# Kick wall construction



## Wallaby (Jul 13, 2008)

Lockwood said:


> Should I consider using metal stripping along the corners and edges? Has anyone had the stripping cause injuries or problems?


At a barn I worked at [at summer camp], metal stripping was used to prevent chewing. Most of the horses were ok with it but there was one time when an older gelding, who had other issues, fell over+hit the stripping on the way down+tore up his neck. 
However, the stripping was very shoddily maintained/installed so there were all kinds of sharp edges sticking up. I imagine you will do a much better job!! <3

On the plus side, there was never any chewing damage...until I ripped out the section that that gelding hurt himself on - the other horses went to WORK on the exposed wood. :lol:


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## Koolio (Apr 7, 2010)

We used untreated spruce 12' 2x10s for our kick wall and took it up higher than the horses could reach to chew (about 7' high). No tongue and groove, just stacked and fit reasonably tight. We did use a pallet of wood that had been allowed to dry first, so there is little to no shrinkage. The stall fronts are manufactured made of heavy steel, so there is nowhere for the horses to chew.

I too have seen the metsl trim on edges to prevent chewing in number of barns. It needs to be a reasonably heavy gauge and well maintained. If it pulls up at all the edges are very sharp and bad news for horses and people.


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

My horses won't touch pressure treated.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

If building a kick wall that _must_ touch the ground someplace and somehow...
I would not build one unless the bottom board or two were pressure treated, then as hard a wood as possible tightly placed on top of those.
Southern yellow pine is harder than many other pines, affordable and what many use in the southern states because insects are repelled from it too.
No tongue and groove needed if you stack your boards tightly on top of each other there will be no "edge" to get the teeth to grip and tear off of.
Depending upon how high you build this kick wall you may need a angle iron strip on the top board and to protect any exposed edges from teeth. 
You will need to do every edge though so be prepared if you start covering edges you will need to do all of them {wall ends & tops accessible} and not with cheap thin metal but thicker, stronger, heavier gauge stuff. _{Don't use corner beading metal strips that you then put Spackle over...it is to thin a product. They will tear, rip and get cut before you know it}_
Horses have incredibly strong and sharp teeth and can tear into and pinch, grab an edge and tear many things...when they choose to.

If you want to use "sheeting" like plywood...use exterior grade as thick as you can find it... 3/4" doubled so = 1 1/2" thick with good strong wood studs to offer support behind it. 
Most planks stall walls are 2" thick and vary between 6", 8" and 10" high and the length of the stall wall so they stack. With midway supports on them too... 
12' walls with no midway supports are to movable with a well-placed foot...to easy to slip through and a catastrophe happen.

If you have a local sawmill you could call and ask them what kind of wood they rip/cut for barn walls... sometimes it is much cheaper to get rough cut from them. 
Freshly done it hasn't usually had a chance to warp either...true to sizes too...only difference is for the most part it hasn't been "finish planed".
And a savings to your wallet as no middleman.
:wink:


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## Lockwood (Nov 8, 2011)

Good points everyone, thank you.
I had planned to use treated for the bottom two boards if I went with boards vs. sheeting. Even though the boards will not be touching ground at all, they will have bedding against them and will be exposed to moisture, urine, ect. 

HLG, With my wood studs being every 2 ½ feet, do you think that be good enough supports for the wider boards, say 10” to 12” wide, not to wiggle or warp?
I will look around to see if I have a local sawmill around to call…good idea. I hadn't though of using rough cut boards. Figured I would have to buy my boards or sheeting from the big box store. 

Any ideas on the right angle bar to use or where to find it?


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

Lowe's and Home Depot both sell angle iron type of metal in various thicknesses and lengths. Think you an find it in the area around where nuts & bolts are located.

Studs are usually placed 24" on center in construction of homes/structures.
I think if you were to place another 2'x4" next to your existing one it should give you enough support so you don't get the "give" movement you would have.
The wider the board the more chance of moving I think.
My walls are 10" wide 2 bottom planks, then I have several 8" planks, then 6" planks higher up. Those boards get very heavy for you to lift and place remember at those lengths. They wider ones also were more expensive I found when we figured costs of the total project...

Believe it or not, sometimes the PT {pressure treated} lumber was considerably better priced than "regular untreated" lumber.
Also found by us that Lowe's had nicer lumber quality than Home Depot. 
Both stores though if you price it out will meet their competitors price with proof {print out a price list} so buying the better quality and savings some $$ can work in your favor.
They also give a veterans discount that many are unaware of...just need to ask if your store follows those policies.
:wink:


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## Dreamcatcher Arabians (Nov 14, 2010)

We have a metal barn that while good looking and a great shelter is easy for a horse to kick through and tear themselves up. Since it's so thin, we also wanted insulation, so we made our kick walls with R25 batting insulation and 3/4" plywood over the top of that. We "painted" all the wood with Thompson's Water Seal Stain and have had no chewing or problems with the wood from moisture. We have the stall kit doors on the fronts of the stalls, made with 2 x 6's and held in place by a fairly heavy gauge U channel. I wanted more sturdy walls, so we didn't use the kit for the sides & backs. The insulation helps keep the barn a little warmer/cooler and dampens the energy from kicks. I have had a horse leg go with a good kick, and it dented/broke the plywood but didn't go through. It was very easy to take out the broken plywood and replace it, very cost effective. too. 










We restain in spring, it does take some maintenance.


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