SOFA BED

 

This is a recent project, which came about as a result of my changing Anita’s little office back into a spare bedroom after she passed away.

 

The original plans came from a D.I.Y.  (Do It Yourself project) offered to readers and shown in an Australian magazine called Better Homes and Garden, May 2000.

 

Some changes and modifications have been made to strengthen the design and to utilise materials on hand.

 

The assembly was modified, as I had some concern about screwing directly into the edges of the MDF boards.

 

Experience has shown me  that MDF splits easily when screwing or nailing into the edges.  Screws also have a tendency to loosen over time as the sofa bed is moved around or, due to movement during its use.  The reason is because MDF has no fibre grain running lengthways through it for the screws or nails to grab and hold securely. 

 

MDF is made up of timber particles compressed into layers.  It is a valuable material for construction and furniture work but its use needs careful planning of the design and screwing and nailing must take into consideration this weakness.

 

One option would be to drill and glue dowels into each hole where there is a screw required.  This is not always practical and it is easier and better to put blocks into the edges to be joined or into the corners of the frames and screw through the MDF into these blocks or pieces of timber.

 

I put a timber block along edges where screws were recommended to be put in the edge of the MDF.  These blocks were screwed and glued into place and then the screws screwed through the fronts of the MDF boards.

 

It is much stronger and there is no movement.

 

The slide or glide was recommended as a commercial drawer type but I found that putting a timber runner top and bottom so that the bed extension could slide in or out,  achieved the same result and again was much stronger as I used 3” x 1.5: sized pine.

 

The arms were not upholstered, as that would have decreased the length of the bed.  Some 2” x1” slats were glued and nailed to the inside of the arms after the edges were rounded for effect.  The slats I already had on hand from dismantling an old pine bed.

 

The mattress and back were made from a double bed sized futon mattress donated by my daughter J.

 

The futon mattress was wide enough to provide a back and base when the bed was used as a sofa, but  large enough to pull down and make a double bed when extended as a double bed.

 

The back became part of the mattress when pulled down.

 

“Missy” also made the mattress covers and cushions to go with it.

 

She is,  like her mother, a very gifted young lady. J .

 

Of course Prof. denies any prejudice. J .

 

Each pic shows the sofa bed closed and open but without mattress and also closed and open with mattress.

 

 

VIEW 1 OF SOFA BED WITHOUT MATTRESS OR EXTENDED

 

 

VIEW 2 OF SOFA BED BASE WITH MATTRESS

 

 

VIEW 3 OF SOFA BED EXTENDED BUT WITHOUT MATTRESS

 

 

VIEW 4 EXTENDED AND WITH MATTRESS

 

 

 

Now a gentle warning to people making projects.  J

 

Now time to relax and have a joke against Prof.  J.

 

I don’t mind a laugh against myself.  Makes life interesting and also makes you a bit more careful.  J . 

 

As the bed is bulky and the passageway narrow I had to bring the sofa bed into the house by standing it on end.

 

I had carefully measured all the doorways inside the house and had ¾” clearance.

 

However, I omitted to measure the backdoor height and only measured the width, assuming the height would be the same as the other doors.

 

When the time came to bring it into the house I manoeuvred it on my own.   I can tell you it was heavy and awkward.

 

Its weight was equal to two pieces of MDF ¾” thick by 4ft x 8 ft long, plus slats and additional 3" x 1.5" pieces of timber for the extension frame and slides..

 

I struggled with it up the steps and when I came to manoeuvre through the backdoor I found it was 3/4" too high, (the height of the door weather stop).

 

I had to take it down and take off 1/2” off each armrest to reduce the height by 1".

 

While it was not funny at the time, the joke is against me for not checking the height of the back doorway.

 

It is a lesson for all of us to check and recheck everything J..