How to Disassemble IKEA Loft Bed

• Have you ever heard about IKEA? Of course, you have; IKEA furniture is widely used worldwide. It’s hard to find anyone who would never come across this brand.  
• Despite popular belief, assembling and disassembling IKEA furniture by ourselves can be challenging; some people say that manual instructions are pretty hard to understand.
• A loft bed works double duty—it not only serves as a comfy piece of furniture where you can rest comfortably but also creates even more room for other furniture like wardrobes, sofas, drawers, or other storage. In the article below, you’ll find a practical explanation of how to take apart an IKEA loft bed if you need to do it in your household.

IKEA in your bedroom

IKEA has become so popular over the years that it would be difficult to find a home that doesn’t have any IKEA brand items. 

In addition, IKEA furniture is affordable and visually pleasant, so it’s not a surprise people love it.

On the flip side, IKEA furniture can be pretty tricky to assemble—it has quite a lot of tiny parts, often complex to differentiate between them. 

We all want our new bed to be ready instantly, so when we come across instructions for assembling the IKEA loft bed that seem too complex—it can become a frustrating experience. 

But let’s assume that, one way or another, you have finally assembled that cute and compact loft bed you bought for your kids. 

Tip: A loft bed is the best choice if you live in a tiny apartment and want to sleep in a full-size bed! 

What if after some time you decide to change it? Are you planning to move it to another room to freshen your place in a year or two?

That’s right: In this case, you will have to take the mattress away and disassemble your bed frame. 

Keep reading; we have a couple of helpful tricks on doing it smoothly.

Are IKEA instructions helpful at this point?

Not much, but let’s not panic yet! 

Gladly, we’ve done some research and prepared a couple of handy tips and tricks on how to disassemble the IKEA loft bed smoothly. 

Important: Spoiler alert—it’s easier to take apart the IKEA beds than put them together.

Disassemble the IKEA loft bed

Taking the IKEA beds apart is a three-phase process. 

We’ll start with collecting the tools needed. Then, we’ll go to preparation, and finally, we’ll get rid of mattresses and start to disassemble your loft bed. 

Are you ready?

Tools

To disassemble the IKEA loft bed, you won’t need complicated tools. All you need are three essential tools listed below. 

Whether it’s a bunk bed that you’re going to disassemble or a simple one-floor bed frame, equip yourself with: 

1. a pack of different sizes of Allen wrenches, 

You need one Allen wrench that is the exact appropriate size to handle this operation. Yet, you may want to purchase more of them, just in case. 

2. screwdriver with a flat head,

3. transparent plastic bags or boxes;

You need these bags to put all the small parts like screws, bolts, caps, and hooks there. 

Maybe you’re not thinking about it at the moment, but you’ll need them when you are about to re-assemble the bed.

Tip: Use small Ziploc bags to store all the tiny parts of your loft bed. Also, it’s worth going the extra mile and labeling each of the bags. This helpful, quick trick will save you much time later if you ever need to re-assemble the bed.

Preparation

Now, you can prepare your loft bed for disassembling.

Tip: Keep in mind that IKEA provides a support contact center panel in case you have questions regarding your IKEA furniture. Also, don’t hesitate to research the “uncle Google” if you’re looking for further support. 

Whether your bed support has a wood or metal frame, follow these simple steps:

1. Make sure you have all the equipment you need (see above),

2. Take out the mattresses from the bed frames,

3. Unscrew the footboard and headboard from the bed frame,

4. Remove the side rails from the top of the loft bed,

5. Remove any support rails on the backside of the bed,

6. Lean the bed frames over so that they lay in the position on their side,

7. Clear away all the additional stuff from the loft bed, such as decorations and stickers;

If possible, find the assembly instructions for your loft bed. Can’t track it down? Google it! The IKEA website has the majority of assembly instructions online.

You may consider using some additional hands. One or two friends would facilitate the whole process.

Disassemble

We went through preparation, so it’s time to get this party started! How to take apart the IKEA bed? Here’s the whole process described in detail:

1. Remove the plastic bolts

Take the Allen wrench and a flat screwdriver to remove all the plastic bolts and caps from the loft bed—these parts are located on both sides of the bed slats. 

