We have a spare bedroom that is long, but also fairly narrow. With a queen bed there wasn't much space for anything else, but we wanted to make the room more multi-functional. The obvious solution was a murphy bed.
We spoke to some of the local suppliers, and for a basic murphy bed and cabinet with no additional storage space the price would have been about $3,500. That's a little steep, but the bigger problem is that we didn't like the style of any of them.
I'd seen two ikea hacks that used Pax cabinets with a murphy bed kit:
http://jerrystarbuckproject.blogspot.ca/2011/02/murphy-bed-with-ikea-cabinets.html
http://herbiesworld.blogspot.ca/2009/04/guest-room-remodel-budget-murphy-bed.html
Neither of those were what we were looking for either, but they inspired me to try something similar with some tweaks.
We spoke to some of the local suppliers, and for a basic murphy bed and cabinet with no additional storage space the price would have been about $3,500. That's a little steep, but the bigger problem is that we didn't like the style of any of them.
I'd seen two ikea hacks that used Pax cabinets with a murphy bed kit:
http://jerrystarbuckproject.blogspot.ca/2011/02/murphy-bed-with-ikea-cabinets.html
http://herbiesworld.blogspot.ca/2009/04/guest-room-remodel-budget-murphy-bed.html
Neither of those were what we were looking for either, but they inspired me to try something similar with some tweaks.
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Two Ikea Pax 100x236 Wardrobes spaced about 172cm apart.
If I were doing it again, I would probably increase the spacing to 180cm, just to get a few more inches clearance.
If I were doing it again, I would probably increase the spacing to 180cm, just to get a few more inches clearance.
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btw, I'm that HK client~ XD
ikea-hack-next-bed-with-sliding-doors
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/00207473/
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/20163779/
One thing about a wider span, is that the center section will sag more. jimuncle has done a version of this bed, and had a great idea for how to prevent the sagging: http://www.instructables.com/id/Wall-Bed/step7/Stabilization/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1XIB5PchAI
The instructions only say to screw it into the wall. I think you could go either wall or floor, but it definitely needs to be fastened to something.
The instructions also assume that you have a wood stud wall, and involve putting several long woodscrews into the bottomplate of the wall. Done properly there should be minimal damage - just 8 holes down at the baseboard level.
I have steel stud walls, and getting the screws to securely hit the bottom steel channel was trickier than it would be with wood framing. I ended up with a mix of machine screws into the channel and large toggle bolts in the drywall. I'm happy with how secure it feels.
And http://www.wallbedsbywilding.com/installation-murphy-frame.php has more detailed installation videos.
I'm living in a tiny flat in HK and just bought a next bed and a second hand ikea pax wardrobe with 2 sliding door. Need another 2 doors to make a similar cabinet. Hope I can finish it within March.
Thx for your magnificent idea.