Background
I guess I’ll update the name when I think of a good one – snowkarver’s “Theater for Hobbits” is an appropriate description for mine. Anyway, you’ve seen my kind around here before – the checklist:
-Long time lurker on the message boards. Check.
-Admirer of what awesome work everybody has done. Check.
-Details have consumed me for weeks. Check.
-Resident of Northern Virginia. Check.
-Hopes to learn from the experience so I can actually post intelligent replies to other members’ posts. Check!

Now that those details are out of the way – here’s my scenario. I live in a townhouse in a pretty quiet neighborhood with neighbors on both sides. The
community was built in the 40s, but renovated and converted to condos in the 70s. My basement was finished ala seventies paneling, clearly not to theater standards. SO, I spent the past couple of weekends demolishing in preparation for my “Theater 1.0.”

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2239/2347121862_011ee8d3f3_m.jpg

Layout –
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2164/2375173181_df6cae5f49_o.jpg

I’m surrounded by cinder blocks! To the left, along the stairs, the paneling was affixed to 1” furring strips, which are attached directly to the cinder block. Obviously not ideal for soundproofing, but it is what it is… The front wall has two windows with studs set approximately 2.5 inches from the cinder block. There is a 1’ x 1’ soffit along this wall containing ductwork. The right wall has ~6.5” of open space between the studs and the cinder block. This wall also has a soffit, which feeds into the duct at the front. The back wall has a door to enter a storage area; the rest of the wall is again attached directly to furring strips on the cinder block. There is no door between the basement and first floor and the stairs kind of open into the room to make it less claustrophobic. Overall not ideal conditions, but it is what it is and the room will have to do for 1.0. The rendering I did below shows the scene (the screen seems so gigantic because of the “fisheye” perspective to get it all in and the crazy pattern on the floor is to help me estimate lighting).


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2282/2375172859_1e5d654267_o.jpg


I had 3 contractors out to take a look, but none really seemed to understand what I was going for (although the latest guy offered up “resilient channels”). Their responses gave me the excuse to take the approach I wanted to do in the first place – DIY!

The plan –
Ideally, my screen would have been on the back wall to give me more of a throw distance and to allow more space between the screen and the seats. This was the original plan, but the door on the back wall really seemed to make everything way off center (and it only left a 92” wall). With the current layout, I’m sitting about 10-11’ from the screen and my throw distance is only ~11’.

I am planning to go with ½” double drywall w/ Green Glue on all walls in this room. The left, right, and front walls will be insulated using R13 or R19. The ceiling will just be a single layer of drywall since the ceiling height is only 6’8”without drywall.

For lighting, I have pretty much decided on six 4”cans in the main room and one 4” can at the entry, all dimmable. I’m also considering rope lighting on a different dimmer to add to the effect.

I will have 7.1, 1080p with ~100” (depending on PJ) DIY screen, although I’m considering Carada. A DIY equipment rack will be in the back of the room (top left of first drawing). Coax, Cat6, and one outlet of a dedicated “theater circuit” run to that location. From the rack, I am running component, coax, and IR extenders to two other locations in the house – a bedroom and a living room. Also, I’m running HDMI, CAT5, component, and a SEPARATE conduit (thanks BritInVA) to the PJ as well as IR to the front of the room. The PJ will be powered by a DIY “Powerbridge” from the rack UPS as described in the countless threads spread around here.

That’s pretty much it for the initial post. I will save my questions for now, but figured I might as well throw my hat into the ring to announce my presence. Thanks for reading and a big thanks to the Northern Virginia guys for providing the extra motivation last week at B. Mackrell’s theater!

Chris

Chris, I see your still wearing same outfit as at the NoVA meet :D



http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2239/2347121862_011ee8d3f3_m.jpg


Just remember on insulation use the correct R value for the depth......compressing it will not add any value and may hurt a little.

Also being a townhouse you might want to go with 5/8" drywall for the added mass or I can see neighbor troubles down the line......definetly looks into seat shakers (Aura or Butkickers) so you can dial down LFE on sub late at night.

Also not sure you will get much value of 7.1 with seats against the wall.

Good Luck and lets see some construction shots.

Cheers,
Mark

Hey, good luck. At 6'8" unfinished, you definitely also qualify for Hobbit status - welcome to the club! :D

One thing that you might want to reconsider is your lighting choice. In a 12x15 space with our kind of height, seven four-inchers will not take you very far at all, especially with dark carpet, walls and ceilings. The problem is that these cans (and the PAR20s that go in them) are generally designed with a fairly narrow throw for spot and accent lighting, and the low headroom compounds this as the light cone as very little distance to spread. I just noticed your estimated patterns too - let's just say they look pretty generous to me.

In my 20x8 space, I have ten Halo 4HTs and it's not particularly bright. Okay for a theater, but far dimmer than you would typically have in a living room. For example, at the base of your stairs, I can definitively say that one 4" can will "pool" on the floor, and you will have shadowing on the walls making it seem a bit gloomy.

The next issue is that 5 or 6 inch cans, which have a much wider cone, look a bit silly in a 6 1/2' ceiling because you're so close to them that the scale seems all wrong.

If I were to do it again, I would still use 4" cans and bring them a little closer to the center of the room to concentrate their light. Then I would add a few sconces in strategic locations (with a general up-down-out light pattern) to fill in the edges. It would also decorate the bare walls a bit.

Anyway, just a bit of advice from experience. It's really easy to underestimate just how much light all those dark surfaces really suck up.

One thing that you might want to reconsider is your lighting choice. ... I just noticed your estimated patterns too - let's just say they look pretty generous to me.


Thanks for the advice. Lighting has been my most recent concern and I appreciate you chiming in because your post was definitely one I checked for this issue. The lighting coverage is a little off from the perspective shot, but I estimated a 1:1 diameter to height ratio (i.e., my ceiling is 6'8", so the lights will cast a 6'8" diameter circle). I'm with you on going with 4" cans considering my ceiling height, but maybe I need to add a couple more (go to 2 rows of 4). We were thinking about throwing some sconces into the mix too, so they might go on the screen wall. I actually just spent part of my morning with some lighting consultants who thought my pattern would work, but I'm not sure they were on the same page as me....

Chris, I see your still wearing same outfit as at the NoVA meet :D

Hah - yeah, it's my party outfit. I really mean business when the miner's light gets thrown in.

Just remember on insulation use the correct R value for the depth......compressing it will not add any value and may hurt a little.

Also being a townhouse you might want to go with 5/8" drywall for the added mass or I can see neighbor troubles down the line......definetly looks into seat shakers (Aura or Butkickers) so you can dial down LFE on sub late at night.

Also not sure you will get much value of 7.1 with seats against the wall.


As shown in the drawing, I basically have three different walls to deal with:
- Two walls have furring strips directly on the wall (1" cavity);
I read on the board that rigid foam doesn't do well acoustically for the 1", so I was thinking of compressing R13 here. Would that help or hurt me or is that even possible?

- One wall has studs ~2" from the wall (so cavity from back of drywall to cinderblock is ~5") and one has studs set ~6.5" from the wall (9.5" cavity). Maybe R19 for these walls? Are you suggesting that I just look for insulation that is 5" and 9.5" thick and go with that as appropriate?

