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Basement Progress Report

2-25-2007

The first nail has been driven and construction is underway.

Today my father came over and dropped off the tools we’ll be using to get started on the basement. We went over some last minute ideas and decided we might as we’ll put down some chalk lines for the 2×4’s we’ll be nailing to the floor. We have decided to use a hammer-drill to screw into the concrete and nail the base of the walls we will be building into the concrete. I think this will make sure that the walls don’t go anywhere. We stopped by the local Home Depot and picked up 12 treated 2x’4 to use for the wall’s base around the perimeter of the room. The plan was to just pick up the wood and get ready to start working next weekend, but we wanted to see how easy it was going to be to drill into the concrete floor, so we went ahead and drilled some holes for the first 2 boards and put them into place. Everything went smoothly. I can’t wait to get started next weekend.

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3-3-2007

Getting to it.

My father and my friend Rob came over and to help out. First we headed out to Home Depot and picked up a stack of 2×4’s. We did some last minute planning and problem solving and got started. We were able to get about half of the base plates down and started working on the walls in the back corner of the room. The original windows in the basement were not exactly level, but we did our best to match the walls up as well as one can. Overall it was a pretty productive day. The kitty even decided to help out.

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3-4-2007

Adding the studs and window framing.

We got started right where we left off the previous day. The plan was to get the studs up for the back and side wall and to get the windows framed. We came pretty close to our goal. We were able to get the back wall completely framed, and about half of the side wall. The framing around the windows is also complete. So far, throughout this project, I’ve learned a lot of new things about framing walls and the tools and techniques required to make sure everything turns out correctly. I think the most important lesson that I can take from what I have learned is to plan ahead properly. The work goes much smoother if you don’t have to troubleshoot along the way. Less thinking and more working makes for a much more productive day. Well, it looks like I’d better take my own advice and get started on preparing for next weekend.

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3-10-2007 & 3-11-2007

Getting Framed

Once again my father came up and helped out for the weekend. Thanks Dad! The framing finally started going in like clockwork. All the studs got measured cut and put in their new home quite nicely. I feel like we accomplished quite a bit for two days of work. With most of the walls complete I can start to see how the room is going to look and I can’t wait to sit back relax and watch some movies.

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3-17-2007 & 3-18-2007

Electrifying

This weekend was dedicated to finishing the rest of the walls and running the electric. The rest of the walls went up nicely and we are completely done with the primary walls. I’m sure we will need to go back and add a couple soffits here and there but the main walls are framed and complete. The electric boxes went in fine and we were able to run most of the wiring without any problems. The electric box did pose some problems though. The outside of the box showed that we had room to add 8 more circuit breakers. I had only planned on needing about 6 for the basement so I figured that there this wouldn’t be an issue. I thought wrong. Once we opened the box up we received a not so pleasant surprise. The main bar down the middle of the box that connects to the circuit breakers stopped short of the end of the box. In fact, it stopped so short that we can only add up to two more circuits to the box. We are debating about adding a sub-panel to accommodate the needed circuits for the basement. It’s not the worst of things that could have happened but it create a problem that completely blind-sided me. All in all work went pretty smoothly and things are coming together well.

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3-25-2007 - 3-30-2007

All of the little things - Extended Planning

Now that the major framework is up and most of the electric is ran it is time to step back and make sure I have covered all of my bases. There are a lot of small tasks that need to be performed before we dive into the drywall. Here’s a list…

• Move the main water shutoff valve from the wall to the ceiling and remove the water filter.
• Finish the windows.
• Rotate the hot water heater 90 degrees to allow for access.
• Reconfigure one of the furnace ducts to allow for a higher ceiling.
• Install PVC pipe in the ceiling for running video cables to the projector.
• Run cable, speaker wire, and network cable.
• Add soffits around the main support beam and around furnace duct work.
• Add plywood to the back wall of the computer area to allow for shelving and computer monitor.
• Install insulation.

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3-31-2007 & 4-1-2007

The Joy of Plumbing

This weekend we were able to take a look out our extended planning list and decided to tackle the main water shutoff valve and the water filter. I am completely lost when it comes to any type of plumbing so my father took to the task of shutting off the water at the street and dismantling the pipes. Everything in the house is copper plumbing so dad got out the blow torch and the necessary copper fittings and reran a segment of the waterline so that the shutoff valve will now be accessible through the cabinet we will be placing at the corner of the theater screen wall. While he was doing this, I ran all of the wiring for the network, cable, and speakers. We also decided to install a media box to allow access to the cable splitter and the telephone wires. This part is not 100% complete but I think I can have it done before the next time my dad and I get together to tackle some of the bigger projects.

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4-14-2007 & 4-15-2007

More Plumbing, Electric and Various Tasks

The major projects that were completed this weekend were the plumbing for the hot water tank and the installation of the sub-panel for the electric. The hot water tank needed to be rotated 90 degrees so that in the future I will be able to access the panels for the heating elements and the drain. My father took to task on this project while I began planning where the lighting will be located. After the hot water tank was moved and all of the plumbing had been reattached we wired up the new sub-panel and ran all of the needed wires in the ceiling for the lights. We got these tasks done a little quicker then we planned so we went ahead and finished the windows. It looks like there are a few small projects left before we start putting up drywall. I can’t wait to plug in the projector and watch some good flicks.

