Underbunk Storage

[campadk]

Was just prepping our tear for the dreaded task of tucking it away for the winter.. thought I would take a shot of the underbunk storage since this topic has come up on occasion.

Here is a shot showing the room in our Hunter for underbunch storage. The depth is about 4.5 inches deep. Naturally the storage is accessible from either side. I used piano hinges to attach and hing the plywood panels.

Besides being great for storage, it also means added insulation on cold nights keeping the bed nice and toastie.

Spouse + underbunch storage area = happy camper

[beverlyt]

I use mine for all my "junk".
Wheel chalks (spelling?), duck tape, heavyduty extension cords...etc...things I seldom use. With storage at a premium, I'm glad we built it in.
Looks like you've got quite a bit of room under there!

[campadk]

We use it mainly for clothes, towels and such... its like one big long dresser drawer! I also stow some long stuff like a table umbrella and tarp poles.

[Scooter]

It's a bummer having to design a tear without ever seeing or using one myself. I've got the recess under the floor too, with the intent of a footwell for a small diner. But I may find it's a lousy diner and use it only for storage. Or may use it for storage, then all the junk will be underfoot at suppertime.

[SteveH]

Dave,

That storage area looks like a good idea..never seen it before. What are the dementions? Don't you have to lift the mattress to access it? Is that a problem?

TIA for all the info you can give.

[BrianB]

Being 4.5" deep, doesn't it hang below the trailer frame?

[Woody]

I have an in floor storage as well. It is 9 inches deep by 40 inches long by 18 inches wide. But only hang below the frame 5 1/2". It still is 1 1/2 inches above the axle. One advantage of using a straight axle and springs setup. The extra ground clearence helps in this case

[campadk]

Ok correction on the depth.. the underbunk is 4" deep by 22.5 inch wide by 86 inches in length (X 2 since there is storage accessible from each side.

The underbunk does not hang below the frame. Here is a side view. You can also see how it sits in relation to the bottom of the door...

[capsu78]

Dave,
Anything special I need to know about purchasing the piano hinge?
Is yours all one piece? Does it run continouosly from end to end, or do you have some gaps? Finally, once you put the hinges on, you could never remove the panels from inside again, correct? (Not that i'd ever need too, just thinking this through.)
Dave
Another Hunter owner...

[campadk]

Dave,

I just went to the local hardware store and both 3 piano piano hinges. I'd suggest using ones that are longer than ours (ie longer than 2 or 3 inches), one for the middle, one for each end. DON'T do what I did! My wife couldn't stop laughing since at first I put the hinges on backwards so they wouldn't fold up (ha ha!). Then I put them on the right way, but my screws were just a bit too long and I ended up screwing the hinges right through into the center support.. DOH... 3rd try and I was golden.

True you can't remove the panels since you can't fold one over onto the other (it only opens so far then hits the galley shelf). But if you really must remove them, you could remove the pin from the hinges, or unscrew one side. We have never seen reason to remove the panels.

[capsu78]

Dave,
Thanks for the tips. I owe you another Molson.
And didn't we marry these women to "complete us",
and not to serve as a background laugh track?

[backwoodsman]

Dave-

I am thinking of raising the whole floor 4" and having storage the length of the tear. I go to a lot of blackpowder shooting matches and my gun case is 66" long. I will store other gear here also. My question is....how much trouble is it to get gear in & out from under the bed? I need to decide if I want to make the storage accessable from under the galley area (sliding the gun cases & gear in from the rear) or like yours, from under the bed.

Thanks,

Greg

[Denny Unfried]

If you're single like myself - I really don't enjoy making the bed at all which will have to be done every time the storage area is accessed. Also every thing that is added to the tear will add to the weight till it morphs into a motorhome.

[campadk]

backwoodsman,

You don't have to remake your bed to access the underbunck. Its hard to access though if the cabin is piled up with stuff on top of the bed, but normally you just lift the matress a tad and use the finger hole to lift the hinged plywood base up. With mattress and bedding in place, yes you do have to us a muscle or too to hold up the plywood while you take stuff in/out, but its not difficult. I'll admit though that Kate does find it a bit awkward, and she tends not to use her side as much as I do my side.

Access from the galley could be an option though, if that space is clear. In my Hunter I could have done that by cutting a whole in the back right.. normally this was the place to store a cooler.

If you building yours, I don't see why you couldn't build it like your suggesting with rear access.

I'll post a short movie clip if you like so you can see how it works, and the effort involved.

[mikeschn]

Oh yes, lets see another movie!!!

Mike...