For the others comments - I'm considering 5/8", but the room is so small as it is, I hate to lose even the 2 x 1/8". Buttkickers are in the plan. And as for the 7.1, I'll be using my current equipment (HK235 + Infinity) until the wallet bounces back from the construction. If there's one thing I've learned, the construction comes first! I might push the seats out a little to get even closer to the screen. :eek: Thanks for the suggestion!

Construction pictures will come soon!

Thanks for the advice. Lighting has been my most recent concern and I appreciate you chiming in because your post was definitely one I checked for this issue. The lighting coverage is a little off from the perspective shot, but I estimated a 1:1 diameter to height ratio (i.e., my ceiling is 6'8", so the lights will cast a 6'8" diameter circle). I'm with you on going with 4" cans considering my ceiling height, but maybe I need to add a couple more (go to 2 rows of 4). We were thinking about throwing some sconces into the mix too, so they might go on the screen wall. I actually just spent part of my morning with some lighting consultants who thought my pattern would work, but I'm not sure they were on the same page as me....


Not to disparage your consultants or anything, but I have to question their expertise in this matter ... a PAR20 flood, which is pretty much the widest you can go in a 4" can, typically has a beam pattern of 30, maximum 35, degrees - sometimes even less if it's deeply recessed. At 6'8" to the floor, you're looking at a footprint of no more than 4 feet, with maximum lumens concentrated in about a 3 foot circle - and usable light at a seated height of 3 feet up in an even tighter cone.

Good lighting design often relies also on reflected light, which tends to even out hot spots as it bounces off the floors, walls and ceilings. Nullify that in a HT - so the only solution left is increasing the number of lumieres in the room. The rules are definitely different in a low headroom HT.

Can't wait to see the construction pics! I also think I read in a different thread that you carted out your demo debris in small bags to avoid notice...now that's funny! :cool:

Wow - I don't know how you guys do it. By the time I come home from work, get some work done on the theater, then get online, I'm too tired to even post!

Thanks for the lighting suggestion snowkarver. I will increase my lumieres! That one was easy.

Does anybody have a suggestion on the insulation for the wall where drywall will be attached to furring strips which are directly attached to the cinderblock wall?

So this week I started running some cables all over the house for a relatively modest distribution system. I ran component cables from the rack location to the second floor bedroom and to the first floor living room along with a line to connect IR distribution. I bought a bunch of Buffalo IR stuff from Smarthome and 1000' of Quad-Shield Solid Copper Core Coax (snowkarver, I think I got that wire suggestion from one of your posts too!). Once the Coax arrives, I'll run that as well. When it's all done, I'll be able to watch anything from the rack anywhere in the house. After figuring out how difficult a clean run through a wall in the house would be, I decided to just put PVC in the corner of a closet to get the signal to the bedroom. Nobody will ever notice... :)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2067/2384617358_278efb647a.jpg?v=0

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3251/2384617380_db443ffe95.jpg?v=0

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http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2064/2384617516_8d7fa68025.jpg?v=0

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3165/2383788899_478f2caa9d.jpg?v=0
The markings are still on the wall to line up my plates. I'm using the speaker wires I had laying around for now to connect the banana plugs and haven't yet put the CAT5 connector on the wire exiting under the coax on the left.

Also, I finished demo of the theater area of the basement.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2200/2383788641_4b8cc7c140.jpg?v=0

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3173/2383788759_3529e61e01.jpg?v=0
I found Virginia! Or is it Kentucky? Or is it an upside down Carolina...

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2189/2383788447_a6767a9057.jpg?v=0

That's quite a pile. You know what that means....

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2078/2384617836_4b2ed53594.jpg?v=0

Time for some Shawshankin'...

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2214/2383788965_97c4bd0e53.jpg?v=0

Now that Andy Dufresne has left the building, I do have another question. Like an unfortunate neighborhood, my projector will reside directly under the powerlines. I was planning to put a conduit right down the middle between these two floor joists before I opened the ceiling.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2273/2384668248_5e503407cf.jpg?v=0

If you can't tell from the pic, an open staircase is to the left. The projector will sit on a shelf mounted directly below where the romex is now. How much trouble do you think that will cause for me? It is worth running the romex between another pair of joists on the other side of the room and bring it over where it needs to be? The electrical goes to a switch on the second floor right above where the rack will be. I know code says that I can't drill holes in the middle 1/3 of the beam (thanks AVS search!). Argh... pesky Edison.

Chris

Chris:

I didn't realize that your thread was so new or that you were still in the demo phase. You weren't kidding about your space, but I'm sure that your theater will turn out fantastic.

It's a beautiful Sunday and I'm sitting here trying to cast off the Loganized curse and go down to the basement and work on some conduit...but I'm sitting here reading AVS Forums instead. Go figure. In any event, I'm subscribed....


CJ

It looks as though the wire on the left side of the joist goes through the joist on the right side. If that's true, I'd pull the joist stabalizer (the "X"ie thing), move the wire to the other side and to the top of the cavity (about 1/2" to 3/4" below the floor above (to allow for future nailing and such from above).

You could then use the left side of the joist cavity for your wiring and the right side for power.

If you really want to get crazy, you could build a small box around the power line then wrap it in lead or kryptonite to keep the electrons away from your AV cabling.

:D

CJ

Chris -

Don't know how I missed this! I have the same issue with height, but I gotta go with what I have.

Lighting...probably a little late, but I found that the light pattern on the floor (I'm using 4" par 20, too) is about equal to the heigth. So, just to be safe, placed my cansd no more than 6' apart and so far, it seems fine. Keeping in mind, the other lighting (sconces, spots over the bar seating, hanging fixture over game table and planned rope lighting), I think I'll be fine. If not, that's what old work boxes are for!

Keep up the pics, too!
Good luck,
Tom

Tom and CJ - thanks for the replies and sorry so late getting back. You'd think that I would have subscribed to my own damn post, but I've had so little going on that there hasn't been much action. :rolleyes: I hope to change all that soon.

CJ - I think I'll go with the Kryptonite idea. I like that - do you think it's available at HD? I bet that'd get a funny look from the boys in orange (although knowing my store, their head would explode while they searched the store). Actually, the post above (concerning the electrical) is out of date. Last week I reoriented the plan for the room AGAIN. I've now considered all 3 of the potential walls. I'll have to update the post this weekend with some better pics of the space and the latest render.

Tom - the lighting is still weird for me. I took snowkarver's advice and upped the number of cans it a little, but I'm afraid it might be too much. I have eight 4" cans for a space that's approximately 12' x 14.5' (where the couches are in the sketch). That will be two rows of 4, spread about 3' apart along the 14.5' axis after considering the soffit.... Again, an updated pic will help.

Seems to me like a lot of cans for that area, but that's what dimmers are for.

