Ladder - chest of drawers: sizes and materials

Is it difficult to assemble an attic bed with a chest of drawers with your own hands? In the article we will try to figure out what the main dimensions of the structure should be and what materials should be used when creating it.

What it is

Like many ingenious ideas, the concept of a ladder-chest of drawers is so simple and obvious that at the first glance at this structure it is even strange that no one had thought of it before. However, we are getting ahead of ourselves.

Classic bunk bed ladder - vertical, with two bowstrings and relatively thin crossbars between them. The only advantage of the design is its compactness.

There are much more disadvantages:

• She's uncomfortable. For a nursery with certain reservations, the solution is still suitable; but an adult man weighing one hundredweight, climbing over wooden beams is not a sight for the faint of heart.
• She's dangerous. For a three-year-old child, one and a half to two meters, at the level of which the surface of the second tier is usually located, is a significant height. Falling can cause serious injury.

Note! If the bed is not fixed to the walls, the problem of its stability is also relevant. A notoriously well-fed man, when trying to climb the second tier, is likely to overturn the entire structure on himself.

A solid marching (or turning) staircase would be an excellent solution to the problems of a bunk bed, but there is a logical contradiction here: the second tier or attic beds are needed primarily to save space, which will require an unacceptable amount of space for a flight of stairs.

Let's think, however: after all, the space under the inclined march can also be used! What if you turn a built-in wardrobe into a staircase, and use the space under the tread of each step for a drawer device? The idea is good, but how to implement it?

Practical implementation

Over eighteen

Let's make a reservation right away: our design will be designed for use in an adult bedroom. Which implies:

1. Dimensions (edit), focused on the proportions and physique of an adult.
2. Structural strength. On sale, it is easy to find attached wooden chest of drawers ladders for children's bunk beds; their size, in principle, allows an adult to use such a ladder, and the price is quite modest.

However, steps made of 16 mm laminated chipboard, fixed by furniture screws entering their ends, limit the maximum load to 15-20 kilograms. For us, such a solution is categorically not suitable.

Dimensions (edit)

It is clear that built-in bunk beds with a ladder-chest of drawers are quite logical to design according to the shape of a particular room.

However, some dimensions are not due to the shape of the walls and the height of the ceilings, but to human anatomy.

• The optimal step height (and, accordingly, the chest of drawers hidden in it) is 20 centimeters. Higher altitude is less comfortable when climbing and increases the likelihood of stumbling when descending; less will complicate storage of any bulky things in boxes.
• The horizontal section of the step (tread) should ideally have a width of 25 to 30 centimeters. A large width will mean an unjustified increase in the area occupied by the stairs, less - again, the likelihood of stumbling during a night trip to the toilet.
• The minimum width of the stairs is 60 centimeters. And this limitation is related to safety: not fully awake, you can easily lose your balance on a step that is too narrow.
• The space under the attic bed is often used as a work space: a desk with an armchair or chair fits perfectly there. For a compact apartment, the solution is quite adequate. In this case, the minimum distance from the floor to the bottom of the bed is 1.5 meters: in this case, the seated person will not be forced to bend his head.

Useful: if the height of the ceiling allows, it is better to leave a distance of at least 120 centimeters between it and the bed surface. It will allow you to sit down without hitting the ceiling with your head.

• A reasonable minimum bed width for one person is 90 centimeters, for two - 140 centimeters.
• The comfortable length of the bed, as you might guess, depends on the height of the owner. 2000 millimeters are considered the norm.

Materials (edit)

What is a ladder with drawers made of? What materials are stiff and strong enough for the treads to be used by an adult?

1. The supporting frame is assembled from a bar with a section of 40x40 millimeters. The bar must be dry, otherwise it will inevitably lead. Before assembling the structure, the finished frame elements are treated with an antiseptic primer and covered with at least two layers of drying oil, varnish or paint.
2. The material of the steps is a board. Plywood or OSB of any thickness with a step length of 60 centimeters or more will inevitably spring; the bar providing additional rigidity will force you to unnecessarily reduce the height of the drawer.

The thickness of the board depends on the length of the step between the support points:

• With a staircase width of 60 cm, 30 millimeters is sufficient.
• For an 80cm step, a 40mm board is best.
• 100 cm corresponds to a thickness of 50 millimeters.
• Finally, for a step 120 centimeters long, a 6 centimeter board is taken.

Output

We looked at the general principles of creating bedside chest of drawers. In the video presented in this article, you will find additional information on this topic (also learn about the features of making oak stairs).

Success in creative work!