Bed-podiums

 Bed-podiums

Bed-podium - this is most often a mattress, which is located on a hill. This bed allows you to create more space in the room and organize the arrangement of furniture in the interior with maximum comfort. Bed-podium allows you to save the budget for additional furniture: with it you will not need tables, tables and even cabinets.

Benefits

The advantage of such a bed is that it can not be fully extended from the podium, using it as a small sofa or a place to rest during the day. Compartment for linen and pillows is a built-in box (or a couple of boxes) with hinged lids.Upstairs you can position the workplace: a computer desk and several hanging shelves for books.

Species

A retractable bed on wheels - on the podium there is a working area, shelves of books or a small closet, and the bed will be rolled out, built in from the side. In such a bed are important noiseless rubber wheels, which do not scratch the floor. Cheaper plastic wheels with repeated movement of the bed in a very short time will create marks on the floor, which will be virtually impossible to remove. In addition, plastic wheels often break, so for softer contact with the floor and noiseless movement of the bed, wheels made of high quality rubber are best suited.

The bed located on the podium itself may look different, depending on the preferences of the owner and the available interior solutions. There are different types of designs:

  • Bed on a high catwalk. The high monolithic podium is made of wood poured with concrete, and the surface of the elevation is pre-leveled with a tie. The coating is applied either the same as in the room as a whole,or it may look different: differ in color, in the quality of the material, in order to somehow highlight the sleeping space in the surrounding space.
  • Frame podiums are easy and simple assembly technology, they are much easier to manufacture and install yourself. The frame base is made of wood or metal or two materials are combined with each other. Inside it can be placed sliding or folding drawers for linen and other things. Any frame basis with a filling in the form of boxes will be a salvation for a person who has a lot of things, but does not want to acquire a large amount of furniture in the form of large-sized commodes or wardrobes: everything can comfortably and compactly fit into the built-in boxes.
  • Also among the varieties of podium structures sometimes distinguish the traditional (most often, it's just a wooden frame, sheathed with carpet, linoleum or chipboard) and advanced (just all types of more complex frame structures with fillings in the form of compartments belong to it).
  • For families with small children living in dormitories or communal apartments, a small catwalk with a roll-out bed is ideal. Parents can comfortably sit upstairs, and children happily fall asleep on the roll-out bed, which in the daytime can simply be rolled up under the catwalk, thereby freeing up space for games. The presence in the podium, in addition to the bed, a large drawer with a length of 1 m helps to maintain order in the room, because in the box you can remove at least some of the children's toys and small things.

The very idea of ​​a catwalk with roll-out parts is very popular with children: now they can also collect toys and go to bed in the form of an entertaining game.

Location options

If the podium bed is designed by the window, the best option is a podium with drawers at the bottom. This placement saves space and adds natural light as the bed rises higher. It is better to remove the battery from the window, and instead install a special convector on the floor. Thus, the bedroom is divided into two parts, which look great, being designed in the same color and style. As a finish, you can use eco-friendly materials from natural wood, or laminate. To increase the visual space, you can decorate the walls with mirror panels or paste on them wallpaper with a beautiful landscape.

If there is a niche or alcove in the room, this is the ideal place to install a classic catwalk, because it is not necessary to design a pull-out bed, in this case. It can simply be installed in a niche, additionally equipped with modest necessary interior items, depending on the wishes of the owner. The standard dimensions of the alcove are 2.40x 2.50 m, which allows you to place in it a double bed with drawers below.

To make the sleeping area beautiful and original, you can hang a curtain separating the bed from the main space of the room, as well as equip the alcove with several sources of quiet light.

There are many ways to place the podium on the balcony or loggia, despite the limited space. If the width of the balcony allows, there you can put a place to rest on a classic catwalk. The lack of a cold floor can be compensated by incorporating the popular “warm floor” heating system into the podium. An excellent way “two in one” is to place the construction along the entire length of the loggia in the form of several wide and durable wooden boxes in which homemade preparations will be stored.In warm weather, or if the balcony is insulated appropriately, put a mattress on top of the drawers - and the bed is ready.

If the loggia connects to the room by eliminating the window sill, there is nothing more optimal than building a podium in this place, because there is now plenty of space.

There is a great opportunity not only to build a large podium, but also to install an additional heating system in the room by building it inside a structure that will serve both technically and functionally at the same time.

