# Free standing walls at tradeshows



## ShckByte (Jan 31, 2011)

Hi all,

I just found your forum tonight and was hoping someone with knowledge of tradeshows and events could help me out. I want to build three free-standing walls that are secure to go inside a tent with dimensions 20x10. I am not a carpenter whatsoever, but an artist. I was hoping someone has done something like this before for such an event and could help me in choosing materials to build the walls. 

To give an idea of what I am trying to do, I am making a mini sports museum in a sense where I sell my apparel. I will be actually building on the wall props such as a mini baseball wall with fence and background; a basketball wall that looks like a wire meshed fence with backboard and rim, etc. 

The event will be outdoors in March so it will still be a little cold as well as possibly windy. Thus, it has to be stable and not fall on people are ourselves. If anyone has any suggestion I would love to hear from you!

Also, if anyone knows of metal fencing like a basketball court that is plastic and used for props I would like to hear about this as well! Thanks.


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## len (Jan 31, 2011)

The big question is, walls for what? You want to hang stuff for sale, I see. That means, the panels need to be somewhat sturdy to hang pegs off of, etc. I suppose you could build something. I would guess that slatwalls would be a good choice. You can probably find some stock and build frames for them. All you'll really need are the feet, which should be detachable and stick out at least 1' on each side.


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## ShckByte (Jan 31, 2011)

len said:


> The big question is, walls for what? You want to hang stuff for sale, I see. That means, the panels need to be somewhat sturdy to hang pegs off of, etc. I suppose you could build something. I would guess that slatwalls would be a good choice. You can probably find some stock and build frames for them. All you'll really need are the feet, which should be detachable and stick out at least 1' on each side.


 
Slatwalls? Sorry, I'm 25 years into computers now with design and never got into construction which I wished I did. I'd imagine I could get these from Home Depot?


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## gafftaper (Feb 1, 2011)

Hang in there. We'll help you but there are lots of questions first:

Due to dimensions of wood we usually work in multiples of two for dimensions. Any sort of sheet plywood is going to come in 4'x8' Stick wood will come in 8' lengths. So we typically build stock scenery 4'x8' or maybe 2'x8'. Obviously there is less waist if you work in terms of 2', 4', and 8' dimensions, which keeps your price down. SO how much total surface area do you think you need? Like just three 4' wide panels or are you talking 20' of wall? Before you build make sure you check how high that tent is. You wouldn't want to build walls taller than the roof. 

What's the layout you envision? Are people walking around inside your tent among these walls, are they standing back and looking across a table at a single back wall? Are there walls on 3 sides and people enter from the front? Do you want it open on all sides? Enclosed? 

An ancient stage technique is the Periaktoi essentially a set of revolving triangular prisms to make a wall... Take the revolving part off and spread them around the booth and you could have some very nice looking and strong display pieces for people to walk around inside your booth. 

The balance of strength vs. weight of the wall is a problem. The more weight the wall has to hold, the heavier it has to be. So what are you hanging from the walls, how do you plan to hang it, and how much weight total do you think it will be. How far do you have to transport these things? Do you have help? Is getting a larger vehicle like a truck to do the transporting a problem. 

Have you considered different shapes other than just flat walls? Flat walls are much harder to stabilize than something like a zig zag folding screen design or a rectangular prism or triangular prism.

What's your budget? That makes a BIG difference in what you can do.

Are you talking about chain link fence for the basketball display? I've never seen a plastic form of chain link but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist. You can buy bulk chain link at Home Depot but it's in pretty big rolls.


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## TheatrePros (Feb 1, 2011)

I would use a steel or aluminum frame. What I do for trade show is that have a heavy steel plate as the base (RoseBrand has some, for their pipe and drape system). I then use the flooring to secure the plate, not physically attached it to the ground, rather use the flooring of your exhibit (carpet, plywood, masonite, MDF, whatever) to cover the heavy plate that is secured to your walls, thus while people are walking on it ( or you standing next to it) that is what helps anchor the wall as a whole.


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## ShckByte (Feb 1, 2011)

Thank you all for replying and I apologize I didn't get back last night. I have so much going on before this event and it's basically myself and one other coordinating everything. 

