The boulder, the better: More demand for home climbing walls

AS INDOOR rock climbing scales in popularity across Singapore, home climbing walls have emerged as the latest new frontier for enthusiasts of the sport.

Wall building company Urban Ninja has seen interest in home climbing walls rise by 50 per cent in the last 2 years, with over 35 enquiries since 2021, said owner Ivan Toh, who also co-owns rock climbing gym Ground Up Climbing.

Not all enquiries result in a commission, but Toh has still built 21 home walls in landed properties, condominiums and executive maisonettes since 2021, ranging from a 2.5m by 3m bouldering wall to a standalone bouldering structure 20m wide and 3.5m high. He has built a total of 118 home walls since 2004.

“There are hardcore climbers who want a wall where they can train at home, there are parents who want a climbing wall for their kids, there are owners who just started climbing and wish to hone their skills at home before venturing to commercial gyms,” he said.

He typically charges between S$5,000 and S$50,000 for a home climbing wall, depending on the size and complexity of the design. To build these structures, Toh procures raw materials such as plywood and timber from lumberyards, hot-dipped galvanised hollow sections from metal shops, and fibreglass panels from overseas suppliers.

Jeremy Ko, co-founder of fitness equipment business Movement First and director of rock climbing gym Fitbloc, has built about 10 such home climbing walls for children since August 2020.

He receives an estimated 2 to 3 enquiries a month from interested parents – though only a few of them result in actual commissions – and was also engaged by restaurant chain Prive to build a kids rock wall at one of their outlets.

One constraint is the height limitation within certain residences, Ko said, which can make it challenging to transport building materials to the home.

“We have to see (if there are) stairwell or lift limits, but usually there are no major problems. As long as we know the limits, we can cut the wood to a smaller size and reconstruct the wall when we are there,” he said.

“Parents are also concerned about weight loading, if they can join their kids or demonstrate movements on the wall, and also about safety like falling or how to prevent unsupervised use of the wall,” he added.