Mid Sleeper bed - Project

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Hi!
I would like to build a mid sleeper for my 2.5 year old daughter. Her room is tiny about 4 x 2.5m with window and door on the shorter walls.

The inspiration

One of the walls is hollow so I need legs on the left side. On the right side frame will be secured to the wall with several size 10 screws and plugs. I want my bed to be more decent so the adult can seat or even sleep on it safely... beside my daughter loves jumping on the bed. It is designed to take a standard size single mattress (1900 x 900 mm) and in the remaining space there will be a storage/table (H300 x W500 x D900 mm) with an opening lid on hinges. I want to fit the stairs on one side for going up and the slide on the other side so it is safer (and more fun) to go back down.

This is the look of a bed

And some drawings with dimensions

Frame legs and facias

Frame will be build of 4x2 redwood timber
http://www.savoytimber.com/timber-s...nch-x-2inch-par-planed-all-round-redwood.html
and brackets
http://www.screwfix.com/p/heavy-duty-angle-bracket-60-x-60-x-40mm-pack-of-25/71671

Legs will be made of 4x4 timber
http://www.savoytimber.com/timber-s...nch-x-4inch-par-planed-all-round-redwood.html

Facias on sides of the bed are 8x1 timber
http://www.savoytimber.com/timber-s...nch-x-1inch-par-planed-all-round-redwood.html
Would 11x1 be more suitable?

Some drawings

Fence

I want the fence to be safe hence I want to build it with this 15x68 mm stripwood
http://www.wickes.co.uk/Wickes-Pine-Planed-Square-Edged-Stripwood-15-x-68-x-2400mm/p/129301

Stairs storage/table and slide

Originally I was going to use 18mm MDF for the job but after listening to some advice I'm not sure any more. Would 18mm plywood board or chipboard be better? I realise that plywood is about twice the price of MDF but extra £20 would not make a massive difference in the budget (£200-250). What do you guys think?

Finish

I want to assemble all the parts with simple woodscrews. sunk the heads and cover them with a wood filler before painting
http://www.screwfix.com/p/ronseal-multipurpose-wood-filler-natural-250g/38120#

Paint

Painting wood is a completely unknown land to me. I just want to paint it white, not too shiny, durable (so it wont catch the dirt an will be easy to clean). I've had some brief reading and from what I understand first I have to use primer/undercoat
http://www.screwfix.com/p/dulux-trade-trade-quick-drying-wood-primer-undercoat-white-1ltr/24583
And after that a satinwood
http://www.screwfix.com/p/dulux-trade-trade-satinwood-gloss-paint-pure-brilliant-white-1ltr/13081

I also consider using Dulux Once satin paint.

All the wood will be ready cut to size by the suppliers The whole thing will be assembled in my friends garage, including painting, and transported to my place.

My Questions

1.
I understand that the wood I'm using is smooth and ready to paint. I want to ask you how I can round the edges of the timber while keeping it nice and straight? I don't have a router but I do have chisels, drill, angle grinder etc. Could I just use a fine sand paper on the piece of wood?

2.
I have no experience in wood painting. Can I use a roller with mentioned paints or brush is a better choice? My friend has a small (15 or 20l) compressor and a set of painting nozzles of unknown quality. Do you think that it is worth to give it a try? Would spraying the paint be easier to me and would it give a better effect?

3.
What do you think of dimensions? This is my first project and it is hard to imagine if some elements are too small or too big, too high/low etc.

I want to thank in advance to anyone who would like to show an interest in my project and share any thoughts or advice.
 
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A paint roller makes the dec easier, small mohair roller.
Would stick with ladder, steps are small for an adult and risk hitting you head in use , with a ladder you can use your hands and it also keep you body lower as you climb in.
Slide needs a rail across the top for safety or high sides down the first 600mm.
 
Sand the edges.

MDF will give a better paint finish. Plywood has better screw holding power, and general strength (*IF* it is good quality and not cheap Chinese rubbish). But you could just use thicker MDF, personally I think 18mm would be sufficient, depends on how you fix the joints/corners.

Spraying would be easier and better, no reason why you couldn’t brush finish though.

The slide looks way to steep to me. I would personally make it less steep, and build some sides. Given the room size, I would consider it impractical to consider.

What about bed slats?
 
yes forget about the slide a danger unless as said much longer and shallower
what you show will be little different than jumping off feet first from a sitting position

the sides rails need more support than the side frame can supply alone

you only need a frame on exposed faces a 2x1" batton secured to the far wall to support the slats is all you need
make the ladder vertical with 4" deep and 10" wide treads place the ladder 1/3 along the side
 
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foxhole
My daughter cannot use a ladder yet. The ceiling is 3.5m high so there is no danger of hitting it. It is also only a metre high an adult would not need to walk on steps. I decided to build the stairs to have some extra shelving space. You're probably right a bout hight sides of a slide. Thanks.

AronSearle
I did not show the slats on the drawings to keep them clean. I'm going to use the slats (and the mattress) from my friend's son old bed. The slide does look a bit to steep to me too but I have seen some mid sleepers with slides and those look about 45 deg. However the regulations (for playgrounds) say that it should be 30 deg on average and not steeper than 50 deg in any place. I will have reconsider my design... I will try to spray some spare wood and see how it goes. To build the steps I just want to join the MDF elements with wood screws (size 4). Would that be sufficient? Or should I use Ply for this kind of fixing?

big-all
I will reconsider the slide design or possibly use a ready made one...

