Folding up the benches is awkward and difficult. Gas springs offer a solution. The seats of the small benches are made of bare 9mm birch plywood; one of them was already crooked after purchase. And the Eriba "hinges" are a real shame. So, we reinforced the benches, provided them with ventilation holes, painted them, and installed proper hinges. Gas springs complete the job.
1). Front seating area. First, those plastic "hinges." These are the brown plastic flaps in the photo. So Eriba supplies a caravan costing almost 40 grand and uses these "hinges"?
In the same photo are the replacement stainless steel hinges we paid €2.45 for in China. Note: for ten pieces. So we're replacing the five inferior Eriba flaps with six stainless steel hinges, which also have the added benefit of allowing for more screws.
A quick test (photo left) shows that each bench in the small seating area requires two gas springs of approximately 60N.
We reinforce the seats underneath with wooden beams and make a few holes for ventilation.
Photo right: the seats are painted with four layers of paint. You could also replace them by thicker wood.
Result. We replaced Eriba's plastic flaps with the stainless steel hinges, reinforced and painted the seats, and added gas springs so the seats, including the cushions, remain open.
The downside of gas springs is that they can bounce open while moving. Therefore, we added magnetic closures. The black circles under the seat are soft pads to cushion the slamming motion.
2) Bed benches
After the small seating area in the front, it's time for the bed benches. We bought an "extra comfortable bed with a slatted base and spring mattresses". (Extra charge 675 euro.) It's clear that this construction isn't standard, but was added as an option afterward. The hinges are attached to a unstable, twisted plywood strip. Secondly, the bed bases, which also have to support heavy mattresses, are "screwed" in place with thin, 12mm-long screws. Who comes up with this?
We secure everything with extra angle brackets. Furthermore, an aluminum L-profile has been screwed onto the top along the entire length (photo left) to make it more rigid. Once the construction is rigid, you can start thinking about gas springs. See the photos below. Motto: if there's an option for angle brackets, install them!
Below is a photo showing the various reinforcements. The extra strip running the entire length of the rear "beam" where the hinges are attached is not visible; it's on the top. This strip prevents twisting.
Commentes and questions:
Lieke&Leo: How strong are the gas springs you used? Answer: The gas springs under the small front benches are two times 60N. The gas springs under the bed benches (the ones with slatted bases) are two times 200N. But again: first reinforce the entire structure of all the benches before installing gas springs.
AndyCappy: Those "hinges" from Eriba are a disgrace. "Made in Germany" used to be a quality mark? Answer: Those were the days.
Leonore: Why is there also an aluminum (?) strip at a 45-degree angle in the last photo? Answer: That strip goes exactly to the hinge of the bed base on the right side. (It's not clearly visible in the photo.) It is indeed just aluminum and prevents the back (where a plastic block is mounted) from coming loose from the caravan wall. Because if you don't do this, the entire bed base will move forward on its own.
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