Good luck,
Tom

hi there,

it looks like it's gonna be a very nice and cozy HT!! can't wait to see it in person if you gonna host one!!

as for the lighting issue, mine is also 12'x15', and I'm only using 6 4" can along with 60w light bulbs. and bigger (can), it won't look good in such a small space! and I can tell you, with my HT's color, it's more than bright enough for me even during the day time or for gaming!! and especially for a HT!! when I built mine, I was a bit worried 'bout they are being too dark too. but after the first night when I have the HT 'bout 80% done (just sit down and look around), I know they are actually prefect for my little space!!

seems like you are living in a townhouse too? well, so far, I haven't have any problem with my next door neighbor tho. :D may be b/c of my volume isn't too high, or may be b/c I'm at the corner unit, or may be I'll just need a bigger sub?? :p but if I were you, tearing the walls down and redo them, I sure would look into some sort of sound damping too. (but well, mine is done and I really don't want to do it all over again.... may be my next house....)

as for the throw and screen distance, I'm sitting 'bout the same as your graph. 10-11' away from the screen (probably closer to 12' if I measure from the back of the sofa), and my PJ is 'bout 11' away too. I can tell you it's perfectly fine even for a 106" (diagonal) screen!! but I too agree a 7.1 system might be a waste in such a small distance tho.

good luck and keep us posting!!

Chris:

LOL. I changed my design a number of times in the three years between buying the house and me starting. Between the time the slab was poured to the time we moved in, I measured four separate times and changed designs three times. After we moved in, I took the next two years to work through designs and lay plans. Once I got started, I made a few tweaks, but I brought Bryan Pape into the project and he had a few ideas of his own. His first suggestion was to flip the plan. It's not that he did anything wrong...his idea has a lot of metir (heck, it's basically the same layout that mmmkam has - we have the same house plan).

I settled on a plan and didn't have to change much of the framing!

One suggestion...get comfortable with your basic idea and charge forward. There's a lot of weight that you give to someting that you've already completed (it's hard to pull it down and redo it on a whim).

Good luck with the build.

CJ

Wow - I don't know how you guys do it. By the time I come home from work, get some work done on the theater, then get online, I'm too tired to even post!

We post INSTEAD of working :D I have about 3 conference calls a day and I just waste them on here....All my work is done remotely anyways so no one can see me :D

We post INSTEAD of working :D I have about 3 conference calls a day and I just waste them on here....All my work is done remotely anyways so no one can see me :D

Ahh... I have a lot to learn. I'm actually trying that right now! :cool:

Chris:

...Once I got started, I made a few tweaks, but I brought Bryan Pape into the project and he had a few ideas of his own.
...
One suggestion...get comfortable with your basic idea and charge forward. There's a lot of weight that you give to something that you've already completed (it's hard to pull it down and redo it on a whim).

Good luck with the build.

CJ

Yeah, after talking to you and Cathan, I thought about calling in Bryan since I've only heard great things about him. However, I have pretty much settled on the fact that this will be my 1.0 Learning experience. I know there are some things that I could do better, but my space doesn't lend itself to the full-blown touches that many of the rooms on here are getting (I wish!).

And charging forward is my latest plan! I'm actually going to go to an electric screen in front of a curtain now... The pics I plan to post this weekend will show the new layout.

hi there,
seems like you are living in a townhouse too? well, so far, I haven't have any problem with my next door neighbor tho. :D may be b/c of my volume isn't too high, or may be b/c I'm at the corner unit, or may be I'll just need a bigger sub?? :p but if I were you, tearing the walls down and redo them, I sure would look into some sort of sound damping too. (but well, mine is done and I really don't want to do it all over again.... may be my next house....)

as for the throw and screen distance, I'm sitting 'bout the same as your graph. 10-11' away from the screen (probably closer to 12' if I measure from the back of the sofa), and my PJ is 'bout 11' away too. I can tell you it's perfectly fine even for a 106" (diagonal) screen!! but I too agree a 7.1 system might be a waste in such a small distance tho.

good luck and keep us posting!!

Thanks for the info Landshark! I really like what you did in your room. I am leaning toward the six lights, but I might just rough in the eight 4" since I already bought them :( to see what they look like. Since my ceiling is lower, I don't think I'll get quite the coverage that you have and my paint might end up being darker... Nice to hear the gigantic screen works well for you! I'm looking at the 100" range. I'll probably stick to that, but might go bigger if I can find the right screen/proj combo.

And on the 7.1 - I already have all the gear setup in my living room (which is directly above the theater, in the same size room) and it works pretty well, although the listening position is not optimal. I'll definitely wire for it, but we'll see how it sounds...

Thanks for checking in. I'll try to keep my posts up now that penngray told me the secret!

Ahh... I have a lot to learn. I'm actually trying that right now! :cool:



Yeah, after talking to you and Cathan, I thought about calling in Bryan since I've only heard great things about him. However, I have pretty much settled on the fact that this will be my 1.0 Learning experience. I know there are some things that I could do better, but my space doesn't lend itself to the full-blown touches that many of the rooms on here are getting (I wish!).

And charging forward is my latest plan! I'm actually going to go to an electric screen in front of a curtain now... The pics I plan to post this weekend will show the new layout.

Given you circumstances (townhouse with limited space for a dedicated theater) I actually think you are better off not hiring Bryan. I'm not sure he would be able to do much for you given your limitations. Certainly by reading the stuff here you already have a good idea how to limit the noise impact on your neighbors and deal with basic acoustic issues. Building your skills, having fun with the build and putting together a room to watch movies and play games will be a great accomplishment. You then take all of that and invest in some pro help for theater 2.0.

Given you circumstances (townhouse with limited space for a dedicated theater) I actually think you are better off not hiring Bryan. I'm not sure he would be able to do much for you given your limitations. Certainly by reading the stuff here you already have a good idea how to limit the noise impact on your neighbors and deal with basic acoustic issues. Building your skills, having fun with the build and putting together a room to watch movies and play games will be a great accomplishment. You then take all of that and invest in some pro help for theater 2.0.


I agree (no offense to Bryan - he's been great thus far). If I were working with your space and circumstances, I'd do the same thing. There are plenty of folks with good info on this board that will be great help.

CJ

Progress? Looking for progress!

CJ

OKAY OKAY!!! I'm slaving away at some electrical diagrams between a busy work period. I think I've got them all ready for the Permit Police. I'm really not looking forward to this part of the experience, but after getting a $2500 estimate and a $6750 - YES, SIX THOUSAND SEVEN HUNDRED FIFTY - estimate to install 13 recessed lights, 2 sconces, 2 switches, and 3 outlets on 3 breakers, I have decided to do it myself. Granted, the $6750 guy quoted me a full new panel w/ surge, but I definitely didn't ask for that and I have room in my box now....

Other than electrical, I ran the conduit for the PJ this weekend (2" rigid with wide bends) and finished the install of new windows, which was a big step for me!

BEFORE -
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2326/2417239011_5525364b49.jpg?v=0

DURING -
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2056/2418055956_167fb76bc0.jpg?v=0

AFTER (the old tee shirt insulation has been replaced with the flexible "Great Stuff") -
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3091/2417238393_c73a6939a0.jpg?v=0

Oh yeah - and here's the latest electrical diagram. Kind of full with everything on all 3 circuits shown, but I'm too lazy to post the separate ones. I'm STILL going back and forth with the lights (which is why the box says 13 lights instead of the 11 shown).... 2 rows of 4 in the main room or 2 rows of 3? Or the new layout - 2 rows of three with another at the top and bottom (i.e., a "box" with 3 on each side....).

