Not all can manage time to visit the gym. Fitness-aware folks find other creative ways around it. But when it comes to Pull-Ups, if there isn’t any proper equipment to work around, it can be frustrating. And that is why Pull Up Bars are in quite high demand. We will explain to you in detail, the type of pull-up bar you need to buy according to your available options.
Not all pull-up bars are the same and they all work the different ways, the way they hold the door or wall is different. Depending on the county you live in, the design of domestic houses varies and the selections of wall building materials are also different.
Table of Contents
Classification Of Pull Up Bars
There are three types of Pull Up bars. The Detachable Doorway, Wall Mounted, and the Standing Pull Up Bar.
Detachable Doorway Pullup Bars
Detachable, as the name implies, you need not use any permanent fasteners (Nuts and Bolts) in order to use them. Once you have done the right setting according to your need, you can just detach them in seconds and can move them around other places too. Perfect for folks staying in rented houses and frequent movers.
Wall Mounted Pull Up Bars
In this case, the Pull-Up bar is mounted to the wall. Depending on the wall type, you need to select the right fasteners. If the mount is not firm, you will end up injuring yourself and damage the wall too. More on that in a dedicated article where I guide you to select the right fasteners according to your wall types.
Standing Pull-Up Bar
As the name says, Standing Pull-Up bars are foldable stand-like structures that are portable in most cases. If you want a fixed one, you can go with Squat Racks, which have a Pull-Up setup too. Invest Wise.
Standing Pull-Up bars can be used anywhere, indoors or outdoors. Depending on the quality you can perform multiple workouts including Calisthenics, and Crossfit exercises too.
Now you know their types, let us understand them in detail.
Detachable Doorway Pull-Up Bars
There are 2 types of detachable pull-up bars. One is straight and the other is Multi-Functional. Both are not the same. The straight doorway pull-up bar needs fastening of the rod to the door frame. Whereas, the multifunctional doorway bar is just a hook-up pull-up bar. No fastening is needed.
Mild Warning: Whichever types of Detachable Doorway Pull-Up Bars you buy, use them only for what they are intended to. Absolutely NO KIPPING. Kipping is a momentum-based CrossFit exercise, that should be performed on stable bars only.
Straight Doorway Pullup Bar
A straight doorway pull-up bar is just a simple rod with a screw mechanism to extend its length. It is the only compact door bar you can buy. Also, this is the best ‘carry with you’ type of pull-up bar you can find in the market also being the cheapest.
Advantages
Extremely cheap.
Easy to carry around.
Simplistic and Compact design.
The Rod can be used for other purposes too.
Disadvantages
Need time to mount them.
Not so strong and reliable.
Will damage the Door frame leaving dent marks.
Not for folks heavier than 90 kgs (200 lbs) in general.
Multi-Functional Doorway Pullup Bar
This is a stronger version of the Simple Door Bar. Little expensive but worth the price. This is a hook-up bar. There are no screwing mechanisms involved. Proper seating of the Multi-Functional Door Bar is essential to avoid accidents.
Advantages
Easy to hook up than straight door bars.
Safer than a straight door bar.
Simplistic, lightweight, and sturdy design.
Can perform Neutral Grip Pullups.
Can be used on the floor to perform Pushups too.
Disadvantages
Not for every door. The door must protrude from the wall at least half 3/4 inches.
Again, not for folks heavier than 90kgs (200 lbs)
Stronger and more reliable ones are expensive.
Less damage to the Door or the Wall
CrossGrip Doorway Pullup Bar
A completely unique design Pullup Bar. Instead of a rod, it is available in two pieces. It sits on the door frame catching it from both sides. If your door frame has enough protrusion on both sides, you can invest in these.
Advantages
Easy to hook up than straight door bars.
Safer than a straight door bar.
Minimalistic, lightweight, and sturdy design.
Can perform Neutral Grip and Close Grip Pullups and Pushups on the floor.
Freedom to set distance between the two.
Fits into a Gym bag.
Disadvantages
Not for every door. The door must protrude from the wall at least half 3/4 inches on BOTH SIDES
When used both, it can support up to 110 kgs (250 lbs)
NOT for single hand Pull-Ups, A single CrossGrip pullup bar supports only up to 55 kgs (125 lbs)
Since they hold the door frame on the top, damages (if any) will not be visible.
Wall Mounted Pull Up Bars
You will use these wall-mounted pull-up bars only when you own the house or your landlord lets you drill the wall. Since there is drilling involved to mount fasteners, it will be a permanent fix for the wall. You can however remove the pull-up bar, but the fasteners may be permanent.
The wall-mounted pull-up bar is a much safer option to do pull-ups without worrying about accidents. A good quality pull-up bar will last decades if kept away from rains.
In the below image you can observe the other type of Pull-Up bar called the ‘Monkey Bar’ which is the better version of the standard wall-mounted Pull-Up bar. People with Wrist Injuries may not be able to perform the standard Chin Ups. They find it hard to place their wrists parallel to the bar. A monkey bar would be a perfect choice to avoid further injuries which has multiple angles to hold the bar.
Simple Wall Mounted Pull Up Bar
Purchasing any of these would be a lifetime investment. Both these types are mounted onto the wall. If you can invest in a Monkey Bar, it would be more versatile as it provides multiple hand placements, perfect for those with wrist-related ligament injuries.
Advantages
Cheap and Reliable Wall Mounted Option.
It will be much more sturdy compared with door bars, increasing confidence.
Apart from Pull Ups and Chin Ups, Muscle Ups, Neutral Grip Pull-Ups can also be performed.
Monkey Pull-Up bar provides multiple hand placements to perform chin-ups for people with ligament tears.
Disadvantages
There aren’t any disadvantages, except that the fit is permanent.
