Niche for the bed: installation instructions

Niches for a bed in the bedroom serve not only as an original complement to the interior, but also perform a very important function - create a feeling of comfort and security for the sleeping. Even a very shallow niche is capable of instantly transforming the room and giving it coziness. If you think that is is only available to the guests of fortune, we hasten to please you - anyone who knows how to hold screwdriver and a hammer can make a bed in their own hands.

From what to build a niche?

The modern construction market offers a lot of materials from which it would be possible to make a niche at the head of the bed, however the most convenient option is drywall. It is inexpensive, environmentally friendly, weighs little, and is the most important thing for - it's easy to work with it. With the installation of the niche will cope with any home-grown master.

But in the building materials store there are so many varieties of drywall that it's no wonder to get confused. The inexperienced master will find it difficult to navigate in such a variety, so we have prepared several tips. First of all, you should familiarize yourself with the classification of gypsum boards and their technical characteristics. In the latter, the majority of drywall products are similar: they have an absolutely smooth surface, they are afraid of moisture and quite fragile.

To strengthen the structure of GKL use special metal profiles of different rigidity depending on the expected load. In the case of a conventional niche for a bed, inexpensive rack-mount profiles are suitable without reinforcing elements and reinforcement. If you plan to install a niche with built-in shelves for decorative decorations or useful trifles that may need in the bedroom, the will be useful for profiles more simply.

For working with plasterboard, no special tools are required. This is the still one merit of the material. To cut the sheets very easily with the help of a regular clerical knife - you just need to draw a straight line to cut a layer of cardboard, break the sheet in this place and gently cut the second layer of skin. Self-tapping is used to attach the GCR to the profile frame.

Helpful Hint: Drywall is afraid of moisture, but this does not mean that it can not be soaked at all. If you want to bend the sheet to make an arch or other curly element, lightly moisten it and slowly bend in the desired direction. Fix it in this position until it dries completely, and it retains its shape.

With gypsum cardboard it is easy to work not only in terms of installation, but also with regard to finishing decorative finishing. Since the surface of the sheets is perfectly flat, any coating falls on the on it flawlessly. After covering with , you can paint on the surface, do decoupage, glue wallpapers and paint.

There are several types of drywall:

1. Wall - manufactured in sheets 2, 3x 1, 2 m or 2, 5x 1, 2 m with a thickness of 12.5 mm. As the name suggests, this material is used for wall covering.
   
2. Ceiling sheets in format 2x 1, 2 m or 2, 5x 1, 2 m with a thickness of 9.5 mm. It is used for the roofing of ceilings and it is worth choosing to create a niche above the bed in the bedroom. The technical characteristics are almost the same as for the wall - it's afraid of water, not very strong, however its cost is much lower( most cheap kind of drywall).
3. Waterproof - material in format 2, 3x 1, 2 m or 2, 5x 1, 2 m with a thickness of 12.5 mm. Unlike the previous two species, which have a gray color, the moisture-resistant plasterboard is sheathed with green cardboard. It is used in rooms with a high level of humidity. The moisture resistance is explained by the special composition of the protective cardboard layer - it is impregnated with an antifungal waterproofing agent.
   
4. Fire resistant - sheets of light gray color with red marking format 2, 3x 1, 2 m or 2, 5x 1, 2 m with a thickness of 12.5 mm. Used in rooms with increased requirements for fire safety( plating for fireplaces or chimneys).Refractory qualities GKL has received due to a large number of flame retardant reinforcing additives in the core and reinforced outer shell. It is worth noting that any GCR is not able to burn or sustain combustion, maximum - it can be charred. However, fireproof plasterboard resists burning, and after a long exposure to direct flame, the core does not crumble, but retains its shape.
   
5. Arched - a special flexible material for the manufacture of arches. Produce it in the format 3x 1, 2 m with a thickness of 6.5 mm. Such thin sheets are usually mounted in two layers. If the din cr ovati in the niche provides an arched vault, it is better to choose this kind of drywall. However, it is worth considering that the cost of the material is quite high, and since it is necessary to put it in 2 layers for strength, costs are doubled.

In the markets and in construction shops, plasterboard is usually sold in the thickness of 6, 9 or 12 mm. To make a solid niche, it is better to choose sheets thicker than .

Assembling a niche for a bed

Before setting up a gypsum board recess or even going to a store for materials, a detailed design plan should be developed. In the drawing, all dimensions must be marked to scale to within a centimeter in order to avoid errors. It is also recommended to mark fixing points to calculate how much fasteners and frame elements are required.

Niches for a bed in the wall can be deep and shallow .In the first case, you build as if is a small cozy cave for sleeping. Usually, these grooves are made according to the size of the bed. Such constructions look very original and accurate. In addition, they allow you to create additional places for storing things - on the sides you can make a lot of depressions and small built-in shelves. From the bottom, drawers for more heavy things - bed-clothes or clothes - will perfectly fit. A deep niche for a bed in a nursery is a great way to save a lot of space and accustom the child to order - before going to sleep in niches, you must always lay out toys or books.

