Quick summary: To dismantle an ottoman bed, strip it and empty the storage, open the base fully, and with one person holding it up, unclip the gas struts from their brackets. Then lower the base by hand, unbolt it from the hinge, and take the frame apart like any flat-pack bed. Pack the struts separately and fit them back last. If your ottoman bed won’t go down or won’t close, the usual causes are struts that are too strong for the mattress, something caught in the base, or struts that are worn or fitted to the wrong bracket hole. Never force a stuck base shut. If you’d rather a driver moved it, you can get an estimate on our Bristol man and van page.
Ottoman beds are different from standard bed frames
The storage compartment is what makes an ottoman bed awkward. To get at the storage, the base lifts up on gas struts, the same kind of pressurised piston you get on a car boot lid. Those struts need disconnecting before the bed comes apart, and the lifting base needs holding while you do it, because the real risk is the base coming down on someone.
Everything else about taking an ottoman bed apart is fairly normal once the struts are dealt with. If you’re booking a driver instead, mention the ottoman when you book. Many of our drivers can handle basic furniture dismantling and reassembly, but it varies by driver and adds to the loading time.
Can you move an ottoman bed without taking it apart?
Sometimes. A single or small double ottoman in one piece can go through a standard door on its side if the route is clear, but a king or super king usually won’t make it round a landing. If you want to try:
- Take the mattress off and empty the storage.
- Strap the lifting base shut with a ratchet strap or luggage strap around the whole bed, so it can’t spring open when the bed is tilted.
- Measure every doorway, the stairs and any turns against the bed’s height, width and length before anyone lifts.
- Carry it with at least two people, keeping it as level as the route allows.
If the measurements are close, take it apart. It’s quicker than getting a bed frame stuck halfway up the stairs.
Tools and preparation
You’ll need cross-head and flat-head screwdrivers, Allen keys (flat-pack ottomans usually use them), a cordless drill with screwdriver bits, zip-lock bags for fixings, masking tape and a marker. Two people is the minimum: one holds the lifting base while the other works on the fixings. HSE’s good handling technique guidance is worth a look before you lift the base.
Strip the bed completely before you start. Mattress off, bedding gone, storage emptied. Anything left in the compartment will get trapped or crushed.
How to disconnect the gas struts safely
When the base is fully open, the struts are extended and holding it up. That’s the position to work in. The moment a strut comes off, it stops supporting that side, so someone has to be holding the base.
- Open the base fully so the struts are extended.
- Find the fittings at each end of each strut. Ball-socket ends and clip ends are the two most common types, and most come apart without tools.
- One person holds the base firmly in the raised position. The other unclips the first strut at one end. Clip ends usually have a small retaining clip to lift; ball sockets ease off the ball stud.
- Disconnect the other strut the same way, with the base still held.
- Lower the base down by hand and keep hold of it until it’s fully down.
If you can’t work out how your struts release, check the manufacturer’s assembly instructions (IKEA keeps its guides online, and most other brands do too). A few beds use struts built into a steel lift arm, which unbolt as one piece rather than unclipping.
Removing the lifting base
With the struts off, the lifting base unbolts from the hinge mechanism, usually with two or four bolts. It comes away as a single flat panel. It’s bulky, but two people can manage it. Carry it straight out of the room.
Bag the hinge bolts and label the bag. These fittings are often specific to the model, and losing one mid-move means hunting for a match.
Dismantling the main frame
The rest comes apart like any flat-pack bed. The headboard unbolts from the back, the side rails come off the head and foot ends at the cam locks or brackets, the storage base panel lifts out, and any cross-supports come out last. Our guide to dismantling a bed frame goes through the frame in more detail.
Label every panel with masking tape as you go: left rail, right rail, headboard, footboard, storage base, lifting base. Put the fixings in a labelled bag and tape it to the biggest panel so it travels with the bed.
Packing the gas struts
Wrap each strut in bubble wrap or a folded towel and pack them where they can’t be crushed or dented. A dented strut body is scrap, and replacements need matching to your bed. Keep them away from heat, such as a hot van left in the sun for hours. Don’t try to take a strut apart.
What size van you’ll need
- Medium van (around 6m³): a double ottoman and its mattress, with not much room for anything else.
