Interior Storage Idea 1971 Sovereign

[phlegm]

I'm in the process of teardown/remodel on my

1971 Sovereign 31ft -- Airforums.com


And I currently have the stock interior removed as well as the rear most section of floor.

Part of my rebuild involves remodeling the AS to better fit our needs, and one of those things on the list is a big bed for the adults. I plan on making it a rear bedroom layout with a queen sized bed where the original rear bath was. That means I'll be moving the black tank somewhere else.

I was already thinking about leaving the space under the bed hollow with storage around the edges so I could use the original rear access hatch as a place to store larger items under the bed.



But this morning as I pulled the black tank it dawned on me.

Has anybody ever converted the space that was occupied by the stock black tank into extra deep storage?

I was thinking that when I put the new flooring back in, I'd cut a large square hole and then make a metal (steel or aluminum) drop in that was suspended by the 3/4" plywood and was about 6-7" deep (with a drain) and that would add a little more storage for things like folding chairs or an outside heat torch/lamp. Nothing heavy, just bulky.

If I don't use it, I'll just end up with a large empty cavern below the floor, because I won't be modifying the frame to remove the drop that was back there for the original black tank.

thoughts?
warnings?

have I gone too far?

[TheGreatleys]

As long as you don't put anything in there heavier than a full black tank, it sounds like a good idea to me.

[Aerowood]

Figure out where your new black plumbing is going to run first. I'm converting a 21 GT to rear bed, side wet bath and plumbing runs and vents need to be carefully planned. This would also be the time to install grey water tanks as 71 did not have them. See my thread below..

[wildhorses]

How deep you go will affect when you enter/exit roads with high angles. The deeper the storage bin the better your chances of scraping it when you turn uphill.

Good news is you could add casters to keep the bin from scraping.

[adobehome]

I, also, put a nice big queen memory foam bed where the rear bath was in my 19' 1962 Globetrotter. (much smaller than your 31') I Put in a wet bath on the street side wall with a composting toilet, so eliminated the whole black tank problem. Love this solution for us. I have lots of under bed storage, as well, but, only 1 small outside access door, so I'm not able to put anything as large as a folding chair in there. But, I agree with The Greatleys, that if your total weight, including your mattress and bed-framing, is less than black tank + toilet bath fixtures, from original floorplan, your idea would work.

[phlegm]

I wouldn't dream of adding any thickness to the frame, but my Sovereign already has a second section of frame that was used to house/protect the original black tank. I'd simply use that same dead air space. And I'd keep the dropout box section small enough that it would come out the rear hatch if I ever wanted to remove it.



I've already planned that I want to add an axle lift kit and larger diameter 16" tires to help with clearance.

adobehome, do you have a built thread anywhere?
I was looking up bed frame sizes last week and the site I looked at said a Queen was 60x80 (inches) and then later I was looking at newer airstream floor plan layouts and saw that their 'Queen' beds are 60x74. The mattress website I was looking at had a "Full" listed as 54x74.

As of yesterday, mine is a large empty cavern (blank canvas).



And with exception of adding a bed and some simple storage/seating it will likely remain this way until next season. So I have plenty of time to ponder storage and plumbing ideas.

[wildhorses]

We bought a mattress from IKEA and it was 80x60 - that is what we planned to use.

[rmatkovich]

Originally Posted by phlegm

I'm in the process of teardown/remodel on my

1971 Sovereign 31ft -- Airforums.com


And I currently have the stock interior removed as well as the rear most section of floor.

Part of my rebuild involves remodeling the AS to better fit our needs, and one of those things on the list is a big bed for the adults. I plan on making it a rear bedroom layout with a queen sized bed where the original rear bath was. That means I'll be moving the black tank somewhere else.

I was already thinking about leaving the space under the bed hollow with storage around the edges so I could use the original rear access hatch as a place to store larger items under the bed.



But this morning as I pulled the black tank it dawned on me.

Has anybody ever converted the space that was occupied by the stock black tank into extra deep storage?

I was thinking that when I put the new flooring back in, I'd cut a large square hole and then make a metal (steel or aluminum) drop in that was suspended by the 3/4" plywood and was about 6-7" deep (with a drain) and that would add a little more storage for things like folding chairs or an outside heat torch/lamp. Nothing heavy, just bulky.

If I don't use it, I'll just end up with a large empty cavern below the floor, because I won't be modifying the frame to remove the drop that was back there for the original black tank.

thoughts?
warnings?

have I gone too far?

U wont have any insulation under the floor if U build a bin under the floor. Also I had a queen bed in my last AS and when I got another one I got twins. Much better room for dressing and also better storage for clothing under the beds and has trunk doors on both sides of the trailer for storage plus a nice big trunk in the rear of the trailer.