Make sure you go through each and remove every white plastic bolt and cap.

Use the flat head screwdriver to hold the white plastic cap from one side while turning the bolt on a different side using an Allen Wrench on the other side. Keep turning the bolt until it loosens up, and you can remove it quickly.

2. Take out the bed slats

Now that you have loosened up all the bolts of the bed slats, you should be able to move them easily. 

Slide the bed slats—pull them out of the metal railing carefully. 

Piece by piece, remove all the slats from your loft bed.

Important: The loft bed is not the same as the bunk bed. A loft bed is a bit similar to a bunk bed but without the lower beds. One of the examples of a bunk bed produced by IKEA is the Mydal bunk bed. These affordable bunks by IKEA are made of solid wood—a durable material that lasts for generations and can be recycled. 

That’s one of the reasons the loft bed is so gorgeous—it frees floor space for other furniture, such as a desk, which you might build into the loft bed. 

You can turn a bunk bed into a loft bed by removing the mattress, the bunking pins, and bolts, moving the ladder to the other ladder side, adding a diagonal brace, and replacing the mattress on the top bunk.

3. Remove screws from the bed frame

Now, after taking out the bed slats, use your Allen Wrench to remove the screws from your loft bed frame.

Here’s how to un screw your bed frame described step by step:

• First, remove the screws from the stairs (or let’s just call it a ladder). We mean the screws that attach the ladder to the bed frame,

• Carefully remove the screws from the end of the bed frame,

• Take out the whole end of the bed (it should come out in one piece), 

Important: This is the part where you may need support to hold the other end of the bed so that it won’t crack.

• go to another end of the bed and remove the screws;

It would be helpful if a friend hold it while you are loosening up the screws so it doesn’t fall and break. 

After removing both ends of the bed, you should now have these parts of the bed: 

• bed rails, 
• two ends of the bed frame, 
• the ladder rungs, and 
• bed slats;

Missing any spare parts? If everything is in place, let’s continue!

4. Dismantle the two sides of the loft bed

Start with the ladder side of the bed:

• Remove all the visible bolts and screws, and put all the spare parts apart in boxes or bags you’ve prepared before.

• Make sure you really need to disassemble an entire bed—maybe the sides would fit in a moving truck even if still partially assembled? If you are planning to pack your bed in the boxes, you probably have to go ahead and dismantle the sides of the bed as well as the headboard and a foot board completely.

With a standard bed, when you’re done taking the bed frame apart, the largest piece you have to lift is usually the headboard (the footboard is typically smaller). 

It typically fits easily through the bedroom door and down the hall or into your truck.

Other tips 

Curious to get to know other tips for disassembling the IKEA loft bed or any other furniture? 

Here are a couple more helpful hacks:

1. Measure the new room 

If you are disassembling the IKEA loft bed because you are about to move it to another place – make sure you’ve measured that new place carefully. 

Trust us on this one—it would be a shame if you would disassemble the whole bed, pack it up and only then find out that it doesn’t even fit in your new room. 

You better save your nerves for re-assembling!

2. Make some calls before you start 

If you’re planning to hire a company to help you move your IKEA furniture—call them and ask if they need you to disassemble the furniture. 

Sometimes, moving companies can transport a fully assembled item—this information would save you a lot of time!

3. Be gentle 

IKEA furniture is affordable. It’s one of the reasons it became so popular. 

Unfortunately, a lower price sometimes means a bit lower quality. 

Once you start re-assembling your loft bed or any other IKEA furniture—go easy.

Try to be as gentle as possible, even if it’s a metal bed frame that seems very solid. Bolts can always crack, and other parts can scratch.

Now that you know the basic principles of disassembling the loft bed—let’s get down to business. 

We hope our guide helped you to make this process more approachable!

Remember that taking the loft bed apart is half that difficult if you have:

• some extra helping (and helpful) hands, 
• the right equipment, and 
• assembly instructions at hand (can be found and downloaded from Google). 

Some people follow the assembly instructions backward. Try it out!

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