I finished building my own panels and would like feedback.
My main reason for doing these were that they would fit inside my Murano. They are basically cut-down screen doors from Home Depot, stained/sealed, and covered in 1/2" hardware cloth and sun-tolerant fabric. The legs are secured with keyhole picture-type hangers. I have velcro straps tying the panels to each other.
I need to further secure the tops to the tent somehow. The target show for this is the Houston Bayou City festival next March. Right now my thermometer shows 104 degrees :-/
Thanks all.
Replies
Very professional looking! Beautiful!
I also agree with some kind of support bars at the bottom secured to the tent. They will really help in the wind.
I'll argue otherwise about securing the panels to the tent frame. I did that years ago with some DIY panels I built and had no problems. If anything, it made the entire booth more rigid.
At the top of the panels where you have the 1/2 inch plugs, I would suggest using 1/2 dowel rods or metal rods that would extend up another 8" or so that would let you tie into the side struts of the tent. I used zip ties for a solid connection. Half inch hardwood dowels are pretty rugged and should do a good job of tying into the frame for stability.
And I did end up using longer dowels and attaching via Velcro straps to the roof. I was flat up against a building so there was no wind to speak of to put that to the test.
Totally agree - nothing stronger than pro panels attached to a light dome. There is no sway.
Looks very nice, but I do wonder about the durability going from show to show.
I've been to your web site and I see that a lot of your work is large frames under glass. IMO you will need to devise a different hanging system. Curtain hooks or Velcro are a OK for very small stuff but with large pieces 16X20 and up, your carpet will stretch out very quickly and your display will look tired. I do not use curtain hooks on my Propanels.
As Robert indicated, you need support bars, at least two, to stabilize the ends of your display (http://www.propanels.com/img/a1.jpg). You have 70 sq ft per wall (assuming 7' walls). Even a 15 mile per hour winds will push hard on those ends and it is not uncommon to get 25 and 30 mile per hour winds. I find with my KD Propanels, the canopy hooks (http://www.propanels.com/img/canopyhook.jpg) add a lot of support on a gusty day, particularly when used in conjunction with two support bars. Of course we all have our opinions about this.
Here is a shot of the back which shows the construction a little better. I have curtain hook hangars going through the cloth from the front attaching to the black hardware cloth. And you can see what I mean about attaching to the top of the tent better (noting the white string).
At the top you can see 1/2" plugs on the ends of each panel which I wrap with velcro straps, and also velcro attaching each of the legs together.
Joel, Others may disagree but I believe it is best if the panels do not attach to the tent, they should be free standing. The canopy should be free to move with any wind with out moving your display.
I notice that pro panels are free standing but mesh panels are always secured to the tent.
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