In the children's room

When arranging a child’s room, one should first of all conduct room zoning: a child should always have a place to sleep, to play and to complete school homework. For the equipment of a children's room, both retractable and classical versions can be equally well suited. The retractable bed is good because the space in the room becomes larger. Moreover, when using this option, it is very easy to place the necessary areas in the nursery: the sleeping place itself is advanced, and the training area in the form of a table, a chair and several bookshelves is placed at the top of the podium.In the daytime, the bed is easily retracted inside the podium, and the child has the perfect space to play.

The option with built-in beds is very convenient if there are two children in a family. Berths in the form of vertically rolled-out beds are symmetrically arranged to the left and right of the podium, the steps are in the middle, and a kind of room with a working area is equipped at the top. During the day, beds are put inside, and thus space for two in the room becomes sufficient.

In this case, the podium itself looks quite high and will have at least two or three steps, which can also be used with benefit by incorporating convenient drawers in them for storing children's things.

Also a good way to equip a children's room is to put a bed on a high podium with a lot of drawers, where a child can put anything: from toys to school supplies. The room will be provided with order and sufficient space for games. If the choice is to create a high podium, there you can also install a small built-in table with a sliding mechanism, which will be both practical and very convenient.

Frame materials

Podiums can be made of cast concrete or wooden frame, lined with sheet material. In the first case, the concrete is poured into a pre-installed frame, which repeats the shape of the future podium. After the concrete has hardened, its surface is leveled with a tie, then the floor covering is laid. This may be tile, parquet, laminate, carpet, linoleum, etc.

Concrete podium is very durable and reliable, it does not lose moisture, does not rot and can withstand heavy loads.

This option is only suitable for private houses (on the ground floor), in urban apartments this design can cause damage to the floors.

The podium on the basis of wooden (metal frame) is very light, practically does not load the floors and is suitable for apartments in urban high-rise buildings. The frontal platform of the podium is made of flexible plywood, metal profiles, MDF panel, PVC plinth. The podium finish can be made using various materials: carpet, laminate, parquet, linoleum, cork, ceramic tile.

Accessories

Before choosing accessories for the bed, you need to decide what style of bedding the family prefers.These can be plain colors or patterned bedding. Bed covers in solid colors can be elegant, simple and can give the bedroom a modern hotel style. Pastel shades can contribute to a relaxing and peaceful atmosphere, which is great for the interior of the bedroom.

Proper fabric bedding and other accessories can complement the style of the bedroom. Gloss fabrics are a more popular choice than plain cotton or other matte fabrics. Glitter fabrics can brighten up a dark bedroom and create a more glamorous atmosphere. Accents and accessories can be added to the bed to make the room more beautiful than it is. A pillow with a bright, original accent, chosen for a set of bedding, will create more comfort in the room than the softest and most beautiful bedspread.

Reviews

According to user reviews, most prefer to create a bed-podium on their own, without ordering it in furniture stores. This type of furniture is especially popular among residents of small apartments. Also, many use the bed-podium for the children's room, creating additional space for games with children.Children's beds are being pulled out at the moment when they become necessary, and in their free time they move. Popular with parents and a round bed with a canopy. This option is chosen in the girls room.

Some users note that the bed-podium serves as a bunk bed, only on the second floor are computer tables and children's wardrobes. Many have on the podium not only a bed, but also a whole sofa, thus the room becomes visually much larger.

Dimensions

If the one-room apartment is small, the optimal dimensions of the podium for it will be approximately as follows: length 310 cm, width 170 cm, and height 50 cm. psychologically did not feel the "pressure" of the ceiling.

How to build?

Not only professionals in the field of furniture assembly can design a bed-podium with their own hands. For example, a simple traditional podium on a frame made of wooden bars is easy to manufacture, even for a person who is not a pro in this business.The frame podium of an improved design with filling in the form of boxes or a roll-out bed is much more difficult to do: first of all, you will need to draw a drawing in which the dimensions of the future product and its elements will be thought out in detail and with maximum clarity.

General recommendations for the independent production of any podium:

  1. Immediately you should think about the strength and reliability of the frame so that it can withstand the weight of a person’s body and pieces of furniture. The frame timber must be dry, not wet - in order to avoid its "shrinkage" and the appearance of squeak.
  2. In drawing up the drawing, one should take into account the thickness of the casing (for example, plywood) and finishing (most often laminate is used as it).
  3. It is also necessary to take into account the gap between the mattress of the future bed and the podium, in case the berth will be rolled out.

Here's how to build the most simple, but durable and reliable frame podium with drawers in a regular apartment. Materials for work and accessories that will be needed:

  • 20 mm plywood sheet;
  • 10 mm plywood sheet;
  • bars 50x5 mm;
  • bars 30x40 mm;
  • fasteners - dowels (nails), anchors, self-tapping screws, corners for fasteners 50 and 40 mm. The number of corners count, focusing on what size will be the podium.

