I've been trying to think of a way to add height to my bed without having to buy a new bed frame, headboard, etc. I thought about hiring someone from the local HANDYMAN CONNECTION to build me a wooden raised bed platform like those made on those home-improvement shows. I was on the 'net a couple of weeks ago and saw an auction on eBay for "bed risers." UNIVERSAL bed risers. "These will work with just about every bed out there," the description said. They were also adjustable. I could make them anywhere from 3 inches to 6 inches high. Brilliant. I won the auction and received the risers in the mail yesterday. I figured I had to have saved hundreds of dollars since I didn't have to hire a carpenter to build me anything. I ripped open the box and read the instructions. Easy to understand. Easy to use. The hard plastic material seemed durable and the insert said that they can bear weight up to 1200 lbs. First, I thought I could just raise up each corner of the bed and pop one of the risers beneath the caster and be done with it. Well, I do not possess super-human strength. I couldn't even lift the bed an inch. (I also have a bad back so this made it particularly interesting to do.) I yanked the mattress off and propped it against the wall. I tried again to lift a corner of the bed. Still too heavy. So, then, I took off the box spring (why are they called "spring" when they are just boards???) and propped it against the mattress. Aaaah, I could finally lift the bed frame. But... that would be too easy. The "caster" would not fit into the opening in the riser. So much for "universal". I then wrestled with the caster and eventually got it yanked out of the leg. I centered the narrow metal leg of the bed frame in the center of the gaping 2 1/2 inch rectangular opening in the riser and moved on to the next corner. When I lifted this corner, the bed frame came apart in the center. (It's an adjustable bed frame that can fit three mattress sizes. It sounded like a good idea when I bought it.) So, I then fit the pieces of the frame back together, but the movement caused the one corner on a riser to tilt and the leg was balancing precariously on the lip of the riser. I quickly re-centered it and then, stretching one hand out to hold the bed frame together, placed a second corner under a riser. I then proceeded this little dance with the remaining two corners. I stood back to admire my handy work and noticed that there were blood droplets on my carpet. I looked down and sure enough, I had somehow cut my left index finger. Blood was running down my hand. I rushed to the bathroom and cleaned it up and put a band-aid on it. I then put spot remover on the bloody carpet so that my bedroom didn't look like a CSI crime scene. Back to admiring my work. I noticed that during my efforts, I had shifted the bed too far to one side and it was no longer centered with the home-made headboard I made many years ago. I went to try to slide the bed frame to one side and caused the frame to topple from all four risers. So much for sturdy. I had to start the whole danged process of positioning the risers over. By this time, I was sweating like a piggy and cursing like a sailor. Finally, I had the bed frame where I wanted it. I tried to lift the box spring back onto the frame but as soon as I lowered one side of it onto the frame, two of the risers tipped over. I straightened the risers and wrestled with the box spring some more. The other two risers then tipped over. Then, I looked down and noticed more blood. This time, on my box spring. I thought maybe the bandaid had fallen off of my right hand. Nope. A new cut. On the index finger of my left hand this time. Back to the bathroom for first aid. I came in, stared at the half-centered box spring and uneven bed frame and said what most people would in this situation. "What the BLEEP!" I pulled the box spring off of the frame, causing the remaining two risers to fall over. I propped it up against the mattress and retrieved the casters and replaced them. I took the risers and had a temporary thrill as I hurled them down the stairs. They made this satisfying thump thump thump thump smack sound as each one bounced down 14 steps and hit my apartment door. I put the box spring and mattress back on the bed, remade the bed and fell on top of it, frustrated and exhausted from my 2 hour battle with the risers. I emailed the seller of the risers to see if I could return them and he was very polite and said that I had to return them within 3 business days by overnight mail... and then he'd credit my paypal account the product's purchase price, less shipping. After I did the math, I realized I'd in the hole $3.50 just to return them. So, I picked them up, carried them back upstairs and shoved them under my bed. I now have a gift for the next White Elephant gift exchange at work. I also have two cuts and three bruises on various parts of my body. Where is a man with a toolbelt and some wood when you need him? ;)