I bought a bunk bed from Merax here in the US through Amazon and it has similar design flaws as your bed. It has also got similar damage as your bed to the slats etc .I contacted the manufacturer and they have sent me some replacement parts but the damage to the bed is extensive. Thank you for your videos they have given me some ideas on what to do to bolster it otherwise I will have to discard the bed .I bought this bed a year ago and all this damage happened in a few months not 4 years like your bed but I do have several children.
My son's bed just broke two days ago just like this. I have been searching how to fix it for two days, and today somehow came across your video. Thanks so much, now I just have to go and get the wood and try to fix it like you did. I will have to get that forester bit and hopefully it comes out right like yours.
Just looking at making a bed for my grandson and remembered seeing your videos about the subject, sound advice well heeded is twice as good for me! Thanks.
Thanks for the advice. Shame you didn't have the time to check the bed over when you bought it but you do expect a level of safety when you buy in the UK. Good news that your daughter was unhurt. Love to see your new bed making project. You have set yourself up now so you have to make one!
A great way you go through the detail Andy. It allows us to decide what we like and don't like about your method and adapt for our own application. Job well done. Looking forward to the bespoke bed video.
I have a king size canopy bed and I've come across this problem. It's all wood and I had no understanding how to fix it until I found this video. Thank you hopefully I can get it fixed 😬
What a timely video. On investigating the increasing noise from my double bed, I found the slat support parting from the side rail. Admittedly the bed is ten years old but it had been assembled with a microscopic smear of glue on the prefinished rail and half a dozen chinametal screws. The glue joint had failed and most of the screws had sheared. I'll be able to sleep tonight thanks to some decent glue and screws. Covrog
Really appreciate your attention to detail and your explanations. Why do the the screw heads HAVE to be counter sunk? Would it not be stronger if the the screws(flat head screws) were not counter sunk. I had the same problem with a different bed. Rail split right along the support. I counter sunk from the finished side and used flat head screws and then used glue and Tnuts on the support side.
Apologies in advance for the 'dad joke'...... When they built the bed they took the pith! Good job on the repair, I have done similar in the past, its not just that style of bed, they all appear to be made in the same factory.
Just wanted to say that this is probably my favorite woodworking & carpentry channel. I like your explanations and no-nonsense approach. I also like that you generally show good/safe practices for the tools I also like the production quality: Good video. Good audio. Music isn't loud compared to your narration, etc. Oh, and the projects are fun. :)
Checked my Granddaughters bunk beds and they are made just like yours. I can't replace the side rails as I don't have the tools to do that but I'm going to try and remove all the small rails and replace with full lengths of wood, I have a good builders merchant near me that will rip the wood to size for me. Thank's for the interesting videos
Thank you so much for your help and expertise in this video I have 3 beds from dreams 2 is broken and I have to pay Altofts money to fixed One is manufactured problem one broken in beam Can I get some advice about
Great and interesting series Andy , the timber is almost certainly Radiata Pine probably grown in New Zealand, its extremely fast growing. the boards near the centre of the tree are cheap and low grade but the outer boards on the other hand are high value and are further processed to make the the very expensive and remarkable Accoya (sorry to be a wood anorak)
Hey if we apply glue on the rail side without biscuits does this make the job done? Of course with geniruse amount of glue . Brad nails and claims please to advise?
Great Vid Andy, The problem with most timbers is that they are too much like politicians - hard to find a straight one i am afraid.... Big regular problem nowadays is that nothing is made to last, its a throw away society we live in, and its why there is so much rubbish everywhere - No one seems to have any pride in making good quality goods that last !
I like your video I bought trundle bed for my kids one part is broke like you show in the video the video is really helpful for me but I have no machine thanks
When you did the remedial repair you put the screws through from the inside, which is exactly what you said not to do earlier in the video Personally I think that I would have replaced both side rails, assuming that it was worth repairing in the first place
Yes, for the remedial repair the side rails and slat support are exactly the same width so makes no difference what side you screw in from. And yes, just showing how you could fix it if that's the route you wanted to go down. 👍
Andy, many UA-cam gurus have stated that biscuits do not add much strength to a joint. They're good for alignment Glue is what holds things together. Dowels do form strong joints. Since the side rails already require dowels you could have just stuck with dowels.
Would wooden dowels work as well as biscuits? Since that can be done with a normal drill, glue, and a hammer, while also eliminating screws from the design.
