IKEA Trundle Hack

When we decided to add a trundle to our IKEA KURA bed, I knew that it would need to be more supportive than the standard trundle, which is often just a small mattress on a flat base or slats. I also kind of wanted it to match the rest of the bedroom decor and especially the bed itself.

Nothing I looked at really fit what I was envisioning, and I decided that I should build one myself. How hard could it be?

It turns out that it really isn't that hard to build a trundle.

I based my design around the IKEA LONSET slatted bed base, which, when constructed, forms the perfect piece around which to build a trundle.

After our bedroom remodel, we had an extra twin bed that we were not planning to use for anything. In order to save money, I disassembled the IKEA FJELLSE (discontinued) and repurposed the long side supports as the frame on which the LONSET would rest. A similar result could be accomplished with 1x6 or 1x8 cut to the appropriate length. I used screws to attach the LONSET to the boards.

I was originally planning to use casters, but I was struggling with how much higher the top bunk on the KURA bed would need to be to accommodate the additional height casters would have added. Then I stumbled upon this trundle bed tutorial where the blogger used furniture sliders in place of casters, and that sounded so simple and yet brilliant, and it helped alleviate my height issue as well. (I used these furniture sliders designed for carpeted floors.)

In order to have something to which I could attach the sliders, I cut three 1x6 board lengths just a hair shorter than the width of the LONSET and screwed them to the narrow piece of wood (part of the repurposed FJELLSE) on which the LONSET was resting, but they could also just be screwed to the LONSET itself if you don't have an old IKEA bed to repurpose.

I then lightly sanded the area where the furniture sliders would attach to the bottom of the three boards so that the glue would adhere as well as possible. I used Gorilla Glue to attach the sliders to the boards and let it cure for the recommended length of time.

I opted not to attach foot and head boards to the trundle bed since I want the trundle to be able to breath as much as possible and the space under the KURA is not really long enough for more than the length of the mattress anyway.

The furniture sliders ended up working really well and the trundle slides easily in and out from under the KURA. I can't imagine casters working any better. I may add handles at some point to have something to hold onto when sliding the bed out, but so far we've done okay without them.

So there you have it. A "hacked trundle" made from an old IKEA bed, IKEA bed slats, and furniture sliders.