To answer some questions:

The dimensions of the walls would be on both left and right sides 10 ft wide by 6 ft high (possibly 8 ft. once I know more about the large community tent that will be used). The back wall is actually three different parts. The left side is 6ft wide by 6 (or 8ft) high. Then in the middle is our main display holding apparel and on top is a faux scoreboard with a TV built into it. On the other side is another 6 x 6 (or again 8ft.) wall.

People would be allowed to walk in on the left side and look at the items on the wall for sale (again, like a sports museum). I have a rough layout of what I want it to look like if anyone is interested in seeing it.

We will be using a U-Haul to transport the apparel and display so that won't be such an issue. Plus I have several young high schooler's that can help me move it 

The Chain link fence would be just like on a school yard surrounding a basketball court. I would hang the faux basketball hoop and apparel on this with signage. I will have a floor underneath to simulate an indoor basketball court.

I have looked into several different designs for this event and really want to try and attract the true sports enthusiasts to my tent being that our name is American Knockout Wear (AKO). We are Irish-based and showing at the ShamrockFest in DC March 12th thus the whole theme is sports with an Irish flare.

I guess my budget is whatever is needed at this point. I've already spent enough on the props so I will be doing more large events throughout the year with high visibility.

I'm unfamiliar with Rosebrand, is this available at Home Depot? Where does everyone get their material from, in general? 

Thank you all again for responding and I look forward to hearing back from you.


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## jwl868 (Feb 1, 2011)

Some additional information that you need to collect:

The exact dimensions of the tent, with the poles taken into account. Your actual space may be closer to 9.5 feet by 19.5 feet.

Is there a center pole?

The clear height inside the tent. Some tents run rope from corner to corner for stability, and this might be a few inches lower than the “eave” of the tent.

The dimensions of the truck you plan to rent. This may limit the maximum width of your panels. (Go to the rental trucks website for the exact dimensions, rather than rely on the truck being a “10-footer”.)

Can anything stick out (such as bracing) beyond the footprint of you tent? And if so, how far?

Does the show require any specific methods for securing your display (to keep it from blowing over in a storm)? Is it up for just one day, and does that matter? (At our church festival, we anchor the booths in-place with steel pipe stakes so that the wind doesn’t knock them over, but then it’s our parking lot.)



Joe


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## ShckByte (Feb 1, 2011)

I am suppose to find out the exact dimensions either today or tomorrow so I'll take everything you said into consideration. The event will be in the parking lot of the old RFK Stadium where the Redskins use to play. So I don't think I could put down stakes since it will be asphalt. I will have to check and double check the walls I guess because how awful would it be if I went to this time and expense to build this display and I can't use it! I'm thinking I could half the wall and have L-brackets or something to attach them both, thus making them smaller to transport, but good point! 

Supposedly the main tent will house like 20 or more tents and in the middle would be where the electrical hook ups would go. I am trying to get pictures of what will be used so I have a better idea what to make. I guess if I was to make my life easy, I'd just bring shelves and a grid wall or two; but I like to be showey (if that were a word with my display's.


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## kicknargel (Feb 1, 2011)

Please post whatever drawings of the design you have--that will help us give specific advice.

Given the wind factor, this could get complicated. With essentially three walls in a U-shape, the two unconnected edges will be wobbly. Similar to TheatrePros' idea, maybe you could buy/rent two boom bases (50lbs steel plates with a flange welded on) and pipe from a theatrical supply and connect the ends of the walls to that. Or find a way to incorporate a pretty beefy "foot" that sticks out the front and back (and doesn't create a trip hazard).

Is it out of the question to have this professionally built?


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## FatherMurphy (Feb 1, 2011)

Rose Brand was mentioned above, they're a large theatrical supply house specializing in fabric, curtains, and associated hardware.

RoseBrand.com: Theatrical fabrics, stage curtains, backdrops, hardware and accessories

You might think about how to rework the scenery ideas to incorporate the 'book flat' concept, two walls hinged together so they open into an 'L' shape. With a brace tying the top corners together, they can be quite sturdy and wind resistant.

For the center back wall section, you mentioned a TV mounted high. Putting weight high up an unsupported wall that is exposed to wind is rather chancy. You might think about building that section as a box, and moving the walls to either side forward to keep them in plane with the center section. This will create some blocked-off areas behind the walls, but these could be used for storage.

