# Wall panel question



## jdubbya (Nov 6, 2005)

I'll be making several more panels for this year's haunt and wondered if it would be ok to frame them with 2x2's instead of 2x3 or 2x4. I have a few done in 2x4 and 2x3 but looking to make them light and easy to maneuver. TIA


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## fontgeek (Jul 24, 2006)

It really comes down to how much abuse they would get from either side (the haunter's side or the guest's/viewing side). The lighter lumber will weigh less, but whether it offers the rigidity you want or need is something only you can answer. I don't know what you are facing your wall panels with, so it's difficult to give an accurate answer.
Worst comes to worse, try one out NOW while you have time to test and evaluate, if it works for you, great, if not, then you know what will work, and what won't.


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## stagehand1975 (Feb 22, 2010)

The thicker your plywood sheet the there thinner you be able to go with the frame. So really for weight there isn't much trade off. I glue and screw my plywood to my frame. That tends to help it last longer. And the key to any good wall system is proper bracing. If you have 2 walls coming together at a 90, you should still have a brace tieing it together. I have seen video of an entire wall coming down on a patron. I have build walls with different sized frames and use the different thicknesses appropriately. Some walls a patron may have no way of getting near or bouncing off of when they get scared and others need to be a bit beefier.


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## jdubbya (Nov 6, 2005)

The panels I've made to date are 1/4 inch OSB. I'd like to go down to 1/8 if possible. The walls will form a corridor for guests to walk through. I'm guessing minimal abuse other than one area that will have a drop panel scare. We'll brace them from the back to prevent them from moving/falling if someone backs into them.


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## The_Caretaker (Mar 6, 2007)

how is the frame constructed a simple rectangle or is there any cross bracing? pics would be helpful here, but you should be able to reduce to 2 x 2 but you can add rigidity to the panel by gluing with a panel adhesive and screwing it together.


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## fontgeek (Jul 24, 2006)

I've designed and worked for haunts that had issues with fairly destructive "guests" who punched and kicked walls (and almost anything or anyone) they could get to. So keeping that in mind as a potential issue, if you adequately frame and brace the lower and mid-sections of the panels, you could probably get away with the lighter framing and or facing. For areas with drop panels, it's often the opposing walls that get the abuse. As guests are startled, they tend to back up hard against the facing wall. If you are truly making this a tunnel (walls and a ceiling) then the roof/ceiling will help add some rigidity and strength to your setup, but keep that roofline/ceiling well out of reach of the guests. Kids (of all ages) tend to see if the can touch or smack low ceilings or surfaces.


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## SCEYEDOC (Aug 12, 2007)

Jdubbya, all the panels in HINSON HOUSE OF HORROR are built with a sheet of luan framed with 2x2s. I have yet to have anyone put a hole in any of our walls and you have seen how scared some of our patrons have been in the past. Even our drop panel walls are built this way, but reinforced with a 2x4 on its side and not flat. Hope this helps. Easy to store and stack. Frames with 2x4 are heavy and not as space efficient while storing.


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## jdubbya (Nov 6, 2005)

The_Caretaker said:


> how is the frame constructed a simple rectangle or is there any cross bracing? pics would be helpful here, but you should be able to reduce to 2 x 2 but you can add rigidity to the panel by gluing with a panel adhesive and screwing it together.


Each of my existing panels has a 2x4 cross brace in the center. They are quite solid. I don't have any pics of the back sides of them.



fontgeek said:


> I've designed and worked for haunts that had issues with fairly destructive "guests" who punched and kicked walls (and almost anything or anyone) they could get to. So keeping that in mind as a potential issue, if you adequately frame and brace the lower and mid-sections of the panels, you could probably get away with the lighter framing and or facing. For areas with drop panels, it's often the opposing walls that get the abuse. As guests are startled, they tend to back up hard against the facing wall. If you are truly making this a tunnel (walls and a ceiling) then the roof/ceiling will help add some rigidity and strength to your setup, but keep that roofline/ceiling well out of reach of the guests. Kids (of all ages) tend to see if the can touch or smack low ceilings or surfaces.


Good points. With thinner framing, I'd certainly reinforce them in a couple places. We are doing a drop panel however as of now it will be as guests are facing it head on. and there will be a space of about 6 feet behind them. I'm actually planning to make the panels a bit shorter at 7 foot tall instead of 8, but can keep anything like lighting, cords, etc above the tops of them so they can't be grabbed. We'll also be securing the panels with bracing from the top



SCEYEDOC said:


> Jdubbya, all the panels in HINSON HOUSE OF HORROR are built with a sheet of luan framed with 2x2s. I have yet to have anyone put a hole in any of our walls and you have seen how scared some of our patrons have been in the past. Even our drop panel walls are built this way, but reinforced with a 2x4 on its side and not flat. Hope this helps. Easy to store and stack. Frames with 2x4 are heavy and not as space efficient while storing.


Thanks for this info. Your walls take some serious abuse so glad to hear they are holding up!


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## lewlew (Mar 15, 2006)

I've used plenty of 1/8" and never had a problem with anyone going through my walls even when the scare sent them into directly into them. They are framed with 2x2 and 2x3's. Most importantly is the cross-bracing where your patrons will "hit, lean, smack into". 