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2043/2496522750_2341e19e81_o.jpg

Only thing I'd do is add a second 20 amp circuit for your equipment. That really won't add much more cost but gives you more flexibility. You can keep your projector off of the same circuit as your amp for one.

Oh yeah - and here's the latest electrical diagram. Kind of full with everything on all 3 circuits shown, but I'm too lazy to post the separate ones. I'm STILL going back and forth with the lights (which is why the box says 13 lights instead of the 11 shown).... 2 rows of 4 in the main room or 2 rows of 3? Or the new layout - 2 rows of three with another at the top and bottom (i.e., a "box" with 3 on each side....).

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2043/2496522750_2341e19e81_o.jpg


Chris:

What program did you use to generate this image? I'm looking to redraw my electrical circuits and your image seems to be just what I'm looking to create.

CJ

Hey CJ - I used the old trusty Google Sketchup for all my drawings. Truthfully, it probably would have been faster/easier to do the electrical by hand, but I've done all of my sketches so far in Sketchup and wanted to continue the tradition. Actually, I should post some other renderings - this particular graphic is simply a top, 2d view of a 3d diagram.

Following what others on the forum have said, it's been a pretty program good now that I'm starting to get the hang of it. But, I still have to kind of "rig" it occasionally to make the drawing look the way I want it to look. The different 3d planes can sometimes get confusing.... it's hard to explain, but if you start messing around with it, you'll know what I mean.

Hey CJ - I used the old trusty Google Sketchup for all my drawings. <SNIP> The different 3d planes can sometimes get confusing.... it's hard to explain, but if you start messing around with it, you'll know what I mean.


I've played with it a bit, but I found I was spending too much time working to figure out HOW to use it and not enough time actually *doing* the design.

I didn't invest enough time in it to get too far, but I like your drawing, and was thinking about doing something similar (each circuit a different color).

Thanks for the tip.

Also, congrats on the progress. Your space will surely be worth the time. $6k! WAY too much! Time to get a book and dig in!

CJ

I hear that you've been busy trying to figure out how to grow your space to make it on par with CurtisG's, but come on...no update in a month?

I just spent over two hours updating my thread, so I figured now I get to pick on you for a while.

:D

So...what's been happening in your space?

CJ

We need to start calling you CheapandSlowMonkey.

We need to start calling you CheapandSlowMonkey.

Ouch. OKAY! I will commit to showing some results this weekend. Maybe even tonight if I find some time. And I told myself that I wasn't going to be one of these slackers. Of course, I also told myself that the whole process would take 2 months, tops.... You'd think I would have learned from the experiences posted on here! I'm not like "those other guys." Wrong. :o

Looking good!

We need to start calling you CheapandSlowMonkey.

LOL. Man, you are harsh. (I wish I'd have thought of that one) :D

CJ

Honestly I'm not one to talk given I'm a 2+ year plan, but yeah, it's fun to poke fun. :)

Honestly I'm not one to talk given I'm a 2+ year plan, but yeah, it's fun to poke fun. :)

It must be nice to have a plan. I'm winging it as I go along. I think that's what makes the decisions so hard...I don't make them until I NEED to.

Usually, I'm really a stickler for planning, but in this build, I'm thinking of it as a non-work project...sort of a fun thing. No timelines (other than getting the basement drywalled within 1 year of starting).

It's also nice of us to give Chris's thread some love. Heck, I f we post a few more messages between us, you and I will have more posts on his thread than he does!

Come on Chris...I hear the Loganiator approaching. Did you hear the Michael passed his inspections.....

....poke.....poke....


CJ

I hear you. I too tend not to start thinking about the next puzzle piece until I'm done with the current one. There is much I don't understand, but I'll get to it eventually.

Posts thus far:

Cheapmonkey (thread owner) - 11
Carboranadum (pusher of cheapmonkey) - 11
Cathan (generally a good guy who recently passed his inspections!) - 5

Come on Chris....we're pulling for you.

CJ

Come on Craig....we're pulling for you.


Who's this Craig you speak of? heh... Yeah, I'm definitely going to have to step it up. It's sad when I slipped into the 2nd page and the majority of posts are those picking on my for not posting. I like it though - it's almost as encouraging as the Logan post. Luckily I have managed to avoid the barrage on that one, but it's harder to get away in your on thread.

Who's this Craig you speak of? heh... Yeah, I'm definitely going to have to step it up. It's sad when I slipped into the 2nd page and the majority of posts are those picking on my for not posting. I like it though - it's almost as encouraging as the Logan post. Luckily I have managed to avoid the barrage on that one, but it's harder to get away in your on thread.


Sorry...for some reason I want to call you Craig. I'm really sorry.

Have you ever considered changing your name?

Sincerely, I'm sorry.

Now we're still even , 12 - 12 (and it's your own thread - now that you wrestled it away from that Craig guy).

CJ

Looking good!
Thanks for checking out the post SatelliteGuy! I have been reading through your bee saga - glad to hear you took care of that one!

Sorry...for some reason I want to call you Craig. I'm really sorry.

No problem CJ - I have no leg to stand on with as many names as I screw up!

As promised, I wanted to provide a much-needed update. I really don’t have much of an excuse for my tardiness. The biggest lesson I have definitely learned so far is that small things can take A LOT of time! It doesn’t help that we just went through the performance evaluation period at work. That meant on top of my regular job (way more than 40 hrs), I spent about 40 hours looking at how others do their jobs. BUT enough of the complaining – on to the progress! Here is the latest rendering, showing the new orientation that I mentioned a while ago:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3187/2622736413_92d987ebca_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3002/2623559522_1bc2139097_o.jpg

Since my last update, the main focus has been electrical. I pretty much stuck exactly to the drawing in the 5/16 post, except the switched outlet at the front of the room:
I hung seven 4” sealed recessed lights in the theater room and four 4” cans in the other, smaller room behind the theater.

I installed 14 outlets (5 new, 9 replacements) in adjustable Carlon boxes, which included two outlets for sconces or other wall lighting.

Connected the lighting via Insteon products, which included 2 toggle switches, one KeyPadLinc, 2 access points (all through this package (http://www.smarthome.com/2493.html)). I’m still not really sure about the need for the access points, but I guess that's another discussion.

Connected one outlet through a LampLinc module, which eliminated the need for the switched outlet (my ropelight will be connected to the LampLinc). This did present a problem that was discussed in another thread. My LED rope used so little energy that the dimmer module never turned it all the way off… This was solved by replacing the LED rope with more conventional lighting. I wasn’t sure that I liked the glow of the LED anyway…. The picture below shows the difference - LED is on the left, although the camera doesn’t quite match the exact hues of either.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3055/2623045058_34edde2b30.jpg?v=0

Finally, I included an IR Linc with the Insteon so that I can use my remote to control the lights. So far, I’m really happy with the functionality Insteon provides, but I have just done basic stuff so far. It's hilarious to me to be able to turn off the 2nd floor bedroom lights from the basement. I know there’s more that I can do, but that’ll have to wait until I have walls to take that next step.