Yeah - dowels would be fine. If the joint is glued and clamped properly it will never fail anyway but biscuits / dowels help protect from catastrophic failure. 👍
@@BigDan1190 every 1 to there own but if i got the tool i would go with biscuits but not got the tool so its dowels for me www.rockler.com/learn/doweling-vs-biscuit-joints/
Shouldn't you be replacing both side rails anyway? If one failed, the other might fail in the same way too? Hence matching the design isn't too big of a consideration?
Great video thanks! Where do I buy the same timber that you used for the side rail 20.5mm x 119mm x 2.4m? Google has failed me, I tried all the usual big online DIY stores (B&Q, homebase etc) but no luck. I'm in Malvern Worcestershire if that helps :)
Literally after typing this out, it dawned on me to google the actual dimensions "20.5mm x 119mm x 2.4m" 1st hit was Wickes for "Redwood PSE Timber" job done!
One thing you have to give IKEA credit for is they make sure their products are safe. Sure, it's not made from real wood (barely even wood, more like air with a bit of paper), but it's surprisingly strong and definitely strong enough for the application! If I was buying furniture, I'd only buy it from IKEA (plus it's only a couple minute drive from the house!)
Im so happy to get to these vids, been binging on your current excellent renovation work vids. I'm now a bit worried after watching these though, my boy is sleeping in a cabin bed with a similar set up. I know the slat support is 2 pieces minimum. It's late so can't check now. The bed is only a few months old and cost a fair bit so I'm hoping it's better built. How much distance for screws do you think would be a good amount if needed for the support?
Wait, what? Don't eat the biscuits??? Oh man, what am I going to have with my coffee....😂😂😂 Nice repair, and walk through, mate. 👍 Glad to hear your daughter didn't get seriously injured. 👌
It is always best to be selective when purchasing timber, dependent on the job. My usual wood supplier can sell some terrible wood, twisted, bent badly knotted, damaged and so on, claiming it is suitable for furniture. I have to spend a long time being selective. I always try to screw into the thickest side and then hide the screw head. I think after what happened with one side I would probably have changed the other side too.
The problem is that they build what people want. The majority of people wants cheap so they make cheap. If people massively refuse to buy cheap junk no factory will make it anymore. But that is utopia for the next 2000 years.
Hi Andy, while I slightly agree with your comment regarding a bespoke piece of furniture being better than a mass produced piece from a large factory, it really depends where that big factory is situated in the world. I live in an area of this country called Ipswich, and for many years the town and surrounding area boasted some of the best and largest factories making reproduction furniture ("also furniture to last a lifetime"). However over the years these companies one by one have disappeared, not because what they did was of no good, but because of cheaper imports. Everything is driven by price these days and you get what you pay for, eventually all our industries will disappear and all that is left is imports, and you have to have whats on offer. This is a throw away society we live in when we we replace our perfectly good smart phone for a new one every couple of years because mr A**** or mr S****** says you need the next model. I have seen the decline in the furniture industry in my lifetime, my father was a cabinet maker all his life and I followed suit, but we can't compete on price for what they make in the far east and beyond. Perhaps you need to do a series on 'making proper furniture', with proper mortice and tenons, dovetails and the like. I know there are some good channels already out there but you have good subscriber base to show it to. Cutting the joints by hand is quite easy really, there is no real right or wrong way its the end result that counts. And you only need to have a few hand tools not any fancy domino's or chop saws.
Yup - totally agree. I think the BSI have a role to play here too. This bed was apparently BS EN 747-1 certified so either the manufacturers are lying or the standards aren't worth the paper they're printed on. Either way something is going horribly wrong. 🤔
Replace both sides, the other will fail its only a matter of time. My other thought is on the glue used, could it have been a hot melt? Most other glues would have spread a little more even with the clamping effect of the nails.
Great video, sad truth is this kind of "out of the factory gate at a cheap price" construction can appear further up the price scale... a while ago we paid "good money" for a sofa bed from Doesn't Finish Sunday. It's had various running repairs in different areas where it's just a bit flakey so spring mounting points came loose and you discover cardboard in the arms, with other corner cutting tricks. Our first sofa from another source had to go back because the print in the fabric disappeared...it went to an expert who noted that we were (then) under thirty, therefore we'd damaged by wearing jeans on it!!!!
