Man...Tile and painting, my two most hated jobs! You're in the home stretch Bud, keep it going! Can you UPS beer? Because I would love to buy you a six pack when you're done so you can sit back and enjoy a few cold ones. If I get down to Augusta for the Masters next year, I would love to stop in Atlanta and see what you have done.

Scott

Hey Scott,

Been to a few practice rounds and one tournament Saturday. Love that place! What are the odds of you getting there next year? And of course, in what capacity? Send me a PM if you prefer...

Bud

Bud,
I sent a P.M. on Tuesday. Did you get it??
wbart

wbart,

NO, sorry. I jsut saw it when you posted here. My fault. I'll be happy to honor that though. Are you still going to be in the area? I usually get a popup when I get PMs.

jbinatl,

I apologize, I'm going to have to give the stuff to wbart4 if he still wants it. If not, its yours.

Bud

Here's some posters I picked up from someone here on AVS a while ago. He had ordered them, they showed up damaged, they sent new ones, again damaged. They got it right on the third try, but he didn't want to throw the old ones out, so I bought them for next to nothing. Can you see the damage? I little glue and some touch up and they'll be as good as new. I may put a blak trim around them.

Thinking about hanging them in the concession area. The first two above the based cabinets and the Casablanca one on the side wall by the rack.

http://images16.fotki.com/v299/photos/6/649633/3402899/100_1012-vi.jpg

Bud


Bud,

Those posters are to cool!!!
Are they reprints?
Looking great.

Craig

Craig,

I'm sure they're reprints. I'm sure there are plenty of places to get them, like art.com and allposters.com. Maybe someone else knows. Check at the movie section at http://www.allposters.com. I saw some oldies, like Absent Minded Professor and The Wizard of Oz.

Looks like there is a Vintage section.

Bud

Took the day off to work in the basement. Went to my favorite (NOT) place this morning and pick up some mortar, grout, spaces and some other stuff. I also rented a jamb saw.

I cut all the jambs in preparation for flooring. Worked like a jewel. It was 22.00 for 4 hours, or 30 for the day. I had quite a few jambs, would have taken me some time to cut those by hand.

Bud

Bud,

This is pretty timely for me. I just got all of my doors and was wondering if you installed them with a gap at the bottom for flooring, or cut that later. I guess you just answered my question. :) This is actually the first time I've ever heard of a jamb saw.

Just wondering though... Would you recommend always installing the jambs resting on the floor and then cutting them later? Even if you already know what flooring you're going to put in?

What if you have flooring of two different heights coming together, like laminate on one side with bare concrete (like a storage room) on the other? Can you use a jamb saw to cut half of the jamb without cutting through the other side? I noticed it's a circular blade. And carpet, I'm assuming, you cut around the jamb rather than cutting the jamb to allow carpet underneath?

Thanks for being such a great resource!

Steve,

Good questions. I'm sure if you wanted to, you could raise the door prior when installing. A few things to think about though. You may be limited to the height of the rough in. You'd have to make sure you have enough room to raise the door and still be able to make sure its level. I personally think its easier to put it on the floor, make sure its level (the floor), shim appropriately and cut the jamb later. Keep in mind that the door usually will have about a 1" gap already at the bottom of it to compensate for flooring. If you raise the jamb prior to installing, you almost make that gap bigger.

When I installed doors in the past, I cut them down by hand. The hardwood flooring and tile people are the ones that usually have the jamb saws, not the carpet guys. Carpet guys tend not to cut the jambs. You also cut through the casing that's trimmed around the door at the same time.

You can cut only one side if you want to. You have that control. A jamb saw is like a circular saw, but lays horizontal on the floor and adjusts up and down for height. You start and one side and move around where you need to cut. I have an instance in my storage room where it'll meet laminate. I didn't have to, but I cut the concrete side of the jamb. I'll use a transition to go from laminate to concrete. You wouldn't notice the jamb cut, since the laminate is like 3/8 or 1/2 thick. It'll be the same height off the floor as the baseboard anyway, so it won't look out of place.

As far as the carpet was concerned, I went ahead and cut it anyway. Between the pad and the carpet, you'd never know. Just made it easier. I was going to just do the one side, but I don't think it'll make any difference at all.

