Bed construction help?

[rosesunkist]

Hello all. I a currently planning on builing a nice big king-sized bed when I get back from deployment. I got all the plans in my head as of now. But I really couldn't find much online about certain aspects of it. Or at least not for free. I plan on using matress only, no box frames underneath.
What I am wondering is what spacing is best for the slats? I was thinking somewhere around 2 inches between each.
And for the side rail, not sure whether to go with 2x4 or 2x6? I got 3 kids so far, and they are quite rambunctious, that's why I am thinking 2x6.
And how much of a lip up the side of the matress would I need? Again, thinking 2 inches should be good.
Also, attaching the rails to the posts. I'm trying to use natural joints(i.e. no screws), but if I can find a better, stonger alternative then I would use that. Considering using hidden bolts with M&T.
I've also looked online for some heartwoods with nice cross-sectional grain, but again, can't really find any.
I used to do some woodworking when I was a bit younger, just now getting back into it. So I'm kinda rusty, but I'll be doing other projects before I really start on it to hone up my skills. Thank you for your help.

[atgcpaul]

I think you'll find that even the pros don't just use a mortise and tenon alone for bed construction--probably for 2 reasons. 1) They want to be able
to disassemble the bed so it can be moved around easily 2) Although a very
strong joint, a glued M&T will eventually succumb to the racking forces
experieced in a bed from shifting around in bed, getting in and out, etc.
Look for something called "bedbolts" at Rockler. I used "surface mounted
keyhold bed rail brackets" from Rockler but this uses screws.

The bed I made is very rough construction using redwood construction
lumber. 2x6 on the rails and 4x4 posts for the legs. I used 1x3 for the slats
and there is 4" space between each. A 2x4 runs the length of the bed down
the middle to give extra support to the slats. 2" of side rail next to the
mattress is good. I think I did 3 or 4 which was a mistake because if you sit
on the edge of our soft mattress, your butt bottoms out on the rail.

Hope this helps,
Paul


I actually "discovered" Rockler and started woodworking when 5 years ago I
needed to build a bed and a web search showed me I had a Rockler store in
my town. It's been downhill from there.

[LinuxRandal]

I have a platform style bed, and the frames (top in two sections for portability, full size) is one by threes, oak and spaced about two inches across. If I were you, and since boxes are boxes (not box SPRINGS), are you considering puting drawers underneath? If so, you might also consider plywood, as a dust shield. Just an option.

[Tom Miller]

For side rails, I'd strongly recommend the wider boards. You'll get much more resistance to head-to-foot racking. 5/4 thickness would do, but 6/4 (nominal 2x thickness) is fine.

If you're going "mattress only", have you considered plywood instead of slats? Either way, it seems like you'll need some kind of support in the middle.

Adding storage space underneath might work out well for you, as mentioned above. If that seems like too much of a project right now, you might at least plan it in for phase 2.

I've used this kind of hardware to attach the rails to the headboard/footboard:



I learned a good trick to keep the mounting screws from pulling out of endgrain. I noted it at the end of this post.

Regards,
Tom

[bigsteel15]

Rosesunkist,

I am in the process of the same thing, king size bed except I have boxsprings.
I just picked up an older Fine Woodworking mag, I think it is Feb 2005, that has an article with lots of recomended practices and things not to do.
With a KS bed you definitely need center support lengthwise.
I will take a look again tonight or could send you the article if you want.

[rosesunkist]

Ahhh, yes. I forgot to mention a few things before.

I plan on using no glue on this(read:as little as possible), and trying to make it look like all natural joints, hence hiding the bolts. I plan on cutting the mortise a bit deeper than it needs to be, just so I can tighten the bolts good and make the shoulder nice and snug against the post. And yes, those bedbolts are the exact bolts I was going to use.

Drawers? BIG drawers! That is why I chose to delete the box frames underneath. Plan on 3, maybe 4, big ones on each side. Not too sure about the sliding mechanism yet, but most likely the strongest ones I can find. IDK how, but my wife can stuff 26 pairs of jeans into a drawer the size of a microwave......or at least she tries to.

I will be using 2x4 support for the middle. One 1/3 from the left, the other one 1/3 from the right.

Things not to do? Yeah, I really need to see that article! I really need to make this as sturdy as possible. The kids love to jump on my my bed when I'm not home.

