I'm such an idiot - paying a fortune for second hand pallets!

[ParsleyCake]

I feel like such a numpty. I need four wooden pallets to make a pallet bed frame because I want the bed closer to the floor. I have always liked very low beds, and since we had ds it was the perfect excuse. So I sold our old double bed and indulged in a king sized mattress because hey, why not! Pallets are cheap right?

Nu uh.

The only place near me that sells pallets that I could find is so far away delivery is £40. The pallets are £3 each! So the guy calls me up and sounds very kind but clearly thinks I am insane. Insane to the point where he rounded the price down to £50 AND doubled the number of pallets for free. This immediately made me change my mind because I feel like an idiot, and now I want to email him in the morning and lie and say I found a supplier closer to home after all.

What should I do? We need a frame of some kind because, as I do like low beds, I tried to go without a frame of any kind in the past and the mattress went mouldy. I tried to buy wood on ebay and it came to £70 - I mean, for a basic bed frame you don't even need that much wood! Why is it so expensive??? I'm not looking for anything fancy, you won't even be able to see it! Three long planks and six smaller planks for slats would do the job! But I can't for the life of me find wood anywhere for free or cheap. It doesn't help that I dont drive so I'd have to pay for delivery anyway.

I have tried:
Ebay
Gumtree
Professional pallet suppliers
Googling 'pallets' in Ayrshire
B&Q

Help! Where can I get wood or pallets cheaply!

[bearleftmonkeyright]

Phone up a warehouse or factory near to you. They may have some you can take for free. You probably don't want to hear this but we get an endless supply from a local factory and we burn them

[anotherdayanothersquabble]

Local garden centre / builders merchants / builders who have stuff delivered to site on pallets.

You are not from Yorkshire are you.

But even if you do pay to have them delivered, £50 for a bed is a good deal!!

[Fishface77]

Try shops/superstores. Where are you based?

[ParsleyCake]

anotherdayanothersquabble exactly my thoughts! £50 for a bedframe, especially a king sized one, is a good deal! But as bearkeftmonkeyreight says, they go for free at many places...so it depends how you look at it I suppose. I am from Scotland near Glasgow - the pallet guy is in renfrewshire, which is quite far.

It really doesn't help that I am socially anxious so I literally am in dread of seeing this guy now just because I feel silly!

i will try phoning up a few places. My anxiety makes me dread phoning people lol but I know I am being ridiculous!

[bearleftmonkeyright]

Dont feel silly. You should find somewhere in Glasgow.

[specialsubject]

you can get a kingsized bed frame for that or less; ebay seconds. Just saw the legs down and do a bit of carpentry to add a central support.

[ParsleyCake]

Even Glasgow is too far though as I dont drive and have no way to transport them. If it was in the same town as me my mum could possibly fit them in her car, but paying for delivery even within my town is £25 - was quoted that by a man with van service! Glasgow is nearly an hour away.

[ParsleyCake]

specialsubject I have been looking on ebay periodically- nothing near me unfortunately! Will keep looking though as that option seems much easier

[PigletJohn]

Why have you decided to buy pallets? They are cheap, splintery wood in short pieces, easily split, and you need about 2m long for a bed.

You can get some bargains in decking boards, which are fairly smooth, strong enough to make a bed frame out of, and thick enough to drill and screw into without needing fancy joints.

I was surprised to get free delivery from B&Q today, other suppliers had a £30 charge, but it depends how many you want.

[ATruthUniversallyAcknowledged]

Post on your local seek & sell?

[WhoTheFuckIsSimon]

Ask on a local fb group? I'm always picking up pallets for free. I see them outside shops and houses and stop and ask if I can have them. People usually pleased to get rid. Dh laughs at me, I pick a couple of pallets a week up No problem and could get more if I wanted. I see people advertising them on FB sometimes, they usually want £2 a pallet.

[anotherdayanothersquabble]

You know what? Don't feel embarrassed, don't explain yourself, have them delivered, you will never have to see that person again and you will have the bed you want. Who cares if you could have gotten the pallets cheaper, think of all the money you have saved not having a car!!

[JustWantToBeDorisAgain]

dparents regularly collect pallets that would otherwise be wasted from a fires and stoves company ( they use them around the garden)

[specialsubject]

I can't find the one I bought, but there's this for £80 and free delivery:

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Kingsize-5ft-Solid-Pine-Wooden-Bed-Frame-Scandinavian-style-/111952910645?hash=item1a10e9d935:g:SfQAAOSwkZhWRlcG

cheap and cheerful but does have a central leg, and you can reinforce it if needed.

[TheDrsDocMartens]

Futon base?

Shopisfy Quality Slatted Wooden Fold Out Futon Base - Double www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00E9PLPFQ/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awd_zzTaxb27GGGTR?tag=mumsnet&ascsubtag=mnforum-21

[TattyCat]

Um... I'm not sure I'd get pallets as a base, tbh. I know they're very popular on pinterest but they're not that healthy to sleep on - the wood is full of nasty chemicals to stop them rotting and if you have DC, they'll likely pick up splinters. And they're really hard work to sand.

I'd look for a futon base as per ^ - you'll get delivery included. Make life easier for yourself!

[Qwebec]

I agree with everyone else that pallets are not the best for a bed frame.
Futon base is quite a good idea.
If you REALLY want them make sure they heat treated against parasites rather than chemical treated and that if you pay for them they will ship you clean ones (some get incredibly dirty during their working life). And be aware that they split easily as said above.

[FeedMyFaceWithJaffaCakes]

Joining the people that say pallets not a good idea for a bed base, as soon as you jump or have vigorous sex on them, they'll be broken and you'll be back to square one!
Pick up a second hand bed frame for less! ----

[sleepyhead]

Don't feel silly - you're paying for delivery which unfortunately is usually going to be the case if you can't drive/don't have access to a van. If you price up the cost of man with a van, or even just van hire you'll see that you're not getting such a bad deal.

There's a double futon base advertised on Amazon for £60 with free delivery, but I should imagine that ebay/gumtree/freecycle will have them fairly frequently (but then you get the delivery issue again...)

[roses2]

I have just had a large tile delivery and have two large pallets. If you are anywhere near North London you can have them for free?

[MrsNuckyT]

We had a very low Futon bed frame which was great.