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4-21-2007 & 4-22-2007

I love the smell of drywall in the morning

The drywall was delivered on Thursday morning. The guys that brought it in were amazing. I try to pick up a sheet of drywall and it damn near kills me, these guys made it look like it did’nt weigh but a couple pounds.

My father came in early this week on Friday evening. He drove up on his new Harley, it seemed like it was a great evening for a ride. We started bright and early on Saturday morning. We were able to finish up the insulation and completed the last of the electrical work before lunch and decided to hang the first sheet of sheet-rock. We started with the ceiling in the back room and everything went pretty well. My father built me a little rig to help hold the drywall to the ceiling out of various parts we had lying around, basically some 2×4’s and a piece of copper pipe (pictured above). It was a lifesaver. Hanging the sheet-rock went slowly but steadily. As it goes up the room really starts to take shape and makes everything we’ve done finally start to make sense. After lunch we took a little break from hanging the sheet-rock on the ceiling and moved some of the ductwork to give us some extra head room and soffited around some existing ducts and plumbing. It didn’t take to long and once we got back to the sheet-rock we were able to get all of the area where the bar will go and the back of the theater completely done.

I’m going to do my best throughout this coming week to try my hand at applying the mud and getting the sheet-rock that is in place finished and ready to paint. This will be my first time doing this but I think if I take my take and am patient that it should come together nicely. It looks like if everything goes as planned next weekend we will be able to hang the rest of the Sheetrock and then all that will really be left will be the detail work. I can’t even begin to explain how excited I am.

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4-28-2007 & 4-29-2007

A helping hand

This is a weekend that I have dreaded for quite some time. I haven’t been really excited to be putting the drywall up on the ceiling. Luckily something very interesting happened that made the weekend much more enjoyable. Eric, the best man in my wedding, and my friend Daryll both showed up to pitch in and help with the task at hand. As usual, my father came in for the weekend and everyone had arrived by around 11:00 a.m. My father, Eric, Daryll and I were able to get into a good rhythm and we were able to get all of the drywall up on the ceiling without anyone losing an arm or a leg. The work went well and by the end of the weekend almost all or the drywall is up. The project is starting to finally look like a room.

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5-12-2007 & 5-13-2007

All of the drywall is up

Dad came in on Saturday evening and stayed through Sunday to help put in all of the final pieces of drywall. Other than the drywall we had to put a box around the transformer for the doorbell so that it would not be hidden up in the ceiling forever. We also put in 3/4″ plywood in the area where the computer would be stored so that I can easily attach the computer monitor and my shelving to the wall without worrying about trying to find the studs to nail everything to. Everything went smoothly and now it looks like its going to be up to me to start mudding the walls and get this place finished up.

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Mudding the Walls

Mudding the walls and ceiling has not been an easy chore. If I was going to pay to have any part of this project done for me by a professional, then this would have been the job I would have chose. I have done my best to do a good job but this step takes lots of patience and a little bit of talent to get it done in a timely fashion. I have the patience but I am definitely lacking in the talent department when it comes to mudding the walls. It took a lot longer than I had planned but the work is finally done.

Looking back now I think there are a few lessons I have learned while working on the drywall. The first one would be to take it slow and apply a small amount of drywall on each pass. There were a few places that I added to much mud and it took up to 2 & 1/2 days to dry instead of the usual one day. The second lesson would be to take the time to feather the drywall out. I have a few places in the corners where the walls and the ceiling meet where you can see a hump in the wall where the drywall quickly slopes down to meet the paper. An extra coat farther out from the corner would have taken care of this but I was a little to excited about getting to the painting to go over these spots one last time. The final lesson would be to understand how much sanding sucks. If I would have made less mistakes and been a little more careful with the amount of drywall I was using then the sanding would have been a much easier job.

All in all I am happy with the way that everything came out. I have chose a new color scheme instead of the blues that I have in my original plans. You can check out the new color scheme by clicking (here).

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Adding a Little Color

Of all of the parts of building the basement, I’d have to say that painting has been the easiest and the most rewarding. It’s so nice to see to see the results as the work is being done.

My original color scheme was going to be set in deep blues, grays, and black. After I put these colors into Google SketchUp and began looking at the colors on the walls it seemed to really make my theater seating pop out a little too much. Just to let you know, I purchased six (like new) Ijoy massage chairs to use as my theater seating last year. I got a great deal on them but they are upholstered in a bright cyan blue color (pictured below). My original color scheme was so dark that it really made the chairs the focal point of the room so I have decided to go a different route with my paint colors. I chose to use more of an earthy tone with two shades of brown, gray, and black to give the room a warmer gentler feel and it really tones down the chairs and brings the room together as a whole.

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Building the Riser Box

To allow people sitting in the back row of chairs to be able to see the the full projection screen I have been planning to build some sort of a riser box to accommodate the second row of chairs. This has always been in my plans, I just wasn’t to sure what the best way to go about it was. My father let me know that this should be a pretty simple task and that it would take no longer than a single day to plan and build. As usual he was right. We measured out the space where we planned to build the box and set out to Home Depot. We purchased all of the materials we needed and within about 4 hours we had the project completed.

Some specifics about the box.

• It is 12? x 9? and was built with mainly 2 x 4s and a couple 2 x 12s.
• The box is not attached to the floor or any of the walls just in case future owners of the house decide to use the room for other purposes.
• I plan to wrap the box with the same carpet that will be going into the theater portion of the basement.

I am really happy with how this part of the project turned out. Thanks again, Dad!

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