Mattress Forum

Can you provide your DIY list of materials and pictures?  That sounds great to me.

for legs, I am using what Home Depot calls a Waddell Leg.  Here is a picture:

They come in all different lengths.  I am going to use 6 or 9 inch legs.

To attach the legs to the foundation, i will use the Waddell Plates:

The legs come with the 5/16" screw in the end and that just screws into the above brackets.

With the two foundations bolted togeter, I will have one leg in each corner using the triangle shaped bracket.  And three legs down the center rail using the square bracket.

You could use 2 x 8 lumber, but I want a bit of extra height, so I think I am going to go with the 2 x 10 lumber.

I am going to use 14 slats, so on a king sized foundation, they will have about 2.375 inches between them.

I have the foundation modeled in 3D.  Let me see if I can get a screen shot and I will post the picture.

Hope that helps

Using 2 x 10 construction and 9 inch legs, the price (without sales tax) comes to about $99.00

My local Home Depot will cut your lumber to size at no extra charge, well they have for me in the past, hopefully it still holds true today.  So all I have to do is nail/screw it together.

My 3D model is coming in at about 117 pounds when made with 2 x 10 construction and about 100 pounds with 2 x 8 construction.

For this design you will need:

4 - 2" x 8" x 10' boards (cut one 38 inch piece and one 77 inch piece from each board)

14 - 1" x 4" x 8' firring strips (cut two 38 inch pieces from each board)

7 - Waddell Legs

4 - Waddell Corner (triangle) Plates

3 - Waddell Square Plates

Wow now that is details   Does HD have the wadell plates?  I guess you drill holes in the bottom of the frame, attach the waddel plant and then just screw in the legs?  Is this a kit or something at HD?  I will have to take a look I remember seeing legs at HD, didn't remember those plates though.  Cynicaljones could do that on her Sleepeze frame then couldn't she...if she decides to keep the mattress set.

That sounds like quite a project, and you really have it planned out, must be some great software you have to draw it out.  Does HD really have good lumber, and how can you tell if it is untreated?  I want safe untreated wood if I ever do this (husband does it I mean ).

Thanks for the details and pics.  Should be nice and sturdy.

Yes, Home Depot has the Waddell plates and they are shown to be sold at my local store.  They might not be available at all local stores though.  They would attach to the rails and the legs screw into them as you described.

It is not a kit from HD, just the parts.  They have treated and untreated lumber.  It should be clearly marked in the store if it is pressure treated or not.

The software I used to design it is called SolidWorks.  It is a very powerful and intuitive software package. 

My wool on top mattress pad has a polyester backing that is stiff and it has ripped my latex to shreds.  So I had to put the blanket over the latex, then the wool on top mattress and hope it is not ripping it anymore.  So that is something to try to prevent rips and tears from using the mattress.

Keep us posted on how your project goes.  Sounds better than store bought.

Hey Laredo, great post! Thanks for all the details re making a platform. This might work perfect for me.

I am using a Sealy box springs and it's old and I am wondering if it might actually be contributing to the lower back pain I have. I am skeptical that a box spring really even makes much difference but who knows? Might be good to have one (a good one) or it might not be good at all, with latex. I'm going to post a question about this and some other issues.

I did have one error in my calculations.  It was on the weight of the foundation.  I fat fingered the value for the wood denisty in my initial calculations, so the foundation will weigh 50% more than what I posted above (with respect to using untreated pine).  Helps when you type in 30 as oppsed to 20...lol...I noticed it because I built the first half downstairs (more room to work) and then had to lug it upstairs to the bedroom.  Needless to say, I built the second half in the bedroom.

Do the 1" x 4" slats seem solid and supportive (no sag)?

I'm probably going to stick with my Wally World platform (since I've already purchased it) covered with 1" Lux foam skin or 1/8" hardboard. (It's still unopened, though... still waiting for a few of my mattress components to arrive.) Otherwise I'd consider building your foundation. I kinda like that idea, actually... would make my whole project "home brew". Well, I guess I will be assembling the Wally platform myself, so a bit of consolation there!