How to Make a Lightweight Portable Wall

Build a portable wall any height you need.

There are times when you might need to separate or divide a room for an office or privacy -- but you can't just build a wall anytime you need one. However, you can make an affordable, lightweight portable wall to use whenever you want. When you don't need it, tuck it back against an existing wall.

Wall Anatomy

Typical wall construction consists of 2-by-4 studs with drywall on both sides. Get the same effect using hardwood and 1/4-inch plywood. Even an 8-foot wall can be picked up and easily moved when it's nothing more than lightweight plywood surrounded by a frame. Use hardwoods, finish it before assembly, and it imparts the look of fine woodworking to the room. Go with a cheaper alternative and install 1/4-inch paneling inside a fir or poplar frame, or paint everything white to match existing walls. Add wallpaper or wainscoting to dress it up if desired.

Framed and Surrounded

Start by assembling a frame. Make it with 3/4-by-4-inch-wide lumber of your choice. Measure and cut four pieces in the sizes needed. Don't make it too big; allow for at least 3/4 inch or more clearance around the perimeter between existing walls so it won't bind or get caught when you move it. Install a 1/4-inch dado blade on a table saw and cut a 1/2-inch-deep channel centered along the length of each piece. Cut 1/4-inch plywood in the sizes needed with a table saw. Attach the frame pieces around the plywood by inserting the sides, top and bottom edges of the plywood into the channel. Don't add glue: Natural expansion and contraction can cause the plywood to split or crack. Screw the frame together around the plywood. Since plywood sheets are only 48 inches wide, butt two of them together if needed, and screw one piece of 4-inch-wide hardwood together on both sides, sandwiching the joint between them.

Footloose

Some type of support is necessary if you're not attaching the portable wall to the ceiling or another vertical wall. Cut some 3/4-by-4-inch frame material 12 inches long for feet. Screw them perpendicular along the bottom for support. Two feet, placed 12 inches from each end, support the wall if it's 8-feet long, but depending on height and length, add additional feet if needed. Dress up the feet by cutting tapers from the ends to the middle so the blunt edge of the foot doesn't catch on anything. Sand them smooth and the wall will slide easily on carpet or anything else. If the wall is semi-permanent, screw the feet to the floor and cap the screw holes with furniture buttons.

Sections and Cubes

Build several 48-inch-wide wall sections and hinge them together with piano hinge. This type of portable wall works like a room divider, bending as needed for angled walls or as an aesthetic design. Add some small cubes or shelves. Attach them to the sides of the frame or at the top. Build the shelves or cubes using 1/4-by-4-inch hardwood by cutting a slot halfway through two pieces and fitting the slots together for a joint. Cut 1/4-inch plywood and glue it to the back of the cubes or shelves; i's strong enough to support small items such as pictures, keepsakes or crafts.

]]> About the Author

Specializing in hardwood furniture, trim carpentry, cabinets, home improvement and architectural millwork, Wade Shaddy has worked in homebuilding since 1972. Shaddy has also worked as a newspaper reporter and writer, and as a contributing writer for Bicycling Magazine. Shaddy began publishing in various magazines in 1992, and published a novel, "Dark Canyon," in 2008.

Photo Credits

Jack Hollingsworth/Photodisc/Getty Images

bibliography-iconicon for annotation tool Cite this Article Choose Citation Style MLA APA Chicago (B)

Shaddy, Wade. "How to Make a Lightweight Portable Wall." Home Guides | SF Gate, http://homeguides.sfgate.com/make-lightweight-portable-wall-96166.html. Accessed 10 May 2019.

Shaddy, Wade. (n.d.). How to Make a Lightweight Portable Wall. Home Guides | SF Gate. Retrieved from http://homeguides.sfgate.com/make-lightweight-portable-wall-96166.html

Shaddy, Wade. "How to Make a Lightweight Portable Wall" accessed May 10, 2019. http://homeguides.sfgate.com/make-lightweight-portable-wall-96166.html

Copy Citation

Note: Depending on which text editor you're pasting into, you might have to add the italics to the site name.