Advice on first home climbing wall build

AKA,Questions about my woody: Length vs. Width

I'm planning a home climbing wall. One wall will be made from two 4X8' sheets of plywood. In almost all building plans I've seen the plywood is oriented horizontally (landscape) as opposed to vertically (portrait). Is there a structural reason for this?

I was thinking that I could orient them vertically and frame it so that there was a gap that could be used as a finger crack, i.e. space the 2x6 studs so that they are flush with the plywood on the inside edge. I realize that I would need an extra stud if I frame on 16" centers. Thoughts?

I'm planning one 30 and one 45 degree wall and a short ceiling finish. Both walls will be made with two sheets of plywood. I have exposed joists (24" center) in the ceiling of my basement. Can the walls be framed on 24" centers to make mounting to the joists easier or is this not rigid enough?

anyone have an opinion?

I would assume you'd be more likely to feel the wall bend slightly while moving if the plywood is vertical, whereas you'll likely be on separate and more soundly attached sheets if they are horizontal.

A separate crack setup may suit you better, but I'll leave that to people who have made them before.

My garage wall was 24" studs I just put supports in horizontally, between the walls studs about every two feet. ( staggered so I could screw them in). Then screwed the plywood into those as well, I never noticed any flex. Good call on just using angles. I did a 15 degree and it was a waste of wall. 30 or more is the way to go. Make volumes too. That will let you change the wall angles in areas to set up rest areas if doing circuits

jdberndt wrote:AKA,Questions about my woody: Length vs. Width I'm planning a home climbing wall. One wall will be made from two 4X8' sheets of plywood. In almost all building plans I've seen the plywood is oriented horizontally (landscape) as opposed to vertically (portrait). Is there a structural reason for this? I was thinking that I could orient them vertically and frame it so that there was a gap that could be used as a finger crack, i.e. space the 2x6 studs so that they are flush with the plywood on the inside edge. I realize that I would need an extra stud if I frame on 16" centers. Thoughts? I'm planning one 30 and one 45 degree wall and a short ceiling finish. Both walls will be made with two sheets of plywood. I have exposed joists (24" center) in the ceiling of my basement. Can the walls be framed on 24" centers to make mounting to the joists easier or is this not rigid enough?

Sheets are routinely hung horizontally ("laying them down" in trade lingo) because it is both structurally superior and easier to hang them than vertically ("standing them up"). This goes for all applications: roof sheeting, floor sheeting, walls, drywall, ceilings... etc etc

However, there would be not enough difference to matter in your case IMO, as long as you frame the walls on 16" centers. I would not go 24". (Actually, If your floor system is framed on 24" centers, that's a little lean. They should be 16" centers but....) Put some shims between the studs for your crack system that you can remove later to facilitate easier hanging of the sheets and get a consistent crack.

Also, use structural or deck screws and not drywall screws; they'll snap. They have star-drive ones that are easy to sink.

doug s pretty much hit the nail on the head. particularly the part about using the 'star' drive screws. these are literally worth their weight in gold.

Paint your wall with interior latex paint, mix in some silica sand for texture. This will give it a good look and feel.

Super Fluke wrote:Paint your wall with interior latex paint, mix in some silica sand for texture. This will give it a good look and feel.

I don't really think this would be worth it on a wall that steep. I left mine unpainted and never had the sticky hold issues some people have. Maybe on the inside of the crack though?

jdberndt wrote: I was thinking that I could orient them vertically and frame it so that there was a gap that could be used as a finger crack, i.e. space the 2x6 studs so that they are flush with the plywood on the inside edge. I realize that I would need an extra stud if I frame on 16" centers. Thoughts?

I did something similar with mine and it seems to work just fine. (I'll try to post a picture later.) Differences being I've only got 15 degrees on my wall and my crack machine is adjustable. I don't think orientation matters that much as long as you secure the sheets to the studs with enough screws.

Tony Monbetsu wrote: I don't really think this would be worth it on a wall that steep. I left mine unpainted and never had the sticky hold issues some people have. Maybe on the inside of the crack though?

Rare injury story to reflect my suggestion;
A friend of mine was climbing on a old woody, had to make a long move to the next hand hold and over extended, hit his hand on the plywood right on the seam between to boards. he ended up getting a nasty splinter 1-1/2" long in his index finger needed sugary to remove it. Latex paint will help reduce any exposed wood partials and it looks good.