Andy, a good rant and a good repair, but why, oh why, did you buy a bed in the first place, instead of making one ? You have the tools and the knowledge, how about a series on how to make a bed, from choosing the wood to finish.
Time and money. Check out his video on what it would cost to make an equivalent to a £50 Ikea bookcase which he bought. He does the maths, and you'll understand why he doesn't build much bespoke furniture for his home.
The “time and money” argument doesn’t stand, as Andy has had to spend extra time and money on repairing the “crap” he bought in the first place not to mention the potential hurt his daughter may had suffered. Sorry Andy I thought you guys “up North” were more canny than that. I do enjoy your videos though and I’m glad your daughter was not hurt.
Would there be anyone in the UK, who would make a new side rail for a person, and how much do you reckon it would cost? I'd do it myself but don't have any tools...
Great job. Further warning, bunk beds and cabin beds have rails just like those, both on the bottom and top. Even greater risk of serious injury. And I have to say I have zero confidence in thos dowel and threaded bolt joints. The chunk of wood between the forstner bit hole and the edge is almost designed to break out. Jusy bloody dangerous all round. Every childs bedroom I ever seen with these flat pack things always have damage somewhere on them, its usually why I'm there with drill and screws and a piece of decent wood!
Indeed, you might as well! Start looking for some nice timber or tell a scrounger mate to do so. Your girl will be as proud as a pup with three tails as she tucks in one of her own in due time.
Just checked my daughter's bed. I seems similar in that it is only held on with nails and the wood has plenty of knots in it. No signs of it failing right now though.
Aren't you tempted to just ged rid of the whole thing? is it really worth the risk keeping it. Who knows what other hidden problems exist. Especially as it's a bunk bed.
Structural timber in housebuilding is Strength graded (C16 / C24 etc). It seems very unlikely that those side rails which are barely 95 x 22mm? would pass any strength grading tests; especially when they reduce the section by milling a channel in it for the side rails; combination of poor quality timber; and poor design. I have experience of repairing better quality wooden bunk beds on a Scout campsite; a couple of side rails did fail where there was a large knot in the side rail - but only when an 18 stone adult sat on the rail. Great pair of videos.
Andy, I know in your first vid you said that you daughter wasn't jumping etc on the bed when it failed, but knowing what our two were like when young, do you think that the failure was a single incident or a culmination of a number of small increments? Edit - Different countries different standards, but I'm wondering as this bed is marketed for children the failure load is less than if it was marketed for general use or adults? This may be how they can justify using timber that you would expect to be deemed substandard.
Exactly Glen. Especially kids beds. She's not a bed jumper though - just not a thing she does. And the first bed broke when I sat on the side to read her a story - no jumping involved. 👍
Glen totally agree, but some coy will cut corners in any way to make a buck. Call it a child bed rated to 40kg for example (as apposed to my cake eating 110kg) that way you can use crap materials. Not a justification, just a sad reality in the modern world.
I don't think this is specifically called a 'child bed' btw - they're bunk beds but can be separated in to two full size single beds so should be fine for teenagers etc... but clearly aren't.
@@GosforthHandyman Yeah that was frightening. A scandinavian pine could never have a pith that long becasue it can never grow fast enough. But the hardware on that was also poor. I have a similar IKEA bed that I bought for about £8 on clearance original price about £32. It is much better built. I have seen growth rings like that on cheap shelving units with the shelves stapled together .
I would consider screwing something like this to a repair fix, to spread any loads along the bed rail. May need to trim the slats a bit afterwards to make it work - metalsshop.co.uk/product-eng-576-30-x-30-x-2-mm-Aluminium-Angle.html
@@GosforthHandyman For the factory the costs of material (wood + glue + screws) for one bed was at most 30 GBP. I'm curious how much that kind of bed costs.
Been listening to your jigsaw-centric comments on the recent podcast. Here’s a recent video from Scott Brown in NZ where he discusses his new Barrel-grip Makita: ua-cam.com/video/4vWPqHmB9Sc/v-deo.html
Ummmm, of course you know that you get what you paid for. If it seems a cheap price it coz its a cheaply made. And mostly made by machine. I bought a 4 poster queen bed at a garage sale for $35 because the screws holding the rail on tore out of the post which was hollow. So i cut the piece out, replaced, refluted, stained and refinished. Ikea furniture is rubbish, i installed am ikea kitchen for a client and 6 months later the finish is coming away. Seriously, buy 2nd hand old style and refinish. I NEVER buy new cheap furniture because i know what they are made of. Amd now you do too.