- Large van (around 10m³): a king ottoman, the mattress and the rest of a normal bedroom.
- Luton (around 18m³): a super king, or an ottoman that’s part of a bigger house move.
Load the panels flat against one side of the van with blankets between them, largest first. The struts ride somewhere protected, not loose in the back. Our guide to moving a mattress without damaging it covers the mattress.
Ready to get a quote?
Reassembly: gas struts go on last
At the new place, build the frame first, fit the storage base panel, and bolt the lifting base back onto the hinge. Then the struts:
- One person holds the lifting base in the raised position.
- The other clips each strut back onto its brackets, the same way round and on the same bracket holes as before.
- Check every end is fully seated before letting go.
- With the mattress back on, open and close the base a few times, keeping hands clear, before you rely on it.
Take a photo of the strut positions before you disconnect them. It saves guessing which hole they came out of.
Ottoman bed won’t go down or won’t close? How to fix it
This is usually one of a handful of fairly simple problems. Whatever the cause, don’t force a stuck base shut. Work out why it isn’t closing first.
Ottoman bed won’t stay down
The most common cause is struts that are too strong for the mattress. Gas struts are rated in newtons for a certain weight, and a light mattress, or a new mattress that’s lighter than the old one, isn’t heavy enough to hold the base down. Test it by pushing the base flat: if it stays down while you hold it but rises when you let go, the struts are winning. The fix is a heavier mattress or struts with a lower rating. Some frames have more than one bracket hole for the struts, set for different mattress weights, so check the instructions.
Ottoman bed won’t close or is stuck open
- Something is in the way. Bedding caught in the gap, an overfilled storage well, or a bag of fixings left in after the build.
- The struts are fitted wrong. The wrong way round, or on the wrong bracket hole, especially straight after assembly or a move.
- A bracket is bent or a strut has come off its mount, so the base sits crooked.
- Loose bolts or an uneven floor, which twist the frame so the base doesn’t sit square.
Ottoman bed won’t stay up or drops
Struts lose pressure as they wear, so an older bed that no longer holds itself open usually needs new struts. Replace them as a pair, matching the newton rating (printed on the strut body), the length and the end fittings. One old and one new strut pulls the hinge out of line. Until they’re replaced, don’t rely on the base staying up while you reach into the storage.
Are ottoman beds safe?
Used properly, yes, but a failed lifting mechanism can be dangerous. In 2024, a coroner’s prevention of future deaths report raised concerns about gas piston bed mechanisms after a base came down unexpectedly, and the Office for Product Safety and Standards asked BSI to review how furniture standards deal with it. Practically, that means replacing struts that no longer hold the base up, keeping children away from the mechanism, and never leaning into the storage with a base you don’t trust.
Getting rid of old gas struts
Gas struts are pressurised, so don’t cut, drill or crush them. Strut manufacturer Camloc’s gas strut disposal advice describes them as potentially dangerous and explains that they must be depressurised before the tube is cut. The simplest option at home is to take them to your council recycling centre and ask where they want them.
When it’s worth paying someone else
Super kings, beds with lift-arm mechanisms, and anything with non-standard fittings are worth handing over. Our furniture assembly and disassembly service can take it apart and put it back together, and a damaged strut or bent bracket usually costs more to sort out than having it done properly in the first place.
Ready to get a quote?
Frequently asked questions
Why won’t my ottoman bed stay down?
Usually the gas struts are too strong for the mattress, so the base lifts when you let go. Try a heavier mattress, check the struts are on the right bracket holes, or fit struts with a lower newton rating.
Why won’t my ottoman bed close properly?
Check for bedding or stored items in the gap first, then check the struts are fitted the right way round and on the correct holes, and that no bracket is bent. Don’t force it shut.
How do I know which gas struts to buy for my ottoman bed?
Match the newton rating printed on the old strut, its length and its end fittings, and replace both struts at the same time.
Do you need to remove the gas struts to dismantle an ottoman bed?
Yes. Disconnect them with the base fully open and held by a second person, then lower the base by hand before unbolting it.
How do you move an ottoman bed without taking it apart?
Remove the mattress, empty the storage and strap the lifting base shut, then measure the doors and stairs before lifting. Larger ottomans usually need dismantling.
