Casita 16' Liberty Dlx: Modify to get 60" wide bed AND small dinette area?

[samclem]

We'd like a 60" wide bed and a place to sit/eat without bothering someone who is still asleep in that bed. I'd welcome feedback on this idea for modifying a 16' Liberty Deluxe:
Divide the regular "forward" dinette area into two parts. The front part would be dedicated seating (two seats that face each other). The rear part (approx 12" wide) gets added to the regular 48" wide rear bed, for a total of 60" wide (queen-size width). The front "seating area" would have a small fold-way table for each side (so there wouldn't be a table blocking the whole aisle and access between the rear bed and the forward part of the trailer).

I haven't found dimensions for the forward dinette of the 16' LD, but if it is approx 36" wide this might work. Does anyone know the width of the forward dinette? The total bed width for a 16' LD isn't in the big "bed size" thread.

Doing things this way would let us keep a 60" wide bed down all the time and still have an inside place to eat, read etc.

Criticisms, ideas, comments are solicited. If we had a 60" wide bed (and a fridge with a small freezer---my next challenge), then a used 16' Casita could probably fit our needs at relatively light weight--and maybe at a modest price.

[bookernoe]

We have a similar set up. I wish I had photos. We leave the last segment open (about 18"). This leaves us a King bed, minus the 18" spot for you to put your feet down without disturbing your partner. I made a round table that swivels out of the way to either side. That serves as our tv stand (laptop) and sitting area for the non sleeping partner. I am working on a mod to go to two 30 inch wide bunks, but with a filler strip for the modified king size (about 18" wide).

[samclem]

Originally Posted by bookernoe

We leave the last segment open (about 18"). This leaves us a King bed, minus the 18" spot for you to put your feet down without disturbing your partner. I made a round table that swivels out of the way to either side. That serves as our tv stand (laptop) and sitting area for the non sleeping partner.

Yep, that sounds like what I'm thinking about. Did you use a floor post to support the swivel table, or did you cantilever it in some way from a side cabinet? When the weather is poor, is this area where you both eat? It'll be tricky designing a table that can serve as a relatively comfortable eating/writing surface for one >or< two, yet can be easily moved aside or folded to allow easy access from the bed to the rest of the trailer.
Thanks very much for the information.

Mark

[bookernoe]

We use the floor post. I bought the largest round laminated tabletop sold at Lowes, though I confess that I can't remember the dimension right now (either 18 or 24"). It was about $25. I added the port for the table leg, but offset it as close to the edge that gave the best compromise of stability and ability to swing out of the way. We ended up about 2 inches from the edge, and it has worked out wonderfully. My next goal is to build a storage place for the table under the 'filler' strip of the bed. We frankly have never eaten inside, but I think the table would serve us fine as long as we weren't cranking out a 3 course meal. I should mention that we never use the kitchen, and do all our cooking outside. We are actually considering removing it entirely on the drivers side wall to regain that space.

[bookernoe]

I forgot to mention that the arrangement works really well both for easy late night excursions, and for one partner to sit up while the other sleeps. Our feet naturally drop into the space as you begin to rise. The only problem we have found is that we tend to stack stuff up like dirty clothes at the foot of the bed (next to the cabinets) and our feet fall to the open space while we sleep. I am working on a hanging net where we put our stuff above instead.