Last week I showed you my planked and 2×4 shelved wall. Well this week I added some hanging beds into the mix for my 30 day challenge to makeover Isaac’s room. And we love them. Bonus: No more hiding clothes under the bed when moms says it is time to clean your room. They are actually easier than they look to make. I promise. The hardest part is hanging the blocking in the attic.
All these supplies were purchased at Lowes. Another neat service that Lowes offers that I did not know about was pipe threading. They cut and threaded ALL the pipe for me FOR FREE! Since I have 8 foot ceilings and wanted them to hang about 2’ from the ground we had Lowes cut the pipes down to 6’ 6” and thread both ends for me. Thanks to Jan from my local Lowes who rocked the pipe cutter/threader for me!
Supplies to make 2 Beds:
2” x 12” x 8’ (8 of them)
1” x 4” (10) for blocking in ceiling
lag bolts: a box of 2 1/2” (to attach flanges to ceilings), 1 1/2” (to attach flanges to bed) and 3” (to attach the bed together)
laq bolt drill bit
drill
chop saw
washers to fit on lag bolts
1” x 2” x 8’ (4 of them) for bed supports
1” x 4” x 8’ for bed slat supports
1” galvanized metal pipe in 8 foot lengths (8 of them)
1 1/2” wood screws
1” elbows (8 of them)
1” flanges (16 of them)
plumb bob
tape measure
metal angel braces for blocking in the ceiling
Optional: router
1. For each bed cut 2 pieces of 2” x 12” to 78 1/2” and 2 pieces to 38”. Save the scraps for the blocking in the ceiling. Optional: You can route the edges to give it a little more depth like I did.
2. Pre-drill your holes and then screw in 3” lag bolts with washers from the side into the end pieces of the other 2” x 12” piece.
3. Do that at the top as well and also on the right side of the bed top and bottom. It is easier if you stand it on its side to drill them. You can see by the picture that I inset the foot boards and head boards in 1/2”.
4. Note: You could do this step now but I waited until the beds were hung to do it. Next add 1” x 2”s the length of the bed – lining up the bottom edges and screwing them in the sides with 1 1/2” wood screws. Then cut your 1” x 4”s to fit the width of the bed to create slats for the bed to rest on. I used 8 per bed.
5. Attach the flanges and elbows to the head and foot of the bed. You will need to unscrew these in order to attach the piping to the bed in step 11.
To hang the beds:
6. Place your beds where you want them to hang on the floor. Then using a plumb bob figure out where on the ceiling you need to hang the flanges. Pre-drill holes where the flanges will go. Stick a wire up into the ceiling so you can see where the beds will hang.
7. Have someone braver than me Go up into the attic to add blocking for the beds to hang from. You can use the leftover 2” x 12” for this as well as some corner braces, 1” x4”s and 2 1/2” wood screws to attach the blocking between the cross beams. This will give you the needed support for the beds to hang from. Here are some pictures of what the blocking looks like with some Iphone pics.
Optional: While Rex braved the monsters in the attic I sanded all of the metal pipe with my electric sander and 100 grit sandpaper. This brought out a shinier finish on the pipes and got rid of all the markings on the metal.
8. Next screw the flanges to the ceiling with 2 1/2” lag bolts.
9. Then screw your threaded pipes into the flanges on the ceilings. Tighten them really well with channel lock pliers but put a cloth over them so you don’t dent them.
10. Next screw the elbows onto the bottom of the threaded pipes followed by the flanges.
11. Rex built some risers with the extra 2”x 12”s to hold the beds in place so we could attach the flanges to the beds without having to hold the entire bed in place while we did it.
12. I decided to stain the beds after they were hung. There are pros and cons to doing it after. The biggest con after is having to wipe off the stain from the flanges but the pro is we didn’t scuff the stain when trying to hang the beds. Use pre-wood conditioner to even out the tones of the wood. I then used Minwax Special Walnut to stain the beds. After 24 hours I followed it up with 2 coats of Minwax Wipe-On Poly.
