Versatile Van Bed
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Retain the cargo capability of your van,
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use as a work van/office with benches
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quick & easy conversion to a platform bed.
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additional integral seating
Fold down cantilevered desks/bed platform
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provides a walk-thru desk/work space for day use
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a fast and easy ventilated, slatted single or double bed.
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full access flexibility of floor space without obstruction.
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with integral seating.
Other bed designs for Vans
this page is a work in progress - it requires some pictures!
- to explain in detail and discuss the alternative types of folding bed design for a van.
with the intent to present pros and cons of each design and to compare and contrast those design against the VersatileVanBed.
Discussion of alternate folding - 'Murphy' bed design for vans.
Classic 'Murphy' bed design - short height, floor space dominant
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A classic murphy bed is folded from approximately knee(0.45m) height from a vertical wall stored position until a rest horizontal position supported by conventional legs on the 'open' end.
There must be available a sufficient cleared floor space since below the bed.
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It is important to note the distinction of a murphy bed being supported at it's 'open' end by legs or resting upon a floor structure.
A murphy bed is not cantilevered i.e. it is not solely supported from one end (the hinged side).
(In the case a folding bed is fully supported from it's one side as a cantilever:- the name 'Pullman' is most common; refer to other discussion on Cantilever aka 'Pullman' style beds.)
Limitation of a conventional 'murphy' bed
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a murphy bed is hinged along one side and requires the full width or full height of the bed to fold upwards against a wall.
therefore dependent upon the height above floor level, knee height(0.45m) or waist high(0.7m) a double sized folded bed (1.3m x 1.9m) requires either (0.45+1.3m)=1.75m wall height or (0.7+1.3)=2.0m wall height to fold up.
Platform level 'Murphy' bed design
Perhaps the best among the conventional bed design is a variation on the fold-down 'murphy' bed design when it is mounted at waist/counter/platform height (0.75m).
This may or not be combined with a 'garage' storage area.
The advantage is to retain a longitudinal walk thru space in the van.
Unless you have an unusually tall van (> 2.5metre) this style of murphy bed gives a Longitudinal bed which requires more space along the vehicle.
This can work well in a Long Wheelbase (LWB/L) size van.
Variations of 'murphy' bed - a splitted two-halves design
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When two single width murphy beds are arranged on opposing wall sides of a van they can be combined to form a double sized bed.
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Using a fold down murphy style with a narrower / single person (0.75m) wide size;
requires either (0.45+0.75)=1.2m wall height when folded up at knee height(0.45m),
or else (0.75+0.75)=1.5m wall height when folded from waist(0.75m) height.
With each a 0.75m width, a pair of these single bed can be combined across a 1.5m span across a van.
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Take note that the free ends of the murphy beds require support using either legs reaching down to the floor or else support from above which could be flexible tension lines instead of a rigid structure.
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This style of single murphy bed arranged longitudinal with the wall hinge may seem more familiar in name as simply a fold-down Bunk bed, however the distinction can be if the open end is appearing to be free 'floating' in which case it is being supported from the hinge side as a cantilever and the design is rather a 'Pullman' type - read below.
Cantilever or 'Pullman' style fold-down beds
Cantilever structure
When an elongated structure is held at one end and is horizontally protruding outwards perpendicular to a vertical wall, this is called a Cantilever.
It can be observed to have a free, open end which might be described as 'floating'.​
Cantilevered aka 'Pullman' bed
In the case a folding bed which is fully supported from it's one side as a cantilever the name 'Pullman' is common; refer to other discussion on Cantilever aka 'Pullman' style beds.
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A Pullman bed originated for compact use in railway carriages; today it is most common in the marine industry fitted to ships cabins to provide usually 4 x bunks to each cabin, two mounted on each opposing wall at low and high levels, offering twin room occupancy typically the lower comfortable bed or for 4 person using all bunk bed.
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Despite it's commonplace use in the marine world and to some degree in trailer conversions the use of cantilever type bunk bed in camper vans seems extremely low. This could be due to the additional wall structure required to support the significant cantilever load. By comparison; fitting a simple beam transverse across the complete span of the width of the van, typically 1.4 to 1.8metres, is a much simpler and lower cost proposition.