How to Save Space With a Murphy Bed

In a small or even medium-sized room, a bed takes up the vast majority of the available space, even though it is used fewer than half of the hours of the day. A Murphy bed, sometimes called a wall bed, saves this dead floor space by neatly folding away into a wall or bookcase. Follow these steps to use a Murphy bed to save space.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Use a Murphy bed in small rooms. One of the most basic uses for a Murphy bed, and the reason that William Murphy created it in the 1880s, is to make a small room a completely habitable place. If you have a very small room that has space only for a bed and nothing else, install a Murphy bed to make the room a completely functioning space.

2. Make a room multi-functional. To be more creative with room space, use a Murphy bed to make an office into a bedroom and a bedroom into an office. Add multi-purpose desks and tables to configure the room to adapt to your needs as they change throughout the day.

3. Get the right bed. Murphy beds come in various sizes, such as twin, double and queen. Like regular beds, they also come in different comfort and softness levels. Make sure to buy the right bed so you don't end up sacrificing hours of sleep in order to save space. Try out any Murphy bed before you buy it.

4. Take the measurements. Murphy beds can save you a lot of money by decreasing the amount of space you need to live. However, you should take measurements of your current space and the space you think you need to make sure that the bed will actually make your life more efficient. If not, then the bed will only be an unnecessary investment.

[brittjo]

on 9/30/2008 I recently bought a Camden wall bed at Old Creek Wall Bed Factory (http://www.wallbedfactory.com) after reading this how-to article, and it really falls into the #2 category. I have a guest room that I wanted to be able to use as a game room for my kids, and this bed is the perfect solution! It has a big board on the front that you can have a chalk board or white board on, which works great for a game of pictionary or for keeping scores. We love it!!