I want to do some unusual things with it, so I really need to find some good posts. I was actually considering redwood. Snakewood was my first thought, but I don't think I could find any timber that large, plus I'd have to sell several organs on Ebay to buy that kind of wood. I'm looking for a nice hardwood for the posts, and most likely oak for everything else. Plus a few others thrown in for good measure...

[JimD]

We have 5 bedroom all with beds I made. Several have bed bolts, 2 have the type of fasteners Tom Miller indicates he used. I like them better because they show less. I read the same things Tom apparently has about screws in end grain. I used screws at least 2 inches long with no dowels and have had no problem. The largest bed with these fasteners is a queen we use every night. The rails are 1 inch thick oak about 6 inches wide. The posts are 3 inch square oak - it is a mission style bed.

The FWW article recommends 4 inch slats 1 inch apart. It also recommends hardwood for the slats and says softwood will deflect too much. I am using this system on a bed I'm making for my daughters dorm room. I used the sagulator program to calculate deflection for a range of soft and hardwoods and found that while hardwoods are generally less deflection there is overlap between hard and softwoods. The worst maple deflects more than the best pine.

I ended up using 3/4 baltic birch for the slats. I needed them 53 inches long and that is a good size for 5x5 baltic birch sheets. I got 15 from one sheet - little waste.

The FWW article also shows how to use bed bolts where they won't show. You put a slot on the inside of the rails for the bolt and locate the nut in the tenon of the mortise for the head or foot board rail. Clever but you would have to make the rail bigger because the slot removes a significant amount of material.

Jim

[cabinetman]

Almost all of the platform beds I have made were done basically like the attachment. There are two boxes that form the base that you gusset corner brace. They get screwed together. The top part is in two halves, with the side framing which can be 3/4" x 6", attached to each half, and goes on the three sides of each half. The two halves mount on top of the two bases, and get screwed to the corner gussets of the bases. You could use "T" nuts for these. The platform depth is minimum 1". You could go to 2". What you wind up with is the base to be recessed 6" on the sides and foot, and 6" clear under the sides. All you need is a mattress and a 6" to 8" mattress should finish about 18" above the floor. I have used polyfoam mattresses 6" to 8" thick for a king. I also recommend rounding over the verticle and horizontal corners of the outter frame.



"I'M NEVER WRONG - BUT I'M NOT ALWAYS RIGHT"

[JimD]

Our queen sized bed I mentioned above has a solid platform like the above post. I like it but LOML thought at least initially it was a bit too firm. The FWW article also argues against it because the mattress needs to "breath". My kids beds and one of the guest room beds are also solid platforms. None has given us any problem. I decided to try the "many slats" method from FWW just to see if I like it. One thing that is definitely better is the portability of the mattress support. 16 slats four inches wide are easier to move than a solid platform. I also laid on the slats with no mattress and they deflect a little. I suspect that the deflection will not be enough to make much difference but functional equivalency with easier portability would not be bad.

Jim

[ironhat]

Just my 2 cents worth. I built bunks out of poplar in the style of the "Crate" furniture that was popular back in the early 80's. My securement methods won't jibe with yours but for the slats I only used four which were inset into a 2x4 (which itself was glued and screwed to the 2x6 poplar sideboards). This provided a flat perimeter for the plywood to sit on. Best of luck and thanks for your service.
Later,
Chiz

[rosesunkist]

Hmmmmm. So pretty much everybody has a different view on the mattress support. Solid vs slats. Each one of you brings up credible points. As far as I can tell, the slat method is more common on "higher end" and antique furniture, and solid support for functionability and swiftness and ease of construction. I am sure that I will be going with the slats, since it will fit in better with my vision for the bed. But cabinetman brings up a good point that I had not gotten to yet.....bed height. What is the usual bed height? I was thinkning between 24" and 30". I like the height of my bed at home, so I'll measure it when I get back and go with that, maybe add an inch or so.

[cabinetman]

The platform bed I was describing is in four pieces. If done in mica or wood the basics are the same. With plywood, the sections aren't that heavy, assembly/disassembly is easy, and they are very sturdy and quiet. My personal bedroom set I made in 1977 and its been moved several times and still looks new. The 18" overall height is a comfortable height to sit on the edge of the bed.



"I'M NEVER WRONG - BUT I'M NOT ALWAYS RIGHT"