If you're running an economy where the control of inflation is prioritised over paying a living wage, very few people are going to be able to afford to buy much better than this. This is the result of an economic policy that benefits profits over quality of life. Just like the clothing industry, we have fallen into the trap of not expecting things to last, and or to be durable. The sad thing is that the Far East Factories are subcontractors who have to compete on price for work. So, they will not waste a single inch of lumber, even when it is unsuitable for purpose. Most people buying these beds will not be able to repair them once they break. And our furniture industry has disappeared. This way of running an economy doesn't work in the long run.
Indeed. And to be fair on the far east factories, they only build what we tell them to build and at the price we tell them to build it for. All ultimately driven by the greed of giant conglomerates. I think there is genuine desire for change if enough people 'see the light'. 👍😀
@@GosforthHandyman Before I retired, I used to import products made in the Far East. Those factories are experts on "controlling" costs" - the thin glue line on your side rails is an example of this. It wasn't slapdash - it was intentional. That glue line covered maybe a third of the width of the joint - so they reduced their glue cost by two-thirds. Multiply that by several thousand beds and you can see why they did it that way. The biggest difficulty that I had was convincing factories that I valued quality over cost. In this case, they would say, "You want lots of glue? Oh, very expensive!". Fortunately, I was able to find factories that would produce the quality that I specified. We also employed a Chinese guy to inspect production. The result was that my company had reputation for excellence, and prospered. Sadly, most importers don't take this approach - they simply look at the landed cost.
These could be a way of stopping kids from getting chubby, back in my kiddy days I was told if I didn't eat my sprouts I wouldn't get curly hair. Tell your kids don't binge on those sweets or your cheap bed will break under your weight and you will die from a broken neck.
Clever little tip to cut off the end of the original to align the new dowel holes 👍👍👍👍
In the light of your findings shouldn't you be replacing both side rails?
Making a whole new set of beds
I bought a bunk bed from Merax here in the US through Amazon and it has similar design flaws as your bed. It has also got similar damage as your bed to the slats etc .I contacted the manufacturer and they have sent me some replacement parts but the damage to the bed is extensive. Thank you for your videos they have given me some ideas on what to do to bolster it otherwise I will have to discard the bed .I bought this bed a year ago and all this damage happened in a few months not 4 years like your bed but I do have several children.
My son's bed just broke two days ago just like this. I have been searching how to fix it for two days, and today somehow came across your video. Thanks so much, now I just have to go and get the wood and try to fix it like you did. I will have to get that forester bit and hopefully it comes out right like yours.
Just looking at making a bed for my grandson and remembered seeing your videos about the subject, sound advice well heeded is twice as good for me! Thanks.
Thanks for the advice. Shame you didn't have the time to check the bed over when you bought it but you do expect a level of safety when you buy in the UK. Good news that your daughter was unhurt. Love to see your new bed making project. You have set yourself up now so you have to make one!
A great way you go through the detail Andy. It allows us to decide what we like and don't like about your method and adapt for our own application. Job well done. Looking forward to the bespoke bed video.
I have a king size canopy bed and I've come across this problem. It's all wood and I had no understanding how to fix it until I found this video. Thank you hopefully I can get it fixed 😬
What a timely video. On investigating the increasing noise from my double bed, I found the slat support parting from the side rail.
Admittedly the bed is ten years old but it had been assembled with a microscopic smear of glue on the prefinished rail and half a dozen chinametal screws. The glue joint had failed and most of the screws had sheared. I'll be able to sleep tonight thanks to some decent glue and screws.
Covrog
Really appreciate your attention to detail and your explanations. Why do the the screw heads HAVE to be counter sunk? Would it not be stronger if the the screws(flat head screws) were not counter sunk. I had the same problem with a different bed. Rail split right along the support. I counter sunk from the finished side and used flat head screws and then used glue and Tnuts on the support side.
Apologies in advance for the 'dad joke'...... When they built the bed they took the pith! Good job on the repair, I have done similar in the past, its not just that style of bed, they all appear to be made in the same factory.
Just wanted to say that this is probably my favorite woodworking & carpentry channel. I like your explanations and no-nonsense approach. I also like that you generally show good/safe practices for the tools
I also like the production quality: Good video. Good audio. Music isn't loud compared to your narration, etc.
