# Murphy beds for the Utah basement apartment and the ADU

Murphy beds for basement apartments, mother-in-law suites and accessory dwelling units in Utah.

Source: https://beehive-wallbeds.pages.dev/basement-adu/

Utah has more basements per home than almost any state, and since the 2021 accessory dwelling unit law most cities allow a basement apartment, a mother-in-law suite or a backyard ADU on a normal lot. The hard part is making a small unit sleep people and still feel like a home. That is the murphy bed's whole job.

## The studio ADU

In a studio the living room is the bedroom. A murphy bed with a sofa keeps a couch in the room all day and folds down over it at night. A desk bed does the same for a tenant who works from home. Either way the unit shows better, rents better and does not feel like a bed with a kitchenette attached. See [murphy bed with sofa](/murphy-bed-with-sofa/).

## The basement family room that hosts

Not every basement is a rental. The family room that hosts the married kids three times a year wants a queen that disappears. A vertical bed with side cabinets on the long wall, or a horizontal bed under the egress window, and the room is a family room again on Monday.

## Low ceilings, soffits and concrete

- **Measure at the wall.** Basements lose inches to ducts, beams and soffits along the walls. A room that is 8 feet in the middle can be 7 feet 4 inches where the bed goes.
- **Go horizontal.** A horizontal queen is about 67 inches tall. It fits under soffits and beside egress windows.
- **Concrete is fine.** Masonry anchors into foundation walls are routine. Furred-out walls get anchored to the framing.
- **Watch the mechanical.** Water heater closets, sump pits and the furnace room decide where a bed cannot go. Send us the photo first.

## For landlords

Spec the heavier piston mechanism, a strap and a release lock, a laminate or painted finish that wipes down, and keep the mattress at ten inches. Tenants are hard on furniture. A murphy bed anchored to the wall is the one piece they cannot drag, flip or lose.

## Cost

A studio sofa bed or desk bed is a full unit; a plain horizontal queen for a family room is near the bottom of the custom range. The [cost guide](/cost/) has the ladder.

## Questions people ask

**Can a murphy bed go under an 8 foot basement ceiling?**

A vertical queen needs about 90 inches of clear height at the wall, so a true 8 foot (96 inch) ceiling works. Finished basements with ducts or soffits along the wall often measure less. A horizontal queen is only about 67 inches tall and fits almost anywhere.

**Can you anchor a murphy bed to a concrete basement wall?**

Yes, with masonry anchors. It is routine. We check for moisture and whether the wall is furred out with framing first.

**Does a murphy bed count as a bedroom for an ADU?**

Zoning counts bedrooms by egress and size, not by what the bed does. A murphy bed is a way to make a studio or one-bedroom unit sleep more people and rent better, not a way to add a legal bedroom. Check your city's ADU rules.

**Will renters treat it well?**

A piston mechanism with a strap and a lock holds up to tenants. We spec the heavier mechanism and a laminate or painted finish for rentals.

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Beehive Wall Beds: Custom murphy beds, designed in your home, along the Wasatch Front. Design and sales company; beds built by Utah craftsmen and installed by partner crews. Free in-home design visits. hello@beehivewallbeds.com