![]() | Atomik How-To Series #10 Building a Garage Bouldering Wall STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS Turning a space of blah into a place of happy awesome. | ||
![]() | Atomik – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.2) SELECTING THE LOCATION OF YOUR WALL Things you should consider before building Garages offer great space for climbing walls but you should decide whether space will be dedicated to the climbing wall or if you’ll be sharing the space with a car. If sharing, the angles should be thought out to accommodate the space needed for the garage door itself and the car. | ||
![]() | Atomik – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.3) PUTTING YOUR IDEAS DOWN ON PAPER The first step to making your dream wall starts with scale drawings and/or models Use graph paper and a protractor and draw out your garage climbing wall. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.4) FRAMING YOUR GARAGE CLIMBING WALL Choosing different sizes of framing lumber is appropriate. This photo shows 2” x 4” and 2” x 6” lumber being used since the wall is short in height. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.5) SISTERS, SLEEPERS AND HEADER JOISTS Plan your attachment points so groundwork becomes an option. Sisters, Sleepers and Header Joists create easy attachment points for joist hangars. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.6) SISTERS, SLEEPERS AND HEADER JOISTS Details make a difference. These Sistered 2” x 4”s have been attached to existing studs and joists. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.7) SISTERS, SLEEPERS AND HEADER JOISTS Details make a difference. Sistered 2” x 4”s to existing studs for a Kick Plate on your wall. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.8) SISTERS, SLEEPERS AND HEADER JOISTS Details make a difference. This 2” x 8” Header Joist was run perpendicular to the studs/joists. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.9) Blocking Not the football type. Blocking adds strength and stability to joists. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.10) MARKING YOUR SHORT CUTS The right tools for the job. A 48” Drywall T-Square is a nice tool to have when marking short cut lines. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.11) MARKING YOUR LONG CUTS The right tools for the job. A Chalk Line is the tool to use when marking long cut lines. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.12) MAKING straight CUTS The right tools for the job. Using straight edges to run your circular saw along helps some builders. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.13) MAKING FINISH CUTS Locate the wall studs and you’re in business When building angled walls, plywood should be cut so that it fits snuggly. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.14) DRY FITTING Fine-tune it before it’s final. Before investing time into painting and drilling out your angled panels, dry fit them. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.15) PAINTING YOUR PANELS What texture to use and why. There are several textured paints available to your local Home Depot or Lowes. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.16) TEXTURE TECHNIQUE The final look of your garage climbing wall is in the details. If you don’t prime your panels, you should use paint with a primer mix on raw panels. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.17) PREPARING FOR PANEL FOR DRILLING T-NUTS 72 holes per sheet of plywood minimum. T-nuts are cheap so add, at a minimum, 72 t-nuts per sheet of 4’ x 8’ plywood. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.18) PREPARING FOR PANEL FOR DRILLING T-NUTS 72 holes per sheet of plywood minimum. Place t-nuts about 8” apart on the first row and then offset that pattern by 4” on the next line. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.19) DRILLING THE T-NUTS Gang the panels for efficiency. You can clamp anywhere from 3 to 6 panels together when drilling. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.20) HAMMERING IN YOUR T-NUTS Not child’s play. Be sure to hammer the t-nuts in straight. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.21) MOUNTING YOUR PANELS Eliminate guesswork. Pre-marking your wall where the studs lie will help eliminate guesswork when installing panels. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.22) FINISHING YOUR WALL Aesthetic touches to get the best results. Wood putty is nice to fill in gaps. Durham’s Water Putty (found at Lowes and Home Depot) is an excellent material. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.23) FINISHING YOUR WALL Finishing touch-ups. Touch up your garage climbing wall with leftover textured paint. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.24) FINISHING YOUR WALL Going the extra mile. Additional high light colors or even murals can be painted on your wall. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.25) PUTTING THE CLIMBING HOLDS UP Keep it interesting. Small walls need lots of bouldering holds to keep them interesting. | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.26) PUTTING THE CLIMBING HOLDS UP The final test. Now you’ll find out if your installation of the t-nuts went well | ||
![]() | ATOMIK – Building a Garage Bouldering Wall: Step-by-Step (10.27) FINAL NOTE S Soften the landing zone. Now that your holds are up, protect the climbers with adequate floor padding below. |