Oh, and the projects are fun. :)
Thank you Pete! Means a lot. 👍👊
Same style bed, broke yesterday, your video is very helpful, thank you
Excellent video! My 8yo HAD a similar bed and almost all the uprights were bent or twisted! I would love to see the making of a complete bed.
My sister and I were playing on the bed and now it’s broken and i gotta fix it before mom and dad are back
Checked my Granddaughters bunk beds and they are made just like yours. I can't replace the side rails as I don't have the tools to do that but I'm going to try and remove all the small rails and replace with full lengths of wood, I have a good builders merchant near me that will rip the wood to size for me.
Thank's for the interesting videos
Use twice as many screws as Andy did and you won't need any clamps.
thanks for the in-depth analysis and tips ... waiting for the bespoke bed build video.
Kids these days. Beds? In my day, we slept on cracked floors with nothing but an animal carcass and some vodka for warmth.
Thank you so much for your help and expertise in this video
I have 3 beds from dreams
2 is broken and I have to pay Altofts money to fixed
One is manufactured problem one broken in beam
Can I get some advice about
Great and interesting series Andy , the timber is almost certainly Radiata Pine probably grown in New Zealand, its extremely fast growing. the boards near the centre of the tree are cheap and low grade but the outer boards on the other hand are high value and are further processed to make the the very expensive and remarkable Accoya (sorry to be a wood anorak)
Interesting! 👍
Hey if we apply glue on the rail side without biscuits does this make the job done? Of course with geniruse amount of glue . Brad nails and claims please to advise?
Great Vid Andy, The problem with most timbers is that they are too much like politicians - hard to find a straight one i am afraid.... Big regular problem nowadays is that nothing is made to last, its a throw away society we live in, and its why there is so much rubbish everywhere - No one seems to have any pride in making good quality goods that last !
Great video Andy. I'm looking to build a bed for my niece when she comes over, so thanks for these useful tips.
I like your video I bought trundle bed for my kids one part is broke like you show in the video the video is really helpful for me but I have no machine thanks
When you did the remedial repair you put the screws through from the inside, which is exactly what you said not to do earlier in the video
Personally I think that I would have replaced both side rails, assuming that it was worth repairing in the first place
He most likely made two new pieces and just repaired this as a how too.
Yes, for the remedial repair the side rails and slat support are exactly the same width so makes no difference what side you screw in from. And yes, just showing how you could fix it if that's the route you wanted to go down. 👍
Andy, many UA-cam gurus have stated that biscuits do not add much strength to a joint. They're good for alignment Glue is what holds things together. Dowels do form strong joints. Since the side rails already require dowels you could have just stuck with dowels.
Yeah - the whole "biscuits don't add strength" thing is bollix. They protect joints from catastrophic failure. Proven on my #TestTuesday vids. 👍
Would wooden dowels work as well as biscuits? Since that can be done with a normal drill, glue, and a hammer, while also eliminating screws from the design.
i agree but the biscuits have a bigger glue joint plus they swell when glue is place making a stronger joint. but yes it will work but not as good
@@bucketrobbert Disagree - biscuits provide alignment more than strength, dowels are stronger.
Yeah - dowels would be fine. If the joint is glued and clamped properly it will never fail anyway but biscuits / dowels help protect from catastrophic failure. 👍
@@BigDan1190 every 1 to there own but if i got the tool i would go with biscuits but not got the tool so its dowels for me www.rockler.com/learn/doweling-vs-biscuit-joints/
intresting argument
Well Andy, a better way to fix the problem is don't buy it in the first place. Great video mate!
What size screws are being used?
I reckon the groove for the slat support is for quickly and easily putting on the slat support for manual workers.
My bed side rail has a similar groove..
Great 2nd (and last) part of the series with many clever tips. Thanks for sharing. Again I learnt a lot of new things.
Shouldn't you be replacing both side rails anyway? If one failed, the other might fail in the same way too? Hence matching the design isn't too big of a consideration?
Making a whole new bed - mentioned on the vid this is just a remedial repair to show you how you could approach it. 👍
Great video thanks! Where do I buy the same timber that you used for the side rail 20.5mm x 119mm x 2.4m? Google has failed me, I tried all the usual big online DIY stores (B&Q, homebase etc) but no luck. I'm in Malvern Worcestershire if that helps :)
Literally after typing this out, it dawned on me to google the actual dimensions "20.5mm x 119mm x 2.4m" 1st hit was Wickes for "Redwood PSE Timber" job done!