Sounds like you googled it, but for those that didn't, here's what it looks like. I believe this was the actual one from HD I rented.
http://www.craintools.com/tools_more_info/812_more/812_more.jpg

More info here:
http://www.craintools.com/fs-specialtysaws.html
At the very bottom of the page you can see the saws you use to cut the jamb by hand.

Bud

Bud,

It seems like it would be alot easier to do it the way you describe. I'm going to plan on doing it that way. I have all of next week off and plan to finish up painting the ceiling and walls and start on installing doors and some other home projects that need to get done upstairs.

As always, thanks for taking the time to give such thorough answers! It really helps. And it helps to know it's coming from a guy who's on his third basement finishing project!

Bud,

As I near closer to HT completion, I'm re-starting my projector research. Since you own the Panasonic PT-AE900U projector, I had a few questions for you (if you don't mind). You may have answered some of these earlier but I cannot seem to find the answers:

1) When you zoom in/out with this projector, does it grow the image evenly on all sides or does it just grow on left, right and bottom (assuming the projector is upside down and ceiling mounted)? I ask because I've read that the 900U prefers to be positioned on the "center" of the screen (which implys that all sides grow evenly). However, the lens shift allows you to position it higher and lower than that (more on that in my next question).

2) With the lens shift, how far "above" the top of the screen image can you have the projector be without the need to "tilt" the projector (if this is even possible).

3) How is the noise level? Are you running it in a "theater mode" that lower the light output and fan speed? How loud is it at max light output?

Bud,

It seems like it would be alot easier to do it the way you describe. I'm going to plan on doing it that way. I have all of next week off and plan to finish up painting the ceiling and walls and start on installing doors and some other home projects that need to get done upstairs.

As always, thanks for taking the time to give such thorough answers! It really helps. And it helps to know it's coming from a guy who's on his third basement finishing project!

Not a problem at all, let me know if you have any more questions.

Bud

Bud,

As I near closer to HT completion, I'm re-starting my projector research. Since you own the Panasonic PT-AE900U projector, I had a few questions for you (if you don't mind). You may have answered some of these earlier but I cannot seem to find the answers:

1) When you zoom in/out with this projector, does it grow the image evenly on all sides or does it just grow on left, right and bottom (assuming the projector is upside down and ceiling mounted)? I ask because I've read that the 900U prefers to be positioned on the "center" of the screen (which implys that all sides grow evenly). However, the lens shift allows you to position it higher and lower than that (more on that in my next question).
It grows from all sides. I believe it says in the manual that it prefers the center of the screen for best quality of picture. Now, I'm not sure if they mean left to right or dead center.

2) With the lens shift, how far "above" the top of the screen image can you have the projector be without the need to "tilt" the projector (if this is even possible).
You can shift the image down using the joystick without having to tilt the projector. A few posts back I posted my heights for Drew, my actual lens is above the viewable portion of the screen and I use the lens shift to bring the image down. I think Im about 6-8 inches above the screen now. My projector is perfectly level at this point and I don't use the keystone correction. Even wit slight keystoning, I doubt you'll notice any difference in quality of the image.
3) How is the noise level? Are you running it in a "theater mode" that lower the light output and fan speed? How loud is it at max light output? I'm using low lamp and high fan. It's pretty quiet, you won't really notice it unless you really listen for it. This is something you'll have to experience yourself, since everyone has their own threshold. Right now I sit on the riser, I'm actually a little behind it and to the side. I think if I sat in the front row, I wouldn't really hear it at all (maybe I'm used to it). From the front row, I'd be about 2-3 feet in front of it.

Bud

Well, I had a good experience at HD today,,, sort of. I bought wall tile from "Floor and Decor" the other day, but decided today I didn't like it. So I went to HD today and some woman I've seen there before goes by and I grabbed here to ask her opinion on the color choice. She was very nice, honest and helpful and worked with me for a while to get some complementary tile to go with my floor I just tiled. The only problem I had today was that the accent pieces I selected, they couldn't find enough, even though the system said they had it. After getting "the Reach" and pulling pallets off the top shelve, they pretty much gave up. I had to go to another store, about 20 miles away and pick up the rest. SOOOOOoooo, I didn't start until about 3:00 PM and just finished up for the night. I still have the bullnose to do and to drill a few tiles for 1 inch copper (Joy). Been a long day.