More importantly is how you are going to attach them to one another. Some flex in the wall is good to absorb impact. Too much is bad and as your wall loosens, your patrons will gain more momentum when they hit and add to the danger of the wall going over.

Ours were braced heavily at top and bottom with a pretty substantial 2x8 kickplate on the back side and a 2x6 (or sometimes rafters) at the top.


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## jdubbya (Nov 6, 2005)

lewlew said:


> I've used plenty of 1/8" and never had a problem with anyone going through my walls even when the scare sent them into directly into them. They are framed with 2x2 and 2x3's. Most importantly is the cross-bracing where your patrons will "hit, lean, smack into".
> 
> More importantly is how you are going to attach them to one another. Some flex in the wall is good to absorb impact. Too much is bad and as your wall loosens, your patrons will gain more momentum when they hit and add to the danger of the wall going over.
> 
> Ours were braced heavily at top and bottom with a pretty substantial 2x8 kickplate on the back side and a 2x6 (or sometimes rafters) at the top.


I need to figure out the bracing part. We'll have 5 walls running perpendicular to each other. The outside walls will attach directly to the back wall panel which is 12 ft wide, and will be braced from behind. The other three will form the hallways between the two outside walls. I'll need to brace these from the top. I know you've done a lot of this Mark so will be picking your brain. Let's get together some time and I can show you the layout and maybe get some good pointers.

Here is a sketch of what we have planned. This is not my sketch but one from a member on the other forum that is very close to what we plan to do, only a 12x16 (or 20). Our hallways will be three feet wide and not 4 as shown


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## Dead Things (Apr 4, 2009)

I did my first walkthrough last year and I used the tarps that stacks of plywood are wrapped in. It is black one side, white (with print) on other, does not let light thru, accepts paint, is flame retardant, tough as nails and is usually thrown out by construction companies, so your doing a good deed for Mama Earth as well.


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## fontgeek (Jul 24, 2006)

Build the framing like a ladder, with a rung at both the top and bottom ends, as well as a couple in the middle. If you can, bolt or stake down the bottom rung to the ground or floor, and put braces (well) above the reach of the TOTs overhead to connect one wall to the next. You can bolt the sections together side by side, and if you are doing solid walls on the exterior too, then you can do diagonal bracing from high up on the walls down to the ground. Think of those braces as giant kickstands on a bicycle. Screw the actual panel faces to the frames, this allows you to keep them secure, and gives you a way to bolt pieces down the ground, to each other, etc. and hides those connections when the panel faces are installed.
Make sure your layout designs include the actual thickness of the finished panels, or you will be stuck with a really cramped space when you are done.
If you want to have spots for drop panels, having them built into spaces that are hidden from the TOTs is fairly easy. Build your maze so that the second and third stretch of the labyrinth are enough shorter than the first and last leg are, and build that wall, and or the back wall with your drop panels or special effects. This would allow you to put a doorway into that panel that currently runs between your point of entry and exit, and gives you a room to scare from as well as a spot to store your valuables, your sound system, etc.
I hope all of that made sense, if not, let me know.


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## jdubbya (Nov 6, 2005)

fontgeek said:


> Build the framing like a ladder, with a rung at both the top and bottom ends, as well as a couple in the middle. If you can, bolt or stake down the bottom rung to the ground or floor, and put braces (well) above the reach of the TOTs overhead to connect one wall to the next. You can bolt the sections together side by side, and if you are doing solid walls on the exterior too, then you can do diagonal bracing from high up on the walls down to the ground. Think of those braces as giant kickstands on a bicycle. Screw the actual panel faces to the frames, this allows you to keep them secure, and gives you a way to bolt pieces down the ground, to each other, etc. and hides those connections when the panel faces are installed.
> Make sure your layout designs include the actual thickness of the finished panels, or you will be stuck with a really cramped space when you are done.
> If you want to have spots for drop panels, having them built into spaces that are hidden from the TOTs is fairly easy. Build your maze so that the second and third stretch of the labyrinth are enough shorter than the first and last leg are, and build that wall, and or the back wall with your drop panels or special effects. This would allow you to put a doorway into that panel that currently runs between your point of entry and exit, and gives you a room to scare from as well as a spot to store your valuables, your sound system, etc.
> I hope all of that made sense, if not, let me know.


Yup! All makes sense. As the haunt will be in our driveway, there isn't a way to fasten the wall panel frames to the ground, so we'll have to brace them from the top. The exterior walls will be able to be braced diagonally, like you mentioned. The drop panel is planned in the exit hallway and will be on an exterior wall so the actor will actually be on the outside of the haunt, out of view. Thanks for the input!


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## fontgeek (Jul 24, 2006)

To help anchor the bottom end, providing you have the space, add a rectangle of plywood to the bottom, maybe with some of the "no slip" material on the bottom, and put a sandbag, or even gallon milk jugs filled with sand or kitty-litter. Between the added weight and the non slip surface, it should anchor it dow pretty well, and keep it moveable and storable when desired.


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