Q: I have a 3-year-old son and live in a small apartment. I would like to put in a lofted bed to better utilize space, but I am worried about him falling off the bed, even with gates. Has anyone used the loft for storage and the area underneath for the bed? I'm looking for any and all ideas.
Sent by Lilli
Editor: The photo above is a great lofted bed project that Cathy shared with us, but you get the idea. Has anyone used a lofted space for storage rather than for sleeping?
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(Image: Cathy Young, Chunky Chooky)
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Yes, why not?
In college, my brother stored his drumset (yes!) above his bed, just by converting the top bunk into a platform.
Go for it!
I think it's a great idea. I'm not sure about the bed in the picture. It looks a bit dangerous with the pointy posts.
We've had a loft bed built for our son when he was 3. Not to discourage your safety concerns, but we've never had a problem with him falling/rolling off, and he is VERY rambunctious.
My father in law built a loft bed (http://reevesrantings.blogspot.com/2010/06/from-boy-room-to-brothersister-room.html) for my son when our daughter was born and we had to move her into his tiny room. I am actually more nervous about him playing up there than sleeping. We have a gate that surrounds most of the bed... so that makes me feel a lot better. We've never once had a problem... and we have so much more room for books and toys!
I think that you have to be very careful to build your own loft bed for a child. This bed in the photo has many safety issues- head and neck entrapment situation on the ladder-spacing should be larger than 9.5" -or you could get your head stuck. The impalment possibities are great if you live a heavily popuated vampire area. Its best to consult with someone that is familiar with safety standards for children's furniture.
You could just put a rail along the side to keep you son from falling off. But I also really like the idea of using the loft for storage...you should post some pictures if you decide to go that route. I'm curious about it now...
my kids have IKEA loft beds, they sleep below and store lightweight but bulky things in flat wicker baskets on top. They have curtains hanging on the sides and are very cozy and lovely inside.
We have the Ikea loft bed and my 4 year old son still doesn't like to sleep on top. I'd like it if he did! We even have the tent thing that goes on top to make him feel all cozy up there, but he'd rather sleep below. We keep all his stuffed toys up top. When his sister gets scared due to storms she climbs up and sleeps up there. It's a win win for us. She is almost 6.
Great idea. Please post pictures if you do this!
My only thought would be: your child will WANT to sleep on the loft in the future, at which point you'll lose all that storage space unless you plan on moving the stuff down to floor level (though i imagine you'll want the floor for play or desk space later?). Living in a small apartment with my family as well, I know what a big deal it would be to all of a sudden lose that much storage after getting used to it. Perhaps something like this (http://www.ikea.com/ca/en/catalog/products/30098892) would offer a more long term storage solution? We have this bed in full size and are amazed by how much stuff can fit inside there...much more useful than a bed with drawers.
We did this when my daughter moved out of her crib/toddler bed in order to make room for my son. We had a piece of MDF cut to fit the top bunk, added a very low table across the foot of the bed, and put her dollhouse and miniatures up top. She could lay out an entire imaginary world, and the best part was that she didn't need to clean up every night at bedtime. We called it the playloft.
It worked very well; I would have done it even if she'd been an only child--it was a great play space.
My sister and BIL bought a "junior loft" for my nephew when he was about 3. It is only a couple of feet off the ground--maybe three or so--so they felt more comfortable than putting him up on a full loft. There is lots of room under for him to play.
We're planning to pick up the IKEA loft bed on our next trip to IKEA. Our toddler son (18 months) will sleep on his futon underneath the loft until he's old enough to sleep on top. We'll use the top part for storage in the meantime, hopefully disguised as something cool... maybe those giant lego toy boxes we saw here not too long ago.
We have an Ikea loft from my college days that we've put up in my 1.5 year old son's room. We use the top loft for storage (small bins and whatnot) have his crib below. So far, he loves it and it's made our tiny apartment feel a lot more spacious!
I grew up with bunkbeds (which were my dad's when he was a kid). Since I was an only child, I would switch which bunk I wanted to sleep on every year or so. Since each bunk had fitted plywood, whichever bunk didn't have the mattress was used for toy storage. It worked great!
I think the Ikea Kura loft would be perfect. The sides on the top bunk are solid and pretty high. If you used a peice of plywood with carpet instead of the mattress you make a nice space up there. You could also add a platform with storage under like the one on this post.
http://www.ohdeedoh.com/ohdeedoh/small-kids-big-color-2009/tommaso-lorenzos-bright-bedroom-small-kids-big-color-entry--100342