Things to Consider when Building a Murphy Bed!

There are a few basic skills you need to have when you decide in building a Murphy bed.

Although the construction process of building a Murphy bed is not difficult for someone with basic woodworking skills, it can be a challenge for someone who has not done any woodworking projects before. So if you don’t have the required skills always keep in mind that you need to get professional help, because improper installation of a Murphy bed can result in injuries.

There are five main steps in order to do a Murphy bed project.

Step 1 – Cutting the wood

You can use the ready cutting sheet that comes with Easy DIY Murphy Bed Kit and take it to a home improvement or lumber store to get the wood cut there if you don’t have a saw or if you don’t want to cut the wood yourself. Keep in mind that it would be very difficult to get the wood cut in a small apartment, so it is always a good option to get the wood cut at your local home improvement store such as Home Depot or Lowes.

If you live in a house and have a garage or a shop you can cut the sheets of wood cut according to your cutting sheet yourself if you have tools and expertise to do so.

Step 2 – Preparing the wood

If you have a big working table that you can get the wooden pieces prepared for the next step good for you! If not be aware that the most challenging part of a Murphy bed project in a small apartment is that you have to get the job done on the floor which is not as comfortable but it’s doable.

In this step you need to tape the edges of the wood, make holes and get the hardware ready to be assembled. Buy a roll of heat activated edging tape that is the closest to the color of the wood that you are using to cover all of the exposed edges of your bed. We show you exactly in the construction guide which edges you need to apply the tape to so you end up with a professional looking Murphy bed.

Cut a strip of the edging tape an inch or two bigger than what you need and press the edge along the plywood with an iron, then run along the edge of the tape while pressing down with a scrap piece of wood. After that you can use a knife or an edging trimmer to trim the excess tape. If you are using plywood you can sand the edges to make it smoother.

Step 3- Construction of the bed

This is the most critical part of the process of building a  Murphy bed. There are hardware parts and measurements that have to be properly followed in order to let you go through the assembly without any problems. If you have any question during the process you can call us at our toll free number that is in the manual and video. Detailed diagrams and the pictures will show you where each piece of hardware is located and how it has to be installed.

Most of basic woodworking skills such as drilling and screwing will be required during the construction of the bed. In the second part of this step you need to make holes and put all the hardware in place. The Easy DIY Murphy Bed construction guidebook, assembly booklet , cutting sheet and items list , along with the instructional video all guide you step by step to get through the process.

Step 4 – Assembly of the bed parts 

Assembly is actually very easy, but you will definitely need someone to help you to assemble the bed. All the parts that you have already constructed will be put together at this stage, but don’t worry it is pretty easy to put all the already made pieces together in an hour or two.

Step 5 – Installation of the Murphy bed

Installing the bed and cabinet is probably very easy compared to the other parts of the project, but it is very important to get this part of the project done properly in order to have a safe and secure installation.

Keep in mind, that every wall bed or Murphy bed has two main wooden parts: The wall cabinet and the bed frame. In this step you need to make sure that the wall cabinet has been properly anchored to the wall for safe operation. The bed frame is attached to the wall cabinet by the bed hardware. The complete process is shown and explained in the guidebooks and the video with purchase of the DIY Murphy Bed Hardware Kit.