On the remedial repair, wouldn't it have been prudent to replace the four small bits of rail with one long continuous bit?
Trouble is once you do that you should really also replace the shoddy rail itself... so then go back to repair method a). 👍
One thing you have to give IKEA credit for is they make sure their products are safe. Sure, it's not made from real wood (barely even wood, more like air with a bit of paper), but it's surprisingly strong and definitely strong enough for the application!
If I was buying furniture, I'd only buy it from IKEA (plus it's only a couple minute drive from the house!)
Yup - totally agree. You know where you are with IKEA. Their furniture isn't pretending to be something it's not, like this. 👍
Why did you go back to the dewalt chop saw?
Good work - a proper public service video!
Thanks for the useful information. ☺👍
Im so happy to get to these vids, been binging on your current excellent renovation work vids. I'm now a bit worried after watching these though, my boy is sleeping in a cabin bed with a similar set up. I know the slat support is 2 pieces minimum. It's late so can't check now. The bed is only a few months old and cost a fair bit so I'm hoping it's better built. How much distance for screws do you think would be a good amount if needed for the support?
Thanks. Saved my day bed!
Wait, what? Don't eat the biscuits???
Oh man, what am I going to have with my coffee....😂😂😂
Nice repair, and walk through, mate. 👍
Glad to hear your daughter didn't get seriously injured. 👌
Cheers Bill! 👍👊
Buy a metal bed made out of RSJ beams, should last a long time..weight might be a problem...lol
or old pallets like a true pinterest bore
Well done Gosforth, we done 🌷
It is always best to be selective when purchasing timber, dependent on the job. My usual wood supplier can sell some terrible wood, twisted, bent badly knotted, damaged and so on, claiming it is suitable for furniture. I have to spend a long time being selective. I always try to screw into the thickest side and then hide the screw head. I think after what happened with one side I would probably have changed the other side too.
Yup - will be making whole new beds 👍
Great job Andy. Thanks for the videos about this crappy built bed. Amazing what these huge companies get away with!
The problem is that they build what people want. The majority of people wants cheap so they make cheap. If people massively refuse to buy cheap junk no
factory will make it anymore. But that is utopia for the next 2000 years.
Hi Andy, while I slightly agree with your comment regarding a bespoke piece of furniture being better than a mass produced piece from a large factory, it really depends where that big factory is situated in the world. I live in an area of this country called Ipswich, and for many years the town and surrounding area boasted some of the best and largest factories making reproduction furniture ("also furniture to last a lifetime"). However over the years these companies one by one have disappeared, not because what they did was of no good, but because of cheaper imports. Everything is driven by price these days and you get what you pay for, eventually all our industries will disappear and all that is left is imports, and you have to have whats on offer. This is a throw away society we live in when we we replace our perfectly good smart phone for a new one every couple of years because mr A**** or mr S****** says you need the next model. I have seen the decline in the furniture industry in my lifetime, my father was a cabinet maker all his life and I followed suit, but we can't compete on price for what they make in the far east and beyond.
Perhaps you need to do a series on 'making proper furniture', with proper mortice and tenons, dovetails and the like. I know there are some good channels already out there but you have good subscriber base to show it to. Cutting the joints by hand is quite easy really, there is no real right or wrong way its the end result that counts. And you only need to have a few hand tools not any fancy domino's or chop saws.
Yup - totally agree. I think the BSI have a role to play here too. This bed was apparently BS EN 747-1 certified so either the manufacturers are lying or the standards aren't worth the paper they're printed on. Either way something is going horribly wrong. 🤔
Replace both sides, the other will fail its only a matter of time. My other thought is on the glue used, could it have been a hot melt? Most other glues would have spread a little more even with the clamping effect of the nails.
Yeah - replacing the whole bed. Don't think it's hot melt but know what you mean. 👍
Great video, sad truth is this kind of "out of the factory gate at a cheap price" construction can appear further up the price scale... a while ago we paid "good money" for a sofa bed from Doesn't Finish Sunday. It's had various running repairs in different areas where it's just a bit flakey so spring mounting points came loose and you discover cardboard in the arms, with other corner cutting tricks. Our first sofa from another source had to go back because the print in the fabric disappeared...it went to an expert who noted that we were (then) under thirty, therefore we'd damaged by wearing jeans on it!!!!
