# IKEA bed assembly

We build every IKEA bed: MALM, HEMNES, BRIMNES, NORDLI, with or without storage and drawers. Slatted base and mattress placed for you.

We put every IKEA bed together the same way: all bolts hand-tight first, then the frame squared and levelled, and only then everything brought up to tension. Work the other way round and the frame is pulled out of square, which comes back three weeks later as creaking. A MALM or NORDLI stands within about an hour; a bed with a lifting base or drawers takes longer, because the mechanism has to run evenly on both sides.

**Price: On request**

## Scope of work
- **Ranges** — MALM, BRIMNES, HEMNES, NORDLI, SLATTUM and TARVA — with or without storage and headboard.
- **Storage options** — MALM with 2 or 4 drawers or with storage under the lift-up base, BRIMNES with a storage compartment under the base — runners set so drawers close smoothly under weight.
- **Slatted base** — LURÖY or LÖNSET fitted to size, slats evenly spaced, no rattling slat that comes loose.
- **Headboard** — Anchored to the frame without play — a headboard that ticks or moves with every turn is a headboard fixed wrong.
- **Mattress** — Optional: we'll help lift and place your mattress — handy if you're on your own and the box is on the top floor.
- **Old bed** — On request we take the old bed away. Small surcharge for disposal; your bedroom is clear right away.

## Why one bed stays silent and another starts to creak

### Hand-tight, square, and only then fixed
A bed frame is not a stack of loose parts but one structure that is only true once it comes under tension as a whole. Tighten the first corner fully straight away and the rest of the frame is forced out of square, leaving a little unwanted pre-load in every joint. So we set everything hand-tight, measure the diagonals — they should match within a few millimetres — and only then tighten in rotation. Creaking almost always starts where timber moves against timber under a bolt that is slightly loose or slightly skewed, and that order of work prevents it.

### Chipboard forgives you once
IKEA beds are built from chipboard with a veneer skin, and chipboard has no fibre that springs back. A screw that has once been over-driven will not bite again however hard you turn it: the hole has gone round and the chips around it have been ground to powder. So we work at a low torque setting and take the last part of the turn by hand. If a hole is already gone, we glue in a timber plug and re-drill rather than driving a fatter screw. The same rule applies to wardrobe panels, see [IKEA wardrobe assembly](/en/ikea-kasten-montage).

### A lifting base is a mechanism, not a board
With a MALM with storage or a BRIMNES with drawers, the time goes into adjustment rather than driving screws. The two gas struts or hinge arms must extend equally on both sides, otherwise the base rises askew and jams in the rim. The drawers run on runners that must sit square and be set for load: empty, everything glides; full, a skewed drawer starts to rub. So we test with the mattress in place and pull each drawer fully out twice. In a teenager's room we often combine this with a workspace, see [desk and chair assembly](/en/ikea-bureau-stoelen-montage).

### The slatted base goes in last
LURÖY is a roll of loose slats on webbing; LÖNSET is a glued unit with more spring. Neither belongs in the frame until that frame is level and fixed. Fit them earlier and a slat jams in the rim and later breaks at exactly that point. Every slat must seat with an audible click, and the centre rail has to carry the base in the middle — a centre leg that does not quite reach the floor lets the bed sag, and you feel that within a month. A box spring works entirely differently, see [bed assembly for every brand](/en/bed-montage-service).

### Headboard, wall and bedside tables
A headboard bolted to the frame moves with the bed; a headboard that meets the wall must either keep clearance or be fixed. If the bed stands tight against a cold outside wall we deliberately leave a few centimetres of air, so the timber does not work and no damp is trapped behind it. We set the height to the mattress you actually use, not the one in the brochure — that easily makes ten centimetres of difference in visible headboard. Bedside tables go at the height of the mattress edge, because that is the height at which you put something down at night.

### The route to the bedroom
We build the bed in the room where it will stand, and that is not a luxury: an assembled double frame rarely passes an internal door or a turn on the landing. What we want to know in advance is the width of the stairs, whether there is a turn in them, and whether the mattress is already upstairs. A 160-wide mattress is the most awkward load of the whole job, heavier to handle than the boxes. If an old bed is still there, we dismantle it first and stack the parts. For a whole home we agree that order in advance, see [office and living room assembly](/en/kantoor-en-woonkamer-montage).

## Dimensions per bed size: what the frame occupies on the floor and how much room we need around it to work. The outside size is a rule of thumb; the exact figure is in the manual for your series.

| Mattress size | Frame occupies (rule of thumb) | Working room | What catches you out at this size |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 90 × 200 single | Mattress plus 12–16 cm in width | 50 cm along one long side | Usually still passes an internal door assembled |
| 140 × 200 | Mattress plus 14–18 cm in width | 50 cm along both long sides | The headboard is often too long for a narrow landing |
| 160 × 200 | Mattress plus 14–18 cm in width | 60 cm all round | Centre rail and centre leg must be levelled with the rest |
| 180 × 200 | Mattress plus 16–20 cm in width | 60 cm all round | Slatted base in two halves; the joint belongs exactly centre |
| High sleeper or bunk 90 × 200 | Height 160–180 cm | Clear height to the ceiling plus a step ladder | Must be fixed to the wall; guard rail at the right height |
| Bed with lifting base | As the size above, plus travel | Full mattress length clear at the foot end | The base swings forward; that space has to exist |

## Frequently asked questions
### Will a MALM with drawers or a lift-up base keep running smoothly?
Yes — we set the drawers with the supplied adjustable feet so they close smoothly under load.

### Why does a bed creak and how do you prevent it?
Creaking comes from one or two bolts that are not tight enough. We set every joint with the driver on a low torque setting, follow up by hand, and add felt washers between frame and headboard where needed.

### Do you fit the slatted base and the mattress too?
The slatted base goes in only once the frame stands, and every slat is tested for that click that says it is seated. Lifting and placing your mattress is on request, at no extra charge.

### Will an assembled bed still pass the bedroom door?
A single frame usually will, a double frame rarely does. That is why we build as standard in the room where the bed will stand. Tell us in advance whether the boxes are already upstairs and whether the staircase turns — that decides how much of the time goes into carrying.

### What do you do when a screw hole has been stripped?
We glue in a timber plug, let it take, and re-drill the pilot hole. Driving a fatter screw into the same hole does not work: it only pushes the chips further apart. If a panel is damaged in several places we say so honestly, rather than screwing the bed together anyway.

### Will you take the old bed away?
By arrangement we dismantle the old bed and remove it for a contribution towards tipping costs. Say so in advance and we plan time for it and keep room free in the van. Without an arrangement beforehand we cannot take it with us.