Our four boys matching double bunk beds recently succumbed to being used abused by four boys for 12 or so years, and I have always wanted to make them a pair of triple bunk beds for when friends come over. The broken pieces of a bed that had survived numerous military moves finally gave me the jump start I needed to finally get this job done. After about a day of measuring, pondering, and configuring, I came up with what I thought were good dimensions for the project. I increased the height of the corner posts to seven feet to allow for a higher top bunk, and squished the bunks a little tighter together as well. This ended up giving me a 26” gap between the bunks. When I build the next one, I will cut this down to 24” between each and give a little room room to the top bunk. Trial and error I guess. I added a 2x2 all the way around the bottom because although I wanted it very low, I didn’t want anyone feeling like they were sleeping on the ground, but I also didn’t want some 1” or 2” gap below the bottom bunk for balls, cars, and LEGOs to be lost. The guardrail was shortened a little based on what wood I had left at the end. The ladder I decided to build upright/no angle, which necessitated that I fashion the ladder myself out of some strip of metal that I think is meant for some sort of roofing purpose. Oh well, it worked. I wanted to do this because the bed is meant to be able to be disassembled, and if I had simply screwed the ladder to the bed, it would have gone against the “disassemble-bility” of the project. Last thing to note, the barn red staining was quite messy and a huge time investment, so although I stated it took 10-20 hours, probably 12 of the 20 hours was in the staining. We are all thrilled with the look of it though, so I guess it was worth it in the end. I hope this project was worth the read. Enjoy!
Comments
5 tator tots (not verified)
Tue, 08/14/2012 - 08:13
Nice Job!
With a family of 7 (soon to be 8) we really need this. Thanks for sharing the uses of each basket. That is what I am trying to figure out. I also need the washer/dryer pedestals for dirty laundry so the dresser could just be for clean, but homeschooling and cooking for all these kids keeps me from jumping in to projects and the pedestals may be a long way off as my (very talented) husband's busy season is starting.
In reply to Nice Job! by 5 tator tots (not verified)
jsa271
Fri, 08/24/2012 - 16:26
Glad it was helpful! Let me
Glad it was helpful! Let me know if you have any questions.