Climbing wall for the apartment

We would all like to have something to climb on at home. Climbing walls for the apartment are something that we can either build ourselves or buy. However, neither is an easy option, either for our time or for our wallets. Here we will try to advise you on how to get a climbing wall for your apartment without having to rebuild all the walls on plywood.

Campus and Hangboarding

Yes, we are aware that campus and hangboarding are not climbing walls. For many of us, this is the only way to practice "climbing" skills at home. The advantage of campus and hangboard is clear. They are very space-saving things.
Hangboards are very easy to buy. We have several companies in the Czech Republic, such as Llama Holds or Gripworks, who make really good exercise boards at a pretty good price that doesn't hurt the wallet too much. There are two variants here. Hanging, which fits on the bar, and fixed, which are screwed into the wall.

Campus is a level higher than hangboarding both in terms of practicality and the "cool factor". The problem here is that it cannot be bought, so everyone has to make it themselves. But that's enough they wrote the instructions so you can look at it. Along with that, you will also find instructions here how to exercise on campus.

Climbing walls for the apartment

Let's face it, a climbing wall for an apartment is something most of us can't afford (unfortunately, neither can we). But there are options to get around this sad fact.

Buying a wall for an apartment

Yes, climbing walls can be purchased. It should be said, however, that the bigger and better the wall, the more expensive they will be. The large campus wall is, for example, the one from therapiekletterwand. Although it is one of the more expensive walls on the market, it is very precise and has been tested by climbers all over the world for almost a decade.

The second option is the Torque trainer set up. Coming from a German workshop, this small system board is a very nice option for home climbing. Torque allows you to change the angle and add extra grips for added personalization.

DIY Climbing Wall – Systemboard

Even if it doesn't seem like it, each of us can build a climbing wall in our apartment, house or garden. It just takes a little imagination, time, money and wood. We have already written an article about how to build a spray wall and how to practice on it, you can find it here here. But it is clear to us that spray wall is not an option for an apartment (as I have personally confirmed). But there is a variant that fits into the apartment - System board!

What is this really about and what is a system board? A system board is a small practice climbing wall with just a handful of holds, steps and carabiners (if you want to be a connoisseur). It tends to be around 1-2 meters in width and a little more in height. But the advantage is that you only have to fit on the system board, so it doesn't have to be that wide.

How to build a System board

The system board works best when it is overhanging. Therefore, set it to an angle between 30-20 degrees. The legs will be fixed in the same way as we described in the construction outdoor climbing walls. Here, however, it would be advisable to have a fuse or a mechanism that would allow you to fold the legs. Put a mat under the places where the wall touches the ground so that it does not damage the floor.

We just put the handles on the standing wall and we're done. About 10 holds and a few steps are enough for your wall to work as it should. We drill them there so that they are symmetrically scattered over the plywood. Since we will never climb directly on this wall, there is no reason to have paths built here. If you are more oriented towards sports or traditional climbing, we recommend that you put express ropes on the upper edges of the wall and click the rope during the exercise.

Where to buy catches? This isn't too difficult either. Most walls sell sets of 8-10 climbing holds. As climbers, we also encounter crates with old holds on the walls we walk. Even these can often be redeemed for a reasonable price (or ask the staff).

Exercise on the system board

It is not difficult to practice on the system board. Here we focus mainly on strength, endurance, clicking and body position. It's all about how well you build your holds on the wall.

Exercise: Strength

Finger strength and explosiveness can be practiced on this small climbing wall for the apartment. On the wall you have small grips and rails (they are in sets). Climbers know that strength is best exercised on these "bad" holds. It is therefore very simple. Transitions around or up and down (depending on how you have it built) on the wall exercises the strength of the fingers and the center of the body.

Exercise: Endurance

Stamina is the easiest to boost. A climber who wants to get stronger just repeats a series of movements round and round. Ideally, after every 4-6 movements, he clicks the express (and alternate sides). Don't forget to rest between sets and warm up before you start.

Exercise: Body position

Positional exercises are a little more difficult. We have to have good grips on him and know which positions on the wall do not work for us. We recommend repeating positions and transitions to: Gaston, flag (inner and outer), sidekicks and, of course, bottom strokes.

Something to finish

While we all desire a wall, the truth is that not everyone needs one. The spray wall is a higher girl in climbing walls and the campus already assumes a certain strength to avoid injury. Therefore, I recommend caution behind VARP. Check out hangboards first and practice on your local wall. If this is not an option, try building the campus first and then the system board. The fact that we don't have it at home is not an obstacle to exercise.

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