I did the mod of raising the bed in our Expanda. I copied this mod from postings by others, in particular
@Lara
http://www.expandasdownunder.com/threads/laras-16-49-1-ob.2667/page-6
I did the mod to the bed bases first. This required raising the base above the storage to be level with the base on the fold out part. I used 90 x 18mm Pine DAR for the frame and as I am not a carpenter I had to find a way to ensemble the frame inside the van. I bought some lengths of metal from Bunnings and cut into suitable lengths to use as brackets.
For the rear bed I had to trim about 10mm of the frame (80mm) but the front I didn’t. After putting the front frame in I thought that maybe I should have trimmed 5mm off. As no one actually slept on the mattresses before we sold the van it I cannot say if it level. The existing laminated lid and base plate for the storage are secured with 5 screws into the metal frame. The rear lids and rear plate were able to be used as is as the bed is vertical (other than a small cut for some wires on the right side) while I had to trim the front plate as the bed slopes inwards. I removed the plastic edging, trimmed the wood and then put the edging back on.
I bought the mattresses thru Makin Matressess which has stores in Canberra, Brisbane North and South and the Gold Coast (and others). The sizes are slightly different for the front and rear beds. Front is 1800 x 700 and the rear is 1800 and 750. If I remember correctly it is 1800 which is just right to fit between the metal supports on the outside of the beds. These dimensions mean they are a tight fit. The two pieces are then velroed together.
Others who have done this mod have said that their new mattresses are 20cm thick. When we were ordering ours the ones we selected were about this thickness (hard to measure) and at the last minute we said yes to pillow tops on both sides. Once we got them ( two days before we went on a 4 week trip) we found that they were about 21cm thick and made it very difficult to fold the beds. As it was just the two of us travelling we left the front mattresses at home and traveled with one of the rear in each of the front and rear. Meant making the bed up each stop.
When we got back to Canberra I rang Makin Mattresses and asked if they could remove one of the pillow top, which they did for a very small amount considering they picked them up, altered them (4 mattresses) and then delivered them back. The altered ones were about 19cm thick.
All up the mattresses cost about $1000, for the originals and alterations. Best value spent and result in a very comfortable bed.
The other big plus for doing this mod is the gain in storage space.
In the photos below you can see the Pine DAR (white). I never got round to painting or adding veneer to them.
Best mod I made to the Expanda!!
