My DIY Kombi bed

benp1

Senior Member
T6 Guru
I've made a slot together plywood bed so I can sleep in my kombi. I can set it up as a single bed (70cm or 80cm by 200cm) or a king size bed (150cm x 200cm) - long bed because I'm 6'3

When I'm with the kids it's a bit of a squeeze, three of us can sleep on the bed with mats and sleeping bags but need to be really organised with all our stuff. Both front seats swivel which helps create a bit more interior room and then gives us the front footwells to put stuff. Thankfully all our trips have been in dry so it's easy enough to get out to make the bed up or vice versa. Likewise for making food.

It was much easier solo (with the dog), had loads of room in comparison

A huge benefit to the bed design is being able to lift up the boards to get under the bed, I have 4 base boards, two 70x100 and two 80x100. So I can put things on the boot floor and still get to it while inside the van but need to move the stuff on top of the bed to do this, plus negotiate the wooden cross braces that I have

I like the back to basics approach, I'm more of a bivvier than a camper, so like to travel with minimal kit. But sometimes extra the extra things help, particularly with the kids. 4 trips now and am moving up the learning curve. So far all trips have been stealthy ones eg car parks that allow overnight stops

Without having used an off the shelf kombi bed (exploria, forty winks, van king etc) it's hard to work it through, but I guess that anything at the front of the boot by the seats is pretty inaccessible?

Any tips for your approach to quick overnight stops in a kombi with kombi bed and without an awning or pop top? And how you organise your stuff
 
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My post above is quite long, sorry

TL:DR - how to Kombi campers keep organised and prep for the night? If you have a slidepod type arrangement what do you do with all your kit?
 
I'm currently converting my LWB Kombi into a daily driver/camper/motorbike hauler. I've tried to keep my setup as simple as possible with ease of set up and storage front of my needs. Main unit has couple of cubby holes for easy to access storage and an 800mm long pull-out drawer with built in work surface. Mattresses need to be covered still.

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Flip the top mattress onto the floor and two people have an almost full sized single bed each:

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The single seat will be removed for most camping trips to make access in and out easier.
 
For the stealthy overnights I have a few tips;
Forget it if you have kids, they don’t know what quiet is.
Make the bed as far as possible beforehand and have gear that you don’t need stowed.
Park between other vans or high sided vehicles.
Park in a lit area so the light inside the van isn’t obvious.
Use a red light inside the van as it’s less visible outside.
Use a curtain between the cab and rear that allows airflow through the slightly open front windows.
Eat out or prepare food in advance as far as possible.
Don’t allow waste water to drain out on dry ground.
Leave early and don’t leave a trace, have an excuse ready for driving in your underpants until you find somewhere to park up for breakfast.
 
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