Critique my home wall design

I've done some research and used threads around mountain project on this topic for inspiration and I'd like some feedback / constructive criticism on this design I've put together using CAD.

The goal: Create a weather-proof, free standing home climbing wall for my back yard which will be placed on a concrete patio.

• All frame members are standard 2x6 boards.
• Joists/studs and cross members will be joined with plates or other framing connectors.
• Wall surface consists of standard 48" x 96" x 3/4" plywood sheets.
• Standard 8" hole spacing with offset rows for T-nuts. This spacing may get tighter if I decide I want more options for setting.

The structure consists of:

• 8 ft (two panels) of climbing surface at 30 degrees
• 4 ft (one panel) of climbing surface at 60 degrees
• 4 ft (one panel) of climbing surface at 5 degrees)

The total height of the structure is approximately 13 ft, and the supporting members extend approximately 9.5 ft from the rear of the lower wall.

• Does anyone see anything wrong with the overall structure? I'm thinking I may need a cross member between the two main supports, but I'm afraid of creating a trip hazard / ankle breaker.
• Should I use different angles for the walls?
• How should I go about isolating the structure from the ground to keep it away from water?
• What are some good options for outdoor, weather-proof crash pads? I'm thinking about using or creating something similar to what most climbing gyms have in their bouldering areas.
• Am I gonna die?

I'm an engineer I'm not going to do the load calculations. But I will recommend additional bracing based on my gut.

-Addition set of braces where 30 goes to 60.
-Definately fix the bottom supports. Either a cross bracing like you mentioned (You can have it fairly thin to avoid tripping, especially if there is matting sitting on it.) OR temporary ground fixings.
-The main diagonal members load bearing members will need to be more beefy than drawn. If practical rotate the rectangular members 90 around degrees and provide intermediate supports.**

• *These are compression members so they are subject to buckling. This can be reduced by intermediate lateral restraint in the plane. To prevent out of plane buckling you should rotate them 90degrees. (Though this will make connection to main structure less easy.)

Alex May wrote:What are some good options for outdoor, weather-proof crash pads?

Find a local supplier to build one but they aren't cheap. At LEAST $700 for a good PVC mat I'd be thinking. I paid $1700 for mine, but it was bigger and more complicated shape. (I recently did this for a local climbing club.) Or search ebay for old gym equipment.

According to this a basic 2x6 that is 10feet long with not mid bracing only has a capacity of 500lbs. And that is assuming the end is braced!

You are going to need something stronger for your diagonal columns.

courses.cit.cornell.edu/arc…

Patto,

This is great advice. If I decide to go with this design I will eitherdouble up the 2x6's on the main supports or use something like 4x4's instead. I think using 4x4's would make it easier to connect to the structure. This would also make it easier to create in plane intermediate support. I will add cross braces near the 30-60 angle change as well.

I'd recommend these changes:
1) Eliminate the joint at E and make brace A-B a continuous 2x4
2) Sister another 2x4 at E-B to stiffen the vertical post and provide bearing at E
3) Eliminate brace B-D as it is unnecessary and creates a constriction you could fall into at B
4) Build A-C from 2x6 and everything else can be 2x4
5) Eliminate plate B-C. Fasten the wall to the concrete slab at B with post anchors and tapcons, and fasten plate C to the slab with expansion bolts.
6) Any studs resting on concrete (ex. plate C) should be treated. The plywood should be "CDX" grade but I'd still paint it for weatherproofing. Use "deck" or "framing" grade 3 inch star drive screws for framing.

Didn't read through all the previous suggestions, but I would move point B in Doug's labeled picture to the left a bit. There is a chance when you are hanging or pulling on holds near the top you could topple the whole wall, especially if you pull in a down/leftward direction.

Edit: or do as Doug said and anchor it down at C

I think you need to add a horizontal beam at the red lines in the pic. The only thing that is really holding up the middle sections of the entire thing is the plywood. The bracing behind the plywood doesn't do anything if it isn't braced by something itself. The horizontal beam could just be a 2x6 or 2 2x6's put together. And then you would need to brace the horizontal beams with the vertical boards that you take to the ground.

Less structural and more conceptual comment:

After building and rebuilding my home wall I've learned that a more convex front vs. an overall concave shape works best. Think more "bulge" and less "roof", like your upper angle is.

The reason is thus. With a home wall real estate is at a premium and you want to have the most usable area for any given design. I found that with a design like you show, the area near the bends/angles is never used. Plus, when you reach onto the either of the upper angles and keep low feet, your core workout is limited. It's almost like a rest.

With a bulge design, if forces you to keep your core engaged to utilize your feet.

This concept isn't necessarily intuitive and a bit hard to explain with words. If I haven't totally confused you by now, hopefully this will help.

I built one really similar to this. The front vertical 2 x 6" ran plumb from the ground straight up to the top of the headwall. There wasn't any need to angle it out. I ran a couple 2 x 4" verticals as studs on the side walls and then put plywood on that as well. 3/4" plywood gives you more than enough bracing. Same goes for the side to side bracing. No need to run extra bracing on the backside of the 2 x 6". The plywood will be plenty strong and the addition of the headwall at the top will make it completely rigid. You could always add bracing later, but I think you will find you don't need it. We picked up some cheap plastic corrugated roofing from Home Depot and ran it down the backside to make it mostly weatherproof.

Does it have to be on concrete or can the location be moved over soil? if so you're design can be simplified, by using steel stakes and removing the horrible bottom horizontal, its kind of an accident in wait.