Alite Mods - Interior

Porta-Potty Cabinet

The storage opening to the right of the door was not nearly deep enough to accommodate a porta-potty, as you can see in the photo. I took off the cabinet door, but before I could saw away the frame above the opening, I had to re-route a 120v wire (to the outside outlet) around the rear of the cabinet. The original wire wasn't long enough, so I added a junction box, and spliced a new piece. I also made a plywood platform to raise the potty to the level of the benches, then cut the bench lid to cover only the space to the left of the potty. I finished the opening with fake oak trim to match the cabinets. During the day, I fold a small fleece throw over the potty. A non-skid mat under the potty and a velcro strap across the front holds it in place during travel.

Note #1: I use a water bottle to squirt-flush, rather than filling the freshwater tank in the potty. It takes less water, and gives a more accurate rinse. In the photo, you can see the water bottle bungeed next to the door.

Note #2: My original potty was a Coleman brand, which I replaced after it leaked on the first night. It was not a defective unit, but rather a defective design. If the Coleman potty was tipped even slightly forward, off level, liquid ran down the handle stem each time it was pulled to flush. I replaced it with a Passport Potty 8L from Walmart. Not as big as the Coleman, but it doesn't leak!

Side-to-Side Pole

Always good for reinforcement of the A walls, a side-to-side pole was essential after I removed the roof latches. (There is so little clearance between the folded components that the roof latch on the door-side A was marring the opposite wall when folded.) The pole doesn't support a lot of weight, just the chandelier and the small shelf, so closet-rod brackets screwed into the A walls were sufficient. I did have to be careful that the door-side bracket would not rub against the window when the camper was folded, but there is just enough space. I don't use a cushion on the door-side bench, so I put a large rubber chair tip in the street-side bracket before folding the sides and it supports that wall on the bench lid. The pole is an adjustable aluminum painter's pole.

Countertops and Trim

All of the exposed  bench/storage lids serve as countertops and are covered with strips of self-stick vinyl oak flooring. It was inexpensive and easy to work with. I also used fake oak trim to finish as many exposed edges as I could, including around the sliding doors in the bed storage area. Here are before and after pictures of the sliding door trim. More trim can be seen in the porta-potty photo above.

Door Threshold

Originally, the entrance was finished with an aluminum "L", inconvenient for sweeping and very hard on bare feet! I bought an oak-finished metal carpet transition strip (cheaper than a wooden one), cut it with a hack saw to fit (even around a floor bolt), and screwed it in place.

Upholstered Roof Ledges

Another clever Aliner owner came up with this idea. It helps prevent condensation and provides a ledge for holding small items like glasses, book, or cell phone. I used sheet-metal screws to attach lengths of 1" aluminum angle to both front and rear of the camper body, just below the roof hinges. In the front, I notched the aluminum so that it didn't pinch the electric wire when the roof was lowered. I covered the whole area with upholstery fabric, fastening it with double-stick carpet tape. It softens the camper interior, and the ledges are very handy. You can see the results in the porta-potty photo above.

Bed

The Alite came with enough cushions and plywood to make the entire interior into a double bed. I chose to make it a permanent 1-person camper and the only cushions I use are the two 20"x32" and the 20"x12", all on the long street-side bench. That's my sofa-bed. I pull the two longer cushions out from the wall a bit, stuffing a rolled lightweight blanket behind them. The resulting 23-24" width is enough for me to sleep on my side and easily turn over at night. The original bench led, running the length of the camper, was much too unwieldy to manage. I  cut it in half and enlarged the cut-off roof-side corners, making it much easier to left each section by means of nylon straps screwed under the front edges. To support the rear edges of the bed lids and keep them from falling down into the storage area when lifted, I nailed a 4" strip of vinyl, cut from a piece of gutter cover (wonderful stuff when thin white vinyl is needed!), on top of the rear framing.

Bedding

My "mattress" is a piece of 1" memory foam, cut to fit the cushioned area. I sewed the foam into a protective slipcover of thin, slick fabric. The covered foam slips into an envelope made from a flat sheet. One end of this envelope has a velcro flap, so the sheet can be removed for washing. A narrowed flat twin sheet and a flannel sheet (also narrowed) are stitched together at the bottom to make a top cover. At night, I put a pillowcase over the daytime throw pillow. Depending on temperature, I can sleep covered with just a sheet or pull up the flannel sheet, or add the blanket. I also have a small fleece throw. The folded bedding - memory foam, top sheet set, and pillowcase - is stored in the rear of the under-bed storage. The pillow and throw are daytime "sofa" furnishings.

Fence Screen Protector

Another Alite owner wisely warned me that the unprotected bedside
window screen was easy to lean against and damage. But how to protect it? I made a trip to Lowe's, hoping to find an old-fashioned aluminum screen-door protector. No luck in the door department, but in the garden department I found an irresistible piece of white plastic picket
fence, just the right size for the window. It was more flexible than I wanted, but that was easily fixed by putting a piece of white-painted metal garden stake behind each crosspiece in the fence, securing them with clear zip ties. Fastening the fence to the right edge of the window was a snap - I just screwed it in place. Fastening it to the middle stile was a problem - the window slid past that point, and there wasn't a place to put a screw. In my "junk box", I found what I think were two plastic mini-blind supports. They had hook-shaped ends that could just catch the middle bar of the window. I snipped off the other ends and screwed them to the fence itself. Now I don't worry about stretching or tearing the screen - the fence is good protection. Besides, it's so darned cute!

Built-in Wastebasket

Space is a premium in any Aliner, especially the Alite. There was a bit of empty space between the battery box and the cabinet wall, just begging to be used. I found that a clear plastic wall-hung office file fit nicely. I cut a 4: hole in the cabinet wall above it, trimmed the hole with a toilet flange painted brown, and had a
drop-in trash basket. To make it less obtrusive, I glued some oak flooring scraps (the same I used on the "countertops") to the back of the office file. A piece of self-stick velcro on the bottom keeps the file in place, but it's easy to remove to clean or empty.

Pegs

 I took apart a set of white plastic extending pegs (Dollar Tree) and screwed the individual legs to the aluminum edges of the A walls, where I could. On the large window wall, there was plenty of room, since that wall folds first. On the door-side wall, I was limited to a location lower on the A where the two walls were not overlapping. It's nice to have some hooks for clothes, mugs, etc.