Socket placement in bedroom advice

[jfb]

I need to plan the position of sockets in the main bedroom.

Not a huge room but there is an obvious place where a double bed goes and it would be useful to have sockets somewhere either side.

A problem I have run into the last place I did was that if I put sockets say 500mm off floor and near the bed that side tables/cupboards can easily make it awkward to use these sockets.

 

Any suggestions? Go above table top height? Go wider so avoiding any potential bedside furniture?

 

 

[Conor]

Put sockets and light /lamp switches about 200mm higher than the typical bed site unit height at either side of the beds.

[jack]

28 minutes ago, jfb said:

Any suggestions? Go above table top height? Go wider so avoiding any potential bedside furniture?

 

We estimated what size of bed would be going in the space, then put double sockets just outside where the bed would finish. Even where the plug for, eg, an alarm clock or charger sticks out, it's hidden in the space between the bed and the bedside tables. The plugs are nearly invisible, but still quite accessible.

 

Works well for us.

[jfb]

57 minutes ago, jack said:

Even where the plug for, eg, an alarm clock or charger sticks out, it's hidden in the space between the bed and the bedside tables

Do you mean you have a small gap between bed and table?

my problem with that is that bed size might vary and I would normally put table/cupboard right next to the bed. I can see it working with a table but if a cupboard then everything starts sticking out!

[jack]

31 minutes ago, jfb said:

Do you mean you have a small gap between bed and table?

my problem with that is that bed size might vary and I would normally put table/cupboard right next to the bed. I can see it working with a table but if a cupboard then everything starts sticking out!

 

Yes, exactly that.

 

I suppose it depends what you want. I don't want my bedside drawer + cupboard right up against the bed, so this works fine for me.

 

We did a worst case measurement on the bed and it worked out fine (just!).

[Russell griffiths]

Why do you want to get to them ?

how often do you unplug the bedside table lamp. 

We have just done two sockets hidden behind bedside cabinets, then another to the side so it is easily accessible. 

[jfb]

1 hour ago, Russell griffiths said:

Why do you want to get to them ?

I guess the problem I have with my current bed is that to use, say, a usb charger the set of draws I have next to the bed has to be 100mm away from the wall which is just weird. I guess the old 4 way extension to the floor is another option!

I like the idea of an extra plug to the side.

[jfb]

3 hours ago, Russell griffiths said:

Why do you want to get to them ?

Well at the moment I have a plug socket next to my bed behind a low cupboard and if I wanted to plug in a usb cable the cupboard needs to be 100mm away from the wall which isnt ideal!

I like the idea of another socket to the side of any table.

 

OOps - cant work out how to delete a post!

Edited June 8, 2022 by jfb

[MJNewton]

Given the potential bulkiness of plugs that might be used in a bedroom I always go for a couple of short-lead 3/4 way extension leads tucked out of sight thus leaving the wall sockets to be more easily hidden too.

 

I find this particularly beneficial in guest bedrooms as it allows people to temporarily plug in their own chargers etc without wrestling furniture out of the way, scrabbling behind the bed for socket/switch, finding their cable doesn't quite reach etc.

[Susie]

I think slightly different main light switch and one double usb socket above cabinets and double electrical socket behind cabinet off set to the side so you can just reach if you need it. Make it easy to plug in phones etc next to bed and both sides of bed can switch off main light. Doesn’t matter who’s last one in bed at night or when other half absent for night, a 3 way light switch works well.   Also means usb charger stays in suitcase so you never leave home without it. 

 

[MJNewton]

14 minutes ago, Susie said:

 double usb socket

 

..and with those three short words you've just made me realise that my 'habit' of doing it the way I've always done it somewhat dated what with the advent of such socket types nowadays. That approach makes a lot of sense and I must remind myself of it next time. I am assuming you can get decent quality USB sockets? I know plug-in types can be massively variable from decent all the way down to downright dangerous!

Edited June 8, 2022 by MJNewton

[Susie]

Schneider Lisse White 1Gang 2x USB Charger GGBL70042

 

apx £15 + VAT

[jfb]

11 hours ago, Susie said:

I think slightly different main light switch and one double usb socket above cabinets and double electrical socket behind cabinet off set to the side so you can just reach if you need it. Make it easy to plug in phones etc next to bed and both sides of bed can switch off main light

I like the idea of a couple of USB sockets higher up - am i right in presuming that one can run a couple of those as spurs off the main ring circuit?

[Iceverge]

We put all the top of the sockets 750mm above the floor , no regrets apart from the bedside table which is 600mm so my phone charger with bottom exit leads snag . 

 

In fact I would probably put sockets higher.  

 

Completely by accident we positioned other sockets beside windows and the socket gets completely hidden by the curtains. 

 

 

 

 

[Carrerahill]

On 08/06/2022 at 14:42, jfb said:

I need to plan the position of sockets in the main bedroom.

Not a huge room but there is an obvious place where a double bed goes and it would be useful to have sockets somewhere either side.

A problem I have run into the last place I did was that if I put sockets say 500mm off floor and near the bed that side tables/cupboards can easily make it awkward to use these sockets.

 

Any suggestions? Go above table top height? Go wider so avoiding any potential bedside furniture?

 

 

I always show socket positions either side of the bed and at about 800mm AFFL - in the notes I sometimes put, "Bedside sockets to suit bedside furniture height, min 150mm above table/cabinet top" - but that is generally in hotels or care homes where the spec of the bedside table will be known. In residential jobs I usually just say 800mm unless the bed position is not absolute or there is some other reason. 

 

I placed bedside sockets in my own house and stupidly put them at at circa 300mm, so now the bedside cabinets need to sit much further forward than I'd usually like to be able to get in a use them. We don't have table lamps, we have wall lamps with dedicated switches in the spares and in the master we have bedside pendants, so the sockets are only for plugging things like chargers, laptop power supplies etc. 

Edited June 9, 2022 by Carrerahill

[Ferdinand]

23 hours ago, jack said:

 

We estimated what size of bed would be going in the space, then put double sockets just outside where the bed would finish. Even where the plug for, eg, an alarm clock or charger sticks out, it's hidden in the space between the bed and the bedside tables. The plugs are nearly invisible, but still quite accessible.

 

Works well for us.

 

I'd say gowider than that in case you decide on a Super King Size later. (Why are beds sized like cigarettes?)

 

Make them doubles with USBs.

 

And consider whether you want master light switches by the bed, too.

[Russell griffiths]

Am I the only one who has a phone and electrical gadget ban in the bedroom. 

Cannot understand the need to have a phone besides the bed on charge. 

[jack]

48 minutes ago, Ferdinand said:

I'd say gowider than that in case you decide on a Super King Size later. (Why are beds sized like cigarettes?)

 

In our case, we knew we were going for a super king size bed, so based the measurements on that.

 

I assume in most cases people will know what size bed will be going in a space (OP said that there was only room for a double), but yes, they should consider the largest bed that would reasonably be put there.

[ProDave]

1 minute ago, Russell griffiths said:

Am I the only one who has a phone and electrical gadget ban in the bedroom. 

Cannot understand the need to have a phone besides the bed on charge. 

No.  My phone plugs in overnight in another room.  Each side of the bed is a clock radio and a bedside light (because we have not got around to choosing fixed wall lights)  they stay plugged in and the sockets are behind the cabinets.

 

The rest of the room was more guess work.  I just put several sockets along each wall, not knowing what furniture and what layout.  At least 2 are now hidden but at least there are 2 available for hair dryer, hair straightener and other objects of torture a woman needs. And one near the door for the vacuum cleaner.