How to add a guard rail for queen size bed?

[Neo19]

Hi everyone,

I'm hoping to get some ideas and advice from the community on how to create a safety rail for a queen size bed.

I'm looking for a solution similar to the Ikea bed rail in the attached image ikea guard rail, but I need it to be taller (around 1 meter long and 35-40 cm tall) to accommodate a standard queen size mattress. However, the primary purpose is to gently nudge a little one who might roll over in their sleep, rather than a super strong barrier. Think of it like the nudge bars on the side of highways 😀

The guard rail should be detachable and not permanently fixed to the bed frame. Additionally, it's crucial that the materials used are non-toxic and safe for a child's environment.

If anyone has experience creating a DIY bed guard rail that meets these criteria, or recommendations on materials and methods, I'd be incredibly grateful for your input!

[JacobZ]

Hi @Neo19,

Many thanks for your question about adding a guardrail to your bed.

I'd suggest you use a piece of 285 x 19mm 1.8m DAR Pine Premium for the main structure of the rail. 

The edges will need to be rounded using a random orbital sander as they are quite sharp due to the planing process carried out on the timber. 

Once tidied up, you can paint it with a Low VOC interior paint such as Dulux UltraAir.

I've done up a render of my idea for how to attach it to the bed.

This method would cause no damage to the bed and can easily be removed if you use Richmond M10 x 60mm Hand Bolts and Richmond M10 Hand Nuts. 

Let me know what you think.

Jacob

[Neo19]

Hi Jacob,

Thanks so much for your detailed response and suggestion on materials! The DAR pine and rounded edges sound perfect for the guard rail itself. 

The method you rendered for attaching the rail to the bed frame looks very secure and easy to remove, however, I might have overlooked a detail in my original post. There's actually an additional piece of wood running along the bottom side of the vertical side panel on my bed frame [refer to attached photo]. Unfortunately, this would prevent bolting the guard rail directly as you suggested.

Do you, or anyone else on the forum, have any alternative suggestions for attaching the guard rail that would work around this additional piece of wood?

Thanks again for your help!

[JacobZ]

Hi @Neo19,

Is it possible to get some photos from other angles? Some measurements would certainly also help. 

My assumption is that this black piece is a metal angle that doesn't run the full height of the bed rail. Is this correct?

An idea that should work assuming the black piece doesn't run the full height of the side rail of the bed.

It would act much the same as my original idea, there would just be some additional blocks attached to allow it to be flexed out to fit over the black piece then bolted in the same way.

If this is not going to work, please let me know. Some further details will certainly help in coming up with a solution that will work for you.

Let me know what you think, and if this will work for you or not.

Jacob