Recent A-frame mods

[rawlus]

Originally Posted by rawlus

Hide-A-Power Three Outlet Station

thanks for the response to the previous posts - i've done these over the course of time but hadn't taken the time to document them. thought it would be useful now since this A-Frame forum is generating a lot of activity from newcomers.

This is a planned mod, I have not done it yet but will do so before summer is out.

The Problem: on the A122, the two 120V AC outlets on the bed side are right where the mattress also lays, and where it opens up to access storage underneath. while it is serviceable for the heated mattress plus, electric blanket, coffee maker by the sink, etc is is less than ideal and ready for improvement. the outlet by the small window, which is where our heads lay, is similarly challenged.

The Solution: I thought about the power outlet strips used commonly for home office desks - they are sort of a vertical power strip that has a grommet for use in a typical "cord hole" in these desks and the power strip recesses to be just a little handle when not in use. My plan is to put one of these behind the sink to use with both countertop and bed-related plug uses. when not in use i can recess it into the cabinet underneath, but when in-use, it provides much better access to outlets.

The Plan: My plan is to drill the 3" hole into the countertop in the appropriate location, then splice into the AC box that is already on the bed side of that cabinet and wire this power strip in. Should be a simple fix with only a short piece of romex needed. (alternately, i could create a hidden A/C outlet box inside the cabinet using the same method and just plug this power strip in, thus avoiding having to modify the power strip at all)

You'll see a much more expensive version of this modification in high-end kitchens, used for countertop appliances that get stored away in some appliance garage cabinet. or sometimes near a cooktop to power a handheld blender or other cooking related appliance.

anyway - i'll post a pic of the item for now, and if you want to tackle the job before i get to it.. be my guest.

Note - there is also a version with integrated USB ports - while useful for a desktop, i like my mod for USB ports in the cabinet next to the doorway better. YMMV.

Hide-a-Power 3 Outlet Station on Amazon

I got this the other day so going to try and install and do a writeup before the season is over.

[skisteveski]

Good post with a lot of good ideas (we've just been Acamper camping since June) and have cursed the table. Could you give dimensions of what you cut each piece to and where you purchased the pedestal? Also the distance from the wall that you placed the center of the pedestal would be really helpful.
Many thanks again.
Steve

[rawlus]

The tabletop is exact dimension of the existing table, we just then cut it where we felt the table part was big enough for the two of us, I can get exact measurements this weekend.

The pedestal can be picked up any any rv store, amazon.com, pplmotorhomes.com, etc it's inexpensive. We attached through the floor with stainless bolts and large fender washers on the underside of the floor for extra support and to prevent pull-through.

Positioning on the floor, I marked center with blue tape and then setup the table and we again moved it back and forth until it was where we felt it belonged (I'm 6'5" so where I wanted it may not jive with all others) marked the holes for the baseplate on the blue tape, drilled and bolted. Very easy.

[rawlus]

Originally Posted by rawlus

I got this the other day so going to try and install and do a writeup before the season is over.

Forgot my 3" hole saw, but after a dry fit, there is plenty of room around the sink drain pipes for this, on the countertop it will end up between the sink and the wall. Excited to do this.

[Bojo]

Originally Posted by rawlus

I wont take credit for all of these ideas - many are inspired by the work of others.... 12VDC and 12v USB Marine-grade plugs these are marine grade plugs for a cigarette lighter type and a dual USB type - they have a flexible cover to protect against weather - manuf is Blue Sea Systems - Innovative electrical systems — Built to last and i purchased them from Amazon. I removed the microwave from the cabinet and was then able to access the cabinet panel from both sides. used a step drill to drill the required holes - i wanted to locate above the thermostat so that i could use "shorty" USB cords to charge my various devices by laying them on the countertop above and not have loads of extra cord dangling. I used a small 4-slot fusebox like you'd see for automotive use, mounting that on the underside of the cabinet. I jumpered into 12V near the radio for power source and fused each of the two plugs separately. The 12V Cig Lighter Plug is handy for both my battery meter as well as a 12VDC Endless Breeze Fan when I don't have hookups. the two USB slots have a green LED indicator light to show proper function and will charge Ipads and any other USB accessories.

Is there any way to see pictures from inside the cabinet?? I really want to do this but have no experience with wiring.

[rawlus]

Camper is tucked away for the winter but I can take pictures in the spring, it's not much a big deal to wire up... There is existing hot and ground wires for the radio in that location, I just tapped into those. A small voltmeter or even current detector will help you identify the hot wire and then ground is usually the other one in the pair.

[dts3204]

Were you able to replace the micro wave? If not did you turn that area into storage?

[rawlus]

Removed microwave to do the wiring yes, it's a 4 screw job to do so, but we kept the microwave in use afterwards, we don't need the extra storage of a drawer in its place... We actually don't have any storage issues and have room to spare with what we have... And we use the micro from time to time, and even store some items inside the micro when not in use.

[rawlus]

Finally got around to putting in the hide a power outlets by the sink.

Remove faceplate from existing outlet by the mattress, fed that outlet back into the undersink cabinet. Then I used a 3" hole saw to easily drill down through the countertop (after carefully checking around the sink drain pipes to make sure there would be room for the outlet in the closed/down position. After that drop the outlet into the hole from the top, put the threaded locking ring on from the bottom and plug the thing into the outlet I removed from near the mattress. Now if I need an outlet I can lift the device and have there outlets easily accessible which do not interfere with the mattress and bedding.






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[Pooneil]

Nice. Got photo, did happen.

[mickrock]

I found that there is enough clearance to plug in a 90 degree plug extension cord into the 2 receptacles next to each end of the bed.

These are available online and in some hardware stores -

Rotating 90 Degree Flat Plug Power Extension Cord Power Cord Adapter

A power strip can then be plugged into the adapter.

[mickrock]

I borrowed this idea from another post.

The light string is from ebay, and only $7.

New Cool White 5M 300Leds Non-Waterproof SMD 3528 Flexible Led Strip Lights



The only glitch is that a power supply, also sold by the same vendor for 12v dc, is needed if you intend to use 115v ac to 12v dc power for the led lights. The light string extends a few inches below the bottom of each "A", and has a super dynamic look.

A strong adhesive is on the back of the light string. The picture does not really show it as good as it actually looks, and my efforts to edit it did not come out well.

[rawlus]

You can also get a nice little dimmer switch for it so you can adjust the intensity to your liking. I think the inline dimmer was only a few dollars.


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[Kanikamom]

Great idea!