Looking to build a dog platform, just a quick question -

Hi everybody. I just bought a 2021 Access Cab Tacoma and I need to build a dog platform so "Romeo the Wonder Dog" can come on adventures with me.

I bought some charcoal grey, think indoor/outdoor carpet from Lowes today to cover the platform and make it comfortable and classy.

My question is -

Somebody who posted before on Tacomaworld about making a dog platform said they used spray adhesive.

Does anyone have any ideas as to what spray adhesive I should use to glue the carpet to the plywood?

I looked in the adhesives/stain/paint section at Lowest today and while I saw a ton of Liquid Nails construction adhesive in those squeeze tubes, I didn't see any spray adhesive.

Forgive my ignorance on this, and thanks for any guidance you may have!

 

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Gorilla-Sp...UCSc3b3fwDtd_OrcDesaAudhEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

For carpeted speaker boxes I always use 3M Super 77.

 

Thanks so much for both recommendations; my bad that I just couldn't find this stuff when I was at Lowest this morning...

 

I used double sided carpet tape. Makes it easier to replace.

 

I made a dog platform like the picture in post #1 (minus the Toyota logo). I used a staple gun on the carpet. Staples are still holding after 7 years, but the carpet is showing some wear from dog paws. I used metal “L” brackets on the legs. I cut the length of my board slightly short so my dog jumps onto the back floor then steps up on to the platform.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/access-cab-dog-platform-udpate-pics.72761/

 

@VA Hiker I would pull out the platform and Raptor bed liner coat it. Then just lay the rug down. My two beasts have so much hair loss in the truck, makes it easy to just lay the rug on the ground and vacuum it off. And the platform is water proof with the bed liner coating.

 

That is exactly the kind of thing I want to build. I am torn between leaving the seats and console in or pulling them, though.

does the platform stay pretty flat with the seats still in?

 

Good point. I only have one dog but he has long hair and he does shed... although mud is more of an issue. He gets alot of time outside and a good portion of that is in a swampy area...

 

So I'm waffling a bit between a simple platform that would sit on top of the existing seats...

Or a slightly more involved one that would involve taking the seats and console out... removing the storage bin lids... and then making like... long hatches, if you will... that can be pulled up to access the stuff I've got in those storage bins without pulling the entire dog platform out. But with this more complex option, I would probably want to bolt the platform in where the seat belt bolts go. But that means lining up holes...

 

I kept it simple, mine just lays over the seats so it's easy to remove. I got a pre cut shelf board 3/4 by 20 by 48 inches and cut 2 10.25 inch 2x4's for legs. Used some pipe insulation around the edges and wrapped it in a moving blanket from harbor freight double thick on top for some cushion. Insulation and moving blanket are just stapled to the bottom so changing out the blanket will be easy. I think Finley approves!

 

I measured the legs of the platform so the platform is level with my rear seats folded up. My platform sits solidly on the storage bins unlike the OP in the link built that platform to sit on the rear seats. My thinking was for a big dog have the platform as low as possible. Just measure your legs depending if you want your seats up or down. Console is still in. Occasionally, the platform comes out and someone rides in the back, but not often.

I left my storage bin lids on. My platform sits on blankets over the lids and I only store stuff in the bins that I rarely need to get to. Looking at Irons’ picture in the post above reminded me you want a thick enough piece of wood so the platform feels sturdy.

 

So with the platform on top of the seats, it's level and doesn't wobble? One positive of being on top of the seats is that it would provide a little extra height - my dog Romeo is a 40 lb dog who's not short but not tall; ideally he would be able to sit up and look out the windows (and sniff the fresh air through the back window).

 

So here are some pictures of what I did.

Made a template that would fit using the bolts from the seat belt buckles and the outer lower seat bottom bolts. It has a large lid over the cubby's on each side. But it is two pieces, so if I need a seat, one side comes out, and seat goes back in. It also has a front to make another cubby under the front of the platform.


Then I coated it in Raptor bed liner. Water proofed and gives a textured finish to the surface. This is with them assembled and installed.


And finally I had a carpeted mat, but they tore that up just riding around. So now I have a rubber mat back there cut to size.

 

It doesn't wobble and looks to be pretty level. The reason I went with 48" wide and put the pipe insulation around the edges is the front seats help hold it snug and I didn't want it scratching the plastic. So far so good on both. Also I wanted it easy to remove because we go to the beach all the time in the summer and I can pull it out and vacuum up the sand, and if it gets wet just set it in the sun for a while.

The platform is 100x more useful for me than the back seats that will never be used. One of these rainy days when I'm bored I'll pull it into the garage and remove the stupid headrests. Nobody is ever going to ride back there except my dogs.




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How hard is it to remove the headrests? I haven't looked at them much yet but it looks like some panels have to be removed?



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If I remember correctly you just remove the plastic pc under them and there is either 2 or 4 - 10mm bolts holding them on. Don't think you have to remove the whole back wall unless your doing something else like sound deadening.

 

Cool thanks!



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I left my headrests in but wrapped them in T-Shirts close to the color of my interior (so not to have the Disney ToonTown color scheme). Keeping them folded down keeps them out of the way for my dog. Keeping them wrapped keeps them clean and relatively dog hair free.

 

Hi there, everybody. So I'd like to thank everyone who responded and contributed ideas and provide an update on how my dog platform project turned out. And heck, maybe this will be a resource for someone else. It's not the hardest project, but I did take a little detour.

Even though the platforms with the seats totally removed have the potential to look more... professional(?)... I decided I needed a solution that would allow for the platform to be quickly removed so some poor human could be stuffed in the back of the access cab for short drives... and I realized that, given my medium-sized dog's height, that an above-seat-solution would work better in that it would situate the platform so he can comfortably look out the windows.

In this first platform picture, note that the platform has legs on the back at the corners and in the center to raise the platform above the seats and the seatbelt fittings... and it has two front corner legs and one center leg to rest on the "hump" behind the center console:

Also note that I had an old green Army backpacking sleeping pad that I glued to the top of the platform to go under the carpet.

Well that third center front leg turned out to be a big mistake; the platform was hard as hell to get out of the truck once I had put it in because when tilting the platform, it would hit the console.

Now granted some folks just go with a simpler, less-fitted rectangle platform but I wanted this to look fitted. So I brought the platform inside (it was after work the next day and dark) and I removed the center leg... sawed a slight indent in the center front to better accommodate getting the platform out behind the center console... and instead of one center leg put two off-center/off-the-hump center legs.

Carpeting the curvy areas (the center indent, the rear center protrusion, and the corner protrusions) was tricky but it is doable. I did, after getting feedback about both the pros and cons of gluing carpet versus using carpet tape, decide to glue the carpet on the main deck, but only used staples on the legs. I kind of wish I had used glue on the legs and don't know why I didn't other than I was just getting tired and wanted to finish.