Toddler Bed

How to make a toddler bed out of a repurposed door

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I showed you the toddler bed made from a door last week, but I didn’t explain any of the particulars. Today I will fill you in.

This is the door I started with. I had already applied primer and paint to one side. The other side only had primer.

How to cut straight with a saw

That is why you’ll see a pink door below:

I needed to cut the door into two sections. Generally I would do this type of task on my table saw. I was unable to do that with this door due to it’s size and weight. First,  I measured how large I wanted the headboard and foot board to be.

In order to get a straight line, I clamped a board to the door to serve as a “guide” for my saw.

The only circular saw I have is battery operated and it wouldn’t make it across the width of this door. I used my jigsaw. Without this board as a guide, I would have never been able to cut a straight line.

This picture is to show you that you must make allowances for the width of the shoe plate. (in your measurements)

Use crib spindles for feet of repurposed door toddler bed

I didn’t want the door to set directly on the floor, so I had to figure out what I could use for feet. Fortunately I had some spare crib spindles. I used the parts in between the holes.

After I got them cut, I needed to drill a hole so that I could screw them onto the bottom of the door. I use a washer to help find the center of a circle.

Coat long screws with bar soap

You can see in this picture how I clamped the foot to drill the hole. I also used Gorilla Wood Glue on the feet.

TIP: Coating your screw with soap will help the screw go into the hard wood faster and smoother. Click to Tweet tip.

Use original side rails for new toddler bed

I used regular side rails I had in my stash. I cut them down to fit a crib mattress.

Add cleats to hold mattress

To help give the side rails extra strength, I made a cleat for both the headboard and the foot board. I glued them with Gorilla Wood Glue and then I screwed them into place.

Here you can see the cleat and the cute little feet.

Paint toddler bed parts

I painted the side rails and the top rail of the headboard and the foot board.

This is the bed without the top rail attached to the headboard and the foot board.

Attach top rail to headboard and foot board

Of course I used my favorite gorilla wood glue again.

Here you can see the foot board’s top rail attached.

Add wide slats for crib mattress

I cut some extra wide planks to help support the crib mattress since I wasn’t using the springs that a crib would have.

Use deck brackets to attach side rails

To attach the side rails to the headboard and foot board I used some brackets I got from the deck dept at Home Depot. I put all the screws in the side rail but only used two screws for the headboard/foot board. That way when someone buys this bed and takes it to their house, they can add the additional screws for strength, and they will be secure.

Voila! Here is the finished bed!

If you have any questions, just leave a comment below.

Check out other door projects here

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