The last electrical activity I accomplished was one that should have been done before I moved into my house. My home inspector sucked, so after I moved in I noticed that my electrical box was literally hanging off the wall by the electrical lines the feed into and out of the box. I reattached the box – I don’t think the inspector would have liked the way it was hanging out.

BEFORE:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3219/2623045638_950924f71a.jpg?v=0

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3165/2622219569_5e1182d93f.jpg?v=0

AFTER:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3165/2623045394_ec933337e2.jpg?v=0

On the A/V front, I ran 12 gauge speaker wire to the side and rear speakers for a 7.1 setup. For the front three speakers, I used some 14 gauge, 4 conductor wire that I had bought previously. By combining the two pairs of conductors, I will be getting a wire that is essentially >12 gauge. I also ran the 3/4” Smurf tube to the front and rear speaker locations as a cheap insurance policy. Finally, I ran coax to each corner of the room for potential sub locations. I used the adjustable Carlon boxes again at all locations for speakers.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3121/2623045920_25913d0711.jpg?v=0

To the projector location, I ran one HDMI and a 12 gauge Romex that will eventually be used for a homemade Power-bridge type of solution. My Leviton inlet is on the way through an Amazon reseller (http://www.amazon.com/Leviton-Motor-Base-Grounded-Receptacle/dp/B00074USHY******pd_ybh_5?pf_rd_p=280800601&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_t=1501&pf_rd_i=ybh&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=10WFZXVGSPHNZT4W3NV6). I might also run a component cable, another HDMI, and a headphone jack for the IR repeater. However, I’ve heard that screens generally reflect the IR signal to the PJ (has this been the experience of others?), so the jack may not be necessary.

Speaking of the IR repeater, I connected the units to make sure they worked using the wires that I ran before getting the unit. I was under the impression that the IR Receiver would be able to plug into a headphone jack. However, that wasn't the case so the 3/8" headphone extension wires that I ran to my receiver locations seemed weird. BUT, it turns out that there are 3 wires within the extension cable that match perfectly when mating the receiver to the connecting block. Long story short - I'm in business with the IR repeater setup.

Finally, I bought my screen! HTDepot.com is just around the corner from me (and many others on this board) in Chantilly, VA. I visited their showroom to check their products out. To be honest, their presentation isn’t all that impressive (e.g., they had a huge, wavy screen hanging in the lobby), but for the price, their show model looked good enough for me – at least it wasn’t wavy!! I would have bought their HDvio screen, but its remote is only RF. I ended up going with the FocuPix Flexio 103” (http://www.htdepot.com/Focupix_Flexio_16_9_Electric_Motorized_Screen_103_p/fxo169a-100-wh.htm).
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3101/2622220201_23e83c1cfb.jpg?v=0


WELL, I think that's all for now. My electrical inspection is scheduled for THIS THURSDAY, so I will be right behind Cathan.... WATCH OUT - here I come!

Wow, Chris, you have been busy.

Best of luck on the electrical inspection, and please post the outcome.

CJ

UH OH. I think we need to slap Cathan down. He's encouraging too many others.

Nice work, CHRIS. At least I got your name right. You know who to trust. ME. Not those others guys who don't even know your name. You just keep following me and all will be well with the world ("following," being the operative word).

You just keep plugging along. You're doing fine. I normally expect things to take twice as long as I orignally thought, but it sure seems like 10 times is more accurate.

Tom

Finally, I bought my screen! HTDepot.com is just around the corner from me (and many others on this board) in Chantilly, VA. I visited their showroom to check their products out. To be honest, their presentation isn’t all that impressive

Ah some real progress is being made here. You might be able to finish before Tom completes his Close-in inspections.

Partly out of curiosity I stopped into HTdepot a couple of weeks ago. Turns out they have a pretty good assortment of Wall mounts for Flat panels at a reasonable but not Monoprice great price. Their basic slim profile mount was less than half of what I could find at other local joints, and Monoprice was out of stock of the model I wanted so I bought it and it worked fine except the mini-manual diagram actually shows the bracket mounted upside down.

I'll be following your experience with the screen.

UH OH. I think we need to slap Cathan down. He's encouraging too many others.

It is actually all his fault! I'm trying to beat him to the use of the drywall lift. I saw how Mark told him that I've been quiet for a while, so I thought I better show some progress. And you're right on more than doubling the time expectation on completing tasks. I keep attributing it to the learning curve, but it's also just the fact that I don't want to have to redo anything and I'm getting analysis paralysis. Oh well - now I'm ready to forge ahead with confidence!

Turns out they have a pretty good assortment of Wall mounts for Flat panels at a reasonable but not Monoprice great price.

I'll be following your experience with the screen.

Yeah - I noticed all of the mounts there. They're actually mountdirect.com, too. It's kind of a funny place, but I guess the deals are there. They're starting to sell PJs too, but their selection is limited right now. And only cash at the warehouse! :)

I just couldn't pass on the screen and it's received some pretty good reviews. Since my room orientation led me to an electric screen versus the fixed-frame I originally planned, I figured what the heck. I'll try it out for the 1.0 theater at least!

My big news of the weekend actually occurred on Thursday. Unfortunately, my internet connection wasn't cooperating so I didn't get a chance to post my big news - I passed the initial electrical inspection! I was working until 2am Wed putting on the final touches (nothing like scheduling an inspection to put the heat on making some progress). Since I have neighbors who don't appreciate hammering/sawing/boring in the middle of the night - can't wait to see if they appreciate the theater at that time - I was limited to the quiet touches.

I woke up at 7 to call the inspector to get an ETA, hoping that I would have a little time in the AM to staple a few last wires after the neighbors were awake. His window was "8am-12am." I finally started banging away at 8am and he showed up at 8:12, mid-staple. Like Cathan's experience, the inspection took all of 5 minutes. He didn't really check anything except the spacing and # of outlets. On one hand I'm happy that I passed, but on the other, I kind of wish he had been more thorough! I actually left the majority of my outlets connected for the inspection and one 15' romex run was blatantly fastened inappropriately (it was the one I was working on when he showed up). He didn't even notice! Oh well, I'm pretty confident in my wiring since I was so focused on passing and at least now I have the validation that it was "checked" by the county.

As soon as he left, I connected the remaining switches and added 3 breakers to my box. That was easier than I expected and not quite as scary as I thought it might be! I don't have a main breaker, but one of the electricians I had out told me that I had a split panel and that one breaker shuts off the bottom half. My multimeter told me he was correct and I dove right in! Everything is working well and my electrical load is now MUCH more appropriately distributed!

Next steps:

HVAC (replacing rigid ducts with flexible)
Framing - After installing flexible ducts, I will be able to take out/reduce a soffit. This will require me to bridge the space that was once occupied with a soffit with a framed wall.
Insulation - Baby powder and spacesuit time!
Drywall - Hopefully Cathan will be done with the drywall lift. :)


This would have been a great weekend to attack some of my list, but I served as a professional tour guide around DC to some of my friends until this morning. Always a fun and popular place around the 4th! I'll be studying for a certification for work this week, so my progress is on hiatus until ~7/15. I hope Logan takes advantage of that.

