We're in the process of setting up a mini "sound studio" in one of our
offices at work.  We've purchased some foam padding (think of the
stuff that people put on top of their mattresses to make them softer)
and need to figure out a way to adhere it to the wall.  We're in a
short-term lease so we don't want to do anything to the walls that
will require us to do a lot of work when we move out (a nail gun is
out of the question! :)).

I'm wondering if there might be a good solution that would help us to
attach the material and remove it easily later on.  The walls wooden
and while we could create some small holes we would ideally like to
avoid this.

Any suggestions?

Howdy jpbischke-ga,

The best way to what you want to do is to not attach the foam padding to
the walls at all but attached to something else and then place the padding
and backing on the wall.  You want to use furring strips for this task,
such as the ones made by Canfor, but any "brand" will do fine.
http://www.canfor.com/products/wood/silvastar/furringstrips.asp

"Furring strips are manufactured for use in non-structural applications
such as in wall construction or in roofing installation against existing
supporting surfaces."

Furring strips are available at any "big box" hardware store, such as
Home Depot or Lowes.  They come in 8 foot lengths, and some places have
them even longer than that.  They will run between $1 and change and
$2 and change depending on the size.

Here is what you want to do.  Measure the height of your walls every two
feet or so, as the height will vary in places.  Do a test run to figure
out the size (1"x2" or larger) of furring strip you need.  Cut a few strips
to a bit longer (say around an inch) than the height of the wall.  You might
need to go with 2"x2" furring strips with a 8' ceiling.

Test this strip by bowing it a bit and placing it vertically (up and down)
against the wall, with the bowing coming away from the wall.  If that looks
like it will stay in place at that length, you are good.  If it bows too
much, reduce the height of the wood by 1/4" at a time, test fitting between
cuts.

You will then affix the wood strips to the back of the foam.  All sorts of
ways to do this, both permanent, such as hot glue or wood glue, or not so
permanent, by using a staple gun and small staples, or very thin wire as
a "twist tie" through the foam and holes drilled in the wood strips, etc.

Once the strips are attached to the back of the foam, just wedge the whole
panel vertically on the walls like the test strips were done.  If anything
further needs to be done to keep it in place, you can hammer a thin nail
diagonally through the top of the wood strip into the "corner" where the
wall meets the ceiling, where the hole that is made will be very minimal.

If you are using 2"x2" furring strips, you can just "lean" the whole panel
against the wall in question, if desired, as this will be a temporary
installation.  If you have a suspended ceiling, you can even hang these
panels from there.

Place the wood strips on the back of the foam pads, vertically, and every
two, three or four feet, depending on the weight of the foam padding. When
the pads and wood strip backing are taken down, the whole thing can be
rolled up and carried away.

If you need any clarification, please feel free to ask.


Search strategy: Personal experience with a similar project.

Looking Forward, denco-ga - Google Answers Researcher

Thanks denco.  That's exactly what I was looking for! :)

My pleasure, jpbischke-ga, and thanks for the 5 star rating!

Looking Forward, denco-ga - Google Answers Researcher