A common trick for stabilizing outdoor units is water ballast tanks. Build the bases so that they hold jugs of water (or if you can afford it, have custom shaped tanks made) hidden in some lower portion of the unit, and the weight of the water will be hold things in place. When the show's over, dump out the water, and things are lightweight for transport again.


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## ShckByte (Feb 1, 2011)

kicknargel said:


> Please post whatever drawings of the design you have--that will help us give specific advice.
> 
> Given the wind factor, this could get complicated. With essentially three walls in a U-shape, the two unconnected edges will be wobbly. Similar to TheatrePros' idea, maybe you could buy/rent two boom bases (50lbs steel plates with a flange welded on) and pipe from a theatrical supply and connect the ends of the walls to that. Or find a way to incorporate a pretty beefy "foot" that sticks out the front and back (and doesn't create a trip hazard).
> 
> Is it out of the question to have this professionally built?



Please see the image attached. No, it isn't out of the question to get it professionally built, but not prepared to spend an arm and a leg on the walls. Everything else cost that Thanks!


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## ShckByte (Feb 1, 2011)

FatherMurphy said:


> Rose Brand was mentioned above, they're a large theatrical supply house specializing in fabric, curtains, and associated hardware.
> 
> RoseBrand.com: Theatrical fabrics, stage curtains, backdrops, hardware and accessories
> 
> ...


 
My thoughts on the wall would they would have feet to support each side of the wall and the sides would be tied together with L-brackets. I never thought of a water ballast, but then again, I never really knew about this before. It sounds like a good idea!

The middle section is actually a storage display for apparel with a faux scoreboard where the TV will be housed. It will have heavy duty wheels on the bottom for easy moving and is being built professionally.


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## mstaylor (Feb 1, 2011)

Could you plan a base that comes apart with hinges and slip pins. If you put a bottom slip pinned in you could use sand or water for ballast. The walls can either have pipe attached to slide into the base or use hidges on both sides of the wall to make it more stable.


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## gafftaper (Feb 2, 2011)

This project really screams out the need for some welding to me. A standard technique in theater is to weld up a series of simple frames of steel tubing and then attach a thin sheet of plywood to the front. This gives you a really strong structure. It's pretty light weight and portable in panel sections. You can bolt the frames together once you are in place and attach a welded up foot system. Steel tubing is square in shape and we use either 3/4" or 1". To keep the price down you could pay a shop to weld up the structure and you could attach and paint the front how you like it. Just drill some holes and screw the plywood to the frame with self taping sheet metal screws. The T.V. part of the structure I would say definitely requires welding. The beauty of this idea is you have someone build you a frame and you can remove and replace the front of it over and over to be whatever you want it to be. 

The other thing to consider is if the booth is U shaped a sign across the front above the booth not only shows off your name it stabilizes the whole structure significantly. That's another thing that's easy to weld.


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## ShckByte (Feb 2, 2011)

gafftaper said:


> This project really screams out the need for some welding to me. A standard technique in theater is to weld up a series of simple frames of steel tubing and then attach a thin sheet of plywood to the front. This gives you a really strong structure. It's pretty light weight and portable in panel sections. You can bolt the frames together once you are in place and attach a welded up foot system. Steel tubing is square in shape and we use either 3/4" or 1". To keep the price down you could pay a shop to weld up the structure and you could attach and paint the front how you like it. Just drill some holes and screw the plywood to the frame with self taping sheet metal screws. The T.V. part of the structure I would say definitely requires welding. The beauty of this idea is you have someone build you a frame and you can remove and replace the front of it over and over to be whatever you want it to be.
> 
> The other thing to consider is if the booth is U shaped a sign across the front above the booth not only shows off your name it stabilizes the whole structure significantly. That's another thing that's easy to weld.



Welding would be great if I knew how and is a very good idea because of how light it is. Could the same be done, I don't imagine, but with PVC piping? I've seen this done, but it didn't hold what I want. I have a month and 10 days before the show and freaking a little, but know it will be done. Just want to test it out with different scenarios regarding stability. Thanks again for everyone's input!


