Wanting to add height to your bed is easy when working with metallic elements that can be as simple and affordable for the hobbyist as those for carpentry. However, some DIYers feel a certain apprehension about handling iron. And if necessary, they choose to replace an entire piece of furniture, with the consequent outlay, instead of applying a cheap, simple and decorative reform.
This report will see an example: a neighbour’s bed has a very elegant Art Deco headboard, but it has a relief whose lower edge is too high and causes frequent bumps when changing position. We verify that we cannot lower the headboard, so there is only one way left: raise the bed’s height and change the four metal legs of the mattress. ! Let’s do it!
The headboard is here, a sophisticated piece bought from an antique store. In the original bed, the lower part of these ‘half-trunks’ was covered by the mattress. Modern beds are generally lower than older ones due to lower floor ceilings.
We will raise the bed in a very simple way. The legs are hollow tubes of 3 x 4 centimetres, and we will take one disassembled so that in the warehouse, they can see the measurements and the thickness of the sheet metal. In addition, we may not find pieces of that size, and taking the sample, they will advise us on the most appropriate alternative.
Well, there are tubes of these sizes in the iron store! The expert operator recognizes the piece at a glance: “30 x 40 tube”. Remember that they measure in millimetres, just like in lumberyards. Another thing to remember: we will wear gloves since the tubes are stained with grease.
In 5 minutes, we have our four legs cut off. The originals measure 27 cm, so we have ordered them 42 cm; better said, 420 mm. We think that it is a good height without compromising the solidity of the fixation due to excessive leverage.
We polished the edges with the metal file. We can now handle them without risk of scratches, and above all, put the rubber cover under them, which we will remove from the old legs by pressing with any rod or cane.
We start drilling holes for the through screw that will secure the ‘legs’ of the bed to the frame. To make the work easier for our special tool, we first make a small hole, which we will then enlarge with the final drill bit.
The ultimate drill with the 8-bit. We have put a wooden martyr and below it a bubble wrap to avoid scratches on the table. And, of course, we work with safety gloves.
Assembly of the new leg. We have supported the rack on the wall to handle it comfortably. The robust fixing that embraces the frame rail consists of two parts. First, the screws must be tightened as much as possible without deforming the sheet metal when working with metallic elements. We continue with the gloves to protect ourselves from any potential blow due to a slip of the key.
And here we see the height we have gained with this simple operation. Of course, we leave the screws out, to facilitate any maintenance adjustments . And we have put the rubber caps for the floor.
The result of our labour. We have raised the base of the mattress to the necessary height, and the edge of the mouldings is no longer a problem. And naturally, Coco is the first to give the go-ahead to the reform!
