Maximizing Space and Comfort: Considering Bunk Beds for Recovery Housing
The Opportunity to Rethink Bedroom Design
Recovery housing plays a crucial role in supporting individuals on their journey to recovery from substance use disorder. One of the key factors in ensuring stability and sustainability for each home is effective space management. With occupancy being a core aspect of generating revenue, there’s an opportunity to rethink how bedrooms are laid out to maximize space and comfort for residents. This blog explores the potential of bunk beds as a way to improve both spatial efficiency and the overall living experience for our guests.
Rethinking Space Utilization
Many of our homes, especially those in New England, have high ceilings and irregular bedroom layouts. These are often valuable features that can be better utilized. The challenge, however, is that standard room layouts can limit how effectively we use available space. By reconsidering traditional bedroom setups, we may be able to add a few extra beds—which not only increases occupancy but also contributes to financial sustainability. Bunk beds offer an intriguing opportunity to make better use of high ceilings and awkwardly shaped rooms, adding flexibility where traditional single beds fall short.
The Opportunity: Exploring Bunk Beds
Bunk beds are often seen as a creative solution for maximizing space in smaller rooms, but they bring more benefits to the table beyond just saving floor space. Below, we look at the potential benefits of integrating bunk beds into our recovery housing.
1. Better Use of Floor Space
By using bunk beds—specifically full-over-full bunk beds with stairs instead of ladders—we can significantly improve floor space efficiency. Compared to two twin XL beds, full-over-full bunk beds increase the available floor space by over 50%. This extra space can be used for additional furnishings, creating a more comfortable and well-designed room that feels less cramped.
2. Improved Privacy
While bunk beds might initially seem like they reduce privacy, certain designs actually provide opportunities for greater personal space. Adding curtains or other dividers to each bunk can give residents a greater sense of privacy compared to traditional side-by-side beds. This type of separation can be beneficial, especially in shared living environments, where having the option for privacy can be empowering for guests as they focus on their recovery.
3. Offering Varied Accommodations
Offering different types of beds gives residents more choice and a greater sense of individuality. Some guests may prefer the privacy and coziness of a bunk bed with a curtain, while others might choose a standard bed. Providing options—like full-over-full bunk beds—helps accommodate different preferences, which contributes to an overall feeling of comfort and personalization within the home. Additionally, offering larger beds within bunk configurations can help address the perceived downsides of bunk beds while providing more comfortable sleeping options.
4. Addressing Practical Challenges
There are practical considerations when it comes to choosing bunk beds for recovery housing. Many commercially available bunk beds are designed for children or youth, and few are suitable for adults in terms of weight capacity and sturdiness. While there are adult bunk beds available, they often come at a significant cost, typically ranging from $1,800 to $3,000 per bed.
Another option is to custom-build bunk beds, but this requires carpentry skills, design expertise, and the right plans. If you’re interested in exploring this option, we’re happy to share a free set of design plans that we’ve successfully used to build full-over-full bunk beds. Please feel free to reach out to us for more information.
Visualizing the Potential
Sample Bunk Bed Design
To better visualize the potential, we start with a sample design of a full-over-full bunk bed. This design showcases the type of sturdy, adult-appropriate bunk bed that can effectively maximize space while providing comfort.
What this design offers:
- A full over full configuration allowing for larger than standard bed size
- Built-in stairs, each with a drawer for additional storage
- Ability to install curtains for both top and bottom bunks for enhanced privacy
Sample Floor Plan
To better understand the potential impact of bunk beds, we’ve included visual depictions of how a bunk bed setup compares to a standard room layout. Below, you’ll find an illustration of a full-over-full bunk bed and how it can transform the use of space within a room. The comparison clearly shows the increased floor space and the improved flow that can be achieved by incorporating bunk beds. This visualization aims to provide a concrete example of how rethinking room design can benefit both residents and operators.
The room on the left
In the design plans, the room on the left is a double bedroom with two beds and two dressers. By putting a bunk bed in this room, the beds can be upgraded from Twin XL to full size, allowing for additional furniture like a desk and chair to be added to the room.
The room on the right
The room on the right is currently a three-person bedroom with limited hanging space for clothing. With the addition of bunk beds, it becomes possible to add a fourth bed, all of which are full-size, and create a better layout for the room overall, as shown in the plans.
Conclusion
The decision to introduce bunk beds in recovery housing isn’t without its challenges, but it’s a step worth considering. By selectively integrating bunk beds into certain rooms, we can make better use of available space, offer a wider variety of sleeping accommodations, and ultimately create a more engaging, sustainable, and resident-focused living environment. We encourage the recovery housing community to consider this option as part of their broader efforts to enhance both the quality and sustainability of recovery support.
If you’re interested in exploring how bunk beds could work in your home or would like access to our free plans for building sturdy, adult-sized bunk beds, please reach out. Together, we can rethink how we design our spaces to better support the people who live in them.
The Vanderburgh Foundation, Inc. is proud to support independent VSL Chartered Operators. As the largest network of NARR-Affiliate certified recovery homes in the United States, we are committed to maintaining the highest standards of safety, support, and effectiveness in sober living environments. Learn more about becoming a VSL Chartered Operator.