Thank you for your advice!
 
foxhole
My daughter cannot use a ladder yet. The ceiling is 3.5m high so there is no danger of hitting it. It is also only a metre high an adult would not need to walk on steps. I decided to build the stairs to have some extra shelving space. You're probably right a bout hight sides of a slide. Thanks.

AronSearle
I did not show the slats on the drawings to keep them clean. I'm going to use the slats (and the mattress) from my friend's son old bed. The slide does look a bit to steep to me too but I have seen some mid sleepers with slides and those look about 45 deg. However the regulations (for playgrounds) say that it should be 30 deg on average and not steeper than 50 deg in any place. I will have reconsider my design... I will try to spray some spare wood and see how it goes. To build the steps I just want to join the MDF elements with wood screws (size 4). Would that be sufficient? Or should I use Ply for this kind of fixing?

big-all
I will reconsider the slide design or possibly use a ready made one...

Thank you for your advice!

the last high bed i made was for a 3 year old she was petrified off the ladder and parents where worried i explained the "unknown factor " off a vertical ladder and within 2 days she was climbing unaided without fear and loving the bed
please remember when designing your bed you need to be able to "make the bed" as in sheets and blankets or quilt
this may involve using the built in ladder [10" wide steps] or require the use off a chair or other ladder
before planning the bed you need to source the matress as they are more difficult to source to fit a bed custom made there will b e around 30 sizes around the size you need but only the exact size will be right otherwise you wont have enough room to fit the bedding to the matress or to much and you loose the pillows into the gap
you need the frame to be 12 to 25mm bigger than the matress to allow a comfortable fit

open boxes steps are a bad idea they may look practical but would you like your child 4 or 5 foot up in the air with nothing to hold on to??
a verical ladder is far nore efficient as using the space
and storage area open to the under bed space will be far more efficient
remember a "stair " must be 45% or less to be useable so stairs to raise 5ft will be up to 6 ft into the room from the bed outer edge
and because a 6to 8" or there abouts it a childs safe step the box idea would be far less usefull as the timber would use up around 3/4" so leave a say 5-7" useable space
 
To build the steps I just want to join the MDF elements with wood screws (size 4). Would that be sufficient? Or should I use Ply for this kind of fixing?

*decent* plywood, 18mm thick would be better to edge fix into.

You need to think about racking, if you attach a sheet to one side of the boxes, this will stiffen the whole structure up, not so necessary with plywood, more essential with MDF, recomended for both.

I'd agree with BA that without some kind of hand rail, they would be a bit hard to use, and stairs may be better.
 
I would agree with the previous comments about a ladder. Kids learn fast and will be climbing confidently in no time. Present them with a fun challenge and they will overcome any fear/ lack of capability very quickly.

One other consideration is the spacing of your side rails. Bear in mind that heads can get jammed in between the rails and so you should aim for a gap no bigger than 100mm (this is the regulation spacing for spindles on stairs) to avoid any nasty accidents. Waking up in the middle of the night with your head stuck through the side rails will scare a child rigid. :eek:
 
Hi!

Thank you guys!

I decided to follow your advice:

1.
I'm going to build a vertical ladder rather than steps. Can I use the same material which I use for the rail? Can I just fix elements of the ladder with wood screws (glue?) or use nuts and bolts? I understand that 4" by 10" are the internal dimensions. So how wide and thick the ladder steps should be? Would 38x15mm be enough?

2.
I will redesign rail to make sure the spaces are safe.

3.
I want to keep the slide but think of some better design. What do you think about this one?:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Make-a-indoor-slide-for-kids/
 
the simplest way is to use 2x1 par or planed[20x44mm] for the handrail /ladder sides
you then use 4x1" par [20x95mm]
you need to work out the step size you want say its 7"high and 10" wide you cut the treads 254mm[10"]+20+20= 294mm
you then cut the sides 158mm[178-20]
you then start at the bottom screw the back off the side to the inside off the 2x1 level with the back edges with 2 screws each side
you then secure the tread one screw each side
this allows the wood to take the weight and not the fixings
the actual gaps between treads depends on the child 'your top rail [bed frame] height
the second to top tread will ideally be around 2" below below bed frame to allow toes to tuck in and use the instep rather than toes to support the weight
all you will have above the top step is the handrail off the steps that extend up to meet the gaurd rail as an end support each side

the gaurd rail will ideally be made from 4x1 at 3 3/4"[95mm ]spacings with a second rails with the bottom edge around 1to 2" above the matress dependant on thickness this will avoid getting there head caught when you compress the matress giving a large gap then unloading the matress closing it up
more information if want it and maybe pictures if i can work it out :eek: :eek:
 
I'm going to build a vertical ladder rather than steps.

Make sure all the timber used for the treads is straight grained with no knots.

Have you looked around in local 2nd furniture shops, you might be able to get a second hand bunk bed reasonably cheap, and cannabilise the ladder and timbers. The ladder won't be hard to make, but is the realativly hardest part to make in your construction.

3.
I want to keep the slide but think of some better design. What do you think about this one?:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Make-a-indoor-slide-for-kids/[/QUOTE][/quote]

Looks good.
 
AronSearle
I don't really want to use anything ready made but rather do it myself.

big-all
I'm not sure if I understand your instructions exactly. English is not my first language so I struggle sometimes. I'm putting some pictures and pls let me know if got it right.
 
yes spot on except the spacers are the same as the treads [95mm]giving full support to the treads to the front edge
the ladder is also fully vertical with no angle to hold the rails around the top off the bed
 
I guess this is it then:

The angle is just for the presentation purpose.
I'll try to do the whole bed redesign and put it here. That will not include the slide. It will be on the separate drawing.
 

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