Gordon designs his dream camper floor plan, a hard side, non-slide with a sofa, dry bath, and booth-style dinette. Check it out, and enter your dream camper floor plan.
To kick off the Truck Camper Floor Plan Design Contest, I have designed what I think many truck camper enthusiasts would be eager to see if it existed; a hard side, long bed, non-slide truck camper with a permanent rear sofa, two-top booth-style dinette, and a dry bath. Here’s my dream floor plan design:
Above: A hard side, non-slide, dry bath camper for long bed trucks – click to enlarge
It’s no secret that I’m a non-slide truck camper kind of guy. That said, I really, really, really like the rear sofa in double and triple-slide truck camper designs. I’m not willing to swap-out the full-booth dinette in our camper for a sofa, but I’ve strongly considered it. In my dream of dreams, I’d have a booth-style dinette, and a sofa, in a non-slide.
The most popular double and triple-slide floor plans started with the Okanagan 117-DBL, the original sofa-slide. To this day, most multi-slides are a variant of this design; some with two slides, some pushing out the kitchen for three, but nearly always a rear sofa slide.
So what would happen if we took the 117-DBL floor plan and modified it into a non-slide? Obviously we would have to make two specific adjustments; a narrower sofa to allow entry into the camper, and a shallower dinette to allow comfortable walk-through space to the cabover. Everything else can stay the same.
If the resulting floor plan worked, we would have the first non-slide truck camper with a rear sofa, booth-style dinette, and a dry bath. Here’s the best part; the manufacturer and dealers could guarantee no slide-out problems, ever! The bathroom would be 100% fully accessible all the time. It would also weigh less, and probably offer a more forward center of gravity due to the rear slide being removed.
Yes, this design has less floor space than double and triple-slide designs. Yes, the sofa and dinette are narrower (sofa) and shallower (dinette) than they would be if it were on a slide. But no potential slide issues, no slide weight, and no slide inconveniences – like bathroom access – make this floor plan a winner, at least in my book.
With the absence of slides, the overhead storage (above the sofa, dinette, and kitchen) would be worlds better than double and triple-slide models. There would also be storage under the dinette seats and, perhaps, under the sofa as well.
I would also consider building this floor plan above the rails. That would enlarge the bathroom considerably, open the floor space a few inches, and get rid of the dreaded sub-wings for easier loading.
Look closely and you’ll notice that the storage is identical on both sides of the cabover to maintain fairness and marital harmony. Both sides get a wardrobe, large hamper, nightstand (with 110-volt and 12-volt outlets of course), and overhead storage above two oversized insulated crank-out windows with screens and blackout shades.
Notice the dinette is for two, but the table quite long – certainly long enough for two opposing laptops sitting Battleship-style while working on a popular digital magazine. Floor space is limited compared to multi-slides, but is enough for two adults to pass, or one adult and one oversized but extremely lovable cat.
The kitchen is a bit short on counter space, but that’s what happens when you want a dry bath and a side entry in a non-slide. Changing to a wet bath and moving the entry door to the rear passenger side would increase the countertop size. I prefer the trade-offs shown.
This is certainly not the truck camper floor plan for everyone. That said, I think there’s a growing number of truck camper owners who are ready to either step back to the simplicity of a non-slide, or want a sofa but not the weight and complexity of a slide-out model. Count us in the second camp.
