• Manhattan Pressurized Walls

  29 Booth Rd., first fl., Chester, N.Y.; 212-673-0400; mpwnyc.com

  Pressure walls—temporary partitions that, sans nails or glue, turn a two-bedroom into three overnight—are a godsend to new parents or privacy-craving roommates. Manhattan Pressurized Walls (MPW) has been divvying up New York apartments since 2005, and in busy seasons (say, April 1 to November 1, when students move around) installs up to 100 per week. What’s special about theirs? “They’re seamless and sound-reduced,” says president Simon Kaljevic. (A basic one costs $800 to $1,000.) He’s discreet about his client list, but says MPW does work for a company that manages 11,000 apartments. And he’s seen plenty of walls that don’t meet his standards: “We’ve had to completely remove and rebuild some that have been built in an unsafe manner. Walls that could have toppled over.”

From the 2011 Best of New York issue of New York Magazine