How to care for a solid wood bed (and stop it creaking)

In short: A lacquered or painted solid wood bed needs very little: wipe off dust with a soft, barely damp cloth and dry it straight away — no solvents, no waxes, no abrasive sponges. Keep it away from radiators and damp, because wood swells and shrinks slightly with the air in the room. If it creaks, the cause is almost always one of three things: an uneven floor, a joint that isn't fully home, or slats rubbing.

Solid wood is a living material: it changes size slightly with the seasons and darkens over the years. That isn't a maintenance problem, it's what wood does. Your job is simply not to work against it, and to know where to look when a noise appears.

Know your finish

How you clean depends on the layer on top of the wood, not on the wood itself. Massif beds are sanded to 320 grit and then finished in one of three ways:

All three are sealed surfaces: the wood doesn't soak up water and doesn't need oil or wax.

Everyday cleaning

• Dust: a dry microfibre cloth, once a week or whenever you see it. Dust rubbed in with a rough cloth leaves fine marks in the lacquer.
• Marks: a well-wrung, barely damp cloth, with a drop of mild soap if needed, then dry immediately. Standing water is the problem, not water as such.
• Spills: wipe them up at once. Wet glasses left on a headboard or nightstand for hours leave rings.
• Under the bed: vacuum often. Dust around the legs and on the slats doesn't harm the wood, but it rises into the room every time you move.

What to avoid

• solvents, thinners, alcohol, acetone and ammonia-based cleaners — they attack lacquer and paint;
• silicone furniture sprays and waxes — they feed nothing on a lacquered surface and leave a film that attracts dust;
• abrasive sponges, scouring powder, polishing paste — they dull the surface;
• steam cleaners and wet mops — moisture gets into joints and edges;
• direct heat — a radiator, heater or warm air blowing straight onto the bed;
• strong direct sun on the same spot — it speeds up colour change and makes it uneven.

Wood moves with the air in the room

Wood takes in and gives off moisture. In humid air it swells slightly; in dry air it shrinks slightly, mostly across the grain rather than along it. This movement is small and normal in any solid wood furniture.

What it means for you:

• keep the bed away from radiators, so one side doesn't dry out faster than the rest;
• avoid sudden changes — a room left closed for months and then heated hard is tougher on wood than one kept at a steady temperature;
• in winter, heating dries the air. If it feels very dry, a humidifier helps both you and the furniture;
• don't store dismantled parts in a cellar or garage for long; humidity swings a lot there.

Because wood shrinks a little in winter, a first creak often shows up in the cold months. It usually goes when the air returns to normal, but it's worth checking.

Wood darkens over time

All natural wood changes shade with light and age. It's slow and doesn't mean anything is wrong.

• ash starts a pale straw colour and moves towards warm honey;
• oak moves towards caramel;
• sapele mahogany, already the darkest, deepens towards burgundy.

The change is most visible on the natural finish; on a painted bed, the paint covers the wood. An object left in the same spot on the headboard for years can leave a lighter patch underneath, so move things around now and then. More on how each species looks in our guide to ash, oak or mahogany.

Stopping a creak: the checklist

Work through it in order. Most creaks are solved in the first three steps.

1. Find the source. Take the mattress off and press on the corners, side rails and slats. If the bare frame is silent, put the mattress on the floor and press on it: some springs creak on their own.
2. Check the floor. Every leg, including a centre leg if there is one, must touch the floor. If one rocks, the frame twists slightly each time you move. A felt pad or thin shim under that leg usually fixes it.
3. Check the joints. On a mortise and tenon bed, every tenon should be pushed fully into its mortise. If one has crept out, take the joint apart, wipe the dust out of the mortise and put it back together. On beds held with screws or bolts, tighten them without forcing the thread.
4. Check the slats. Each one should sit in its place, without sliding or touching its neighbours. A slat rubbing on its support makes a short, dry click every time you turn over.
5. Check what touches the bed. A headboard against the wall, a nightstand too close or a radiator it leans on can all pass on noise.
6. Repeat after a move and when the seasons change, especially at the start of the heating season.

For why some beds creak more than others, see how strong is a solid wood bed.

Scratches and marks

• Fine scratches usually sit only in the lacquer and show most in low, raking light. A furniture touch-up pen or marker in a matching shade hides them well.
• On a painted bed, you know the RAL code, so you can get touch-up paint in exactly the same colour. Use very little, with a fine brush, only in the scratch.
• Deep scratches or dents are where solid wood shows its advantage: the part can be sanded and refinished, because under the lacquer there's more wood, not a thin layer of veneer. Stained finishes are harder to colour-match, so leave those to a professional or send us a photo. The difference from veneer and chipboard is explained in our guide to solid wood vs chipboard, MDF and veneer.

Taking it apart to move

A Massif bed can be taken apart and reassembled as many times as you like, because the structural joints aren't glued. Assembly takes about 15 minutes, with no special tools.

• Note or photograph which part goes where before you separate them.
• Tie the slats together so none go missing or get scratched.
• Wrap each part in blankets or cardboard, paying attention to corners and edges.
• Don't drag parts across the floor or stand them on their corners.
• At the new place, if the parts have been in the cold or damp, let them sit in the room for a few hours before assembling.

The warranty

Every Massif bed comes with a 30-year structural warranty. Mattresses carry a 2-year warranty.