Nice job Chris! I'm done with the first layer of drywall on the ceiling. It may be a couple of weeks before I can get to the second layer. I can only push my wife so far and there are a few things that will slow up the rest of my first layer install (IB sub and minisplit rough in). We may end up just alternating weekends or something. Give a holler when you are at that point.

Congratulations! Excellent milestone to breeze by.

CJ

Moving right along. Sadly I think I will be back in the Demolishing phase soon.

So I'm at my next roadblock. HVAC. My thought was to replace my rigid ducts with flexible to: 1) reduce the noise (if I tap on the duct in the basement, you can hear it on the 2nd floor) and 2) enable me to recess the duct between the floor joists above to reduce an existing soffit.

I'm about to say "nevermind" and leave everything the way it is (remember I'm renovating an existing finished basement that already has ducts in place). I'm just having a hard time figuring out how to replace existing rigid ducts with flexible. I know in concept I should just be able to slap some sort of a boot on my existing rectangular duct to convert it to a circle with the same carrying capacity, but where do you find these converters? My ducts are as shown below:
OVERALL - My latest, simplest plan (besides dropping the whole thing) is to replace the 9.5" x 8" rigid sheet metal duct that goes from right to left across this picture with a 10" flexible duct. I would expect that this will at least cut down on the transmission to the rest of the house and it will allow me to raise that soffit to get a little more usable space:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3186/2691367474_6dc800a66a_o.jpg

PICTURE 1 - I would like to connect a boot after the split from the T. The cross section would be a 8"x9.5" rectangle on one side and a 10" circle on the other:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3254/2690556711_6be17276b7.jpg?v=0

PICTURE 2 - Here, I would have a 7" flexible drop to the vent below:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3117/2690556463_2a9b2a2afb.jpg?v=0

PICTURE 3 - This transition to the front of the room is somewhat awkward. Since I just found out that flexible duct is not supposed to be compressed, I might have to keep this the way it is - a rigid, short box. Otherwise, I would have to drop the duct lower than the windows! Therefore, I will have a 10" flexible duct transition into a 90 degree turn with a 14"x4.5" rigid duct around the corner.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3245/2690556589_aacbecdfc0.jpg?v=0

So I guess my questions are 1) will replacing only one length of duct help reduce sound through the rest of the ducts (i.e., "break the path") and 2) where the heck can I find these crazy-sized boots?

Here was an interesting problem that I forgot to update in the minutes before getting my electrical inspection. It turns out that I only had a space about 2" deep in the wall where my Insteon switch was supposed to go:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3069/2691367978_96d93291c9.jpg?v=0

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3148/2691367730_351540ca42.jpg?v=0

The switch would ALMOST have fit, but the wire nuts just weren't going to fit with it and I hear that can pose problems.... Solution:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3063/2690557115_2f90a0c7be.jpg?v=0

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3107/2690556899_278f10fc39.jpg?v=0

After a bunch of banging and cutting - it turns out there was a non-load bearing stud mounted on each side of that skinny switchbox - my switch is ready to go!
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3209/2690556837_1dbb86c528.jpg?v=0

Not the greatest picture (and of course there is cleaning to do), but it's in there by god! If it weren't for that pesky roaming stud, I would have been in the clear without having to cut everything out. I thought my studfinder was acting crazy, but I guess not! That's the way it goes sometimes.


One final update (I'm a batch-update kind of guy I guess) is that I got an honorable mention in my community's newsletter. I guess it turns out my Shawshank method isn't quite as covert as I thought it was. In other words, I overestimated my sneakiness. While I wasn't specifically targeted, there was quite a condemning reference in bold that may (or may not) have been seemingly prompted by my Shawshankiness. "Bulk Trash does not include any debris generated by an outside contractor or debris generated as a result of the renovation or remodeling of a unit or its backyard, patio or deck; including, but not limited to such items as appliances, fixtures, carpet, building materials and other such items that are a direct or indirect result of any such work, whether generated by a contractor orthe homeowner."

heh.... at least demo is done now!

Have they said anything about the storage container you were going to park out front?

Tom

Have they said anything about the storage container you were going to park out front?

Hah - good recollection! Fortunately, we decided to rent a standard storage unit. If we had not gone that route, I would have ended up spending a ton more $$. You have to rent the box and, in Arlington, you have to pay a monthly permit fee. The two combined would have added to about 2x the price of a storage unit. And since this has taken about 4x what I expected so far.... :rolleyes:

LOGAN does not forget.....

OKAY OKAY!!! I'm slaving away at some electrical diagrams between a busy work period. I think I've got them all ready for the Permit Police. I'm really not looking forward to this part of the experience, but after getting a $2500 estimate and a $6750 - YES, SIX THOUSAND SEVEN HUNDRED FIFTY - estimate to install 13 recessed lights, 2 sconces, 2 switches, and 3 outlets on 3 breakers, I have decided to do it myself. Granted, the $6750 guy quoted me a full new panel w/ surge, but I definitely didn't ask for that and I have room in my box now....



I remember having that same sticker shock a couple years ago when I wanted to install a sub-panel and wire up my garage. I learned how to do electrical work pretty quickly after that. It's really not that hard. I'm another Northern VA guy who is watching all these NOVA build threads with great interest. Don't have a build thread of my own .... yet :) ... trying to spend all my available free time doing actual work ... of course, I spend a lot my time at work reading these threads!

I remember having that same sticker shock a couple years ago when I wanted to install a sub-panel and wire up my garage. I learned how to do electrical work pretty quickly after that. It's really not that hard.

I agree that it wasn't that hard and I'm really glad I learned how to tackle electricity with minimal shockage! :)

Don't have a build thread of my own .... yet :) ... trying to spend all my available free time doing actual work ...

I definitely hear that one! That's why my posts have been so sparse - it's tough to keep up. I'm amazed at the people who do and it makes me even more grateful for the contributions since I know how difficult it can be to maintain the posts.

I definitely hear that one! That's why my posts have been so sparse - it's tough to keep up. I'm amazed at the people who do and it makes me even more grateful for the contributions since I know how difficult it can be to maintain the posts.

I hear you on the updates. I spend time working in the basement or reading how other people have solved particular problems and don't spend too much time updating threads. I think my thread is only 2 months or so behind, but I'm on the "finishing drywall" phase, so things are moving rather slowly...

Good progress, Chris.

CJ

Chris:

Welcome back to the front page. Any updates?

CJ

Chris:

Welcome back to the front page. Any updates?

CJ

Man CJ! Thanks for waking me up. It's been a busy month and unfortunately, the busy part didn't involve much work in the basement. I have made some progress since the last post - I'll update this weekend. Now that you're all caught up - GREAT WORK by the way - I really need to get in gear.

Hey...thanks for the kind words. Hope the outside issues calm down a bit so you can get back to work. Once you walk away for too long, it's that much harder to return. :)

You any good at picking colors? That's where we are bound up right now. The basement is all taped up and primered...just waiting for the wife to come up with a color that we both like!

Looking forward to you getting back into it.