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## gafftaper (Feb 2, 2011)

PVC is going to be way to flexible for the amount of stuff you want to put on the wall. Wood is really pushing it too without some major over built design work and a pretty heavy load of stuff. Welding is by far the most elegant solution. You are probably looking at a couple hundred bucks in steel, it's more, but not THAT much more than the wood you would need for a wood structure. Call some local welding shops and find out what they would charge to do the work for you. Pick up the welded frame and take it home to finish the rest yourself. I really suggest we try to find you an in person meeting with someone with some experience in set design or construction. Where in Virginia do you live? Perhaps we can help you find a good Carp in the area that you could buy dinner and pay a few extra bucks to pick their brain? That would be ideal. We can help you this way but it's going to be really slow and you really need someone right there to sketch things and show you what will and won't work. 

No matter the construction technique, I suggest you redesign the walls slightly. 
The red lines represent a small 8"-12" wide front face I would add. The blue line is bracing around the back side. Dump 50 pounds of weight at the floor level in this triangle area on both sides. This general design style, if the walls are strong, will solve almost all of your stability issues (as long as you don't have a TV and a lot of weight on that back wall).

I'm going to try to wake up Van we could really use his help on this.


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## ShckByte (Feb 2, 2011)

gafftaper said:


> PVC is going to be way to flexible for the amount of stuff you want to put on the wall. Wood is really pushing it too without some major over built design work and a pretty heavy load of stuff. Welding is by far the most elegant solution. You are probably looking at a couple hundred bucks in steel, it's more, but not THAT much more than the wood you would need for a wood structure. Call some local welding shops and find out what they would charge to do the work for you. Pick up the welded frame and take it home to finish the rest yourself. I really suggest we try to find you an in person meeting with someone with some experience in set design or construction. Where in Virginia do you live? Perhaps we can help you find a good Carp in the area that you could buy dinner and pay a few extra bucks to pick their brain? That would be ideal. We can help you this way but it's going to be really slow and you really need someone right there to sketch things and show you what will and won't work.
> 
> No matter the construction technique, I suggest you redesign the walls slightly.
> The red lines represent a small 8"-12" wide front face I would add. The blue line is bracing around the back side. Dump 50 pounds of weight at the floor level in this triangle area on both sides. This general design style, if the walls are strong, will solve almost all of your stability issues (as long as you don't have a TV and a lot of weight on that back wall).
> ...



We are located in Woodbridge/Montclair, Virginia; about 30 minutes from DC. I wouldn't mind speaking to someone regarding the welding, I'm just in a rush right now and need something stable as you mentioned. Thanks and thank you for the diagram explaining yourself.


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## Van (Feb 2, 2011)

Sorry Folks I'm knee deep in Tech for Lt. Of Inishmore When I get a break today I'll stop back by and re-read this. I know of some 'Stock' materials that we used to use for Nike shows that are great they have plastic slatwall they're modular and I think they're call G3 wall or something, anyway I'm sorry I'm scattered, got home at 3 got up at 7 ran erreands and got to the office at 11.


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## len (Feb 2, 2011)

Yes, slatwalls. Slatwall Display | Buy Slatwall Displays You've seen them a million times, you just didn't know what they were called.


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## Van (Feb 2, 2011)

try thi link as well
Wire Display Wall Panels - Three Inch On-Center Wall Panels
There are a variety of wire display units and styles out there too. This link shows a 3" square pattern but there are wirewall display systems that allow for the use of Standard Slatwall fixtures as well. 
I'm not sure what's around in Virginia.... < I think that's where I saw you were from> but Google Grand and Benedicts. or Portland Store Fixture these site will show a lot of whats available , fixture wise, which might help you decide on a wall style or syles. 
I know several sales conferencs I did for Nike would include a variety of wall style. the G3 latwall, Wire mess wall, sometimes Wire mesh hung with a 1" sock hook ON the G3 wall. When it came to decorating the walls themselves the fixtures can come in real handy, as can double stick foam tape. metal hooks rigged to the top of the wall. Universally we used a Back Jack system that clipped into the bacl of the G3 wall nd then used standard 20 lbs sandbags to weight the jack. ( Yes I spent 2 months making Sandbags for Nike once. Then Domestic and Asia Pacific started fighting over whose were whose so we had to make more and label them.... ) ( BTW Great way to fill sand bags ? Use a traffic cone turned upside down. Makes a great funnel.>)


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## mstaylor (Feb 5, 2011)

If the wire wall works for you, there is a supplier in Baltimore that we get ours from. If you want to rent some I have access to white, black and silver in a combo of 6ft and 8ft tall.