{Squuueeeeall} I love them. Isaac loves them. And all the boys in our neighborhood think they are the coolest thing eva. #momwin
Questions I foresee you are going to ask:
Do they move or swing? The answer is yes they have a little give and can wiggle. But no they can not crash into one another. The most you can move them left to right is about 3” and top to bottom about 1”
Can Isaac fall out of it? No since we have about 8” of mattress and about 2 1/4” of supports underneath the bed sits about an inch lower then the edges so if he happens to roll he will hit the edge of the bed.
How far apart are the beds from one another? We have a space of 24” between the beds perfect for a nightstand between the two of them.
Why did you make two beds instead of one – two seems more dangerous. Isaac has buddies over a lot and we have tons of houseguests and wanted the extra bed. Also, Kayla and Isaac LOVE having sleepovers on the weekends as well. Since we moved the bunkbeds out of the room Isaac didn’t want to lose the other bed as an option so we built two.
Are you afraid of him jumping from bed to bed? No I threatened him with death if he did. 🙂 Just kidding…more like grounding from the Wii or no desserts for a month. My kids are usually pretty good when the lay down the law so I am not concerned with him jumping on them. We have a trampoline in our backyard and he knows he can jump there if need be.
Are they hard to crawl into? Nope since they are only two feet of the ground even Kayla can hop on them with no problem.
Click here to read more about the final reveal of this boy’s room.
absolutely killer beds! What kid wouldn’t want those?!?! Way to knock it out like a #killermomma Beckie!
Love the industrial vibe to this project
7 year old boy + swinging bed = trip to ER
Hahahaha…Don’t you know it!!! I have boys and that was the first thing I thought!
Actually my son would probably wait until I was in the shower or something and try to pull them down from the ceiling 🙁
Absolutely amazing!!! I can’t show my son these just yet because he will absolutely bug me until I did the same for him!! This room is going to be Rock Star Awesome!! I can’t wait to see the end!!
These look amazing! I love the industry feel it gives the room. He is going to have one of those rooms where all his friends want to come over and hang out because his room is so cool.
These beds are awesome! Amazing job!!!
This is amazing! You guys are the coolest parents ever!! Love it!!!!!
These beds are great! I can’t wait to see the whole room put together. They are a boys’ dream! (they’ll make some good pirate ships and Mario levels!)
Really cool!!! Great job and thanks for sharing. I think I’ll show my husband this post. :^)
Beckie, these are amazing and every kids dream! I can not wait to see what the finished room looks like!
These are so fantastic! What a wonderful room this is going to be! I bet Issac loves them!
pretty cool! Bet he was pretty excited about those beds. Cannot wait to see it all come together.
I love these!!!! My oldest has requested hanging bunkbed now?!?!
These look awesome! I saw the episode on tv when Pioneer Woman’s daughter’s room was created and I thought that the beds were the best part! You are a genius for figuring this all out and your son is one lucky kid! 🙂
~Sarah
Okay, so we just bought a lakefront home with a BOAT HOUSE! So how amazing will these hanging beds be? SO AMAZING! Thanks for the tutorial…now I don’t have to dream…I can do!
You rock! I would never have the nerve to go up in the attic, the patience to stain all that stuff, or the bravery to actually have hanging beds in my home! One question you would get asked…”Wouldn’t it be hard to make the beds as they sit WITHIN the frame?” Can’t wait to see more!
That’s awesome! It’s my dream to have a lake house one day, and, yes, the hanging beds would be an amazing addition. 🙂 If you do try them out, please let me know it goes.
Yeah, it is more difficult than a regular bed. My solution is to just not make the bed. Ha! 😉
I can’t take all the credit. I did have Rex to help me along, but thanks! 😉
I can’t take all the credit. I did have Rex to help me along, but thanks! 😉
Let me know if you figure that out. 😉
Excited is an understatement. He loves them!!!
Thanks, Megan. He really does!
It’s going to be pretty awesome if I do say so myself. Stay tuned! 😉
Ha! Hope he’s on board!
