See attached – I have a metal bed frame I’m looking to get a box spring for. Any bang for the buck options? Looking to buy an Tuft and Needle 10". I did read your foundation post, but it seemed more suited to latex. Apologies if I misread. Thanks for any help!
EDIT: In case the attachment didn’t work!
Hi Triglet,
The foundation post has information about the most suitable support surface for any type of mattress and any of the options listed there or something similar (even the ones that I wouldn’t suggest for latex) would be fine for the Tuft & Needle.
Phoenix
I have decided on a Sleep EZ 10,000 and am thinking of putting it on my existing box springs to save a few dollars. The box springs is about 8 years old and is from Denver Mattress. It appears to be made of heavy gauge wire and is very rigid (it does not really move when I put my knee on it). Would this be acceptable? The box springs sits on a sturdy wooden frame so the frame should not be an issue with the added weight.
Here is what Denver Mattress website says about their universal foundations “This sturdy, steel modular foundation provides maximum durability and support. Unlike a traditional box spring that flexes, this steel modular foundation has a steel grid support system that will provide extra solid support for your mattress.”
Thanks!
Hi apickens99,
It would depend to some degree on the specifics of the wire grid. There is more about wire grid foundations in post #10 here and I would probably put something on top of the foundation to provide more surface area to support an all latex mattress.
Phoenix
Phoenix, just curious- what is your opinion on the current IKEA slat systems?
Hi finnaeus,
You can see my thoughts about flexible slat support systems in post #4 here and the posts it links to.
While they wouldn’t normally be my first choice for most mattresses they can be a good choice for some people that would benefit from the additional flex under a specific mattress and if they have tested a specific mattress on a flexible slat system and it’s a better match for them in terms of PPP than the same mattress on a firm non flexing foundation then they can would make a suitable choice.
They are often used in Europe underneath thinner mattresses as an “active” component in a sleeping system.
Phoenix
Thank you, Phoenix!
How would one know if one would benefit from the additional flex?
PS- What are your thoughts on this foundation? Products - IKEA
Hi finnaeus,
The only way to know this for certain would be based on comparing your actual sleeping experience on a flexible foundation with your experience on a non flexing foundation under the same mattress.
The Ikea website doesn’t give any details of the top surface of the Sultan Aram foundation that would be supporting the mattress, the distance between the slats, and appears to use cardboard on top (which would reduce ventilation under the mattress) so I would need to have more specific information about it before I could make any meaningful comments.
Phoenix
I may be worrying too much - I think I’ve decided on a Brooklyn Bedding latex mattress, and I’m looking into building my own platform via CNC router. What do you think of this?
The open ovals are about 6" X 9", with the ‘cross’ in between them centered and 3/4" thick. So the quarter ovals have long dimensions of about 4" x 2.5". Is then enough support? Too little airflow?
Hi g7515604,
What a unique design … it looks great 
I can’t see from the picture how everything comes together or the specifics of the construction but it certainly looks like it would be more than strong and supportive enough to me.
Do you have a blueprint and instructions that you can share because I’d love to add it to the list of DIY platform bed options.
Phoenix
I agree, it looks great… Unfortunately I can’t take credit for it. It was designed by AtFAB (atfab.co). They make their designs freely available, and you can download the bed files at Download the CNC digital files to make an AtFAB Silver Lining Bed I can’t wait to build it.
I’ll post a dimensioned pic of the actual platform part tomorrow.
Hi g7515604,
Thanks for the link!
They certainly have some very interesting ideas … and I have some reading to do
Phoenix
Here you go - the open area is actualy kind of small once it’s all assembled. The open ovals get cut into quarters. So - is the 3/4" section too thin, so that it could damage the mattress? Is there too little airflow for good ventilation? Am I overthinking this way too much?
Hi g7515604,
It looks very well designed to me and I don’t see anything in the design (including the 3/4" sections) that would cause me any concern either in terms of providing good support for the mattress or with ventilation.
Phoenix
Great, thanks for your feedback, Phoenix. I’ll let you know how the build goes, it’s still a couple weeks out.
Since I’ve used this site to purchase what I hope to be the perfect bed for the wife and I it’s time to give a little back. About six years ago we purchases a new queen size innerspring mattress. I decided to forgo the box spring for a bed platform. I also decided to build it myself. Here are some shots of it six years later. It’s been disassembled 4 times now and is still every bit as strong as the day I built it.
