DIY Room Divider
In this video, learn how to make an inexpensive DIY room divider fast! Since I’m making these for a video studio, I put a heavy felt fabric on one side to reduce reverb and kept the shiny silver material on the other for a handy light reflector. You can use interesting fabrics to turn your room divider into a design centerpiece. Lightweight and easy to maneuver, these temporary walls can be used to section off areas of a room for privacy, noise reduction or warmth. Each 4ft x 8ft panel costs about $50 and can be completed in about 30 minutes.
Shopping List
Insulation Board – https://thd.co/2KtuqaI
ABS Pipe – https://thd.co/2DRxI7a
Felt Fabric – http://bit.ly/2DG7zr7
Alternate Foot Design
Furniture Glides – https://thd.co/2TcA2h2
Hey man!
Great tutorial. We’re going to tackle some tomorrow. We’re looking to combine two panels into one big panel.
After cuts it will be about 6ft wide.
Any suggestions on creating a secure bond attaching the two panels into one?
Thanks for the great idea!
Hi Michael,
Maybe try sharpening some small diameter (1/4″) wooden rods maybe 12 inches long. Ram a few into one panel and a few into the other panel then push them together. The rods with a fair amount of glue, should hold them. Send me pics and I’ll add them to my fan gallery!
Hinges so they can fold up and roll away into a corner.
Hinges probably won’t stay attached. These panels are so lightweight you could probably just run duct tape down one side and it will accordion nicely.
Hi Michael,
Thanks for the video. Really helpful. Sorry, I’m a girl so I’m gonna ask some questions which are probably common knowledge to others.
What type of white glue should I get? I have no idea, I know there’s different strengths for different applications.
Your ABS pipe – are they 1 ft long each? or 6 in each? Thanks so much!
I used standard Elmers type white glue, I thinned it a bit with water to make it a little easier to roll. As for the pipes, they come 24 inches long so I cut them in half to get two 12 inch feet.
Ooops. Sorry I meant Walker, not Michael. 🙂 in my previous questing submitted.
No problem, thanks for the comment Emi.
Hello there. If there’s no pipe available what stand support can i also do?
Hi Camille,
You can use and extra piece of the paneling to make feet. Check out the diagram in the gallery at the bottom of this page.
This is awesome and I’m trying to work this hack, but I only have a hack saw the cut the channels into the pipe. Sadly I can only make the vertical cuts, not the transverse cut.
Any suggestions?
Thanks
You can try drilling several small holes in a line and at some point you should be able to break it free. Not the cleanest but functional.
Hi Walker
Did you use the full 24 inch piece of ABS pipe for each leg/ base support or smaller?
And white glue is just a simple craft glue, if you can add a link for other type please.
Thanks
Hi Ani,
I cut the 24″ pipe in half, so you get two 12″ feet out of one pipe.
Could you use 3/4 inch versus 1 inch foam insulation board?
Maybe if you can find a straight panel, the thinner they get the more they tend to bend. If you give it a shot let me know how it goes. Thanks!
This is awesome. I’m making my fiancé a 5’x5’ office area in our 1-bed apt. for his new job. We had already divided up our living room with the sofa, etc to make an office area. Hopefully this foam, plus acoustic panels we will install in the inside, will dampen his noise (video and sensitive info) and dampen the dogs making noise too. We shall see…
We are buying Bubos acoustic panels from Amazon, 12×15”, plus an art installation one for the actual walls that share with my neighbors, also so he has something colorful to look at in his little cubicle!
I’m also going to use the alternate foot design, or L-brackets, not sure which just yet…I plan on cutting the panel the same height as the ceiling.
Awesome idea! Made me cancel the order for the expensive AF 6 panel room divider.
Best of luck Grace, let me know how it goes!
I love the idea of using the pipe for footings. I am planning on making a movable wall using louver doors…yes a bit expensive. Your idea using the pipe is great! I don’t have to screw any holes into doors.
Thanks for the comment Virginia!
What diameter pipe?for feet. They have 1,2 and 3 inch diameter pvc but no abs
Hi Jacque,
I would get whatever they have in 4 inch diameter. Not sure if 3 inch would be enough to keep them stable. I only recommend ABS because the plastic is already black and looks nicer but PVC would work just fine.
If you’re having trouble finding the 4 inch pipe you can also make feet out of additional panel material, see my alternate foot design in the image gallery.
Hi. Love your video. Do you think the panels could be sturdy enough to use as a cork board to pin things to?
Sorry for the delayed response. Yes, the panels work well with push pins and would function just like a cork board, but unlike cork that recovers from punctures, the foam boards can become damaged over time if you’re doing lots on pinning.
I love this idea! I’ve been searching for room dividers for my shop to separate my photography studio. I knew there had to be a way instead of paying a couple hundred dollars, ugh. I’m sure the panels could be painted instead of using fabric? Would you use a roll on paint or spray?
Hi Shanda,
Yes, I’ve rolled paint onto the panels, and you can use interior latex which doesn’t stink like spraypaint does. You’ll want to wipe the panels down with some rubbing alcohol first to remove any oily residue.
This would be a godsend for our 1 bedroom apartment with an infant in our room. Will staple gun work instead of glue? Also, we have tiles so the ABS feet will be noisy to move around. Could we use something more quiet but just as stable?
I wouldn’t use staples if it’s being used in an infants room. I chose to roll-on white glue because spray adhesive can stink up the room. As for the feet I would just add felt pads to the bottom of the pipes.
Great diy! I’ve been looking to make sound-proof portable room dividers and this is the perfect video! But how deep did you make cuts to the abs pipe?
I cut nearly all the way through, leaving only and inch or so of material. Glad yo like it!
we wanted to use these in our basement but were unable to get the 4 x 8 sheets down our basement stairs (with a halfway turnaround) so we had to cut them in half (basically make them 2 4×4 sheets)
Then we glued 1x2x8 strips of wood to the shiny side to put them back together. worth mentioning that we did not cut through the sheet entirely only enough to bend it around the turnaround down the stairs.
Pro Tip! We used a hack saw to connect the two cuts we had made in the PVC pipe. PVC is BURNING HOT to the touch after a hacksaw cut. Don’t touch where you cut for at least a minute after you turn the saw off.
Also, cutting PVC with a manual saw SUCKS. Highly recommend a miter saw, even if you have to buy your neighbor a beer to use one.
Hey Jason!
Sounds like a lot of problem solving going on here. Hope it works out in the end!
Hey Walker,
I am ready to build these. Wanted to know if you have any pictures of the spray painted ones. Can’t find any. Also, does the panel bend enough to be put into a small car? How are people bringing these home? Is there an effective way to cut the pipe without a power saw. I thought a couple hours with an exacto knife or hand saw would be enough but likely to be very difficult that way.
Spray paint can stink up a room so if I were you I’d roll on some latex paint. You just need to wipe down the panels with rubbing alcohol to remove any oils from handleing them. Thanks for the comment! Send me pictures if you end up making it!
I am missing the alternative foot design. Are those supposed to replace the pipe? How many would you suggest for 1 board? Do you install on the bottom of the board or on the sides?
Hi Eric, it’s just this image showing how to use additional foam paneling as feet instead of the pipe:
https://www.diwhy.life/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/alternate-foot-design.jpg
I am going to make these into flats for my high school theater class, to take on tour for their spring production of Charlotte’s Web. The fabric backing will be photos printed on cloth. (Amazon backdrops) I’ll let you know how it goes! Thanks for this idea. It’s seriously brilliant.
A valid concern Thomas, you would definitely want to keep them away from any heat source.