Also a deep niche is a good solution for small studio apartments .If the bedroom is combined with the living room, you can hang beautiful curtains at the exit of the recess to visually fence off the rest area of ​​the and the unit. A bunk bed in a niche will look very compact and stylish, especially if you attach a little creativity to the design.

And yet, most often choose shallow niches, which serve more decorative than a functional element. Although in them you can ponadelat many shelves for useful things. Very original looks with a photo wallpaper behind the headboard. Also there you can put a mirror, LED backlight, photos in frames or pictures.

So, what is needed to make a niche above the bed:

• drywall;
• metal profiles UD ( guides) and CD( racks);
• U-shaped brackets;
• fasteners( dowels, screws, hardware);
• perforated corner profile for a beautiful appearance of even angles( metal or plastic);
• putty for on plasterboard;
• drill with a set of drill ;
• screwdriver or screwdriver ;
• measuring tape;
• simple pencil;
• building level;
• reinforcement tape;
• spatula;
• adhesive for plasterboard;
• paint, wallpaper, decorative plaster or any other finish decorative coating.

If you try and do it right, the niche will perform two functions( or one of the functions of your choice): hide the defects of the room, making it more spacious or profitable by allocating to a specific zone, and being the place of storage of the necessary things. In other words, you can make a nice and useful niche - the perfect variation of nt for I have any apartment where there is always not enough free space.

How to make a niche for a bed:

1. In accordance with the drawing, make markings on plasterboard sheets and cut them into separate parts. How to cut gypsum board we have already told, but here's the and useful video that shows the whole process visually:
   
2. Make the profile markings for the frame on the floor to avoid possible skewing.
3. Make the markings on the wall at the location of the racks.
4. Attach the guide profiles according to the markings. The upper guides are installed without fastening with metal. When you level the position by the building level, then they can be fixed to the end.
5. Screw the profiles to the wall, floor and ceiling with dowels. To do this, first attach the profile to its installation site, mark the points of attachment with a simple pencil, drill holes in the concrete and hammer the dowels. Install extreme dowels with a distance of not more than 50 cm from the end of the profile. The step of installing the intermediate fasteners should not be more than 70 cm, but not less than 3 pieces.for profiles of any length.
6. The rear side of the guide profile is recommended to be covered with a special soft soundproof tape with Velcro. It will reduce possible vibrations, and the bedroom will become quieter.
   
7. Assemble the frame according to the drawing. If you do the shelves, it is better to strengthen the intersection of profiles with special metal corners.
8. Now you can attach the prepared gypsum board parts to the frame. Collapse the racks, make shelves by fastening the sheets with metal screws. The edges of the cut sheets turn out to be quite sharp and unsightly, so they can be lightly treated with a small grain of sandpaper.
9. Paste the joints of the sheets with a serpentine tape to strengthen the connection and make it more neat.
10. To the corners of the construction for a special glue on gypsum cardboard glue angled perforated profiles. Metal serve longer than plastic, but they cost more. For a bedroom, plastic ones are quite suitable, since in such a place corners are unlikely to be subjected to regular mechanical influences.
11. Fix the anchorage points with self-tapping screws and serpentine tape.
12. After drying putty , cover all with one more layer to get a flat surface.
13. After drying the layer of fillers, remove streaks and unevenness with sandpaper and wipe off the dust with a dry cloth.
14. Now you can start finishing the niche of gypsum board above the bed. Very beautiful looks decorative plaster with impressions made by a figured roller, relief plaster or interior paint. At this stage, you can give yourself the will and use any artistic techniques of .Even if you just cover a niche under the bed with wallpaper, as on other walls, it will look stylish and neat.
    
15. You can install lighting. It is better to give preference to spotlights or LED strip . Such devices do not heat up very much, therefore, they are not capable of creating a fire hazard situation. Place the wiring or transformer of the LED strip in the frame.

In this video installation of niches is shown in great detail, so after viewing such a job will not cause you any difficulties:

Finally, there are some useful tips on how to properly create a built-in bed in a niche:

1. Always draw as detailed drawing with all dimensions, number of fasteners and other important details. Ideally, it is better to have two sketches: one with dimensions, the second - the color design of the future design. So you can compare the result with the target.
2. Always take a little more materials and fasteners than required by the drawing. The recommended stock is 10% of the total.
3. At all stages( marking and attaching parts) use the building level.
4. Before plating the frame with plasterboard, check its stability.
5. Try to cover the plane with one whole piece of drywall than a few small ones.
6. The fewer junctions, the better.
7. Do not feel sorry for putty and process not only the joints, but the whole construction as well, leveling the surface.
8. If you want to make a powerful soundproofing, for example, if noisy neighbors live behind the wall, fill the interior space of the niche with mineral wool. It is inexpensive and well absorbs noise.
9. Consider the kind of backlighting and the method of its installation in advance. Wiring should be carried out until the gypsum board is attached. The holes for the fixtures should be cut immediately.

Bed in the niche: photo

Among all the variety of design solutions it is difficult to choose something specific, but we still recommend to look at a small photoframe of with original ways of creating niches in bedrooms.