First, sorry about the poor quality of the shots. Apparently my Nexus 5 doesn’t like to focus today. Second, it’s a pretty easy design and build for anyone with some basic carpentry tools and a few hours on there hands. At the time it cost me less than 80 bucks for all the wood to build it. I’ll let you know what the king size version costs. Now onto the basic concept and build directions.
I decided to use doug fir as the base. One because it’s cheap and two because it’s easy to get your hands on. I choose to use 2x12’s for the base of the platform for a few reasons. One was that they would put the height of a 10" mattress at 20" when completed. Two is they are super strong. Three they’re easier to make box joints with. If you look at the second photo you’ll see what that box joint actually looks like.
For the middle support rail I used 2x10. What that does is allow the slats to sit lower than the outside box. Using 1x6 pine for the support rails you end up with a 1 1/4" lip around the entire platform. For this platform I used 4" spacing but I’ll be shrinking that to 2" for the latex bed that’s on it’s way I’m also thinking of drilling 1 1/2" holes on the center line of the 1x6 slats to allow even more airflow without compromising much of there strength. If anyone has used this concept please let me know how you feel it worked out for you.
If you look at the photos you’ll see zero screws in the outside perimeter of the platform. That’'s because everything in blind screwed from the inside. Although if you create perfect box joints the almost holds themselves in place. Creating the box joint is by far the hardest part of this design. I choose to go with 3 on one board and two on the other. The dimensions of the joints would be the width board used(11.5") by the desired number of joints(5). That math breaks down to 11.5/5.=2.3 or 2 1/4". Now it’s just a matter of making some marks and breaking out the jig saw. If done correctly these joints should need a gentle tapping of a rubber mallet to seat them. Hence why I said they almost hold themselves together.
To create the blind screwing it’s just a matter of cutting some 2x2 to 9.5 inches long. These get put in the four corners. Then use 2 1/2 inch wood screws to secure them to each side of the box joint. Pre-drill the to make sure they don’t split on you. Next we take the same 2x2 stock and create rail for the slats to sit on. I just ripped a 2x4 in half with my skill saw. Since we know the middle support rail is a 2x10 we screw 2x2 rail to the long portion of the outside 2x12’s at 9 1/2" using the same 2 1/2" wood screws. Then we can go ahead and measure a middle mark on both of the shorter sides of the outside 2x12’s. Now align the center of the middle rail to these marks and screw in the middle rail from the inside in a toe nail fashion.
All that’s left to do now is screw down the slats. I suggest either doing some math or just laying the slats out before screwing them down. As you can tell I left out a lot of the dimensions of the cuts and a true material list. I also gave very basic directions that I realize may be hard for a lot of folks to follow without some pictures. The reason for that is pretty simple. If people here like the look of this simple platform I will follow up with a full DIY guide and post when I build the new one in a week or so.
So that’s it for now. Thanks to all on this site who help provide an incredible resource for those of us looking to get into a better cheaper mattress. Let me know if you want the guide for a better cheaper bed frame. B)
Hi theesotericone,
Thanks for adding the pictures and basic instructions for your platform bed design … I appreciate it
It’s clearly very strong and should last for many years (or more like decades) and with the smaller gaps it would provide good support for your latex mattress.
There have been a number of people that have drilled holes in a solid surface platform to provide airflow but with the gaps between the slats in your design I don’t think it would be necessary since there would already be plenty of airflow under the mattress.
I’ve added a link to your post and design to the support system reference post at the beginning of this topic (under platform beds) and I for one would love to see your more detailed DIY guide.
Thanks again.
Phoenix
Hi Phoenix and Lucky8926,
I was inspired by Lucky8926 to build my own two-piece California King foundation, to be put directly on my metal bedframe. I had been using an innerspring mattress and boxspring for the last ten years which was recently giving me lower back pain, and I wanted a foundation that would be suitable for a latex or other foam mattress (the boxspring actually had springs in it and the gaps were too large for a latex mattress). When I started looking at my options commercially, they seemed either kind of cheaply made or awfully pricey. So I decided to build my own. Since I’ve been reading this site for a while, I thought I’d post my thoughts for the next person who looks at this thread.
