4 bunk bed motor homes

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KidsOnTour

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I have 4 kids and have spent months researching motor home layouts online. I’ve finally decided that a fixed bed for everyone is what we need but it appears that the only motorhome that meets this requirement is the Rimor Katamarano 50 having two bunk beds at the back. This is obviously fairly specialist and the only place in the UK that I can see that has them is MandCltd.com in Hull. They don’t seem to answer their phone or messages - has anyone had any experience with them?

Does anyone know of any other motor home with 2 sets of bunk beds - i.e. 4 bunk beds?

This got me thinking, how difficult would it be to retrofit bunks? If I found a motor home with a rear lounge long enough - would it be possible to fit 2 sets of bunks or would the structure of a Motorhome not support this? Not sure if it’s a stupid idea and I should just give in on it.

Any suggestions on where to look next on my quest gratefully received.

Ta
 
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gus-lopez said:
I thought I saw that yesterday 10k cheaper ? Or is there another ?
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To be honest I never looked at the price but you are right. It looks like GavLad has one for sale at £45K

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How about this for left field ?

take a look at the Rollerteam 690 or any of its comparisons that have a full garage.

Turn the garage into bunk beds. Its all accesible into the main part of the motrohome and will cost next to nothing.

so that would be 2 of them topping tailing in a luton but 2 in bunks. and 4,100 kgs to play with if you uprate (which you have to)

No space to carry anything though
 
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Lenny HB said:
Difficult to find good info on Rimor's, virtually no info on the manufacturer's site, O&A has the most I could find.
The maximum weight of a Motorhome is governed by the chassis it is built on 3500kg vans are built on a light chassis which often can be upgraded to 3850kg, over 3850kg they are on what is called a Maxi chassis which can be upgraded to 4500 to 5000kg.

On the Katamarano 50 they offer an upgrade to 3750 I expect just a paper exercise, it is probably possible to upgrade to 3850kg but may need wider tyres and air assist rear suspension, tyres would cost £400- £500, air suspension if a standard Renault chassis £600-£700 if an Al-Ko chassis £1500- £2000.

How payload is defined is a minefield, you might want to take some headache pills before reading:-:)

The max/gross weight is now called MAM - Maxium Allowable Mass (this is the 3500kg/3750kg).
The empty weight that defines the payload is not so simple, it is MIRO - Mass in Running Order. This is the base weight but it includes allowances which vary between manufacturers, German manufacturers allow for a driver at 75kg, 20Lt of water (20kg), 90% fuel (if its a 90 Lt tank 67kg) and 1 aluminium 11kg gas cylinder (17kg). Not all manufacturers allow for fuel and water you need to check.
Also there is a 5% tolerance on the MIRO most vans are at least 100kg over the stated weight and you need to add any factory fitted + dealer & self fitted extras.

So on your Rimor 635kg payload if they use the same allowances I've listed you would need to reduce the payload say 100kg for overweight tolerance, awning 40kg manufacturers accessories say 100kg, TV & other bits and pieces say 50kg, bike rack 15kg, spare wheel 30kg, 2nd battery 25kg now we are down to 290kg.
Now you have passengers 4 kids & yourself say 170-200kg, and normal gas cylinders 30kg, if you just took the kids bikes probably 50kg, clothing for 6, pots & pans, crockery, food probably 75kg, chairs & table 25kg.
Now we are already 60-90 kg overweight, without all the other bits us Motorhomers carry and with hardly any water.

Whith the 3750kg upgrade it would give a payload of 885kg, just about doable but in a couple of years as the kids get bigger may be unworkable.
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Wow Lenny. Thanks. I missed this last night. Very informative! It’s sounding more like I should forget about the Rimors and find something with a large payload that I can convert to suit..

Thanks for taking to the time to explain all of that.

So I have to worry about front and rear payloads too? Sure I’ve heard people make reference to that..
 
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KidsOnTour said:
Wow Lenny. Thanks. I missed this last night. Very informative! It’s sounding more like I should forget about the Rimors and find something with a large payload that I can convert to suit..

Thanks for taking to the time to explain all of that.

So I have to worry about front and rear payloads too? Sure I’ve heard people make reference to that..
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On most vans the front is OK (not all ) but very easy to overload the rear axle on vans with light chassis.
Light chassis normally have a rear axle loading of 2000kg and with wider tyres and air suspension can often be upgraded to 2240kg.
Heavy/Maxi chassis normally have a rear axle loading of 2400 or 2500kg for vans with a single rear axle. Van with twin rear axles have a much higher capacity but you are getting into big van territory.
Long rear overhangs cause problems with rear axle loading as the further from the axle you place a load the more effect it has on the axle loading.

