Bed Slats for my T@B S Max

Pop-T@B

I have seen quite a few posts on this, just thought I would share what I made for mine. I used two pieces of white maple for the rails, all wood is finished with a satin clear coat. The slats are made out of 6 pieces of Poplar wood 29” long by 5-1/8” wide, they fit the space perfectly. I used poplar due to cost and no one sees them. I routed all edges and sanded smooth, I stapled the pieces together with a flat bungee cord to hold them all together, so I did not end up with six loose pieces. This made them easy to setup and to store. I store them in the no-man’s land cabinet under the bench on the left side. I made brackets to hold them up off of any plumbing or wiring and they are held tightly in place with a bungee cord, so as not to damage anything. We removed the large table for good, to give us the extra floor space. We use a small fold up table that stores under the couch seat on the right side. This makes the bed set up much easier and we love the added room to move around.

kybob

Nice workmanship.

Nomad

Nice job.

Pop-T@B

Please note, I made a typo in my post, I have corrected it, the slat width should be 5-1/8" not 4-1/8"

CCPICC

Loved your idea, did the same took out the table and slats we never use, had a custom memory foam mattress made and now we sleep in heavenly bliss. Thanks for the idea!!

webcrawler

Very nice!!!!   Definetly want to do this mod...

Rlethbri

Wow! SO great, I've got to get this for mine.  We don't like that table and we have a small roll up camping table we can use instead.  Thanks for the info!!

Michigan_Mike

I love the ingenuity and creativity exhibited by trailer owners while adapting to their environment.  Well done and will help others out down the road!  Thanks for taking the time to post up the photos and share your mod with everyone.  

Well done!  

webcrawler

I got mine done today...  Thanks for the Inspiration...

I decided to use three 1/4-20 through bolts and a #12 wood screw at the rear.  You see them on the outside, but I feel like they are a bit more durable than just wood screws....

For now I just store the slats on top the spare tire in the big rear box...

Pop-T@B

Looks great!  We really like having the table removed and I am sure you will to. It gives you much needed room to move around. After we loaded everything we think we need in the camper, we didn't have any room left in the storage area in the back, that's why I used the area under the drivers side bench.

McCamper

Rlethbri said:

Wow! SO great, I've got to get this for mine.  We don't like that table and we have a small roll up camping table we can use instead.  Thanks for the info!!

What is the brand for your small roll up table?

Pop-T@B

Here's some pic's of the table we use, very light weight, folds up easy and stores under the rear seat easily, and it only costs around $15.00 bucks at walmart

webcrawler

Funny,  I just bought the same table!!!

Pop-T@B

 You can't beat it, we liked it so well, we bought a spare just in case they quit carrying it. 

Michigan_Mike

I've noticed that the heat vent below appears to have been covered up here.  When the bed slats are implemented into others T@B units have any of you re-cut or routered the heat vent opening again below this area?   I'd be interested in hearing how others have approached the bed slat issue here and solutions to keeping the heat flowing in this area since warm air rises.   

What thickness is the wood you are using for the bed slats to support the weight placed on them from above? 

John_and_Kris

We cut arches in the support so the heat vent are opened on the door side.

Rlethbri

Yes. The original design was to screw the wood into the side but it would have covered the heat vent for my 2016 Outback. So I trimmed the piece to fit. The vent is free to flow with heat and works quite well. 

Pop-T@B

Its hard to see, but when I took the picture the vent slot was slightly covered, I have since took the support back off and routed a slot in it. the board was 1-1/2"-3/4"

webcrawler

I cut the rail height so that the bottom of the rail is even with the top of the heat slot so it was not blocked.  That works out to 1-1/2" thick by 3/4".  

lara9209

Looks great ... can you tell me what the thickness of the boards is?  would love to also see a pic of the table that you've substituted!  Thanks

lara9209

This is exactly what we need ... Can you advise the thickness of the slats for the bed? @Michigan_Mike

Pop-T@B

The boards I used for the slats are 3/4" thick

Michigan_Mike

lara9209 said:

This is exactly what we need ... Can you advise the thickness of the slats for the bed? @Michigan_Mike

Sorry Laura, I've been tied up on a master bedroom remodel project and have been away.  Pop T@B has it right!  

lara9209

thanks @Pop-T@B and @Michigan_Mike ... husband will start on it this week ... hope the remodel project is going well!

Joe

Following the lead of others.  Thanks for the great idea.  We really like the new slats and the extra room they provides underneath.  I used  1X4s for the slats 1X2 for the rails.  After sanding, two coats of polyurethane with no stain.

~ Joe

Joe

And here is the table we are using:

http://www.rei.com/product/866035/gci-outdoor-compact-camp-table-25



~ Joe

charlieborton

@Pop-T@B: I love your design and am just about finished doing is for my 2016 Outback. I'm ready  to staple the bungee cords to the boards and wondered why you chose the bungee configuration you used as opposed to a continuos strip on either side?
Thanks
Charlie

charlieborton

I just did this modification. I noticed you used the bungee cords cut in irregular lengths attached to the bottom. Why didn't you use one continuos strip on each side? And what is the reason you chose the configuration you used? I wanted to find out before I cut and attached my bungees! 
Thanks,
Charlie Borton
2016 T@B Outback

Pop-T@B

I stapled it on first in one piece, then when I went to fold it I had it to tight and it would not fold correctly. I would suggest start with the first board, staple it on, then fold staple to the next and so and and so on. I should have done it this way, but no one see it be me so I just left it this way.

Michigan_Mike

I used one continuous flat bungee cord (from Home depot) and was able to make it work for my trailer.  I certainly appreciated the heads up from Shawn on the flat bungee cord as I thought that was a slick idea.  Built a small storage rack in the bench seat next to the Alde and it is ready to go on an as needed basis.  Life is good!  

db_cooper

Here's what I ended up with for the bed slats.  Used hemlock (not cheap) but it was the straightest wood I could find and looked nice.  Used 1 x 2 for the rails, and the one on the door side did not cover the groove on my 2015 Outback any more than the piece of wood inside the box.  I made 5 slats from 1 x 6 and we used the 5 slats on our maiden voyage.   I've found, however, that I can store 4 between the inverter and back bench quite snugly.  And 4 is all you really need to support the bed.  I've got quite a bit of stuff under the side bench, so freeing that space up is nice. and the boards don't get in the way in this space from what I can tell so far.

And yes, that is the Ikea Toftbo,  nice rug!