How To Design A Climbing Wall

The three-dimensional model you made of posterload of the climbers, but also bear dead load of the
board or construction paper is now ready to bewall itself. Live load of the climbers varies with every
transitioned to design drawing. Begin with a simplemove the climber makes and at times can be many
sketch to define the dimensions. CAD or computertimes the weight of the climber. The stress the wall
aided design software may be used or you can drawundergoes requires it to be supported strongly, if the
it by hand. CAD is not required, if you can define theclimbing wall is going to be supported by an existing
entire dimension mathematically.structure. Then you have to make sure that the
Each joint or edge should be labeled for the exactexisting structure is strong enough to support the
distance from the last joint. The distance fromclimbing wall.
existing structure such as wall, floor, ceiling is to beVertical walls transfer all the weight to the floor, but
referred. Establish distances, angles and dimensions ofalso exert angular force on the joints away from the
the entire structure. Take into consideration thewall. In steep overhang sections, three forces are
thickness of the plywood sheathing, and the wallacting on the wall; the weight of the wall itself, the
studs also, considering the width of the anchoringclimbers weight, and the forces caused by the
structure and keep sufficient margins.climber's movement. It is advised to seek expert's
Lumber: Actual size and Nominal sizeand specialist's opinion before proceeding.
In the US, the size of the unfinished wood is called asThe load the wall is likely to be subjected to will
nominal size, after the wood is plainer and sanded todetermine the type and size of the joists, anchors,
the actual size. Usually plaining and sanding will scrapeand the thickness of wall studs. Existing structure
off a quarter or half inch from the nominal size.should be strong enough to take the load of the
However, plywood has the same nominal and actualclimbers and should hold itself after being subjected
size.to enormous stress exerted by the climbers. In
In over hanging sections, spacing and size of the joistvertical walls the plywood will offer a lot of vertical
will dictate the joist span length. Greater span lengthsstrength, but the support should be strong enough to
require larger joists.take the live load stress, torque, and resist shearing.
An engineer is the right person to determine theTaking expert advice from structural engineers will
design specifications for an overhanging wall, as manyensure that all engineering considerations are taken
factors such as strength of the wood, reinforcementinto account and specifications for the material
of the joists, and the type of anchor has to berequired finalized. Once this is done, you will be better
considered.placed to budget for the material required to build
Climbing walls being heavy need really strong support.the climbing wall.
The support should not only be able to bear the live