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Basic Facts
- Crafted of powder coated finished metal
- Static weight capacity for top bunk: 300 lbs *
- Dimensions: 65” H X 59.5” W X 79.4” L
- Guardrail height: 14”
- Recommended mattress thickness: 8”
- Space between bottom and top bunk: 35”
- Clearance — floor to bottom: 12.75”
- Available in black, white and pewter finishes
- Overall product weight: 116.87 lbs
- Can be separated into two individual beds
Introduction
Powell Twin Over Twin Heavy Duty Metal Bunk Bed (branded as Leonel at Wayfair) has been made to cope with all the demands of a youth environment. And you can tell that just by looking at it. Those heavy gauge 3 inch steel tubes that serve as bed legs communicate strength and stability. The declared weight capacity of 300 lbs*, facilitated by 20 tubular steel slats per bed, speaks volumes about the manufacturer’s confidence in the structural integrity of their product.
* Note: on various shopping sites you will find the declared weight capacity for the top bunk on this bed to be either 600 or 400 pounds. The 300 lbs figure alleged here I have found in the manufacturer’s Installation & Assembly PDF and I’m considering that to be a more reliable source of information.
The guardrail height is specced at 14 inches, plenty enough to accommodate the recommended 8 inch mattress and be in compliance with the safety regulations. With an inch to spare. The guardrails cover the full length of the bed on both sides. Some would call that a flaw, since there’s no opening to allow easier access to the top bunk. The kids need to go over the rail, and some might struggle with it.
The ladder… well, the ladder I have to say is a bit of a disappointment. As is the case with pretty much any metal bunk bed. It’s made of tubular steel like the rest of the bed, but those tubes, especially the rungs, look a little thin and uncomfortable to me. Not an insurmountable problem, to be sure, probably some properly attached pipe insulation (a lot of people use pool noodles, which is kind of a similar thing) would make things better, but… I wonder how much would it add to the cost of the product if the ladder was constructed with more comfortable flat anti-skid rungs.
Moving on. Powell Heavy Duty Metal Bunk Beds are available in 3 finishes: black, white and pewter.
The bunk bed can be separated into two individual beds as seen below. However, if you look at the pictures closely you’ll notice there are two ways to go about that. In the first picture (black finish), the top bunk was simply taken down and placed beside the bottom bunk. The end result is functional, if not very aesthetically pleasing. The upper bunk, with those continuous rails, would in this case be a pretty good solution as a toddler bed.
To get two identical beds as seen in the second picture (white finish) you’ll need to disassemble the beds and reassemble them again so that the end boards from the top bunk serve as headboards, and those from the bottom bunk as footboards. Or vice versa. Personally, I’d prefer those legs sticking out in the air were placed against the wall. Although, those arched ends do have headboard written all over them.
Here’s a couple of up-close images for you to check out the finish and welding quality.
What Users Say About Powell Heavy Duty Metal Bunk Bed
Up to the time of this writing I have come across close to 300 ratings on this bunk bed throughout various shopping sites. On Amazon its average rating is 4.1 stars, on Wayfair the more flattering 4.7 stars.
The Pros
This bed is sturdy, almost all reviewers agree. It would be a proper challenge to find a comment that says otherwise. One buyer called it super sturdy and proclaimed it doesn’t creak at all. Another declared it way more solid than any wooden bunk they have ever ordered. A third one wrote it was as sturdy after six months as the first day. And so on. You get the picture. This bunk bed apparently does deserve its heavy duty label.
By most accounts the assembly of this bunk bed is not too difficult. The instructions are said to show very well what is needed and what parts come with the product. You can’t really ask for anything more.
The Cons
Perhaps it’s not fair, but I usually dwell more on what people don’t like, and this will also be the case here.
The first thing, you guessed it, is the ladder. A lot of buyers are complaining about the ladder. It hurts their feet. Worse, it hurts their kids’ feet. Especially if they are a little bigger. One buyer who gave the bed 4 stars wrote she would have given it 5 stars if the ladder had flat steps instead of round ones. Padding is suggested as a (sort of) solution, with pool noodles the most common choice, although there are those who claim they don’t last very long. Another (pretty radical) solution, as one buyer suggested, is to build some stairs to use instead of the ladder.
Another reported issue with the ladder is, it only goes on one side of the bed. The ladder needs to be secured with screws and there are pre-drilled holes on one side of the bed only. Not a big deal perhaps as there are other ways to secure the ladder, however: this brings me to another issue related to mentioned holes that I’ve come across reading the reviews.
The lower and upper bed frames (labeled as part #3 and part #4 in the assembly instructions, see image below) seem to be identical except for the mentioned ladder holes. However, they are apparently not labeled and it is easy to mix them up and many buyers did just that: they put the upper bed frame (the one with ladder holes) on the lower bunk and realized their mistake only when it was time to attach the ladder. At that point the bed is nearly finished and a lot of disassembling needs to be done to correct that mistake. So, if you do end up buying this bed do yourself a favor and during the assembly check for the two small holes in the side rail (circled red in the image): that one goes to the upper bunk.
Broken welds are another issue with this bunk bed that I’ve seen mentioned more than once. Granted, such problems do usually get resolved to the satisfaction of the buyer, but, you know: who needs the pain, right? Good news is, based on my research I would not call the problem widespread, so you’d have to be a bit unlucky to get hit.
Bottom Line
There’s a lot to like about Powell Heavy Duty Bunk Bed. Robust build. Modern, yet timeless design that will fit in pretty much anywhere. The only real downside is that uncomfortable ladder. If you can get past that give this one a serious consideration.
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