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This may not end up working but if it does, I think it will be pretty handy. Looking at the stiffeners on the bottom of the galley flat kept making me think of drawer runners or supports. So while the camper was upside down and before attaching the bottom, I added pieces to the sides of the stiffeners that might support drawers later on.
Here are the pieces clamped in place on the bottom of the galley flat so the drawers will be taking up some of the room (hopefully above) where your feet go but not be in the way of your feet. Notice there is only one runner on the inside of the far left stiffener. The same is true for the far right one.
I knew that it would be much easier now rather than when everything was closed up. I also thought about only putting them in the middle section to accommodate one drawer but if this works and the drawers are not in the way, then three will be that much better. Obviously the drawers will have to be shallow and the size of the mattress will affect how deep they can be but I can make them any depth I want. I’ll figure that out later but even a two inch deep drawer can hold quite a bit (of smaller things).
Here is a close up of a runner. I just used Titebond waterproof glue to attach them but they’ll be covered with epoxy like everything else in this space. Since the drawers can’t be very deep and won’t hold a lot, their overall weight shouldn’t be an issue.
There is about a half inch between the runner and the fillet so there’s plenty of room for something attached to the sides of the drawers to slide in/on. If they work, they’ll be nice to have for storage. If they don’t, then the runners won’t really be in the way and it was just a little extra time and material…but I’ve got lots of both.
I couldn’t tell you yet but I’m still counting on it to work. I’m currently installing electrical and the insulation pieces. I’ll probably be deciding on a mattress in the next couple of weeks and then I’ll know how much room there is above it to work with. I’m planning to follow up when there’s more to share.
If the clearing turns out to be too small for a decent-depth drawer, you can always use those supports to install a sliding breakfast table. It comes in very handy on a rainy morning – I can tell from my own experience.
Good idea. I knew I had seen it before, did a search for ‘table’ and came across your post from about a year ago. Thanks for the reminder. Also, I’ve got three ‘spaces’ so the middle one might be the table and there could be a shallow drawer on each of the two sides. This is the fun part, thinking through the possibilities and since it’s something that could be changed easily later, it’s not a problem to try an idea that doesn’t work quite like I thought it would.
Now I am waiting for you to show us how the drawers worked, perhaps I will install two of them in my camper 😉
My point exactly Wayne, I have he beer shelf, now I need to put some drawers to store some beer-nuts, or chips, to go along with that beer 😉
Here is one drawer and the shelf. Each is about 14 inches wide and 30 inches long and both can extend a little farther than in the picture. The drawer is 1 and 3/4 inches deep (inside) and has room for lots of smaller items – snacks, playing cards or travel games, small flashlight, etc. They’re made of baltic birch plywood trimmed with padauk (I had a scrap piece left over) to make things look nicer but mainly to have the supporting/sliding parts be hardwood.
Here is the table extended about as far as it can go and still support a plate of food, game board or something of moderate weight. The drawer can also extend that far out and still be supported underneath by the runners attached to the galley flat.
And here they are pushed back into place. They go pretty much to the transom board so each is quite long. I thought about one or two shorter drawers that could better stay out of the way of feet but decided instead to just make one long one. I’m waiting on delivery of a 4″ mattress so can’t really test it out yet. However, it can go on either side of the table so if it’s in the way of one person’s feet, the drawer (or the person) can move to the other side of the camper. There’s a reasonable amount of room under it but if it’s in the way of both people’s, then I’m not sure what they’ll do – remove the drawer completely maybe but that defeats the purpose. By the way, a little bees wax or something similar makes them slide much easier.
Mike, those look great and functional. I hope to do the same once I get some of the other essentials checked off the list.
Thanks, I like how they turned out. My 4″ mattress came recently and here’s the clearance I have with it in place so I think the drawer will work with my small feet.
madebymike6
Can you tell me about the window under the galley? Where did you get it? Any problems with leakage? Dimensions?
venableme, it’s from Amazon. The complete description is – ‘Amarine Made Boat Yacht Rectangle Opening Portlight Porthole 15-3/4″ x 7-7/8″ Replacement Window Port Hole – ABS Tempered Glass, Color: White, Black’
Do a search in this forum for ‘3883’ and you’ll see a few posts about putting it in. There’s information about round ones earlier in that same topic if you’re interested.
I like the rectangular one because it adds a different look to the back of the camper than most have. I put it in for more ventilation but the two round ones in the front will be all I usually need.
I’ve sprayed water on it from a hose and none gets in but it hasn’t been rain tested yet. I installed it using black butyl tape as a sealant, which should last for many years. Because of that and its location, I don’t think leaking will be a problem.
Something to note – a few poor reviews mention that the holes on the inside and outside parts don’t match up but that’s on purpose. It’s meant to be installed on a thicker ‘wall’ using screws to attach the parts and the screws won’t hit each other. The round portholes use bolts that do go through matching holes (at least mine did).
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