Recycled Materials in Platform Beds

Advantages

• Survey the broad-ranging benefits of utilizing recycled materials in your platform bed when considering whether or not to use them. Low cost is a major benefit because reclaimed, salvaged, reused and otherwise recycled materials typically cost less -- sometimes substantially less -- than brand-new materials. You may be able to build a one-of-a-kind platform bed for half or less of the cost of a mass-manufactured new bed. Eco-friendliness presents another benefit, albeit one less tangible than cost. Using recycled materials in an application generally uses less energy and produces less environmental impact than using new materials would.

Material Types

• Platform beds typically contain the same basic materials of any other kind of bed -- namely, wood, metal, mattress, and fabric for bedding. That said, the amounts of these materials you need may be different. For example, you may need more wood to build a platform bed than you would to build a basic bed frame. You may not need a box spring. Get or make plans for the platform bed you want. This will allow you to scout for pre-used, salvaged and reprocessed materials in the amounts you need.

Sources

• Recycled wood, metal and ornamentation with which you could construct a platform bed can be found at architectural salvage shops, city dumps, junkyards, garage sales, flea markets and rummage sales. These materials may also be unearthed in your own backyard, garage, storage shed, attic or basement. If you want to build a platform bed from recycled materials, keep a list in your wallet of the materials you will need and always have your eyes open. You never know when you will come across a free shipping pallet or a stack of sun-bleached driftwood planks.

Drawbacks

• Consider the drawbacks of using recycled materials in your platform bed before you make the decision to use them. One major drawback of recycled materials is that finding duplicates of the items may be difficult or impossible. This is particularly true if, for example, you augment the edges of the bed platform with brass fixtures you found at a salvage yard, or if you build the platform from reclaimed barn wood weathered in a highly distinctive way. If you can't find replacement materials, you may find it hard to repair your platform bed without creating an obvious inconsistency in its appearance.