I got this email today...
Hi, please advise me, I'd like to make a rock climbing huge boulder w/ climbing holds for children to practice and play climbing...
will hypertufa be the answer? how do I do this? thanks for any help u can offer I thought it would make a good subject for an article.
Here is my reply...
Thanks for asking: I don't think I would use Tufa for what you are doing.
It is a bit soft and crumbly if you get the mix wrong.
You don't want anyone to have a handhold break off.
Go with concrete.
It will be a big job.
I would go to a couple of places where they have them and ask how it was done.
I have never done anything like it and would not like to give advice that may be wrong.
Del To elaborate on this a little I will add that I went to a local store where I had seen them setting up a climbing wall on the weekend.
I had been wondering how they made it.
The paint was still wet when I got there and I asked one of the guys what the wall was made of.
It was spray on foam over a plywood base.
The handholds where steel, they come pre-made and are screwed on.
They foam guy builds up around them and they use templates to show where to put the high and low spots.
These things are a work of art; they take 4 guys about 2 days to set up on average.
Once they are done they come back and do repairs and maintain them every day.
They last about 3-4 weeks and then are taken down and destroyed so that no one can get hurt playing on them.
They cost about $8 - 10000.
00 including the daily maintenance.
Foam and plywood makes sense, it keeps the wall light and easy to move.
The foam is a special blend that gets a thick hard skin on it when it sets.
This makes it more realistic and of course durable.
Now you know as much as me.