How to Build Bunk Beds
Quite a few adults can relate to growing up sleeping in a bunk bed; especially true if you’ve had many siblings all growing up together in the same room. As the family grows bunk beds just make sense. Fortunately, making your own set of bunk beds is fairly straight forward and easy to do with a Skill saw, drill, drill bits, counter sink, hammer, nails, bolts and measuring tape.
The Box Dimensions
The first thing you will need to do is figure out how much mattress you will be dealing with. This is so you can build the box to fit the mattress. Generally, 80″x45″ is a safe bet but heading to the store first is a wise idea. Construct the rectangular box with screws at the end. You’ll be using nails at some points but in all likelihood the bunk beds will be coming down. Design it so it can be disassembled!
Attach supports within the box. These 2″x4″ blocks should be screwed into the box in three places along the sides of the box and in the center of the head and feet ends. Always remember to plug the screw holes so fingers and toes don’t get caught. A home store will have plugs, counter sinks and drills.
The Crucial Posts
There are two options for attaching the box to the bed posts although each involves carriage bolts for the attachment part. You can either attach the box to the posts with nails, check for square and drill through the post and box for the carriage bolts, or notch the post and slide the box into the post for a flusher look before using the drill and carriage bolts. In either event you should not let the lower bunk get closer to the floor than 12″ or the upper bunk more then 48″ from the floor for safety. Again, make sure that the bolt holes are plugged well for precaution.
To Finish
A nice thick sheet of plywood will be needed for the interior of the box. Measure it up and cut it, making sure to take edges or splinters off. Remember that there will likely be jumping going on so anything that may separate the plywood from its supports or breakage is not good.
Railings are easily constructed with some strapping. Strapping can be found at the home store and is simply long thin pieces of wood. Sand them up and construct a guard - there is little reason to go overboard with this. Try making a little slot on the side of the box to accept the railing posts.
Take a good overall look at the project once everything is in place. Anything that looks sharp or could cause injury should be filed or sanded down.