Double bed in 17B

[Beaver-ESC]

Hello escapees!
We are looking at the 17B as a possible purchase and wondering about the double bed that is made from the dinette. For us, that bed would be more or less our permanent bed, and the smaller dinette would be the dinette. Have you found the bed to be sturdy, comfortable and adequate for the "mature" couple? Your informed responses are much appreciated.

 

[Linda-ESC]

Have you found the bed to be sturdy, comfortable and adequate for the "mature" couple?

Beaver, The answer to your questions would be 'yes,' but if you are planning on that dinette being a permanent bed, you might want to consider having it constructed that way (as a bed rather than a dinette) and you could then use a regular type mattress. I believe that some folks have done this and it seems like a great option. You can talk with Reace about it if you decide to order an Escape. We did sometimes use extra foam pads on top of the dinette cushions when making up the bed; however, that would be a personal preference, not an absolute. The structure of the dinette, as well as the entire trailer, is quite sturdy. Good luck!

 

[gbaglo]

We leave ours as a bed and we've put another 2 1/2" foam on top of the seat cushions. We didn't add the foam for comfort, but to make it easier to make the bed. Otherwise, the individual cushions make it a struggle to make the bed.

baglo

 

[JeffZ]

We leave ours as a bed and we've put another 2 1/2" foam on top of the seat cushions. We didn't add the foam for comfort, but to make it easier to make the bed. Otherwise, the individual cushions make it a struggle to make the bed.

baglo

That's exactly what we did as well..

 

[Beaver-ESC]

Thank you for your guidance! As Pete_Linda said, as I am at the front end of the process and can order a permanent bed, that seems to make sense. I misunderstood the skematic on the website, not realizing that the bed could be ordered instead of the dinette that can be made into a bed. ;D

 

[bvansnell]

Beaver:

You might want to consider the width of the bed also. Another option would be to sleep one person on the double bed and the other on the single bed.

The double bed (rear bed) on a 17 foot Escape is 49" wide, the single bed (front) is 30" wide. A standard full size bed is 54" wide and a standard queen size bed is 60" wide, so the double bed on the 17 foot might be tight for some people if they are used to a larger bed.

On our 13 foot Escape, the double bed is 48" wide, single bed is 26" wide. We use both beds for a total width of 74". This gives us more comfort than trying to squeeze into 48", much fun as that might be.

Brian

 

[escape artist]

Hi: Beaver... I think I recall JerryCpei having said they had their 17'er built with a permanent bed in the rear...leaving the smaller front bed/dinette for eating at. You could send him a personal message via the forum to answer as to the option $$$'s and size etc. Welcome to the forum also!!! Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

 

[ronstew]

We usually leave the aft dinette in bed configuration, but have been known to set up the dinette for dinner guests.

Memory foam topper is a must. Ours is 3". 2" would be too thin, but I have not tried 2.5".

I am overweight, but not obese. The bed is tight, and after a week or two you might be thinking it is too tight for two people. Especially if you have a couple of dogs who jump up as soon as you fall asleep. :

 

[PEI peapod]

Hi Beaver: We had the rear dinette modefied to make a permanent bed and Escape provided the mattress rather than cushions. The modification meant leaving the dinette (table), but having it fixed in place to form the base for the bed. Escape gave us the table hardware so in the future if we or a new owner wishes thay can easily convert back to 4-person dinette. We would have to purchase a new set of cushions. BTW I'm 5'8" 215 lbs. My wife is petite. We find the 49" bed quite comfortable. Our cairn terrier often sleeps at our feet.
17B is a very practical trailer.....from towability and use of space.

 

[gbaglo]

Doing it again, I would opt for a mattress or single cushion. In more than two years, we have never set the rear bed up as a table. We usually cook and eat outside.
However, when the weather is inclement and we're dining with friends, we have found ourselves in the front dinette of my buddy's 19'.

baglo

 

[ashleymeadow]

Tammy had a one piece mattress made for us by the people who do their cushions. It a 7 inches deep with the 4 inches of firm and 3 inches of soft foam. The mattress is fused together and fits perfectly in its space. We made custom sheets, and it is a struggle to make the bed, but everything stays in place. It is very comfortable, albeit a little narrow.

 

[gbaglo]

Easy way to deal with making the bed is to zip together two large sleeping bags and forget the sheets and all. Just throw on top of the cushions.
But, that wouldn't do, would it?

I get away with it when camping on my own.

baglo

 

[PEI peapod]

Yes, we do the sleeping bags thing too. It works great on the custom made mattress. We cover the mattress with a mattress protector first and always carry a quilt if we need it for late fall camping.

 

[Jim Bennett]

We would need at least 3 sleeping bags zipped together for our bed.

 

[Beaver-ESC]

Thanks to everyone for all of your well informed guidance! There are so many cool options with the Escapes! We are going to Waterloo, Ont to look at a 19' tomorrow. The Casita catalogue shows pretty good pricing, as they have a sale on, but we don't like the "rabbit fur" on the inside, import would be an issue, and we prefer to buy Canadian. We may just bite the bullet and spend the extra bucks to get an Escape. It's a really important purchase for us, as I retire next May and we love camping, traveling, and being outside. Thanks to you all for contributing to this very informative forum!!

 

[JeffZ]

FYI - The sale is Always on..they had it for years. But, the Casitas have a strong following. We looked at them and decided on the Escape. We liked the headliner on the Escape vs the carpet on the walls and the idea of customization, which just is unheard of these days.. Tammy & Reace really made the process easy and spent a ton of time with us as we were just "newbies" and knew absolutely nothing. Alas, we're still know absolutely nothing, but what the heck it's been fun understanding nothing.

 

[gharms]

So you are going to visit Bob and Irene in Waterloo, to look at Winter! Watch out, Winter is gorgeous!! Please say hello from me as one of the cheeseheads who joined the Escape Debutante Ball in May 2010! ;D

Gerda

 

[Beaver-ESC]

Will do, Gerda! ;D

 

[PEI peapod]

Don't forget the revits that pertrude through the shell of the Casita. Almost as bad as the Scamp.......all potential leaks.......I owned a scamp and they do actually leak.

 

[hippo]

Beaver,
You will be happier purchasing an Escape made in Canada. They will add almost anything you want in the trailer, Escape factory are very easy to deal with. I would suggest you order a tongue box for the trailer, it is a place to store many things.
We just picked up our 19ft last week.