Which divider curtain type fits your gym?
The types differ in how they store, how much height they need and whether they need power. Gared publishes recommended ranges for most of its curtains rather than maximums.
| Type | How it stores | Recommended height | Recommended width | Stored depth | Drive and power |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fold-up, Gared 4020 | Folds up on lift cables into a stack | 15 to 60 ft | 20 to 130 ft | About 48 in | Electric hoist with key switch, 3/4 hp, 120 V single phase |
| Fold-up radius, Gared 4020R | Folds up along a curve of at least 10 ft radius, to split a running track from the courts | Not published | Not published | Not published | Electric hoist |
| Peak-fold, Gared 4025 | Folds to the slope of the roof | Roof pitch of 3 in 12 or less | 40 to 120 ft | About 48 in | Hoist, 3/4 hp, 115 V single phase |
| Roll-up, Gared 4030 | Rolls up from the bottom on belts set no more than 14 ft apart | 15 to 30 ft | 20 to 120 ft | 36 in | Electric hoist with key switch, 3/4 hp, 120 V single phase |
| Top-roll, Gared 4040XL | Rolls up at the top, with no cables or belts | 15 to 36 ft | 20 to 130 ft | 13.5 in | One tubular motor inside the drive tube, or two for curtains over 500 lb, 115 V single phase |
| Center-drive, Gared 4050 | Rolls up from a center drive, with no cables, belts or rollers | 20 to 40 ft | 20 to 120 ft | 14 in | One or two tubular motors, 120 V single phase |
| Walk-draw, Gared 4013 | Slides on a track and stacks against the wall | 10 to 30 ft | 10 to 80 ft | Wall stack about 11 percent of the opening | None, pulled by hand with a tow rope |
| Walk-draw, Douglas | Slides on the BeSteel 170 track | Not published | Track suits curtains up to about 40 ft long | Not published | None, pulled by hand |
Walk-draw or motorized comes down to size, storage and power. A walk-draw needs no hoist and no power, and Gared recommends it up to 30 ft high and 80 ft wide, but its stacked curtain takes wall space of about 11 percent of the opening. Past those sizes, or where the curtain has to lift clear of the floor, choose a motorized type. Among those, the top-roll and center-drive store in 14 in or less against about 48 in for a fold-up, and the center-drive runs fastest, at 36 ft a minute against 6.9 ft for a fold-up.
What to measure before you ask for a quote
- Height from the floor to the truss or beam the curtain will hang from. Gared's top-roll spec sheet caps truss height at 35 ft, and that cap governs over the 36 ft top of its catalog's recommended range. The center-drive sheet caps the opening at 42 ft, and a peak-fold needs a roof pitch of 3 in 12 or less.
- The curtain run from wall to wall, and where the curtain should store. A walk-draw stack needs wall space of about 11 percent of the opening.
- The structure. Gared asks for the beam flange width on a top-roll or center-drive, may add a bridge pipe to a fold-up where trusses span more than 14 ft, and hangs a top-roll straight from a beam only when the beam is level within 1 in over 50 ft.
- Anything hanging along the curtain line, such as ceiling-hung backstops and light fixtures. Stored depth runs from 13.5 in on a top-roll to about 48 in on a fold-up, and Gared offers the top-roll for buildings with clearance problems or ceiling obstructions.
- Power near the curtain. Motorized types run on 120 V single phase, listed as 115 V on some sheets, and the center-drive wants a dedicated circuit with a junction box within 6 ft of each motor.
- Where the key switch goes. Gared requires a spot where the operator can see the whole curtain while it moves.
- The control you want, either the key switch that comes with every motorized curtain or a group controller.
- The mesh and vinyl split, the vinyl weight and the colors.
- For a radius curtain, the radius, the truss height and the material.
Gared reviews every curtain size before it is built, because the largest size depends on the weight the structure can carry.
Gared's keypad, touch screen and WiFi group controllers run divider curtains along with basketball backstops, lighting, scoreboards and other electrically operated equipment. The keypad handles up to 160 devices in groups of up to eight. The touch screen and WiFi models start with a relay box for 12 devices and expand to 192. All three are also in group controllers.
Mesh, vinyl and flame rating
Gared builds its curtains from 9 oz vinyl coated polyester mesh over 19 oz vinyl, in any split from all mesh to all vinyl. A 22 oz vinyl comes in red, royal blue or gray only. Gared curtains stop 2 inches above the floor, and the top-roll limits vinyl to the lower 8 feet. The Douglas curtain uses 14 or 18 oz flame retardant vinyl under an open weave white vinyl mesh or netting top.
Gared rates its curtain vinyl fire retardant under the ASTM E-84 surface burning test at Class A, with 25 flame spread and 450 smoke developed, and under NFPA 701, the National Fire Protection Association's flame test for textiles. Douglas says its vinyl meets California Fire Marshal requirements for flame resistance indoors. Those are the ratings each maker publishes, so check them against what your building requires.
What drives the cost of a gym divider?
Every curtain here is quoted to the building, because the cost turns on the gym itself.
- Curtain area, the height times the run.
- Operating type. A walk-draw has no motor, while the motorized types carry a hoist or one or two tubular motors.
- Controls, from the key switch that comes with a motorized curtain to a group controller.
- Fabric, meaning the mesh and vinyl split and the vinyl weight.
- The structure and power, such as a bridge pipe where trusses span more than 14 ft or a dedicated circuit for a center-drive.
Send those measurements through the quote form on the curtain's product page, or call (480) 264-6889, Monday to Friday, 7:00 AM to 5:00 PM Arizona time.
For netting dividers, see gym and court dividers and divider netting. Ceiling-hung basketball backstops that share the ceiling with a curtain are in Gared indoor backstops.