Vertical Murphy
Beds

When vertical wins

Vertical is the murphy bed most people picture: a tall cabinet, usually styled like an armoire, that opens into a full bed with the head at the wall. It wins whenever wall width is the constraint. A 66-inch-wide queen cabinet fits walls where an 87-inch horizontal never could. It wins in rooms with tall ceilings that would dwarf a low horizontal cabinet. And it wins on familiarity: guests recognize it, hardware kits for it are everywhere, and every plan set ever drawn includes it. If your room has the ceiling height, vertical is the path of least resistance.

Ceiling math, by size

The rule: you need the mattress length plus 6 to 8 inches of clear ceiling, measured to the lowest obstruction, not the drywall: the lowest thing. Here's what that means in practice:

• Twin (75 in. mattress): ~81 in. cabinet, needs 7 ft clear. Fits almost everywhere.
• Full (75 in. mattress): ~81 in. cabinet, needs 7 ft clear.
• Queen (80 in. mattress): ~87 in. cabinet, needs 7 ft 6 in. clear. Rules out 7-ft ceilings.
• King (80 in. mattress): ~87 in. cabinet, needs 7 ft 6 in. clear, plus serious wall width.

Ceiling fans are the silent killer: a fan hanging to 7 feet vetoes a queen vertical even under an 8-foot ceiling. Crown molding near the pivot arc, soffits, and sloped ceilings all count. Measure twice, at the exact spot the cabinet will stand.

Hardware and legs

Vertical kits mount the pivot plates near the bottom sides of the cabinet, and the bed rotates up and over. Most kits include folding legs that swing down as the bed opens and tuck inside when it closes. On the Create-A-Bed Deluxe they're steel and disappear completely; on kits without them, you build wooden legs into the frame. Either way, the legs must land solidly and the bed must sit level. An unlevel bed walks, creaks, and stresses the pivots. Set the cabinet plumb, set the legs to the floor, and check level across the frame before the first night's sleep. Our build plans include the leg geometry matched to each kit, so you're not calculating angles.

Bedding that survives the fold

The question every vertical builder asks: does the bedding stay on? Yes. With the mattress strap cinched and a fitted sheet with deep pockets, the whole made bed folds up vertically and comes back down intact. Use a dedicated bedding set that lives on the bed; lighter quilts beat heavy comforters, which shift. Pillows go in the strap too, or on a shelf inside the cabinet. Many builders add a small pillow cubby above the folded frame. The thirty-second fold only works if making the bed isn't part of it, so set up the bedding once and leave it.

Frequently asked questions