Cleaning climbing holds
The first step when cleaning climbing holds is to determine what material the hold is made of. Polyester and polyurethane (PU) are the most used materials.
To recognise which is which: polyester is the basic material of most older hold shapes and is the heavier material that breaks and chips rather easily, whereas modern shapes are often PU, they don’t chip easily, weigh less and are more flexible. PU holds are usually brighter in color compared to polyester holds which lose their original brightness in color after the first use.
Cleaning polyester holds
Polyester is hard to clean and will need acids and firm brushing to become presentable. Polyester will never get back the out of the box brightness, no matter how hard you try. The best practise for this material is to soak in plenty water and hold cleaner (Benky Grip Wash, HRT Hold Cleaner, Bluewash and many other acids are available). Always follow the holds cleaner manufacturers’ instructions and always use protection gloves and protection goggles. After soaking rinse off with clean water and after that use a spray gun (cold water) to remove the last dirt. Leave to dry before use. Dispose of the acids in a nature friendly way.
There are ultrasonic machines and washing machines on the market that will take parts of this process out of your hand, but best results are still seen soaking in acid fluids.
Cleaning PU holds
PU is very easy to clean and after cleaning PU will look as new. Use a spray gun (cold water) and all dirt comes flying off as if it weren’t there. Leave to dry before use. Don’t use acids or other chemicals as it may damage the surface layer of the hold.
Cleaning macros and fiberglass volumes
Clean with cold water. When using a spray gun keep a distance of at least 50cm between nozzle and macro or volume in order not to damage the surface layer. In case dirt doesn’t come off, applying some holds cleaner on the dirty spots (and leave it there for 15 minutes or more before rinsing it off) usually does the trick. Don’t use holds cleaner unless you must because it may affect both friction and brightness.
Cleaning wooden volumes
Wooden volumes (maybe not home-made ones) are easy to clean using a spray gun at least 50cm distance from the volume surface.
General cleaning guidelines
- Climbing holds must not be exposed to higher temperatures (>60 degrees).
- Wear protection gloves and goggles when using acids or chemicals.
- Dispose of holds cleaner in an environmentally sensible manner.
- When cleaning with a high-pressure cleaner (spray gun), make sure that smaller holds are not blasted at too high a pressure. This could cause the hold to launch into the air and potentially injure the cleaner.
- Never place volumes in water or cleaning solution, leave them to soak or immerse them in water.
- When cleaning, place a grit of some sort underneath so that excess water can drip off directly.
Safety data sheet for holds and volumes
- Installation may only be carried out by trained and competent personnel.
- Compliance with the safety data sheet is a basic requirement for safe use of the volumes. Incorrect installation can result in serious injuries.
- Products may not be altered or changed independently.
- The mounting surface must comply with the current standard for climbing walls (EN 12572-1) or boulder walls (EN 12572-2).
- Weak (pronged) T-nuts may not resist the dynamic forces of setting with modern big holds.
- Weaker quality plywood may not resist the dynamic forces of setting with modern big holds.
- Volumes and holds are designed for indoor use. Outdoor use could reduce the service life and cause the colours to fade more quickly. Therefore, such use is at your own risk.
- Careful handling of all products guarantees a longer service life.
- Holds and volumes should be stored in dry and ventilated rooms.
- Avoid temperatures over +60°C and below -20°C.
- Volumes can be stacked, but we strongly recommend that carpet, fleece or similar layers be placed between them to maintain longevity of the coating.
Assembling
- Holds/volumes must rest on a flat wall over their entire surface. Fastening to curved formations (concave or convex) is therefore prohibited.
- Climbing holds with a hole provided for this purpose must be mounted with an Allen bolt M10, screws must comply with DIN 912, size 8, strength class 8.8
- Only use countersunk screws 4.5mm diameter and the right length for the corresponding hold or volume (hereinafter referred to as chipboard screws) (e.g. WÜRTH, SPAX or comparable) with CE marking (according to approval by the building authorities). Use 4.5×2.5mm countersunk screws / pan-head screws for fiberglass volumes. These must be attached with a torque between 5 and 10Nm.
- Partially and fully threaded screws can both be suitable.
- Allen screws (bolts) must be tightened with a minimum of 20Nm but a maximum of 40Nm, to a fastening surface provided for this purpose. Please note that impact drivers can generate a torque of 180Nm and more at which M10 bolts, holds and volumes may be permanently damaged.
- Only mounting holes provided for the corresponding screws may be used. All intended mounting holes in both holds and volumes must be used.
- Each chipboard screw may only be used once.
- If the climbing hold only has countersunk screws holes, all these mounting points must be used. The same applies to fiberglass and wooden volumes.
- As a general rule, the length of the mounting screw must fully penetrate the climbing wall with a thread (note the full/partial thread!).
- No rope may run over the volume/hold on climbing walls, as damage may occur to the volume/hold and rope.
- After assembly, check the volume/hold for correct fastening, damage during assembly and screwing. Also test the volume/hold for functionality.
- No existing/old (screw) holes on the climbing/bouldering wall may be used for adding new chipboard screws.
- Holds can loosen somewhat over time due to extremely dynamic loads and temperature fluctuations. Tightening may be necessary at certain intervals.
- Damaged holds and volumes can have injurious edges and corners. For safety reasons, holds and volumes may not be repaired independently.
- Defective holds and volumes must be disposed of.
- Volumes and holds must rest over the entire surface and may not protrude on edges.
- During installation, care should be taken to ensure that there are no gaps between volumes and/or holds with a diameter between 8 and 25 mm and a depth greater than 15 mm which could cause entrapment, unless they are specifically intended for climbing.
- For all holds, it must be ensured that, in addition to the M10 bolt connection, additional chipboard screw holes are used to prevent them from twisting and as extra support.
- For volumes with M10 option (Bolt-On) an additional chipboard screw must be used (from 600 mm one chipboard screw per side) to secure the volume before turning and moving.
- The chipboard screws must be as far away as possible from the central fixing with the Allen bolt. If several fixing points are required, they must be diagonally opposite or as far apart as possible
- When a baseplate is provided, the volume must be fixed with all fixing points using the Allen bolts provided.