You need professionals to install them. Tools like SDS Drilling Machine with 10-12 mm drill bits are required apart from Anchor Fasteners.
BTW, Wall Mounted Pull-Up Bar is the only best value-for-money Pull Up bar you can buy.
Multi-Functional Pull-Up Wall Station
Again, a wall-mounted option with even more benefits. The only parts that mount to the wall are its hooks. The whole Pull-Up bar itself is detachable. This is the only pull-Up bar that lets you perform Dips and Leg Raises (and also push-ups) along with its core functions.
To fix this, you will first find the drill spot according to your needs for both pull-up and dip positions. Drill and fix 4 Hooks in total. The distance between hooks should be about 35 cm. I suggest you fix it directly on the wall. If you prefer to mount it on wooden planks, just remember the bar should be parallel with respect to the wall.
I have seen folks using 2 wooden planks to mount the hooks. When performing dips, the bar won’t stand parallel against the wall, due to momentum, the bar may slip off the hooks causing injury. If you intend to use wooden planks, make sure the Pull-Up station is parallel to the wall for both cases. If it isn’t parallel, make it parallel. In order to perform Push-Ups, you will place the Pull-Up bar on the floor. It provides you with multiple hand placements to perform Push-Ups.
Since this workout station is hook mounted, strictly NO KIPPING.
Advantages
Cheap and Reliable Wall Mounted Complete Workout Station.
This setup is movable from place to place. Just have some extra pair of Hooks.
You can perform Pull Ups, Chin Ups, Close Grip Pull-Ups, Leg Raises, dips, and Push-Ups.
Disadvantages
This is a Hook mounted Pull-up bar. Hence momentum-based movements should NOT be performed.
Not for Heavy Duty usage.
Perfect Choice for folks looking for All-in-One Workout Equipment. Totally Value for Money.
Standing PullUp Bar
Technically not a Pull-Up Bar, it is a Pull-Up Stand. Purchasing a foldable stand offers lots of freedom. It doesn’t consume much space in a folded state. However, you need a good amount of space for the stand while performing exercises.
The exercises which you can perform on this are numerous. Targeted towards the Calsthemic Fan group. Pull-ups, Chin-ups, and Muscle-ups along with other basic calisthenic movements can be performed. Depending on the build quality, Kipping can also be performed.
Caution: If you don’t use it, your mom does!…..to hang clothes to dry.
Fixed and Portable
There are many types of Standing Pull-up Bars. Portable and Fixed. Portable ones are demonstrated in the image above. Fixed standing bars are the ones you find in Callisthenic Playgrounds. Purchasing these standing pull-up bars depends on the budget and your need. If you prefer to work out indoors, you should choose Portable. Else, Fixed ones would be the best, most reliable, and safe option. We are discussing the Pros and Cons from a general perspective.
Advantages
Cheap and Portable Calsthenic Equipment.
This foldable standing pull-up bar is portable. Just find some grassland space in the garden.
You can perform Pull Ups, Chin Ups, Close Grip Pull-Ups, Kipping, and Muscle-Ups.
Disadvantages
Momentum-based movements should ONLY be performed if it is grounded.
Neutral grip pull-ups cannot be performed.
The cheapest one available is made with thin gauge steel. Heavy-duty ones can be expensive.
We however don’t recommend these Standing Pull Up bars. If you have enough space in your garden, Install a custom DIY welded Pull-Up bar. That will last for ages if protected against rusting.
FAQs
Do Pull-Up bars Damage Door Frames?
Yes, they do. The damage depends on the type of frame. If it’s of softwood, the Doorway Pull-up bars leave their dent mark. Doorway bars with wide ends won’t leave any marks. If the door frame is made of concrete, there won’t be any damage. Since 90% of door frames are made of wood, we recommend Hook-Up bars instead.
How much weight can a Home Pull-Up bar hold?
It depends on the type of Pull-Up bar. Doorway Pull-up bars can hold up to 100 kgs/ 220 lbs. Wall-mounted Pull-up bars can hold up to 150 kgs/ 330 lbs.
Are Wall-mounted Pull-Up bars Safe?
Wall-mounted Pull-Up bars are 100% safe to use if they are properly fastened.
What is the Ideal Height for a Pull-Up bar?
An ideal height for a Pull-Up bar would be about 6.5 feet from the ground. You can however modify the height according to your body height. Some folks prefer to jump and catch the bar and hence they mount it at a larger height. If your height measures 6’6″ at arms up position, you can set the bar at 7 feet.
Where do you put a Pull-Up bar?
In your Home Garage, Bed Room, Backyard, Roof Top, etc. However, we suggest NOT installing a Pull-up bar in the Living Room. That’s a space everyone visits frequently and you may not be comfortable working out in the Living Room when others are around.
Are Doorway Pull-Up bars worth it?
Doorway Pull-up bars are 100% worth the price if you are a frequent mover. If you stay at your permanent address, you should invest in a Wall-mounted Pull-up bar. Your workouts will be safer and you can perform more pull-up variations.
Do Wall-mounted Pull-Up bars damage walls?
Since you just drill a hole in the wall, it will not cause any damage. The kind of fasteners you use make a difference. When un-installing the pull-up bar, you should also be able to remove the fasteners used. If you use RAWL Bolts, in most cases they can be removed. If PIN Anchors are used, they cannot be removed. In the case of PIN Anchors, the extruding part of the fastener can be cut off using an Angle Grinder and the rest portion of the anchor can be hammered back. The hole can be then closed using any wall filler putty.
Are Doorway Pull-up bars Safe to use?
Not really. If positioned improperly on the Door Frame, may slip off and can cause injuries. Also, if the Doorway bar is loaded more than its capacity will sag. More the sag, the holding grip becomes weaker.