Even if you upgrade a light chassis you may not achieve the desired result. i.e. our last van we bought at 3500kg and it had 580kg of payload but with our normal load (we like to run with full tanks as we don't use sites much) we were over weight. We upgraded to 3850kg but due to rear axle loading we only gained 150kg and was nothing we could move forward to take the load of the rear.
Solved the problem, we changed vans to a 4500kg van, with all the extras fitted (200kg) and we still have a1200kg payload.

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Something also worth thinking about is how you will all get on when it’s pouring with rain outside - I.e you might find enough beds, but what’s the daytime configuration like? It might be OK for one night but what about 2 weeks?

Many people on here have more berths than they normally use, so that they can accommodate grandchildren from time to time: however, I guess you will be using it mostly as a 6 - up unit, which does bring additional considerations. I’d imagine you’d have a fair bit of stuff with you to make life enjoyable for the kids such as bikes - will these fit in as well as all the occupants, are you going to be happy leaving them outside when you get to site. And so on.

I know you have mentioned wanting a Motorhome, but it might be worth revisiting whether or not a caravan would be more suited. As others have said, you probably run a big car anyway to get the family in, so I would think you’ll get a good choice of sizeable caravans that your car could tow...

Not trying to put you off, just trying to bring another angle..
 
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The Rimor van is also quite a new model (introduced within the last five years?)
I would imagine that most sold are still with the original owners, so extremely difficult to find a used one (not the kind of model you'd readily change).

Perhaps a custom conversion on a xlwb van might be the solution.
Quirky Campers have a self/custom build festival coming up, possibly worth a visit? https://www.quirkycampers.co.uk/campervan-festival/

One of the few vans I'd consider would be a Laika Kreos 3002 (probably mentioned by me several times before:whistle:)
On the Iveco/Alko chassis, they're over engineered and certainly up to the task.
Also popular with large Italian families, which says a lot about their practicality/durability...
https://www.practicalmotorhome.com/reviews/motorhome/30271-laika-kreos-3002
This review states five travelling seats, later models have 4 x 3point belts, 3 x lap belts.
Hope you find something suitable!
 
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kaasbroodje said:
The Rimor van is also quite a new model (introduced within the last five years?)
I would imagine that most sold are still with the original owners, so extremely difficult to find a used one (not the kind of model you'd readily change).

Perhaps a custom conversion on a xlwb van might be the solution.
Quirky Campers have a self/custom build festival coming up, possibly worth a visit? https://www.quirkycampers.co.uk/campervan-festival/

One of the few vans I'd consider would be a Laika Kreos 3002 (probably mentioned by me several times before:whistle:)
On the Iveco/Alko chassis, they're over engineered and certainly up to the task.
Also popular with large Italian families, which says a lot about their practicality/durability...
https://www.practicalmotorhome.com/reviews/motorhome/30271-laika-kreos-3002
This review states five travelling seats, later models have 4 x 3point belts, 3 x lap belts.
Hope you find something suitable!
Click to expand...

Thanks kaas.. looks a lovely van but only 2 bunk beds and nowhere to squeeze any more in ..
 
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I’m now looking at rear lounges that I could possibly convert into 4 bunk beds lol. That’s opened up a whole world of vans to look at..

I’ve also realised that the katamarano 50 has an older model called the koala 50. So there’s a hope of a second hand one if I can sort out the weight issue.. not that I’ve found one yet.
 
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Hi everyone. Just in case anyone is interested and I hate reading a post without a conclusion. Also to thank you all for your help...

I’ve just bought a Burstner 747 :). It’s a beast of a machine but fits the 6 of us in with plenty of storage and payload.

Sure I’ll be on here loads now for help and tips.

So excited to pick it up!!

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Hi KidsOnTour, great thread, I'd joined the forum to ask the exact same question. I'd found the Rimor Katarama 50 and thought that was ideal for my family with 4 kids but reading this I realise the weight is going to be an issue. How are you getting on with the Burstner 747? Did you go second hand? It doesn't appear to have the bunks I was originally drawn to on the Rimor, have you retro fitted? Mine get on well but like you I thought they might benefit from their own space.
 
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Hi yes we had exactly the same dilemma.

The 747 is working out great so far. We’ve put 3 kids in the overhead for now sleeping lengthways and the little one is in with us in the double at the back. There is so much room though that we will definitely be able to change it up. We could fit triple bunks in the garage

Means we have the table and settee permanently to use and don’t have to make a bed up.