Yup - sadly once a company is publicly traded everything revolves around keeping the shareholders happy rather than the customers. 👍👊
Andy, a good rant and a good repair, but why, oh why, did you buy a bed in the first place, instead of making one ? You have the tools and the knowledge, how about a series on how to make a bed, from choosing the wood to finish.
Time and money. Check out his video on what it would cost to make an equivalent to a £50 Ikea bookcase which he bought. He does the maths, and you'll understand why he doesn't build much bespoke furniture for his home.
Yup - not enough hours!!
@@GosforthHandyman You should move to Liverpool LOL
The “time and money” argument doesn’t stand, as Andy has had to spend extra time and money on repairing the “crap” he bought in the first place not to mention the potential hurt his daughter may had suffered.
Sorry Andy I thought you guys “up North” were more canny than that.
I do enjoy your videos though and I’m glad your daughter was not hurt.
Great job Andy!!
So I notice on your replacement rail you put th edge with a Knot on the bottom ? seems should have been other way around.
Purely a visual thing to keep it out of eyesight. Tiny knot so wouldn't cause any structural issues. 👍
Would there be anyone in the UK, who would make a new side rail for a person, and how much do you reckon it would cost? I'd do it myself but don't have any tools...
Great job. Further warning, bunk beds and cabin beds have rails just like those, both on the bottom and top. Even greater risk of serious injury. And I have to say I have zero confidence in thos dowel and threaded bolt joints. The chunk of wood between the forstner bit hole and the edge is almost designed to break out. Jusy bloody dangerous all round. Every childs bedroom I ever seen with these flat pack things always have damage somewhere on them, its usually why I'm there with drill and screws and a piece of decent wood!
Indeed, you might as well! Start looking for some nice timber or tell a scrounger mate to do so. Your girl will be as proud as a pup with three tails as she tucks in one of her own in due time.
I have the same bunk bed. The top just broke exactly like this last night. This bed should be recalled
Please raise this with trading standards. I think the more people who complain about this the better. 👍
Just checked my daughter's bed. I seems similar in that it is only held on with nails and the wood has plenty of knots in it. No signs of it failing right now though.
They knew the pith was there, hence why it’s on the inside of the glued join.
best way to fix a broken cheap bed throw it away copy the design and use better materials :) remember large knots are your enemy
Look forward to the bespoke bed build
Aren't you tempted to just ged rid of the whole thing? is it really worth the risk keeping it. Who knows what other hidden problems exist. Especially as it's a bunk bed.
Yup - making a whole new bed 👍
Is the tape on the end of the clamps because you, like me, have been jabbed hard by walking into one of them? :)
Yup! Many scars from them. 😂
Looking forward to seeing you build your little girl a real bed. 👍 Double sized so it will last her well past university?
Might be a good idea! 😀
Thank you
Structural timber in housebuilding is Strength graded (C16 / C24 etc). It seems very unlikely that those side rails which are barely 95 x 22mm? would pass any strength grading tests; especially when they reduce the section by milling a channel in it for the side rails; combination of poor quality timber; and poor design. I have experience of repairing better quality wooden bunk beds on a Scout campsite; a couple of side rails did fail where there was a large knot in the side rail - but only when an 18 stone adult sat on the rail. Great pair of videos.
I'd be replacing the other rails pretty smartly!
Replacing the whole bed(s)! 👍
Thanks
Andy, I know in your first vid you said that you daughter wasn't jumping etc on the bed when it failed, but knowing what our two were like when young, do you think that the failure was a single incident or a culmination of a number of small increments?
Edit - Different countries different standards, but I'm wondering as this bed is marketed for children the failure load is less than if it was marketed for general use or adults? This may be how they can justify using timber that you would expect to be deemed substandard.
Even if it was, shouldn't a bed specifically designed for children be able to withstand that.
Exactly Glen. Especially kids beds. She's not a bed jumper though - just not a thing she does. And the first bed broke when I sat on the side to read her a story - no jumping involved. 👍
Glen totally agree, but some coy will cut corners in any way to make a buck. Call it a child bed rated to 40kg for example (as apposed to my cake eating 110kg) that way you can use crap materials. Not a justification, just a sad reality in the modern world.
I don't think this is specifically called a 'child bed' btw - they're bunk beds but can be separated in to two full size single beds so should be fine for teenagers etc... but clearly aren't.
