Outfitting your own removal van
by Mortuary Transport Expert ~ April 29th, 2008. Filed under: Getting Started.I want to offer info on how I outfitted my removal vans and why I did things the way I did.
I needed to have as much equipment available to me all the time, but have the inside of the van be neat and tidy for when families would see their loved ones put into the back of the van.
I had a few complaints from families about the Econoline and Astro/Safari vans, with their loved one being treated as cargo, so I opted for something a little smaller, discreet and professional looking.
I looked at all the vehicle options and I finally settled on Dodge Caravan or Chrysler Town & Country vans, since they are a consistent size inside behind the front seats. You can go for the late models with the seats that fold into the floor, or you can get the models without the Stow-N-Go seating and store the seats in your garage or warehouse.
I preferred dark tinted windows all around the sides and back, so that the public couldn’t tell that it wasn’t a passenger van. Solid areas where a window should go just says ‘commercial vehicle’ too much, and I was looking for discretion.
Building a platform for inside the van.
Once the floor was flat inside, I developed a removal platform I felt allowed for a good amount of storage and yet kept everything neat and out of the way. I’ll make some plans available on this site sometime soon.
I wanted to have the capacity for two gurneys, two folding stretchers, extra sheets, plastic liners and cleaning supplies. I also needed any special supplies such as tags, straps, etc that were needed by particular funeral homes. I also needed to be able to accomodate a casket or flowers for doing funeral work.
What I came up with was a platform with storage on the sides where the side doors open. I made it only 12 inches deep so that I wouldn’t lose anything under the platform.
I also made pockets under the platform for 2 folding stretchers to be stored, with the depth only the length of the folded stretcher so that you didn’t have to reach too far inside.
I started with my platform, a 4×8 sheet of 3/4″ plywood, and built the platform upside down attaching the bracing that would raise it from the floor of the van. I found that 4-5″ in the back and 7-8″ in the front makes the platform level, since the floor grades down toward the front. The space in the back is enough to load the stretchers, and the space in the side is high enough to store most supplies. If you’re so inclined, the dead space in the middle can be made accessible from the front between the seats if you want to make another storage cavity.
I attached all the under-bracing with 2″x1 1/2″ brackets and 3/4″ pan head screws. The pan head gives a nice smooth surface with no sharp edges to catch something and tear it. I never glued anything, since I used enough brackets to keep the whole thing very solid. You’d need to measure and cut to fit all the bracing to fit your project, so I’m not going to give any measurements for that part.
Once the platform was put together, I attached some pretty sturdy construction straps to the end and sides. a four foot piece for the front, and 5 foot pieces for the sides. This gave most of the platform a lip to catch any fluids or debris. I then glued on the flooring.
The flooring needs to cleanable, so you need a non-porous surface with no cracks or crevices. I chose a solid piece of linoleum. I got a 6×9 remnant roll at Home Depot, and glued it down with contact cement. Sometimes I used quart cans, sometimes I used gallon cans, it depends on how much you need to use. The linoleum went up and over the braces for a solid linoleum lip, and I used a utility knife to trim off the excess.
On the exposed edges on the back, I tried iron on tape used for counter tops, but it’s too brittle to handle this type of use. I ended up just using a high gloss white enamel paint to finish the back.
I made a ramp out of 1/2″ thick PVC and attached it with a 48″ piano hinge, and this rested on the back bumper when installing or removing a gurney. This attached on top of the platform with 24 3/4″ pan head screws with grommets used as washers to smooth it out more. I used a router to round off all the edges of the PVC ramp to prevent scratches and cuts.
With good timing and a good push, we could roll a gurney into the van all the way, and then gently put the back leg into a post hole (not installed in these pictures).
