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This is a serious project: three staggered bunk beds stacked and offset so the built-in ladder steps climb through the frame. It's framed from an enormous quantity of 1x4s with 2x3 slat supports, and — crucially — it's bolted rather than glued so it can be disassembled to move through doorways and up stairs. Read the whole plan and stage your cuts before you start; there are well over a hundred pieces.
The method is panel-based. You build flat panels — end pieces, inner cross sections, front/back double sections, and front/back single/ladder sections — each with rails marked at a consistent 12-3/4" spacing down the verticals. The staggered geometry comes from where each panel's rails and steps land, so mark carefully from the top down using the given dimensions; a mismeasured panel throws off every bolt hole that references it.
Two details make it safe and reusable. Bolt holes are drilled about 1" below each bed rail (and below the top safety rail) so the nuts sit in safe positions directly under the cross rails, out of the way of sleepers. And the slats are fastened to each other rather than screwed to the supports, so they hold their spacing as a mat but lift out for disassembly. This is a build to take slow — and with a bunk this tall, the top safety rails are non-negotiable.
| Item | Qty |
|---|---|
| 1x4 board, 8 ftThe bulk of the frame, rails, steps, and slats. | 52 each |
| 2x3 board, 8 ftSlat supports. | 5 each |
| 3" bolts with nuts and washersBolt holes drilled ~1" below each rail so nuts sit safely under the cross rails. | 32 each |
| 2-1/2" bolts with nuts and washers | 4 each |
| Wood screws, 2" | 100 each |
Overall cost: $$$$. Lumber prices vary by region, species, and season, so we give a band rather than a figure we would only be pretending to know.
| Part | Qty | T × W × L |
|---|---|---|
| Full-height legs1x4 | 12 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 70 3/4" |
| Single-end legs1x4 | 4 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 45 1/4" |
| Hanging end support1x4 | 4 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 43 1/2" |
| Hanging mid-bunk step1x4 | 4 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 29" |
| Feet1x4 | 6 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 3 1/2" |
| Single-end feet1x4 | 2 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 29" |
| Double-end filler1x4 | 2 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 47 1/2" |
| Hanging support1x4 | 2 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 22" |
| Hanging bottom end1x4 | 2 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 1 3/4" |
| Filler between steps and rails1x4 | 28 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 9 1/4" |
| Ladder top1x4 | 2 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 12 3/4" |
| Side rails1x4 | 6 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 59 1/2" |
| Foot-section rails1x4 | 6 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 21" |
| Top safety rails1x4 | 2 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 61 1/4" |
| Fourth step & mid-bunk side rail1x4 | 4 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 22 3/4" |
| Second-mid step1x4 | 2 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 42" |
| End rails1x4 | 18 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 39" |
| Lower slat supports2x3 | 2 | 1 1/2" × 2 1/2" × 54" |
| Upper slat supports2x3 | 2 | 1 1/2" × 2 1/2" × 34 3/4" |
| Cross slat supports2x38 middle, 4 upper, 2 lower. | 14 | 1 1/2" × 2 1/2" × 15 1/2" |
| Inner-vertical supports1x4 | 12 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 2 1/2" |
| Slats1x4 | 27 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 40 1/4" |
| Foot-section slats1x4 | 4 | 3/4" × 3 1/2" × 39" |
Buy 56 boards at 8 ft.
5 boards
Build the two end pieces — one full height, one for the mid-bunk end. On the verticals, mark from the top down at 12-3/4", 25-1/2", and 38-1/4", plus 51" and 63-3/4" on the full-height vertical, with the last mark 7" from the bottom. These marks set every rail height, so measure them precisely.
Build the two inner cross sections — one full height, one hanging. Rails sit the same 12-3/4" apart as the ends. Each cross section has one rail installed flat, which becomes a mattress support.
Build the front and back double sections as mirror images of each other. Mark the full-height verticals from the top at 12-3/4", 25-1/2", 38-1/4", 51", and 63-3/4" (last mark 7" up), aligning to the end pieces' rails.
Build the front and back single/ladder sections, also mirror images. Mark the verticals at the same spacing as the double sections. On these, the main verticals sit on the outside of the rails so the ladder steps read cleanly.
Drill the connection bolt holes about 1" below each bed rail, plus one below the top safety rail. That places the nuts safely directly below the cross rails, away from sleepers — four bolts in each of the three full-height verticals, and so on per the plan.
Rather than screwing slats to the supports (which would kill the knockdown feature), fasten the slats to each other so they hold spacing as a liftable mat. Then bolt the panels together into the staggered frame. Do not omit the top safety rails — this bunk is tall.
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51 boards
Assumes 8 ft stock, a 1/8" saw kerf, and buying each part at its own width. Change the board size or kerf on the full board plan →