Introduction

I want my van to be flexible.

• It needs to work as a Day Van for trips out with bikes and muddy shoes or to travel to see friends and family across the country, yet remain usable as a basic van if I need to haul ‘big things’ about.
• I don’t want a full-on campervan but I do want to be able to sleep in it for a couple of nights at a time occasionally.
• I also want to be able to sit in the back on a rainy day and read my book or watch a film with a nice view.
• Although I’ve never been a fan of public loos, with the impact of Coronavirus a loo feels like a must-have to keep safe during day trips.
• A quick stop at the chippy on the way home with the luxury of a proper fork, normal price ketchup, and a comfy seat is a bonus too!

That’s a lot to ask from a Long Wheel Base VW Transporter, but I think it’s doable. Key to making this all work is a system of removable pods and a bed of some kind.

Bed – Type

The bed, by its very nature, is the biggest element of the setup so it made sense to start there and then make everything else fit around it.

I looked at a lot of types of bed. Having owned and spent time in around 20 different Caravans, Motorhomes and Narrowboats I knew the limitations and annoyances of the various styles.

• Fixed Bed;
  • Not compatible with the need to be flexible in a small van. They can work in higher topped or longer vehicles where a garage can be fitted underneath but no good in my circumstances.
• Bench Pull Out;
  • I find the biggest drawback of this style is the cushions. You are restricted by the dual nature of the bench/bed so you end up with joins where the cushions meet that invariably end up being in an inconvenient place in the middle of the night which can be overcome by a mattress topper but then you have to store that, taking up valuable space.
  • Because it’s a bench for sitting on, it has to be a certain size which then takes up extra room that could be used for something else like bikes.
  • I already have seats that can double up for a quick rest or to change shoes etc.
• Rock n Roll;
  • I don’t need to transport any number of passengers when I’m likely to want to sleep in the van.
  • A bit like the bench style, I don’t really like this style because it’s trying to do 2 jobs and each job is limited by the lowest common denominator of the other job. Safety is obviously the most important thing required in a traveling seat. That adds weight and elements that get in the way. Being woken up by a seatbelt digging in your back does not sound like fun. Again a mattress topper can compensate for this, but it’s something else to store.
  • This style is a popular choice when needing rear seatbelts and if this is something you need then this style can work well and a lot of the limitations can be overcome. But it’s not the right style for me.
• RIB
  • This is basically a Rock n Roll, but you sleep on the rear of the seats so is more comfortable.
• Pop-Top Bed;
  • I don’t have a pop-top yet.
  • When I do get one, I don’t want to sleep up there as my only option. High winds, cold, location etc may mean I can’t pop the top.
  • It feels a bit claustrophobic to me and its a pain if you need the loo in the night. For me, pop-top beds are more suited to smaller/younger humans!
• Hammock/Air bed on the floor/Futon;
  • No.
  • Fine for temporary use I guess?

Chosen Bed

I found a style of bed that I kept coming back to but it’s one that does not often feature highly in #VanLife on Instagram/YouTube/Pinterest etc. For me, it overcomes a lot of the limitations mentioned above.

• Easy to get out so closest to the benefits of a fixed bed without the restrictions on space.
• Only a bed so no major restrictions of dimensions and cushions imposed by it trying to be a seat as well.
• Dedicated yet small footprint that contains not only the bed itself but pillows/duvets etc too.
• Ability to choose the comfort level of the sleeping surface.
• Can be used to sit on during the day for reading etc. where lounging is required.
• Can be used in stealth camping.

Often called a Murphy Bed, I really like the benefits, as you can see, of a folding bed. The issue I struggled to overcome was exactly how to make one work in a van. I began searching and designing and trying to work it out when one fateful day my GoogleFu skills turned up trumps.

Flatout Camper Beds

I found an image and went on a hunt that led me to Flatout Camper Beds (FCB). I pored over their Facebook page and their website and fell in love with the products. One major appeal was the ability to keep my second row of seats for when I want to take friends/family out for the day but still have a full-length bed semi-permanently installed in the van.

I finally decided that the Extendy model looked like it would work for me so I dropped a message to the number on the website. This was mid-COVID19 initial lockdown so I expected a delay in hearing back as I had done with other suppliers. I was very pleasantly surprised when I had a call back the following day. It was the start of a beautiful relationship!

When Craig from FCB called and answered my questions as to whether his bed would work in my Shuttle and we discussed options for customisation, work began on specifying the ins and outs of the bed I wanted. I spent hours with a tape measure and a roll of masking tape to create a CAD model that I knew would work in real terms.

I also started looking at the finish I wanted. Craig offers a whole range of paint and upholstery types and colours. His Facebook page showed several examples of customers requesting customisations so I knew I had the option to request something totally unique. Which obviously, me being me, I did.

As part of the CAD and masking tape planning, I was able to produce an acceptable quality visual mockup not only of the dimensions and components but the aesthetic too. Backed up with a selection of Pinterest Pins I was able to go ahead and place an order with Craig.

The steel would be painted with a clear lacquer instead of the powder coating that he normally does and I would add wood to the frames he was going to build. To allow me to do this he included steel tabs on the frames that I can later screw through.

I had also included 2 pods to complement the bed; one for my composting toilet and one by way of a kitchen for day trips.

I was ready to order…