Removing couch

[Vandave]

We have a 2017 31BE and want to replace the couch with twin recliners. Has anyone removed the couch that comes standard?

[luvlabs]

Don't own a 313BE and haven't removed a couch, but the best way to do it is disassemble it into smaller parts and take it out the door. Very good chance it won't fit through the door (requiring you to remove a window) unless you break it down.

[BirchyBoy]

I have the same coach and couch and hope to do this soon. My only hesitation is losing the storage underneath. If you take the front off, there is a lot of space under it!

[BobC]

I just did this in my 2005 Suncruiser 35U and it was much easier than I planned.

Armed with careful measurements, we purchased nice leather, power recliners from Macy's. The critical measurements are, width and front to back in the reclined position. If you have valences behind the recliners, you need to measure to the vertical parts of them, not the wall. In my case, the front feet of the recliners hang over the front edge of the slide but I'm going to either move them back a couple of inches or shim the frame behind them. Also, make sure that they will fit through your entry door.

In my case my reclining sofa came apart into three pieces: back, seat, and leg rest. You'll need to poke around underneath to find all the mounting bolts, which are all reachable with a socket wrench or, alternatively, a drill or electric impact driver with an appropriate socket.

Your couch is obviously going to be different from mine given the age difference but I've read in other postings that Winnebago takes pride in ensuring that everything they install will disassemble into parts that will fit through the entry door.

[Vandave]

Never thought of that, thanks. I'm putting drawers in the benches and pullout storage in the skinny, deep pantry.

[BirchyBoy]

Originally Posted by Vandave

Never thought of that, thanks. I'm putting drawers in the benches and pullout storage in the skinny, deep pantry.

We’re thinking of pull out draws in the pantry too. I want to add shelves to the closet by the door as well.

[FormerBiker]

Hmmmm. First post and I can help someone.


If you are removing the traditional jack knife sofa, it is fairly easy to do.


On our Thor Ace 29.3, we lifted up the lower seat portion to access the three screws on each side that hold the arms to the frame. The arms will slide out with no problem.


There are 4 long lag bolts holding the sofa frame to the slide floor. Once those are removed the sofa can be lifted out. With the sofa in the flat (bed) position, it can be moved out of the door with an assistant.


Depending on which recliners you choose, some other alterations may be necessary. We used the Thomas Payne theatre /recliner seats that had the consul.


We removed the vertical valances and the cup holder/shelf that was behind the sofa. Because the chairs would hang over the slide floor and still recline, we got a 3/4" piece of plywood and cut it to size. It was notched for the seatbelts along the rear edge.


With the wood and chairs in place we marked the location of the mounting holes in the chairs. We added carriage bolts with nuts and washers to hold the bolts in place. We put the plywood back in and secured it to the floor with construction/ dry wall screws. We placed the chairs over the carriage bolts and secured them with the nylon locking bolts.


This worked great for us and improved livability in the Ace.


But...we are trading in the Ace for a new to us '06 DP Journey so the chairs came out and that sofa went back in. I'm sure the chairs will fit in the Journey in place of the J-sofa with out too many issues.


Good luck on your project!

[lslblues]

I've got a 2017 31BE as well. I'd love to hear see pictures of your storage improvements. I looked long and hard at the pull-out storage in pantry. The Minnie Winnie 31G has some really nice pull out drawers in the pantry, but the width of the opening is wider. When I measured ours, we would have lost like 40% of the storage capacity with the drawers.

Can you message me any photos of the storage improvements you've made? I used my 3D printer and printed out some little shelves for flashlights, walkie talkies, etc. in the doorway closet.

[Vandave]

I have pictures of the slide out shelves. I just need to figure out how to attach them to my post.