Interior step cover panel June 14, 2021, 05:52:18 pm I’d like to build a step cover panel on a hinge that can be pulled down from the right side of the entry door on my RB and cover the step gap in front of the door to make a little extra floor space when inside and keep my dog (and spouse) from accidentally falling into that gap. The challenge is to fit it under the entry handle on the right and miss the fire extinguisher on the left. I think it will have to fold in half, on a hinge, to store on the right side wall. Has anyone already done this and how did you do it?
Re: Interior step cover panel Reply #1 – June 14, 2021, 06:15:52 pm Quote from: SoCal-Gal - June 14, 2021, 05:52:18 pmI’d like to build a step cover panel on a hinge that can be pulled down from the right side of the entry door on my RB and cover the step gap in front of the door to make a little extra floor space when inside and keep my dog (and spouse) from accidentally falling into that gap. The challenge is to fit it under the entry handle on the right and miss the fire extinguisher on the left. I think it will have to fold in half, on a hinge, to store on the right side wall. Has anyone already done this and how did you do it?Never seen it done on a LD before. My concern is it would inhibit egress during an emergency.Larry 1 Likes
Re: Interior step cover panel Reply #2 – June 15, 2021, 03:54:47 am I've had my step panel since 2000. It covers the step area. I store shoes under the panel at night. I have the large bathroom door that is hinged aft of the bathroom (TK). So the panel allows you a place to stand when opening the bathroom door. The panel stores upright beside the step on the wall of the vanity. The bottom is Wilsonart (Nepal Teak) that matches my LD interior. The top is a piece of carpet, but has since changed to a piece of indoor/outdoor carpet. I made it with a welded steel frame, and it will hold up at least 400 pounds. I go in and out routinely with it in place. If the shoes are on my feet, and not in the way, it is much quicker. The edge of the door frame keeps it in place. The pull strap (barely visible in picture) allows easy access to contents stowed in the well, without opening the door. It is stable and doesn't try to tip out. RonB 13 Likes
Re: Interior step cover panel Reply #3 – June 15, 2021, 03:30:59 pm RonB, very nice!! Did you use a piano hinge on the bottom? I can’t tell from the pictures. This is what I’m looking to do but my LD is a different layout and I probably have to make it a fold out platform to accommodate the handle on the right side wall. I think a metal frame is the way to go and I’m going to have to cut out the corner where it has to pass over the fire extinguisher. I need to keep the handle on the right side because my spouses needs that. Thanks for sharing this, you have inspired me!See pictures above.
Re: Interior step cover panel Reply #4 – June 15, 2021, 05:18:31 pm Hi Socalgal; No hinge, it isn't attached. It sits in the hole and due to it's construction is fairly heavy. It has a lip on three sides and is smooth across the door way. It is wider than the door and the door frame holds it in place. You have enough wall inboard from the extinguisher to hold it when stored. I need to measure it to see if it would fit in a '91 step well. I didn't like the handle that came on the wall, so like newer LD's I got a better assist handle. A piece of that Wilsonart to cover the old handle's holes. In that picture you can see that the step depresses the carpet where it sits. (it can be fluffed back up.) To improve my safety factor, I got an assist handle from the factory, and mounted it. It covers the old holes pretty well. (A little Bondo, hand painted, just a little showing under the black plastic base). RonB 2 Likes
Re: Interior step cover panel Reply #5 – June 15, 2021, 05:42:31 pm Really like your design! Thanks for the additional pictures! After seeing yours, I think I can make one that sits up against the left side for storage like yours does and forego the hinge. I have 24” below the pop-up counter so that would work. There is a welder that lives across the street that can probably make the frame for me. What are you using for the brackets where you store it on the wall?Tracy
Re: Interior step cover panel Reply #6 – June 16, 2021, 02:36:10 am Hi Tracy; I have somewhere in my garage two welded frames that might work if your needed size is the same as my '99. Let me look around. I haven't seen them for at least 10 years, but I wouldn't have thrown them away. The holder is made out of aluminum flat bar that can be obtained at Home Depot/Lowes. Mine was pretty intricate, but screws into the case frame of the cabinet (vanity in TK) with just 4 screws. I'll take some more detailed pictures if you want to go that way. It just lifts up and out. Felt padding to protect the paint and to not rattle. Measure your step opening for me please.... RonB 1 Likes
Re: Interior step cover panel Reply #7 – June 16, 2021, 02:42:06 am RonB That would be wonderful! Mine is just shy of 24” long and the depth is 10.5”. I would think the 24” wide doorway is standard with all of the LD coaches. The ledge on the right side sticks out about an inch, so I think that would be enough to hold the plate as long as it’s snug.t.
Re: Interior step cover panel Reply #8 – June 16, 2021, 02:47:58 am I'll have to move some stuff in the garage. Kind of like an archeological dig. Tomorrow...I think I saw them go by just a few years ago. I didn't weld them, I had a friend with much better equipment, weld them for me. RonB 1 Likes
Re: Interior step cover panel Reply #9 – June 16, 2021, 11:14:43 am Not a bad idea to put a step there. After looking at my stepwell, some sort of framing would definitely be needed as there’s no ledge on the right side. 1 Likes
Re: Interior step cover panel Reply #10 – June 16, 2021, 12:21:43 pm Hi Greg; For me the step cover was more of a necessity. The large door to the bathroom in my year TK, closed off the bathroom toward the back. So there wasn't much leeway as the door opened, and stepping into the step well was a temptation. In just a few years after our model, the door was made smaller, hinged at the front, and an accordion door was added to close off the bathroom to the rear. Otherwise as Larry said, it is a bit of a hazard, if in an emergency, you had to exit quickly. I mostly use this feature at night, when we are in. Shoes off, the shoes were a stepping hazard in the dark. So the well is a good place, and the cover keeps the shoes from being in the way. When Andy had a TK (Gertie), he modified the door and hinged it on the right, a harbinger of the factory change. For you the hinged panel, that folds up along the wall could be done. Otherwise you could put a steel ledge into the wall under the carpet on the right. It wouldn't stick out too much more than the carpet. This is all a bit of careful, exacting work, for little pay off with your floor plans. The MB traffic flow doesn't really use the step well area except for entry and exit. For safety it has to be executed well. Tracy's '91 RB, like your MB, may not have a mounting structure on either side, a wood edge under the carpet, so there too, steel ledges might have to be inserted. Class 'A' bus types with the front entry door have this problem also, with varying success at solutions. RonB 2 Likes
Re: Interior step cover panel Reply #11 – June 16, 2021, 12:59:57 pm Quote from: RonB - June 16, 2021, 12:21:43 pmHi Greg; For me the step cover was more of a necessity. The large door to the bathroom in my year TK, closed off the bathroom toward the back. So there wasn't much leeway as the door opened, and stepping into the step well was a temptation. Yes, I think I took a tumble or two back in the day but I was a bit more flexible then! 1 Likes
Re: Interior step cover panel Reply #12 – June 16, 2021, 05:36:15 pm Of course the easy way out is a piece of plywood with carpet glued on top, and feet the appropriate length... Ronb
Re: Interior step cover panel Reply #13 – June 16, 2021, 08:45:15 pm RonB, So true! That may be where I start and try it out. Thanks 😊
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Topic: Interior step cover panel (Read 349 times)
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