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## Bml11803 (Jan 26, 2012)

Hi, I am trying to build a 10 ft wide by 8 ft tall freestanding wall for the back of my booth. I need to
Hang some light picture frames. I am unsure where
To start on how to build this. Can you help! 

Thank you
Brenda


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## DuckJordan (Jan 27, 2012)

If you are just hanging pictures what about pipe and drape with wire hangers.

Sent from my ADR6300 using Tapatalk


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## josh88 (Jan 27, 2012)

All of the above posts are good advice and should give you a pretty good idea of what you're going to need. If these frames are light you shouldn't need steel and should be able to get by with a wood solution. Most of it has been covered here so just read through it all.


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## gafftaper (Jan 27, 2012)

Bml11803 said:


> Hi, I am trying to build a 10 ft wide by 8 ft tall freestanding wall for the back of my booth. I need to
> Hang some light picture frames. I am unsure where
> To start on how to build this. Can you help!
> 
> ...



So did the discussion above help or do you need more advice. 

If you need more advice let me throw some questions out:

#1 What is your budget? 

Are you completely new to this sort of thing? 
How are your carpentry skills what about access to tools? 
Do you have any welders in the family/friends? 
How much time do you have until it must be completed? 
When you say 10' wide is that the overall size of the booth or is that the must have size of your wall? 
Does the back wall have to be a perfect finish to it or is it okay for us to see seams? Do you want a flat wall which is supported from behind (harder to transport and harder to stabilize) or can you be happy with something in sections which curve to make stability? 
Which of these three general styles are you looking for? (We are looking from the top down at the shape of the wall and it's supports).


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## mstaylor (Feb 4, 2012)

Bml11803 said:


> Hi, I am trying to build a 10 ft wide by 8 ft tall freestanding wall for the back of my booth. I need to
> Hang some light picture frames. I am unsure where
> To start on how to build this. Can you help!
> 
> ...


That screams metal grid. They are generally 2ft wide and 6 or 8ft tall. You wire tie them together, add either triangles, or an occasional 90 degree panel. Another thing you can do is add a top. Quick to set up, not expensive to buy or rent and looks decent. What I usually use is white,black or chrome.


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## JL2012 (Mar 30, 2012)

Hi, I'm looking to rent some gridwall for an outdoor festival in Maryland, ( @ 15 minutes from Columbia), at the beginning of May, I'd prefer to find somewhere close to the event, but willing to go to DC if need be. 
I will be displaying yarn & some other soft goods in a fairly large space, 10 x20 foot tent outdoors for 2 days. I would like to hang the twisted hanks on Pegs, and was thinking gridwall might be the best way to do this. I will also have some other product that will need to be displayed on shelves, I was thinking we might just use the cubes ( wire) ones that we used last year. I'm open to other ideas. I googled gridwall rentals, and haven't found any rental places...but I did find this board.
Thanks


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## mstaylor (Apr 8, 2012)

You will need to get it from either DC or Baltimore. I have it and bring it to you but I am two hours away so it probably won't be cost effective.


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## jharden724 (Apr 28, 2012)

HI, I just came across this website. I am looking to build something similar to one of the designs below. It will only be used to display different posters. I am looking for something about 8 ft tall by 12 feet wide. Whatever is most stable is what I would want. Can someone guide me in the right direction? Thanks! Jennifer
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## Tracybonadio (Feb 11, 2013)

Hi, 
I am a looking for some help on building a free standing display for my trade show that is coming up in the middle of April. I would like the facing to be rough sawn pine for a rustic look as we make wood signs that we will be displaying on the walls. Our booth is 8' x 10' and we were thinking of having the back wall in 2-5' sections, 6'8" tall and the one section on either side measuring 4' wide by 6'8" tall. I do not object to having a brace run across the top connecting the side sections with the back since I can attach lighting to them. My real problem is figuring out how to make the actual walls themselves where I can nail the pine boards to it, does anyone have any ideas? I have attached a drawing to illustrate the overall idea. Thanks in advance for the help and expertise!


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