Bed mod casita

[Lizzie]

Has anyone found a way to get more bed space in a 16 ft casita spirit deluxe? Please don't say get a 17fter thanks

[Joe Z]

I have a 16' casita and i took out the divider and then installed a slide out tray with fold down legs in the center aisle the distance of the side dinette cushion and then sleep longways and it is now way roomier for two ...... in the morning just slide it back under...... a quicker and easier way is to just cut a 24"x24" board and velcro it to the side dinette with two screw in legs on the furnace side...... both involve taking out the divider...... or if you want a larger side dinette bed you can just add a piece of plywood w/velcro and add screw in legs on the outside section.... I switch between the two depending on what i need. the rear bed mod involves using a 3/4" piece of plywood in place of the rear dinette.
Joe

All three variations shown and side dinette table stays in the up position for either of the rear bed mods

[Lizzie]

Wow! Joe, thank you! This is exactly what I was looking for

[Joe Z]

Glad i could help...... If you decide to do the side dinette up to the bath be sure to round the corner up at the bath door so that you can open it.......Also anywhere you put velcro on the plywood with sticky back it doesn't stick too well to plywood so about every four inches i staple it with a T-50 stapler(not on the fiberglass lip side)..... All three have served me well and with the unscrew legs you can store any under the mattress when not in use
Joe

[wildbill2222]

Could You Tell How You Attach The Board To The Side Dinette? It Looks Even With The Outside Of It. What Holds It Up Besides The Legs? A Picture Of Attachment Would Help.Thanks Bill

[Joe Z]

Originally Posted by wildbill2222

Could You Tell How You Attach The Board To The Side Dinette? It Looks Even With The Outside Of It. What Holds It Up Besides The Legs? A Picture Of Attachment Would Help.Thanks Bill

I can't get to the plywood board to get a picture right now but there is a recessed ridge on the edge of the fiberglass seat (pictured) about 3/4" wide running the whole length. I went to Lowes and bought the real heavy Industrial Strength Velcro about 2 inches wide and cut strips 3/4" out of that and laid it into the recessed section...... then i took the corresponding velcro and cut another 3/4" strips (the fuzzy side) and laid it on the bottom edge of the plywood...... but with plywood it doesn't stick to it that good when it's hot out so i took a T-50 stapler and using short staples stapled about every 2-1/2" across the velcro on the plywood side only (not the fiberglass side) and hammered it down flush and tight to the base.... now this is important..... let it sit for 24 hours to give the adhesive glue time to fully cure on the mating parts before joining them together or they may come undone from their bases....... Done now enjoy your new bed
Joe

[wildbill2222]

Thanks Joe For Your Board Connection And Picture You Were A Lot Of Help. Bill

[Joe Z]

Your Welcome
Joe

[Glen G]

Hay Joe that is sort of what I did to my 13 Casita Deluxe.

Had to ditch the kitchen though. But gained outside storage compartment.

[Joe Z]

Glenn
That's a really good job you did there...... the metal legs down underneath are a first class setup ( they look like the rear stabilizer outside legs?) but whoever did those cushions did an exceptionally good job and i like those colors...... my wife tells me all the time to pull the kitchen out and i'm not doing it. On a 13' maybe as i really don't use the kitchen much but a 16' has all the room i neeed and it is set up like yours....... nice Job
Joe

[Glen G]

Thanks Joe Z,

Yep the legs are stabilizers. I had 2 on hand and they were the right length fully extended so I got 2 more. The down side is that the platform is HEAVY ! The upside is its super stable and if I could balance the the tow vehicle on it , no problem.

The cushion used the Casita foam and memory foam.

I find the memory foam to soft for the cushion covers and causes the foam to shift inside the covers.

So I'm going to have to think about replacing the memory foam with regular foam slightly softer then the Casita foam.

Watch for my build thread on the Casita 'King 13' Deluxe.

[Guide Guy]

Hi Joe,
Your modification to the bed is exactly what I am planning on doing. I have one question: How did you remove the divider between the bed and the side dining table? I understand that there are screws that can be taken out but I can't locate them. Can you help?
Thanks,
Chris (Guide Guy) and Lori

[Joe Z]

You have a 17' which has the converter at the rear dinette and my 16' was at the side dinette..... Many have done it to the 17' model
It's been a while but if i remember correctly there was two aluminum "L" Brackets on the side wall. The hard part was trying to get to the screws between the front bench and the rear bench.... I was able to reach a few of them thru the dinette lift off lid but two i couldn't reach and used a hacksaw blade to get in there to cut them out..... then the space between the two benches you fill level with a piece of plywood..... If you don't care about saving the divider it's a lot easier just to cut it flush with the bench seat..... I ran like that for a few years crossing the country five times with no problems and really like it.....
Some of the casita's I heard where much easier to reach those lower screws

[Guide Guy]

Hi Joe,

Thanks for the quick reply! I'll check it out next weekend and give you an update.

Chris

[Joe Z]

Sound good
Joe

[Guide Guy]

Hi Again Joe,
Well, I wish all the projects I start ended that easily. I called Casita and they said there were 2 screws that hold the panel between the bed and small table (actually there were 4). One is in the cupboard above the table and the other 3 in the wheelwell below the table seat, all on the table side. I took those out, sprayed a bit of good old WD40 on both sides of the divider to get it to move easier, wedged my crowbar (covered in cloth) between the trailer wall and the divider, and it popped out! Now we will build some kind of slide out like you did for the mattress, and a cap for the end of the cupboard above the bed.
Thanks much for the ideas and encouragement!
Chris

[Joe Z]

Will be one of the best mods you could do..... sleeping longways give you an enormous amount of elbow room.
enjoy,
Joe