Since it is a California King, I built it in two pieces so I could move it. The materials are:
i. 2x10s for the four sides of both pieces (a total of 8 pieces since I built the foundation as 2 pieces)
ii. 2x4s to form a lip on the inside of the two long sides of each piece, set 3/4 inch down so that the 1x3s would sit flush with the top of the 2x10s. I did this in lieu of a router, which I don’t own (more on that below).
iii. 1x3s for slats across each of the two foundation pieces
iii. 2x4s framed length-wise under the middle of the slats (a total of two 2x4s for this) for extra support
iv. Corner brackets purchased from Lowes, similar to those shown by Lucky8926
v. Framing screws (2.5 inch) to hold the 2x4s for the lip to the 2x10s. I purchased them for $11 for 50 at the time on Amazon here (the price seems to have gone up to something ridiculous now)
vi. Countersink set (via Amazon here), which I didn’t own (but seems generally useful) so I could countersink the screws that hold the 1x3s to the 2x4s.
vii. Small screws to secure the 1x3 slats to the 2x4s (via Amazon for $5 here).
viii. 2x4 hangers from Lowes (4 total, similar to Lucky8926’s picture)
ix. 1 3/8" lumberlok contractor screws (purchased from Lowes, though I think Amazon probably has a better price). These were used anytime I had to screw a bracket into just one 2x10 or 2x4.
I think that’s everything. I attached some pictures. Basically, I first used the 2x10s to put together the frames of each piece using the corner brackets, setting them on the metal bed frame to help me get them square. Then, I removed each piece from the frame and screwed in the 2x4s to the inside (lengthwise) to form a lip (I did this instead of routing the inside edge of the 2x10). Then, I screwed the 1x3 slats in, using pieces of 1x3s as spacers to get the slats evenly spaced. I used the countersink to pre-drill the holes to ensure that I would not split the 1x3 and to ensure that the screw head sat below the surface so as not to snag the mattress. Finally, I flipped the whole thing upside down and framed the two 2x4s lengthwise under the middle of the slats on each piece, just as Lucky8926 did.
In all, the materials cost around $150, which is less than the cheaper foundations you can buy, and a whole lot stronger. Since I used pieces of 1x3s as spacers, the slats are 2.5 inches apart. I do have a few comments:
a. Be warned: each of these pieces is heavy. I was able to move each one onto the frame, but I didn’t have to move them far since I built it in the bedroom. It’ll take two people to move each piece when we move. On the plus side, no matter what you do on the bed, this foundation is not going to break or bow.
b. I had Lowes make the cuts on the 2x10s. I could have cut them with my circular saw at home, but it would have been harder to make the cuts perfectly square, which is helpful when putting it together. It also enabled me to buy longer 2x10s to save money given the lengths needed, which would have been a pain to get home in the bed of my truck.
c. All the fasteners I used were probably overkill, but particularly the ones to hold the slats in place. Finishing nails (or even glue) would probably work, but I didn’t want to use nails because I wanted to avoid squeaks at all costs.
d. If I did it again, I would have bought a router and a router table, so that I could do what Lucky8926 did instead of using the 2x4s to form the “lip”. But I wanted to make the 1x3s flush with the top of the 2x10s for the same OCD reason as Lucky8926 did (I was also a bit worried the slats would snag the bottom of the mattress if one just laid them on top of the 2x10s). The reasons I would have bought a router include i) the elegance of that solution, ii) it’d be a cool tool to have :), and iii) it would have reduced the number of 2x4s needed by four (plus the heavy screws I used), which would have made the whole thing lighter. But my wife thought it was silly to buy a router for the job. But like I said, if I did it again, I would have bought the router anyway :P.
e. Once I was done, I realized I easily could have done just a little more work and made the entire bed (with legs and bolts or a bit more lumber to hold the two pieces together), rather than use the typical metal bed frame. But this also works.
I’d say it was a fun and satisfying project. Of course, I’m still sorting out the bed selection issue - at some point I’ll make another post about that.
This is my first post, so I apologize if I screwed anything up. In particular, I’m having a hard time getting the pictures to show up…
Okay, thanks to Phoenix’s comment, here are the pictures:
Hi TX_Man,
Thanks for taking the time to share your foundation design and instructions … I appreciate it
I also think it will be helpful for others that are interested in building their own foundation as well and I’ve attached a link to your post in the support system reference post here.
Your pictures are probably larger than the limits for forum images (see here) so you should be able to attach them if you reduce the size to less than 2000kb and to a maximum of 800 pixels for the width and height. If you prefer you can also email them to me at the contact email at the top right of the page and I can reduce the size and attach them to your post for you as well.
Phoenix
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