Ha! I’ll have to tell Isaac that. He’s really into video games lately. 😉
Hopefully our kids agree. 😉
Hopefully so. I like our house to be the one all the kids come to to play. 🙂
It is going to be Rock Star Awesome indeed! Stay tuned! 😉
Fortunately, that blocking is pretty strong. I don’t think those puppies are coming down. 😉
Haha! Thanks so much!
This is the absolute coolest project for a boys’ room. Or for any kid’s room. I wish we had an attic to crawl into and do this!!
BTW, I did those amazing little boxes and need to cut my Hydrangeas. I learn so much over here!
Sharing on my FB page. Thanks!
Thanks so much, Karen. That really means a lot. 🙂
Smokin’ cool beds, Beckie! I adore them! The entire room is coooool!
Um, WOW! Amazing project! My Boys would LOVE this but unfortunately we don’t have an attic space above their room-so cool though!!
We have a hanging double sized bed using chains. It does swing, but it is way more like a gentle put me to sleep than an ER visit. My husband hung the chains so the foot print on the ceiling where the hangers are is LARGER than the bed, this reduces swinging dramatically. Of course, my kids are teens so I can’t guarantee no trips to ER, but that hanging method works great at our home. The hardest part is actually swinging and holding the bed to vacuum underneath.
I LOVE the room!
OMGosh! This is Ah-Mazing! I just love it! So industrial and the feature wall in this state reminds me of a garage door…super cool! I can see my boys wanting something similar. Thanks for the inspiration!
Awesome!!! One lucky kiddo!
Thanks, Melissa!
Why thank ya! 😉
That’s what I keep telling him. 😉
Yeah, it does kind of look like that now that you mention it. Just wait until you see it styled though. 😉
Thanks, Michelle. Fortunately, my vacuum fits right under. Let’s just hope you don’t end up in the ER! Sounds dangerous! 😉
These are AMAZING!! My boys would go crazy over these beds. Nicely done girl. Love them!
What the what!!! Crazy cool.
{Giggle} Thanks, Bliss!
Why, thank you!
I had to laugh that you had to answer all the negative questions before they were even asked! It’s like you’re psychic or something or what maybe you’ve just been blogging awhile!! Sometimes I wonder what the heck are some of these kids doing in other houses that these questions even come up?! Anyways seriously you hit this project out of the park! Your son is going to be talking about his beds when he’s a grown up!
So creative, Beckie! I can’t wait to see the whole room reveal!
Thanks so much! It’s going to be AWESOME! 😉
Haha… I sure hope so. I am sure in 20 years I will hear about all the jumping and crazy shenanigans that went on with them.
This is the coolest thing ever for a boy’s room….I have to make sure my son NEVER sees this, or he’ll have me at Lowes that very same day!!! I just made him pipe curtain rods, and I’m thrilled at how sturdy those materials are!
Ha! Come on… the pipe curtain rods are even cooler with a pipe hanging bed. 😉
Wow! These are the coolest beds ever. Nice job.
Those beds are pretty dang fabulous!!
Thanks, Kristen! I gotta say that I agree with you! 😉
Thanks, Betsy!
Found it! LOVE these beds. What a cool, cool idea. The room looks great.
Thanks, Kim! I am so glad you like the room (and found the beds).
Brilliany
Thank you so much! My son loves them. 🙂
Beckie, these are amazing! I was looking at plans to make a platform fort bed w/stairs for my 4 y/o grandson, but I think I need to show him this!
This is awesome! You answered all my would be questions too. I think this could seriously spice up our little rooms in our house!
I would love to know if you try it, Karisa, and I am glad the tutorial is pretty thorough. Please let me know if you do have any more questions. 🙂
No kid can resist a hanging bed, so be prepared to get building! 😉 My son loved his so much that I plan to do this project again in our new house.
Love them but just wondering what size are these beds? Single or Twin?
They are twin. Hope that helps!
I love the bed design. Do you have any idea of a weight rating on the pipes holding the frame? I am looking to get to around 400lbs total.
Wow wonderful beds!!!!!!!