putting under it to use as a bed.

If all you do is put 4 - 1 on each corner, yes, you'll have sag. If you put milk crates all lined up in rows or staggered so that it's like a checkerboard square then the biggest span will be 12"...at which point you won't have warpage.

IMO, H/D is trying to upsell you.

If you're afraid of 1/2" because of your weight or because you want to plan the bed to include the possibilities of gymnastics being done in it, then upgrade to 5/8 or 3/4 but cabinet grade is way overkill, especially if you're not sure about the whole thing.

I like Brads' idea of framing out the plywood. Turned on it's short side it will also prevent the milk crates from shifting under the bed. My only question for that is if 2x4's are really necessary or could you get away with something smaller.

 

[GotSmart]

You will not use the entire 4 ft X 8 foot as the bed. Get 1/2 inch, and use the off cut for under the platform. Milk crates will be just fine.

Old school water beds used plywood on edge (X) as a brace to hold up everything. Any warpage will settle down in use.

 

[Oberneldon]

I use 1/2" plywood and I painted both sides to prevent moisture. Also get CDX rated for stability like this. It should work fine if reasonably supported.

http://m.homedepot.com/p/Unbranded-...ual-0-438-in-x-48-in-x-96-in-915378/100092909

Brent

 

[Jack Grit]

I'll go with 1/2" CDX. As for 2x4s, I'll look at some 2X2s first. If I end up using them and they don't do the job , I can bolster them up at a later date. 

Thanks for your replies. This is a geat site!

 

[Oberneldon]

Jack Grit,

2x2 framing should be fine. Seal the plywood too.

Brent

 

[flying kurbmaster]

my bed is made with 24 inch 1/2 inch plywood sitting on a base that is framed with 3/4 x 1 with 3/16 luan glued and brad nailed together, it is piano hinged an inch in to get into the storage, a couple sets of legs slide out then another piano hinged piece 23 inches of !/2 inch ply folds out onto the legs to make a double bed, it is not sealed I use a foam mattress, there has never been any signs of moisture mold or mildew, one day I plan on verathaning it but just haven't got around to it or been able to vacate long enough to let it off gas. It has been there since 2010 no warping. I think 2x4 are made for houses and there is never a reason to put them in a van. you will just be paying forever to haul the extra weight around.. I don't even have a 2x2 in any of my vans there is no need for it. even if you weigh 300 lbs. I have another similar set up that is verathaned, and it also has no signs of warping the plywood spans almost 24 inches.

 

[ggwoman]

I used 5/8 plywood on 6 milk crates lengthwise for a double bed mattress in a Ford cargo van. Worked well, able to store laundry basket, boxes of food, kitchen basics,clothes, linens, toiletries etc. underneath. Two of us lived in that van for over a year. Cooking was limited to a single propane burner, and water jugs were stored behind driver's seat. I flipped the mattress and boards every few months, never had a problem with warping. It was cheap easy and all I had at the time. Very simple arrangement, but very comfy with a regular mattress.

 

[Jack Grit]

For the first go-round I'll leave the plywood in one piece. Likely I will go to a hinged system in the future. In this small of a space one needs to do whatever possible to make maneuvering things around easier. I have a nice thick foam rubber mattress which I'll flip fairly often, along with the plywood. I will be using a combination of square and rectangle milk crates. I'm leaning towards zip ties to hold them together, as they are fairly strong, inexpensive and adjustable. As for the items I need to get to more often, I may slip some shorter containers between the crates. I'll let you know how things turn out.

Thanks again folks.

 

[Patrick46]

This sounds fine...but why not just keep the crates sunny-side-up, and fill them with stuff?? (and not zip-tie them) This will add weight and hold them all in their one place.
...plus, you can store rarely use things in the crates farthest to the back, and the more handy and things you want readily-available in the front most boxes.

Stowage and bed strength...all in one.

 

[BigT]

No plywood legs for me. I used pipe nipples and floor flanges, but milk crates would be a lot cheaper.

 

[Jack Grit]

This sounds fine...but why not just keep the crates sunny-side-up, and fill them with stuff?? (and not zip-tie them) This will add weight and hold them all in their one place.
...plus, you can store rarely use things in the crates farthest to the back, and the more handy and things you want readily-available in the front most boxes.

Stowage and bed strength...all in one.

I probably should have expounded: I have some long zip ties. Some crates I may zip tight (the crates for rarely used items, placed where they are hardest to get to) for added stability. Others I plan on experiment with, utilizing the ties in a way so as to arrange the crates as effectively as possible. I may also use some sort of clamp system (or the like) on the plywood to zip the crates to. This will all be free standing. I'm hoping it will be pretty solid after I am though. I'm not so sure the crates would stay in their place, along with the possibility of sliding plywood.

 

[GrantRobertson]

I'm not so sure the crates would stay in their place, along with the possibility of sliding plywood.

Perhaps you could take some cheap rubber hose, slit it, and put a piece along the top edge of each crate. That might prevent the plywood from sliding around just enough. But not enough to keep you from dragging an individual crate out from underneath.   Just brainstorming.

Oh, also a vote for keeping the crates upright. Might as well store stuff in them.

I have found however, that milk crates on their sides will eventually smush down. It did not turn out so well for my dorm-room shelving.

 

[GrantRobertson]

As for the items I need to get to more often, I may slip some shorter containers between the crates.

I think you will find that it is pretty easy to just lift the plywood a hair and slide out the crates themselves, even with a mattress on top. I've never had much trouble, and I have pretty much zilch for arm strength. Hey, you could even keep a stick handy that is a hair longer than the crates are tall, then use that to prop up the plywood temporarily so you can get some crates out.

 

[Jack Grit]

Yes, I plan to have the crates upright.

With the plywood at 1/2" and 36" wide your above ideas would likely work.


As per your previous post now I'm brainstorming some sort of material to put on the top of the boxes.
I like the idea!

__________________________________

BigT, nice job on the bed! That looks like an Astro in the background?

 

[B and C]

You could take some of the cutoff plywood and make little squares to attach in the corners of the platform to sit just inside the lip of the 4 crates in the corners.  This would keep the plywood from sliding around on top of the crates.  You might think about fastening the 4 corner crates to the floor to keep the whole thing from sliding around.

 

[ZoNiE]

Most travel trailers have a sheet of 7/16" OSB for the bed. It's not rocket science. It works.