Setting routes on a home wall

A home wall without problems is a panel with holds on it. You can climb anything on it, which in practice means you climb the same few moves every session. Setting a handful of defined problems turns it into a wall you want to come back to.

This page is about setting: choosing holds for a problem, marking it, and keeping a small wall varied. It is not a training plan. We do not prescribe sessions, grades to aim for, or how often to climb. If a finger hurts, stop. Lingering pain is a question for a clinician, not for a setting guide.

Start from the wall you have

A gym circuit has dozens of problems across many walls and angles. A home panel might be one or two sheets of plywood at one angle. Trying to copy a gym circuit onto that panel produces problems that all share the same holds and blur together.

Set for the size and angle you built. The size and angle guide sets out what each angle does to the climbing. A vertical wall suits balance and footwork problems. A steep board suits shorter, more powerful problems where feet cut loose. A small wall suits a few problems, each with a distinct idea.

Use the grid as a map

The T-nut grid gives every hold position an address. If the grid is regular, as set out in the T-nut grid guide, you can label columns with letters and rows with numbers. A problem then becomes a list: start on B3 and D3, through C6, finish at E10.

This helps in several ways:

• You can write problems down and recreate them after a reset.
• Other people in the house can climb a problem without being shown it.
• You can see where a problem has no holds nearby and where the wall is crowded.

A notebook, a shared note on a phone, or a sheet of paper pinned by the wall all work. Some people photograph the wall and draw on the photo.

Marking problems

On a small wall you need a way to see which holds belong to which problem.

• Hold colour. If you own sets in distinct colours, a problem can be "only yellow holds". This is the simplest system and the most limited, because it ties problems to how many holds of each colour you have.
• Tape. Coloured tape next to a hold marks it for a problem. Start holds and finish holds can be marked differently. Tape peels and gets chalky, so expect to redo it.
• The grid list. No marks on the wall at all, just the written list. Easy to keep, harder to read while climbing.

Agree a convention for starts and finishes: usually both hands matched on the start hold or holds, and a controlled match or touch on the finish.

Setting a single problem

Pick one idea. A long reach between two good holds. A move off a sidepull. A sequence that needs a high foot. Choose the holds that make that move, then add holds before and after to get onto it and off it.

1. Choose the crux move first.
2. Place hand holds to lead into it.
3. Add footholds that make the sequence possible. Footholds are often the difference between a good problem and an awkward one.
4. Climb it. Adjust. A hold turned slightly can change the move completely.
5. Write it down.

Keep problems short on a small wall. Four to eight hand moves is plenty on one sheet. A long problem on a small panel tends to wander sideways and reuse holds.

Feet-follow-hands and open feet

Two common rules make the same set of holds serve more problems:

• Feet follow hands. You can only use a foothold that has been a hand hold in the problem. This gives tighter, more precise problems.
• Open feet. Any hold on the wall can be a foothold. This makes problems easier and more flowing.

Deciding the rule for each problem doubles the use of the holds without moving anything.

Variety without more holds

• Set problems that start from different places: low, sitting, standing, from one side.
• Set traverses as well as straight-up problems if the wall is wide enough.
• Remove a hold from an old problem to make it harder, or add one to make it easier.
• Turn holds rather than moving them. The cleaning and rotating guide covers rotation in more detail.

Setting for other people

If the wall is shared, set for the weakest climber as well as the strongest. Beginners need positive holds within reach and plenty of footholds. A wall where every problem is hard gets used by one person.

Leave a few easy problems on the wall at all times as warm-ups. They are also the problems visitors will enjoy.

When you have run out of ideas

Small walls run out of new problems. That usually means you need different holds rather than more of the same. The climbing holds guide covers what to add. Before buying, try a full reset with the holds you have. A wall that looked worked-out can feel new after an afternoon of moving everything.

Grades

A home wall's grades are its own. Your wall's angle, hold texture and holds are not a gym's, so do not expect a home problem to match a gym grade. Ranking problems against each other on the wall is more useful than trying to put a number on them.

FAQs

How many problems should a home wall have?

As many as the holds and space allow without problems blurring together. On a single-sheet wall, a few distinct problems are better than many that share every hold.

Do I need a system board app to set problems?

No. Apps belong to licensed layouts such as Kilter, MoonBoard and Tension. A DIY wall uses your own problems, recorded however you like.

Is this a training programme?

No. This page is about setting problems on the wall. It does not tell you how often to climb, how hard, or for how long.