We’ve actually bough a cab mattress which van drivers use and the eldest has made the cab his own little bedroom this week ( the 747 has doors from the cab to the habitation) so there are only two kids in the overhead.

Loads of payload and storage space which is essential with 4 kids. It is a long heavy van though so you’re not going To be able to nip into Normal car parks with it.. we just plan ahead :)
 
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NicholasJB, We have 3 kids in a Mclouis Tandy 640 - 2 fixed rear single bunks plus convert a small dinette into an extra bed. We could instead convert a large dinette into a double if we wanted. Don’t forget though to allow for somewhere for you to sit once all the kids are in bed!

Watch bunk sizes, some are stupidly small and only suitable for young kids. We found that vans with bunks going across the van were Ok, but vans with them running front to back in a rear corner were often very small indeed - with my eldest daughter, now aged 14, already at 5’7” just 4 years after we bought the van, one of those vans would not have lasted us very long!

If you wanted fixed beds for 4 kids and them sharing was an option, have a look at a Mclouis Tandy 620 if it’s an older van that you’re after - it has 2 double rear bunks, plus a big over cab double and a dinette that can be converted. Bit short on seating for eating though, for 6, but it has 6 travel seats. They seem to come up more often than the 2x single bunk 640 version that we have. Bunks are the full width of the van, they’re huge, easily enough for an adult let alone kids. Van is Rated at 3500kg as standard (which is laughable) but easy to replate to 3850kg, or 4000kg with rear air assist fitted, which we’ve done.
 
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Did you ever find a suitable motor home for this?

I have almost the same desire/requirements, i.e. fixed bunks somewhere for at least 3 kids that we can curtain off on an evening leaving us a table in the middle and a double bed over the cab. At least 5 belted seats to all travel together. Kids sharing beds is not an option, they would fight, nor do we want to turn the table into a bed and have nowhere to sit if raining and the kids are in bed, or the pain of putting up and down every day.

The Rimor Katamarano 50 does still seem to be the only option, but I can't find an automatic one. I need auto, or else I seem to go through clutches like butter 😬😂. I also would be interested to know if bunks can just be added after? Amazed there are not more options – surely there are many people with 3+ kids that like camping?!

...the whole weight thing in this thread has also been a revelation to me. I assumed the only thing that mattered was the number of seatbelts, then you just load up and go. I would have just bought one assuming that if I hadn't read this. How do you even know how much everything weighs once loaded?! It sounds like guesswork.
 
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JamesG said:
Did you ever find a suitable motor home for this?

I have almost the same desire/requirements, i.e. fixed bunks somewhere for at least 3 kids that we can curtain off on an evening leaving us a table in the middle and a double bed over the cab. At least 5 belted seats to all travel together. Kids sharing beds is not an option, they would fight, nor do we want to turn the table into a bed and have nowhere to sit if raining and the kids are in bed, or the pain of putting up and down every day.

The Rimor Katamarano 50 does still seem to be the only option, but I can't find an automatic one. I need auto, or else I seem to go through clutches like butter 😬😂. I also would be interested to know if bunks can just be added after? Amazed there are not more options – surely there are many people with 3+ kids that like camping?!

...the whole weight thing in this thread has also been a revelation to me. I assumed the only thing that mattered was the number of seatbelts, then you just load up and go. I would have just bought one assuming that if I hadn't read this. How do you even know how much everything weighs once loaded?! It sounds like guesswork.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately the original poster hasn't been on since June 2019 so you may not get an answer🙁

Regarding weight the only sure way to do it is to take the van to a weigh bridge with a known amount of fuel/water and gas on board,you will then know the payload remaining,you can then start deducting weight from this figure,adults,children,bedding etc. You'll be surprised how quickly a payload can disappear!

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JamesG said:
the whole weight thing in this thread has also been a revelation to me. I assumed the only thing that mattered was the number of seatbelts, then you just load up and go. I would have just bought one assuming that if I hadn't read this. How do you even know how much everything weighs once loaded?! It sounds like guesswork.
Click to expand...
I find it highly unlikely that you can get six people and all their gear in a 3.5 tonne moho I really do. I weighed ours and immediately had it uprated to 4.250 as it was too close for comfort with just the two of us.
 
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I had a chausson flash05 2 bunks at the back over cab double..dining table double and a travel single..
7 travel seats 2 backward facing but not sure if they were retro fitted.
 
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