Glen. My ex-wife was!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Do you really trust the other 3 rails?????
Top tip Andy,don't eat the biscuits!👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍😁😁😁😁😁😁😁
Excellent job, but please nobody bloody singing in the background music.
I think that wood looks like aspen or elm or something other than the knots.
Whatever it is it's VERY fast grown. Possibly the widest growth rings I've ever seen! 😀👍
@@GosforthHandyman Yeah that was frightening. A scandinavian pine could never have a pith that long becasue it can never grow fast enough. But the hardware on that was also poor. I have a similar IKEA bed that I bought for about £8 on clearance original price about £32. It is much better built. I have seen growth rings like that on cheap shelving units with the shelves stapled together .
I have two of these beds we use for visitors, I am going to look to see what problems might be there.
I'm filing a lawsuit because of one of these beds.
Would love to hear how you get on! Best of luck! 👍
If my dad aint gonna do it il do it myself
I would consider screwing something like this to a repair fix, to spread any loads along the bed rail. May need to trim the slats a bit afterwards to make it work - metalsshop.co.uk/product-eng-576-30-x-30-x-2-mm-Aluminium-Angle.html
I just spent 5 hours putting this bed together and the side board split and collapsed
I think for 8 quid I'd have replaced both rails, not just the broken one Andy.
Making a whole new set of beds John - mentioned in the vid this is just a remedial repair to show how you could approach it.
@@GosforthHandyman For the factory the costs of material (wood + glue + screws) for one bed was at most 30 GBP. I'm curious how much that kind of bed costs.
Think it was about £200 for the set of bunk beds. 👍
I have the exact same bed, one of the side panels have completely snapped in half. I wouldn't even buy this bed for my dog its abysmal
It's also worth mentioning I've only had this bed for 2 years aswell
👍
Been listening to your jigsaw-centric comments on the recent podcast. Here’s a recent video from Scott Brown in NZ where he discusses his new Barrel-grip Makita: ua-cam.com/video/4vWPqHmB9Sc/v-deo.html
Ummmm, of course you know that you get what you paid for. If it seems a cheap price it coz its a cheaply made. And mostly made by machine. I bought a 4 poster queen bed at a garage sale for $35 because the screws holding the rail on tore out of the post which was hollow. So i cut the piece out, replaced, refluted, stained and refinished. Ikea furniture is rubbish, i installed am ikea kitchen for a client and 6 months later the finish is coming away. Seriously, buy 2nd hand old style and refinish. I NEVER buy new cheap furniture because i know what they are made of. Amd now you do too.
Video was ruined for me by the inconsistent arrow drawing ;-)
If you're running an economy where the control of inflation is prioritised over paying a living wage, very few people are going to be able to afford to buy much better than this. This is the result of an economic policy that benefits profits over quality of life. Just like the clothing industry, we have fallen into the trap of not expecting things to last, and or to be durable. The sad thing is that the Far East Factories are subcontractors who have to compete on price for work. So, they will not waste a single inch of lumber, even when it is unsuitable for purpose. Most people buying these beds will not be able to repair them once they break. And our furniture industry has disappeared. This way of running an economy doesn't work in the long run.
Indeed. And to be fair on the far east factories, they only build what we tell them to build and at the price we tell them to build it for. All ultimately driven by the greed of giant conglomerates. I think there is genuine desire for change if enough people 'see the light'. 👍😀
@@GosforthHandyman Before I retired, I used to import products made in the Far East. Those factories are experts on "controlling" costs" - the thin glue line on your side rails is an example of this. It wasn't slapdash - it was intentional. That glue line covered maybe a third of the width of the joint - so they reduced their glue cost by two-thirds. Multiply that by several thousand beds and you can see why they did it that way.
The biggest difficulty that I had was convincing factories that I valued quality over cost. In this case, they would say, "You want lots of glue? Oh, very expensive!". Fortunately, I was able to find factories that would produce the quality that I specified. We also employed a Chinese guy to inspect production.
The result was that my company had reputation for excellence, and prospered. Sadly, most importers don't take this approach - they simply look at the landed cost.
(Br)eaking (Be)d
These could be a way of stopping kids from getting chubby, back in my kiddy days I was told if I didn't eat my sprouts I wouldn't get curly hair. Tell your kids don't binge on those sweets or your cheap bed will break under your weight and you will die from a broken neck.