HisHold: The Wall

What about climbing walls?

The Anatomy Of A Climbing Wall

Looking for a place to put a climbing wall?   You may find serval suitable locations around your house.  The garage is a good place to start. Maybe one wall could be dedicated for climbing. Or perhaps the entire perimeter could turn into a giant traverse. Even the ceiling could be used as a roof. Where ever you find to build your wall be creative!        Instead of having a mere vertical wall start by designing a wall slightly overhanging. Maybe add a 45 degree cornice at the top flowing into a small roof section. This varied terrain will give you much more versatility when training.  Using power equipment, skill saw, screw gun, drill etc., can be very dangerous so please consult a professional builder for help and advice. Also for some designs you will need to consult an engineer before cutting out any structural framing.  A general building contractor or an engineer would be someone to discuss your project with.

        Basically a climbing wall is a wood or steel framed structure
covered with a 3/4" min. plywood skin.  The outside can be painted,
lathe and plastered or just left natural.  The framing should be on 16"
centers fastened to the bottom plate and ceiling rafters with 3" screws. The length or span of the wall members will dictate the size of lumber to use. 2x6 douglas fir is a good size to use for most residential applications.

Before putting up the plywood skin, stack the 4x8 sheets one on top of the other. Drill 1/2" holes and pound one "T" nut per hole. Usually 35 holes per 4x8 sheet but  80 holes per sheet will work too. Then the plywood is screwed onto the wood framing using 2 1/2" - 3" decking screws. Screws should be no more than 4" apart on the seams and 8" apart in the field of the plywood.

Finishing the outside is the fun part. Lathe and plaster is the way to go!  It can be tinted and air brushed to look like real rock.  You can also buy a special textured paint that enhances the surface. Or you can add silica sand to some 5 gal. buckets of "oops" paint available for discounted prices at your local Home Depot. Just keep applying the paint until you get the look you want. Also different colors  (earth tones) add a little flair to the finished surface!

		HISHOLD will be offering a textured top coating sometime later this year. Remember to be safe. These are not specific plans on how to build a climbing wall, please consult with us or any other professional builder when designing or building a wall.   See you at the top!