A trundle bed is the space-saving gem every home needs

Housed within a frame that matches the same material and design of the larger bed above, all trundle bed designs can work on single, queen- or king-sized beds, making it a truly versatile bed for any modern home.
 

The History Of A Trundle Bed

During the middle ages—which ranged between the 5th to the late 15th century—homes started to see the beginning of standardisation, which meant smaller bedrooms. To house larger families or make room for the personal help that ran the home, the first trundle bed was created. This helped save space, while also allowing for a fully staffed house.

The Mattress In A Trundle Bed

While the options and height for a mattress for your main bed are many, the mattress for a trundle bed design cannot exceed eight inches in height. Since this may not seem very appealing, to add an element of support you could try fitting in a mattress made from memory foam. This sort of mattress works wonderfully in a trundle as it doesn’t require a box-spring frame to house it.

Another thing to consider is the low height of a pull-out trundle bed. While for children this isn’t a difficult space to navigate around, for older folk with weak knees or painful joints, its lower height might pose a problem. Also, if possible, make sure one side of the trundle bed doesn’t rest against a wall, as the person sleeping on the top main frame can find it difficult to get in and out of the bed when someone is sleeping below.
 

Are Trundle Beds Comfortable?

Conventionally, most trundle bed designs are considered for the children’s or guest bedrooms, and often commonly found in studio apartments or rooms with a dual purpose. Due to a thinner mattress and lower height close to the ground, a pull-out trundle bed is better suited for children, teenagers and young adults who have stronger or less problematic backs and can easily climb in or jump out of the trundle. However, a good quality pull-up trundle bed can easily work as a comfortable bedding option for adults as well. With a sturdy mattress cover to equalise any separation in the middle, and installing wheels locks and a bridge pad below, you can guarantee a peaceful and cosy night’s sleep on a trundle bed, as well.
 

Different Frames Of A Trundle Bed

A trundle bed can vary in two ways based on its frame—you could either get a pop-up frame or a drawer frame. While both frames rest in a similar way under the main bed frame atop and roll out from underneath on wheels, the way they rest vary greatly.
 

A drawer frame, which is the most popular style in trundle bed designs, is exactly as its name suggests.The additional mattress housed in this styled trundle frame pulls our like a drawer from underneath and rests on the side of the bed at a slightly lower height. Often these beds can also have additional drawers under the trundle mattress to allow for more storage of items such as bed linens and extra bedding.
 

A pop-up frame trundle bed, on the other hand, pulls up from under the bed but rests at the same height as the mattress on the primary bed above. This enables increasing the breadth of the bed to convert a single bed into a double-sized bed (or a queen- sized into a king-sized bed). This works wonderfully for couples living in a small apartment, who don’t have the space for a full-sized bed in the day, but would like to sleep on one at night. The similar concept can also be created for a daybed in the living room to have a space for guests in the absence of a guest room.
 

The Difference Between A Trundle Bed And Daybed

While a trundle bed essentially holds two beds in a single frame, thereby allowing it to sleep double the number of people its frame can hold, a day bed, on the other hand, is a type of sofa that is spacious and wide enough to also be slept on. A common multipurpose piece of furniture found in single-room or studio apartments, a daybed is used as a sofa in the day, and by night, it can be covered with bedding and bed linens to sleep on. Unlike all trundle bed designs, a daybed only allows a single person to sleep on it. 

For a home office, style your trundle bed as a day bed with cushions and linens to match the palette of the rest of the room. To create a more formal or serious mood in this semi-work space, make sure to not have any elements of bedding around it that could give away clues that you’re in your bedroom design during a work Zoom call!
 

To create a guest bedroom, consider a pull-up style trundle bed design and cover it with the bedding you’d use on your regular beds. With the best cotton sheets and comfiest quilts, you could make a guest bed as comfy as one in a five-star hotel! For additional space, and if you don’t have guests frequently, you could use the space in the trundle bed for storage, and swap it with an air mattress on the rare chance you have visitors.