Moving can be quite stressful. You’ll naturally have to do many things, including disassembling several home furniture and having to reassemble them again. One of the pieces of furniture you’ll have to disassemble is your bed frame. So, how do you take apart a full-size metal bed frame?
Taking apart a metal bed frame is quite easy, and you can do it in five steps. Strip the bed, remove the mattress, remove the base, remove the rails from the headboard and footboard, and pack every part carefully. You’ll need tools such as screwdrivers, pliers, hammers, moving straps, wrench, etc.
If you’re planning to disassemble your metal bed frame, some tips could make it easy to take it apart and reassemble it. Here, we discuss how to take your full-size bed frame apart.
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Steps For Taking Apart a Metal Bed Frame
A regular metal bed frame usually has five major components. These are the frame, footboard, headboard, box spring, and mattress. Compared to the wooden ones, they’re harder to take apart. This is usually due to the multiple screws on them and the need to exercise caution as any damage could cause harm later. Here are the steps for taking it to pieces:
1. Strip The Bed
Before you disassemble a bed frame, you need to strip the bed by removing all the linens, pillows, and beddings. Make sure to pack all these in paper boxes rather than plastic bags as you’re planning to move. Keeping them in plastic bags could lead to them sweating, and the moisture may damage the bedding materials.
2. Remove The Mattress
The next step is to remove the mattress, i.e., the foam you sleep on. This is likely the most difficult part of the whole thing due to the size of the mattress, and it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to do it on your own. Removing the mattress can be tricky, especially when you don’t want it touching the floor. At least two people will be necessary to do it unless it’s a very small bed. You can place two rope handles under the bed with which you and your partner can lift off the mattress without necessarily having to strain your back.
3. Remove The Base
The base of your metal bed frame could be a box spring, and you can easily remove this after the mattress. But not every metal bed frame has a box spring base. Some use bed slats extending between the rails to support the mattress. You’ll have to remove these slats carefully, depending on how they’re set in. For some slats, you have to remove them from the rails.
You can roll some up because they’re already joined together. But if there aren’t, you’ll have to detach separately. Notice the length of the slats, and if they’re of different lengths, it helps to number them with a chalk or pencil, so you can assemble them in the right order. In some cases, you may need to unscrew the slats from the rails or remove them from the corner brackets if they’re connected.
4. Remove The Rails from The Footboard and Headboard
The rails are the two supporting sides of the bed frame. You’ll have to disconnect them from the headboard and footboard. When doing this, you’ll need to have screwdrivers and maybe a hammer, depending on how it’s connected. If it’s a hook connection, a hammer blow close to the point of connection will loosen the rail, making it easy for you to remove it.
You should remove the two rails from one end first before doing it on the other hand. If you’re starting with the headboard, you should first remove the two rails from the headboard before going to the footboard.
There are also rails connected with screws and bolts, so you should have a screwdriver handy when disassembling a metal bed frame. It’s quite easy to unscrew the rails from the boards. The major issue usually comes when you need to assemble the bed frame again. You might put the wrong screw in the wrong hole or misplace an essential bolt.
There’s no guarantee that you’ll find any screw or bolt you lose, so it’s best not to lose them. It helps to mark all the screws and bolts as you’re unscrewing and make sure you put everything in a place where it won’t get missing or lost, such as a Ziplock bag. Also, make sure you attach the washers and nuts to the bolts and screws after unscrewing them, so they don’t get lost.
5. Pack Every Part of The Bed Frame
By now, you’ve taken apart your bed frame, which means all you have to do is pack them appropriately for transport. The best way to do this is to use bubble wrap for the packing to prevent any direct damage during the moving. Pay special attention to the mattress, which is the most expensive part of the bed and also one that can easily get damaged internally without you even noticing immediately. You can get a mattress bag for carrying the mattress and box springs so that water and dust won’t affect them.
Tools You Need to Disassemble a Metal Bed Frame
The design of each metal bed frame differs, which means that the tools you need to take them apart could also be different. But you should have the following:
- Screwdriver
- Hammer
- Wrench
- Plier
- Moving straps
- Rented dolly for heavy beds
- Duct tape
Tips For Moving Your Bed Frame
Several tips could help make your moving experience a great and easy one. They include:
- If you can’t hire professional movers, make sure you have at least a few friends around to help you
- Try to get the instruction manual for the bed as this can help you with assembly after taking it apart
- If your bed frame has drawers, make sure you remove all the drawers
- Duct tape every piece of furniture after wrapping them with paper padding or bubble wrap
- Take pictures as you’re disassembling as this can help you when you need to assemble the bed frame again
- Be careful when moving the furniture so that they don’t get scratches, dents, and the likes
- Get a truck big enough for the bed and load properly.
In Conclusion
Disassembling your metal bed frame when moving could be one of the challenging tasks you have to do. But with the help of a few friends, you shouldn’t have any problems as long as you follow instructions.
