ZIPWALL Spring Loaded Dust Barrier Poles

I used this product to create a partition in my kitchen for some rather substantial demolition. With just a roll of 10' tall poly, I was able to seal off an old staircase from the rest of the room, leaving the kitchen functional and clean, while I removed 1.5 stories of 105 year old plaster and lathe.For anyone that's demolished plaster and lathe, you'd know that it's an impossible amount of dust that happens to be incredibly stubborn and impossible to remove and wash off anything/everything. Using some strapping and taping up some poly was not going to be an option for me.I received the product in very good condition, unopened, new and complete with all parts and accessories (I only say that due to other reviews I saw here).The zipwall performed fantastically. I installed it myself without help in about 20 minutes (could have been faster if I were hurrying), and it was intuitive and easy. The included zipper (mine had 2) worked really well for a secure entry/exit, even though I stupidly installed it upside down. The poles are high quality, light, operate with ease, and were very sturdy, including multiple accidental bump-ins with me on the inside of the bubble. For those considering the higher end version of the zipwall with the steel poles, I can't imagine how heavy duty an environment would justify more than what these are.I used all 4 poles for about 15 feet of "wall," mostly because of the odd configuration I required to keep the kitchen circulation functional while the partition was installed. The ceiling is at 8'6, though I think another 12" of height would offer the same results. The sheets held tight to the ceiling between poles without the foam accessories or any tape. I used the zipwall double-stick tape to really tighten up the edges at the walls. I'd probably recommend a 3M version, as this didn't have a ton of stick to it. It's worth noting, that too much stick could be a problem too in a finishes space and pull paint off a wall. It did hold well enough for me with a little extra pressing.My only regret, which was not a product issue, was that I didn't take enough care with the extra slack of sheet at the bottom. I would have rathered left the slack at the top, rather than rolled up at the bottom. For my very messy job, it ended up getting in the way and dirty in the bubble, and compromised the seal a bit at the bottom a bit. A neat 4" fold would have been plenty for a nice tight bottom seal, rather than rolling up 12" or more.Highly recommended for in-home air barrier for dust containment.

These ZipPoles are a great idea, however I was disappointed by the lower build quality of one of the components - the head pieces (according to Zipwall's website). I don't doubt that other people are bending these pieces with regularity when you consider that they sell replacement "head" pieces on their website. Here is my experience.I was locking in plastic sheeting in one of the slider pieces during the first use and the slider piece broke. The slider pieces which you use to secure the plastic (or other barrier) is not made very well and is susceptible to bending/breaking. I would advise you to use as thin of plastic sheeting as necessary for your job. I was only using 3 mil thick plastic sheeting and it managed to break on me. In my opinion, 3 mil is a reasonable plastic sheeting thickness. So after noticing that one of my slider pieces broke, I also noticed that by the end of my project, two more were bent (when the black plastic turns white and get flimsy). The last one of the four managed to make it through a few uses unscathed so that's 25% of the slider pieces making it through without bending or breaking.What is disappointing is that I ordered this set well in advance knowing that they *could be* useful for the floor refinishing/sanding that I am doing, but by the time I get around to using them for the first time, it has been just over 1 month (1 month and 2 days) since I bought them so they are ineligible for a return to Amazon. All I expect is for them to send me a couple more of these head pieces.The poles themselves seem to be good quality and I will give credit where credit is due. The idea behind these ZipPoles is excellent, and besides the head piece issue, my experience has otherwise been pretty good.Although these poles *can* get the job done effectively, it would be worthwhile for ZipWall to manufacture the higher quality head pieces. You don't want to have to worry about them bending/cracking on account of the thickness of your plastic sheeting/visqueen. On the flip side, if you use sheeting that is too thin, you run a higher risk of the plastic tearing. I think 3 mil should do the trick if you're careful, but anything thinner may tear too easily and anything thicker is that much more likely to bend those head pieces into which the slider/grip pieces fit and hold your sheeting when locked in.Right now, I am in the process of trying to contact the manufacturer of the ZipPoles for the replacement head pieces, and I hope they will be easy to deal with. I will follow up to advise everyone about how easy OR difficult it is to get replacement head pieces based on this 1-year warranty that they offer. My rating is primarily due to the disappointing component (head pieces) despite the rest of the set being of decent quality. If the head pieces were better quality, I could see giving this product a 4 or 5 star rating. In my opinion, a product is only as good as its weakest link, and in this case, the weakest link is the poorly made head piece.**********6/22/2011 UPDATE**********I spoke with Christine at ZipWall. She was absolutely great!!! She called me back the following day after I sent an email. I returned her call at my earliest convenience, and she was extremely diligent about getting me some new head piece parts on order (FREE-of-charge and without any fuss). She was very polite, professional, and understanding of my needs and desires for this product.ZipPole product concept & its capabilities - 5 starsZipPole quality (poles themselves) - 4.5 starsHead piece quality - 1.5 stars (they work, but are susceptible to bending/breaking)Christine @ ZipWall - 5 starsGetting new head pieces to replace my old bent/broken ones - 5 stars!Overall, I have updated my review rating to 5 stars (up from 2 stars) and my rationale is that this product is very good one, and despite its shortcoming (header pieces), their customer service is great and they made the problem right by sending me new header pieces hassle-free and free-of-charge. These ZIpPoles are a product which can effectively do what it is intended to do (which is awesome for containing job site debris among other functions) as long as all of the components maintain their integrity. Thanks to Christine & ZipWall for making things right with me.-----Just a final comment about how great Christine was - she even gave me a cool suggestion about other uses for the ZipPoles - for supporting (muslin) backdrops for photography which is great because my wife does a lot of photography. My concern, of course, is that the thickness of those muslin backdrops could bend the header pieces, but I will try this very carefully to see if it's a possibility without compromising the head.