Bed Irons, the ideal, the practical

In an ideal world, a bed iron is installed as shown in figure 1.

Bed Irons - Figure 1.

Important points to note:

  • The iron is mortised into the rail.
  • A slat is used to support the wide span of the box spring.
  • The top of the box spring is 1/2" - 1" below the top of the rail to prevent the mattress from sliding.
  • The length of the iron is approximately the same depth as the box spring.

The downside of the ideal installation is that in most applications the bed iron, and box spring, shows below the rail. To avoid this problem, many people opt for this alternate installation:

Bed Irons - Figure 2.

Notes on this alternate method (figure 2):

  • No slat - a slat is not needed for strength, in that our irons have the strength to support any box spring. Slats are used to prevent sag. Modern box springs can sag in the middle over time.
  • The box spring rises above the top of the rail. If the box spring and mattress are both very deep, the top of the bed may be very high off the floor. The height of the mattress may obscure the headboard.
  • The length of the iron is approximately the same height as the rail (4 to 6 inches). This way the bed iron does not show below the rail. This also allows storage space below the bed.

Return to bed irons.

Why Horton Brasses?

Convenience. Need something you cannot find in our catalog? Check our handy list of things we don't make and where to get them. Still can't find what you want? Contact us and we will do our best to help, and we will gladly send you to another supplier if they have what you need.

Our Crew

Chris Burch started in September of 2002 and has learned to do our semi-bright and to buff (polish) the hardware to our brightest finish, and handles many of the manufacturing jobs.

Learn more about Chris Burch and the rest of our team