CJ

I have made some progress since the last post - I'll update this weekend. [SNIP] I really need to get in gear.

How about an update? I think you've missed two weekends since your last post.

:D

CJ

...knock.....knock.....knock.....is this thing on?

Where are the updates Chris?

Hello?

CJ

...knock.....knock.....knock.....is this thing on?

Hah - I love the policing you're doing. Now that you've caught up on your thread and we're not doing the time warps that I had gotten so used to, you're all about everybody else catching up too! :D Things have been crazy around here, so I apologize for my lack of updates.

Lets see - where to start. In one of my last real posts, I pointed out my roadblock that was the HVAC. Unlike many on this board, I actually wanted to lose a soffit. If you recall my room dimensions (~12'x15' with a ceiling height of 6'8" before drywall), I can use anything to increase the usable space. With the soffit dropping the ceiling height by 1' along the 15' wall, I was really down to 11' x 15' of standing room.

Before:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3130/2910051561_1099f3bea9.jpg?v=0

After researching and looking into how I might be able to make the connections, I decided to give up. I couldn't find the parts I needed to connect a flex duct to my existing duct where I needed to make those connections. I tracked a random down to help. Johnny to the rescue!!!

After:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3146/2910051531_ecb5239400.jpg?v=0

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3127/2910051463_464e0222da.jpg?v=0

Once Johnny and his buddy left, I had some more work to do. I built some boxes around the low-hanging areas (where flexible wouldn't work and there was no way around it).
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3214/2910051407_5bf76b2813.jpg?v=0

Look at the angles below! hah... This was my first stab at using a new cheapo compound miter saw that I picked up. I busted out my old engineering skillz (don't get me started on sines and cosines...) and still jacked up the angle in the end. Oh well - nobody except readers of this post (and me) will know once the drywall goes up.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3083/2910051345_f265e5f18c.jpg?v=0

After my framing, I insulated and covered things up with plywood. The first layer is below, but I'm planning to put another up and sandwich some GG between. To avoid squishing the flexible duct too much, I used 2 2x4's as spacers. I'll have a mini-soffit, but it's way better than what it was!
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3102/2910051021_709d9015ef.jpg?v=0

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3176/2910896144_0e60a811df.jpg?v=0

I've made some other progress that I'll post soon... I promise CJ. Now back to the basement!

Hah - I love the policing you're doing. Now that you've caught up on your thread and we're not doing the time warps that I had gotten so used to, you're all about everybody else catching up too! :D

No worries. I guess I was worried that my buddy went missing! Glad that you're still around and still making progress.


CJ

Happy New Year everybody! I'm still alive and just wrapped up a marathon of a theater building day. Since I last updated, I made a few strides, including:

Finished up some minor framing
Insulated the majority of the basement
Finished up wiring (fingers crossed - I don't think I forgot any!)
Got DRYWALL and put up my first sheet. Yes. :D


I'm beat, but I hope to get some pics up tomorrow. Of course, some may notice my propensity to slack on my updates, but it is a new year.... ;)

So finally, some pics.... My minor framing was tied to the previous post. With the HVAC duct raised, I had some space to fill with new wall. First I added another layer of 1/2" plywood with GG sandwiched between. This was my very first application of GG and the first excuse to use the drywall lift! hah...
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3259/3169655552_2b54092ecd.jpg?v=0

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3268/3168825963_d1b53bdece.jpg?v=0

Once the plywood was in place, I made a mini wall to connect...
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3108/3168826151_6411af3491.jpg?v=0

As shown in the pics, I put putty pads on all the outlets. In case you were wondering, the outlets along the wall are for some custom light boxes that I am also building. Also, my insulation is in place for the most part. Some R13 from HD called "DryRight" is on exterior walls, R30 unfaced in ceiling, R19 Kraft faced on one neighbor-facing wall, and 3/4" pink rigid on the other neighbor-facing wall.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3113/3168826291_c38c6eb03d.jpg?v=0

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1225/3169655920_9e9d99009c.jpg?v=0

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3113/3168826291_c38c6eb03d.jpg?v=0

I can definitely tell a difference in noise b/w floors with the insulation in place, so that's a good thing. I just hope the neighbors can tell the difference too! Fortunately, the neighbor with the rigid insulation is much cooler than the one that I'm really trying to isolate my sound from (R19 side).

It's been a while Chris. What's going on with your build?

We miss you, man. :(

CJ

So - a lot has been happening in my world. I obviously haven't posted in a WHILE. Progress has been slow mainly because work has been nuts and .... I've been helping my new fiance plan a wedding. Yep, I got engaged! Who knew helping out with a wedding would take so much time away from my theater building. :confused: That said, I have made some serious progress on the basement since my last post. Basically, just about all that's left is to buy the projector and start enjoying movies.

I made a few concessions with my room (i.e., no sound treatments and I'm using my old speakers for now). However, I am really happy with how it's looking and I'm sure I'll enjoy it for a few years before setting out on Theater 2.0.

My big news from today was that my four theater chairs arrived from Roman today AND I was told that I won the grand prize drawing that was part of his power buy! The basement is getting an unexpected addition as a result - a professional popcorn machine courtesy of Ultimate Home Entertainment! :D

I hope/plan to post more updates this weekend!

Chris

Congrats on the prize!

As for the basement.... pics or it didn't happen. :D

Yep pics as a starter then a meet for your local NoVA pals :D

I am going to keep borrowing pages from CJ's book and recount the story leading up to where I am today. Last December, I suited up fully to try to avoid the insulation itch and knocked the rest of it out.

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_lwgx9pKbMfA/SqPJkwzTcyI/AAAAAAAAAPQ/0t_50UJ2Wmk/s576/CIMG4000.JPG
http://lh6.ggpht.com/_lwgx9pKbMfA/SqPKOZuRGzI/AAAAAAAAAPw/j3G_khV5qcs/s576/CIMG4001.JPG

I took care of a few details before drywalling began. I made a solid area on which to mount the future PJ - 1" of plywood in a 30" x 15" rectangle between two joists in the center of the room. I'm sure whatever PJ I go with will be able to adjust, but I wanted to be safe and have no doubt when mounting it.
http://lh3.ggpht.com/_lwgx9pKbMfA/SqO83gJBelI/AAAAAAAAAHw/2JEzDqdwXnY/s576/CIMG4906.JPG

Next to the PJ mounting area, I ran a 2" grey conduit for future proofing. It actually came out great. I started by cutting a 2 gang adjustable electrical box (I think HD calls it the "range/dryer box").
http://lh5.ggpht.com/_lwgx9pKbMfA/SqO8ewgqlEI/AAAAAAAAAGU/2LsKAQu0X1Q/s800/CIMG4574.JPG

I cut the conduit and ran it into the box. Not shown is the putty that I put around the conduit to TRY to help minimize sound getting through to the first floor.
http://lh4.ggpht.com/_lwgx9pKbMfA/SqO8gZNnHbI/AAAAAAAAAGY/4CLNReJ7_qY/s800/CIMG4578.JPG
I made sure that all bends had large enough radii to avoid sticking points for any wires that might go in there later. I did the test using a shop-vac to suck the wire through and it worked like a charm. I'm really happy with how it came out! This is definitely one of those little details that only people on this forum can appreciate. :)
http://lh4.ggpht.com/_lwgx9pKbMfA/SqO8h-u5qNI/AAAAAAAAAGc/qmNQi7ZIeQw/s800/CIMG4579.JPG

Everything terminates in the corner of the room where the rack will reside. More details on that later!
http://lh3.ggpht.com/_lwgx9pKbMfA/SqPgxRlC6uI/AAAAAAAAAQU/2IdAzHflBpc/s800/CIMG4859.JPG

Next up... DRYWALL!

