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| Loft Bed Plans - Lumber & HardwareThe good news about loft bed plans is that you don't necessarily have to be a woodworker to build a project like this. Depending on how complex you want to get, some loft beds can be built using simple 2x4 lumber and a few pieces of plywood. However, going easy on lumber costs doesn't mean going easy on safety. People can get hurt on a loft bed that is poorly constructed. That's why I like to take the money I'll save on wood and put it into some better hardware. More on that later.
With most loft bed plans, the bulk of the project is constructing the legs and rails (the side sections that hold the corners together). We could certainly join all the pieces together with heavy-duty woodscrews and gorilla glue. That would give us an incredibly strong and safe frame. However, that would somewhat defeat one of the nicer features of a loft bed: the ability to take it apart and put it back together again. So the challenge will always be to find a type of construction and joinery that is strong and durable, yet easy to disassemble. I've found that 3/8" carriage bolts with matching washers and nuts do a nice job in both these regards. They're plenty strong to keep 1x8 sides rails, for example, firmly mounted to a pair of 2x4s at each leg. Even with lots of bumping and shaking, these carriage bolts will hold their ground. And even if things start to loosen up over time, a quick turn with a wrench will tighten everything back up like new. Don't worry that part of the bolt has a square shape (just under the round head). This will compress nicely into the soft dimensional lumber we're using and add a little more stability to the joint. The more critical choice in hardware for loft bed plans will be finding something to support the plywood board that supports the mattress. This can be a little more tricky, since this part of the bed will have to stand up to the weight of whomever is lying the mattress, and maybe a couple other small bodies jumping up and down at the same time. My first choice in hardware for supporting the plywood is 1 -1/2" angle iron, mounted along the inside of each rail. You'll need to get the type with holes along the length of the strip, which give you something to drive your woodscrews through. If you're building a typical twin-mattress sized bed, that means getting a 72" strip for each side, and a 36" strip for each end. Once you get over the sticker shock for this kind of hardware (about $50 for all four pieces) I think you'll sleep better at night knowing there's no chance of that mattress board falling through the frame.
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