Here are 11 DIY Murphy bed projects that won’t torpedo your bank account. Some of these projects use ordinary building materials available at any home center, while others feature mechanical hardware or other materials purchased from specialty retailers and used in various ways to create fold-up beds. Various IKEA product hacks make for especially ingenious DIY Murphy beds.
Did you know? The fold-down Murphy bed is named after its inventor, William Murphy, who applied for the patent around 1900. Living in San Francisco where the local moral code frowned upon a woman entering a man’s bedroom, Murphy’s fold-down invention allowed his one-room apartment to serve as a parlor in which he could entertain friends of either gender. Although other forms of fold-up bed already existed, it was Murphy who invented the pivoting, counterbalanced design that caused his name to become attached to all hidden, fold-up beds.
How does the Lori Wall Bed open and close? The design relies on good old fashion muscle power. To help counterbalance some of the weight, the bottom of the bed frame has rounded “rocker” edges that double as shelving when the bed is closed. Each Lori wall bed kit comes with building plans and assembly fittings (more than 200 hinges, screws, connectors, and bolts). Customers can pick from two types of bed orientations—vertical or horizontal—and from three different bed sizes—twin, full, or queen. The mechanism kit for Katie’s queen-size Murphy came from Rockler. She also downloaded the company’s step-by-step instructions for building the cabinet and shelving units. Afterward, she modified the building plans to suit her space and needs. All three projects incorporated a floor-mounted bed frame with a spring mechanism. When assembled and installed, it’s an all-in-one free-standing device that supports, lifts, and lowers a mattress. To conceal, just build a cabinet around it.
