{"id":768,"date":"2011-08-01T21:45:47","date_gmt":"2011-08-02T04:45:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/minniebiz.com\/gmcmotorhome\/?p=768"},"modified":"2011-08-02T06:03:13","modified_gmt":"2011-08-02T13:03:13","slug":"installing-a-permanent-bed-in-the-gmc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/minniebiz.com\/gmcmotorhome\/2011\/08\/01\/installing-a-permanent-bed-in-the-gmc\/","title":{"rendered":"Installing a permanent bed in the GMC"},"content":{"rendered":"

We never used the rear dinette area.\u00a0 It seemed like it would be nice to be able to sit there and have dinner looking out the picture-window sized back window but we never did.\u00a0 The need to make and remake the bed would make using the rear dinette – even if we had a table – too much work.\u00a0 The other factor was the seam between the seats when the dinette was made up as the bed made the bed less than comfortable for me.<\/p>\n

This project got started (in the Spring of 2010) because our house water pump was too loud.\u00a0 I like to get up early and Carol likes to sleep in a little.\u00a0 The house water pump is right under Carol’s pillow and it runs when you use water.\u00a0 It is pretty hard to get up and not use water so I wanted to replace the water pump with one that would not be as loud as the one we had.\u00a0 I found one that, if I recall correctly, was recommended as efficient and quiet by another GMCer.\u00a0 It is a Whisper King and it is quiet.\u00a0 The photos show how I installed it with double sound insulation by using the mounts from the old water pump and the new one.<\/p>\n

The platform for the bed was constructed so that I could easily access the water pump when I need to and, hopefully I won’t need to, with a few screws I can access the water tank.\u00a0 The original design had a blanket chest on the passenger side that was so badly deteriorated from water damage that we didn’t use it.\u00a0 In order to gain some length for the bed I replaced it with a solid headboard and a slightly wider shelf for stuff like alarm clocks, etc.\u00a0 The driver’s side is where the water fill door is located so the foot-board had to allow enough depth to cover that.\u00a0 The new overall length of the bed is 82 inches which is slightly over queen-bed length.\u00a0 The width is still standard double width but very comfortable for us.<\/p>\n

The next part of the problem was a mattress.\u00a0 We settled on a 5 inch thick queen-sized mattress pad from JCPenny and have a waffle-foam mattress pad over that.\u00a0 The mattress pad was cut down to standard width using an electric knife – very easy.\u00a0 The resulting makeshift mattress is very comfortable – we used it for almost 8 weeks on our trip last summer.<\/p>\n

The final part of the project is just being completed – a large drawer under the bed for storing less frequently used items.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t \t\n \"The\n \t<\/a>\n\t\t <\/div>\n \u00a0 The photo on the left is the Whisper King water pump installed on a double insulated mounting constructed from the old and new mounting brackets.\u00a0 The green thing in the background is a filter that I had not yet removed.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t \t\n \"The\n \t<\/a>\n\t\t <\/div>\n \u00a0 In the photo on the right I constructed a framework that provides support for several separate pieces of plywood that makes up the bed platform.\u00a0 Panels were sized to allow access where it might be needed.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t \t\n \"The\n \t<\/a>\n\t\t <\/div>\n \u00a0 Photo on left shows the foot-board installed and covering the water inlet.\u00a0 The wood is natural maple – the wood we chose for the rest of the coach.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t \t\n \"The\n \t<\/a>\n\t\t <\/div>\n \u00a0 On the right the headboard has to have a shelf that can serve as a nightstand but not interfere with sleeping space.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t \t\n \"The\n \t<\/a>\n\t\t <\/div>\n \u00a0 On the left is the completed bed with the matching valance around the gigantic rear window – it is six feet wide and three feet tall.<\/p>\n

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We never used the rear dinette area.\u00a0 It seemed like it would be nice to be able to sit there and have dinner looking out the picture-window sized back window but we never did.\u00a0 The need to make and remake the bed would make using the rear dinette – even if we had a table […]<\/p>\n

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