The scheme of work is as follows:

  • At the beginning make a rough outline of the future design, take a pencil and draw their outline. Measure with a tape measure diagonals to take into account possible errors in the corners. If the size of the error exceeds 5 mm, on the move, adjust the length of the podium before leveling the diagonals.
  • In order to waterproof the floor lay a plastic wrap. Place the place of the future podium with cork backing and plywood 10 mm thick. Dowels to nail plywood to the floor. The technical clearance at the joints should be about 3 mm.
  • Measure and cut the frame bar 50x50 mm according to the dimensions indicated in the drawings. In order to get a preliminary overall picture of the podium, logs can be put on supports. If the timber is not completely dry, all the supports must be laid with a cork backing so that the wood does not creak afterwards after drying.
  • After that, you can begin to assemble and fasten the frame of the future podium. Lags to the side walls are attached with anchors, and only then the main part of the frame is assembled. A 20 mm thick plywood is placed on the frame and fixed, while a small technological gap is left between its sheets.To make boxes by the sizes specified in drawings - everything depends on technologies and opportunities. If the height of the boxes is small, you can simply connect the two bars with the help of the corners and attach them to a piece of plywood 10 mm thick.

Learn more about how to build a bed-podium with your own hands, see the video below.

Plywood is closed with a fine finish in the form of laminate. Now, finally, you can put up a large orthopedic mattress, and the bed-podium with drawers at the bottom is completely ready for use.

How to choose

The idea of ​​a podium with two vertically pull-out beds will be very popular with large families, in which two or more children, because in this case there are no problems with the organization of training, playing and sleeping places. In addition, if there are guests with children in the house, the upper part of the podium can be easily turned into a third berth, where you can accommodate up to two people, and when the beds roll in, guests and small owners of the house get enough space to play. .

A simple frame podium with an orthopedic mattress at the top is an ideal “budget option” for those who need a large double bed, but at the same time there is a great desire to save space and money. Since such a podium is very simple to manufacture, anyone can assemble it with the help of available materials, and the structure can be strengthened with additional crossbars and durable metal corners.

In order not to tinker with the covering, two layers of good paint can be applied over the plywood, choosing it to match the color of the main interior in the room.

Durable frame podium with a horizontally-rolled out bed is ideal for those who, living in a one-room apartment, want to save the surrounding space as much as possible. and not to purchase additional items of furniture for storing bedding and things. In the daytime, the horizontal pull-out bed can be partially extended, using it as a comfortable sofa, and the sturdy construction of bars and metal allows you to place any workplace at the top, and will not sag under the weight of furniture and the human body.

Monumental monolithic podium, filled with concrete, is good for people who have a lot of weight in both literal and figurative sense. If you build it at home, such a bed will not sag and will not break under the weight of a large person's weight.It will serve for a long time and this will help save money. Also, this design looks great in the interiors of large houses, especially if the podium has a non-standard circle or semicircle shape. Finishing of leather or leatherette, in this case, is the most preferable, as it especially emphasizes the solidity and stability of the structure.

The installation of the podium in the loggia, connected to the room, will perfectly fit into the living space of creative natures, who especially like the Japanese style. If you remove the subwindow unit, insulate the former loggia and build a podium adjacent to the window, the effect of an oriental note in the interior will be stunning. The additional heating system can be hidden under the same podium, and the room can be decorated with wallpaper with oriental patterns. To complete the picture you can put in the room a few colored rugs, pillows and handmade red lamps.

Beautiful design solutions in the interior

For a small and narrow bedroom, the best option would be a bed-podium, which has wide drawers and a couple of steps.The bed is installed on the top of the podium (classic version), which provides it with comfortable natural light in the daytime, and at the top you can leave room for a bedside lamp, a floor lamp and several shelves for books.

In a one-room apartment, the type of podium design will directly depend on the size of the room. With a large area under the bed, you can take part of the room, which is usually fenced off with a tall cabinet or shelving with built-in drawers and shelves. The bed is arranged with the help of an ordinary wide mattress in the upper part, and at the bottom you can arrange a compact workplace in the form of a table with drawers. Thus, the podium becomes multifunctional, and a person can do different things while being in the same place.

In the “Khrushchev” it is also quite possible to build an uncomplicated podium structure, considering the particular layout of such an apartment. Small area and low ceilings are not an obstacle for those who want to equip a compact and comfortable sleeping place, but all this must be taken into account when planning sizes.

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Information provided for reference purposes. For construction issues, always consult a specialist.

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