Looking good. Just have to say that the second picture of you "suited up" made me laugh.....reminded me of a "Devo pose" minus the flower pot:D

Whooot! Progress!!

Looks like a lot of work just to make shadow puppets on the wall: Can you do a rabbit?

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_lwgx9pKbMfA/SqPKOZuRGzI/AAAAAAAAAPw/j3G_khV5qcs/s576/CIMG4001.JPG

Looking good. Just have to say that the second picture of you "suited up" made me laugh.....reminded me of a "Devo pose" minus the flower pot:D

Looks like a lot of work just to make shadow puppets on the wall: Can you do a rabbit?

Hah... I felt quite "hazmatty" in that suit, so I thought I'd have a little fun with it. Notes taken: next time there will be a flower pot and a rabbit. If the suit had not torn from my wearing it so much, I'd do it this afternoon, but without the suit on I don't think it'd be as effectively amusing.

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Looks like to me he was dancing to Madness - One Step Beyond (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-uyWAe0NhQ)

My 3180 lbs of drywall arrived waaaaay back in December. The delivery guys had a puzzled look as to why I needed so much for such a small space. This is about

half of it. I had a mix of 5/8" (for 3/4 walls) and 1/2" (for the other wall, the ceiling, and another room in the basement). I double layered the entire

theater. Notice the cool foam "statue" in the background that the spray foam gap filler made when I thought it was empty. hah!

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_lwgx9pKbMfA/SqO8ylLbIVI/AAAAAAAAAHM/MWQI_nnhZb8/s800/CIMG4756.JPG

With the help of the drywall lift that BritinVA and Logan let me borrow (thanks again guys), I got to work with the first piece.
http://lh3.ggpht.com/_lwgx9pKbMfA/SqO816BIHWI/AAAAAAAAAHk/41zW_pfCRlY/s720/CIMG4889.JPG

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_lwgx9pKbMfA/SqO82ne5E2I/AAAAAAAAAHs/1oo65B1Hgvc/s720/CIMG4894.JPG

I thought hanging drywall would be pretty easy, but it was pretty hard for me to get the hang of it. Especially when it came to cut-outs for outlets and

fixtures. I'm jealous of you guys who have no "holes in the aquarium!" A pretty cool tool that Michael (Cathan) let me borrow did help. It's called the "Blind

Mark." You put one half in the outlet then hang the drywall over it. Another piece aligns to the hidden half using magnets. You then trace the line and cut away!

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_lwgx9pKbMfA/SqPA-lwrP9I/AAAAAAAAAJk/qkBn85zvMYg/s720/CIMG4965.JPG

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_lwgx9pKbMfA/SqPA_CzydSI/AAAAAAAAAJo/H88si1jtCLk/s720/CIMG4966.JPG

One thing that I did figure out (too late) was that you should use a drywall saw (i.e., NOT a router) to cut the lines. I cut right into Michael's Blind Mark

and now we both own these gadgets - only his is shiny and new :rolleyes:. I did get pretty handy using the router to cut out the light holes and to perform a

bunch of other fine cuts to the drywall. Instead of trying to mark the exact center of the light fixture and use a circle cut, I FINALLY got the trick of setting

the depth of the plunger, zipping into the center of the fixture, moving the router to the edge, jumping to the outside edge, and tracing the rim of the light.

I picked up a Craftsman All-in-One tool to handle this and a bunch of other things around the house. It's been a pretty handy tool to have around.

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The drywall lift was a real savior. It handled the entire ceiling and the top panels for some of my walls (my ceiling was too low to use it for many of the

walls).

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With the first layer up, Green Gluing began!!! That part wasn't too bad, but it did take some getting used to given the consistency of the gg. It kind of stunk and was definitely sticky, but I made it through.

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_lwgx9pKbMfA/SqPBYb7-xII/AAAAAAAAAKU/kTZPdolMKIM/s576/CIMG5214.JPG

It was kind of a pain to work out the details about avoiding overlapping seams while ending the layer on a stud/joist. In hindsight, I'd probably let sheets

from my FIRST layer "float" in many cases so that the second layer would have more available studs. I don't know if that makes sense, but I know BigMouth

mentioned that in another post that I saw too late. :( I think I had quite a bit of analysis paralysis through this process and that was definitely one of them.

Another was trying to get everything with the hanging perfect. I think a 1/4" gap here and a 1/4" gap there probably would have been fine in the end and would

have saved me a TON of time!

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Great pictures! And good tip on the blind mark tool.

Regards,
Dean

Cheap -

I just caught up on these pics. Nice to see my drywall lift in action. Looks GREAT.

It was kind of a pain to work out the details about avoiding overlapping seams while ending the layer on a stud/joist.

In case you didn't catch it in my thread, here's where the pros do it differently.

They just pick up a full sheet, measure stud to closest stud short of the end of the sheet and cut to fit. Think of it this way....what's the differnce on a 13 foot wall if you cut 1 foot (+/- whatever oddbal measure you got out of whack) off of one and the rest off the other versus being abosulutely 100% sure that the first sheet falls EXACTLY at the 48" or 96" OC mark and you cut all of the rest of the length off the second sheet? The difference is two pieces of waste, one 1' and one 4' versus ONE 5' waste piece. Now if you're trying to save every single waste piece to reuse for some small area somewhere and want to take the time to sort through the waste pile when you need it, then it works out fine, costs a little less in drywall BUT TAKES FOREVER. The pros just toss both waste pieces in the pile and grab another sheet. That's why they can hang 130 sheets in 10 hours.

And since we're on the topic of drywall....

I also noticed a few other things the pros do/did.
1) They hung horizontal.
2) They want the drywall stacked flat. They are workibg standing up fairly straight most of the time. And as they get to the bottom of the pile, they stand it up on edge because.....
3) They always cut the long side first. They have the "feel" of using the ruller as the straight edge. They run the tape to the measurement, put the edge of the tape measure at the edge of the drywall, then postion the knife blade at the end of the tape and run both hands along the long side in one long motion, walking along the pile. This almost ALWAYS allowed them to then cut the short side in the same manner by just reaching across, since it is never more than 4'. They didn't waste any time messing around with the drywall T-square like I did.
4) As I said above, they don't worry about the differnce between saving one 5' piece vs a 2' and a 3' piece. They just measure, cut, hang, grab another sheet, measure cut, etc.
5) They are MUCH better at measuring the cut outs and doing them free-hand. They don't waste time with the Blind Marks.

By the way, there are Blind Marks avavilable for the pot lights too.

I am in awe of you guys that did the drywall yourself.