When I moved into my apartment I was really excited about the bed the previous tenant was leaving me. He had "built" a bed platform thing that was about three feet off the ground i.e. plenty of storage space underneath. So I was thrilled! Turns out he didn't so much "build" a bed as attach a queen sized bed frame to some posts made of 2x4s, put another post (support beam) in the middle and call it good. Here's the "before" picture:
See, there's little ladders and everything! Well the ladders were about 1/4 inch too short so they slid under the bed while I was climbing up them and crashed to the floor once I was aloft. And the "sturdy posts" turned out to be wiggly and creaky so every time I rolled over in my sleep I was awakened by the bed banging into the wall. Sorry neighbors, it's not what you think. Anyway, I decided to take apart the bed and just have a non-creaking, non-wiggling mattress on the floor. I bought a hammer, screwdriver, and wrench and had about three hours until I had to leave for work so I figured I was good to go.
After I got everything cleared off the bed frame and took a good look at it I realized that I could save the actual bed and just remove the stilts This became the new plan.
I started by unscrewing the small screws that held the 2x4 legs together and then moving on to the giant screws. By giant I really do mean giant- the looked like the kind of screws that hold playground equipment together. I was getting huge blisters but luckily ye olde tambourine gloves came to the rescue!
Preeeeetty badass and also blister free. It took forever and it was sweaty and tiring but I eventually got all the legs off the bed! The support beam was screwed in underneath the plywood platform so I ended up bracing myself against the wall and kicking it until it loosened, then the weight of the bed pushed it sideways until the screws popped out. I felt really awesome and strong. Here's the finished product:
A totally normal looking, normal height bed! Sturdy and kind of Scandinavian looking, which I love. And here's the defeated pile of former bed, which is now in my backyard next to the compost cans because I don't know how to recycle wood:
All in all it was a successful project, although I really do need to plan more, allow more time for roadblocks, and figure out some kind of support system bigger than texting a friend, "Hey are you busy? I have a question about tools." In the end I did it, though, and my room is a much better place!
