Loft Beds and Bunk Beds - Buying Ready Made Vs. Building Your Own

By: Patrick Oakley

There are a lot of good reasons why you might choose to build your own bed, instead of buying one ready made. The most commonly cited reason, which may or may not be relevant to you, is the price. Building a bed tends to be much cheaper then buying one ready made, although if you buy second hand you can get a good, rugged bunk bed for under $150. You might be able to get a new one at that price, as well, but I seriously doubt that any bed you buy that cheaply will be well made enough to be worth having. As you know, if you want quality, it will come at a price... Unless you buy it from someone else.

If it is the price putting you off, then you should seriously consider building your own. It's not nearly as difficult as you might expect to construct a bed, and bunk bed kits are surprisingly easy to get hold of. You can eve, if you wish, simply purchase the plans for the bed and supply the tools and materials yourself. Well, you'd have to supply the basic tools yourself anyway, but full kits include everything that goes into the final product. Now, lets think about why you might want to do this.

In the first place, as I've already mentioned, kits are easy to put together. Not completely effortless, but you don't have to be an expert woodworker to do it. All you need is a bit of basic knowledge, and some standard tools that you'll almost certainly have lying about anyway, such as a hammer or screwdriver. If you've bought a full kit, then all you need to do is start assembling it, otherwise you'll have to pick up the lumber first. Just stop off at your local home hardware store, and they'll have what you need.

Obviously, if you want something slightly unusual, then constructing it yourself is the only way to ensure that your specifications are met. As the old saying goes, if you want it done right, do it yourself. You can never be completely certain of the quality of something that you buy, but you can if you make it on your own.

The second most common reason for building a bunk or left bed is that building it is a fun activity. All the family, parents and children both, can contribute. This transforms it from a necessary item of furniture, into a fun family project. Additionally, if you don't want to involve the kids, then you can build one for your children (or grandchildren) as a gift. Something you've built yourself will, naturally, be of much more value to them then something just bought in a store. This way, when they have other children over to play and get asked about their nice new bunk bed, they can proudly say "my dad built it". Or even, "My granddad built it, and I helped!"

The other reason for building, rather then buying, which has already been touched on slightly, is that only when you build it yourself can you be sure of getting what you want. Whatever you are looking for in a bed, when you put it together yourself you can make it how you want it to be. Obviously don't stray too far from the plans, unless you are very good, as you don't want to risk your children's safety. However, even within this limit there is a lot of room for imagination. For example, adding paints or stencils. This can be a significant factor if you need it to be a specific color, for example to match an existing piece of furniture (or just your walls) and is something to consider.

There are plenty of options when it comes to deciding exactly what plan you want for your bunk bed, so you should have no difficulty finding something suitable. The bed itself can follow a number of different basic designs, with a number of extra features available as well. For example, you could get a bunk bed with storage drawers underneath it, or a loft bed with a desk or closet under it. There's a lot of choice to pick from.

In conclusion, you may want to buy a low cost bunk bed in some situations, particularly if you just need it for a short time, or you need it very quickly. If you're not comfortable using basic tools, then building a bed is not for you, although I'm still not sure I would advise buying one.

Building a bed, though, is not just about the cost. It's also about bringing you together as a family, and making a home that you can be proud of. It's about stamping your own personality and individuality as a family onto your furniture, so that you can look in your kids bedroom and think, I made that... no other child has a room quite like mine.

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Patrick Oakley is a professional carpenter who specializes in designing furniture to make efficient use of space. He has recently begun selling bunk beds and loft beds over the internet.

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