I'm having a contractor to build a short wall (sheetrock and 2x4's, roughly 6' wide, 7' tall, and 5" thick) to help separate a rather large basement into 2 rooms. The original plan was to connect one side of the wall to an external wall, and leaving a gap of about 12" from the top of the wall to the drop tile ceiling. The opposite end would be a square column of about 12" that would connect to a beam in the ceiling, cutting the drop tile to fit around this column.
If that doesn't make sense, think of an L laying on it's back, with a really thick back and narrow leg. My house came with several walls built this way, so we're trying to make this one match, and at the same time help with heat/AC flow.
But I've been thinking. One room is going to be a gym, and the other room will hold a pool table (essentially, a game room for when friends come over). While everything will fit OK with the wall stationary, I can't say that it's a GREAT fit, and certainly doesn't leave any room for expansion; especially in the gym. So I'm trying to think of an alternative.
The best idea I can come up with is to make the wall movable, and this is where I need a few opinions. Ideally, I would be able to push the wall further into one room or the other, giving that room an extra couple of feet when needed while still separating the rooms. In order to do this, I'm thinking that instead of nailing the wall to the external wall and to the ceiling beam, I would use something like drawer guides, and then place heavy weight casters on the bottom.
Here are my questions:
- Will this work? If so, how sturdy can I expect the wall to be? I mean, if a friend comes over, gets drunk, and runs into the wall, is it going to fall over on him?
- Is there a better way to make a wall mobile to fit my needs?
- If this is a good idea, where can I find 48" drawer guides? All I'm finding are 24" rails, which aren't exactly right; the rails I'm finding are long and separate out into 2 or 3 parts, while I would prefer a stationary rail with a connector mounted to the wall (like you see on older drawers).
This is what I'm NOT needing:
TIA,
Jason