OH and it looks like my sod is really drying out, even though I'm watering. Apparently not enough.

Bud

OFFER IS STILL AVAILABLE!!!!!

Bud

Gone! wbart4 came by yesterday and picked everything up. Sorry jbinatlm, you're still welcome to come up anytime and have a beer and check out the theater.

Bud

Bud,

Thanks for your reply. Having it "grow" on all sides will be helpful if I do a 2.35:1 screen and use the ZOOM method until I get an anamorphic lens.

I'll actually be able to demo a 900U in person soon because a buddy of mine has one. I'll let you know how it goes.

Finished up the tile work in the early afternoon after another HD run to a store out of tile and off to a second store. I thought I'd be done grouting by now, so that'll happen next weekend, I suppose.

Started the second coat on the ceilings, should finish that tonight so I can move onto trim. Put the last coat on the one remaining stair wall finally. I fixed a few spots on the ceiling on the way down the stairs, so I need to put some paint on that this morning and a second coat later today. Need to get that done because the stairs are being carpeted tomorrow.

I also put one more coat of stain and two coats of poly on the handrail yesterday. I remounted the handrail last night. Looks good with the matching stain of the doors.

Pictures to come.

Bud

Bathroom tiled. I'll do a grey grout. Pretty boring design, but hey, its a basement.

http://images17.fotki.com/v308/photos/6/649633/3422362/DCP_2190-vi.jpg

Bud

Ahhh, where is the showerhead going to connect to? Or is that just a bath?

i like the tile color design. :)

Ahhh, where is the showerhead going to connect to? Or is that just a bath?

i like the tile color design. :)

There is a hole you can't see in the picture about two rows down from the top. It has a brass female connector on it that's threaded. When you buy the control/spigot/shower head, it all comes together in a box and the shower head has a pipe that's threaded on the end. You put some teflon tape on the end and install it. :)

Bud

Phew. I couldn't spot the hole so was a bit worried. Just didn't make sense that you'd over look this part though. ;)

After all the research and recommendations, I still kept coming back to the Dupont Laminate flooring. Apparently this stuff can take some amount of moisture in case of accidents and has a 30 year warranty if installed correctly.

To me, it looks pretty good. It comes preinstalled with the backing. It'll be interesting to hear what it sounds like. I also picked up Duponts slate laminate for the bar. I uses the same attachment system, so it'll be at a consistent height and a nice transition, which was one of the selling points.

Now to get the painting done so I can install it this weekend (48 boxes to go).
http://images17.fotki.com/v306/photos/6/649633/3577564/100_1067-vi.jpg

I went with Merbau Block.
http://images17.fotki.com/v304/photos/6/649633/3577564/100_1069-vi.jpg

Here is the Dupont info on it:
http://www.flooring.dupont.com/en/design/FG8010.shtml

Forgot to take a picture of the slate. Here is Dupont's info on it. It looks a lot blacker in real life:
http://www.flooring.dupont.com/en/design/FG8090_t.jpg

Info on the Black Slate:
http://www.flooring.dupont.com/en/design/FG8090.shtml

Bud

Looks good Bud. Is that the "snap together stuff" or what? Some of laminates they have look pretty darn good compared to real wood.

Jerrod,

Yes, both the wood laminates and the tiles utilize a glueless locking system. Should go pretty quick I hope.

http://www.flooring.dupont.com/en/install/gls/gls.shtml

Bud

Berks were ordered last week!!!!

I ended up going with the option below. Wanted the extra size. I'll obviously post pictures when they arrive. I think this was the best option for me due to my size and requirements. I would have loved to have gone with the 088s in a the 7 row configuration, but felt more comfortable in the 090s.

Anyway.

There is a new authorized Berkline dealer. I ordered mine through Ben Harper, here on AVS. You've seen him post in this thread. For price quotes on Berklines, either send Ben Harper a PM (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/private.php?do=newpm&userid=46937) or send an email to Ben_Harper@comcast.net. He'll treat you right! Great prices, too.

Here is the configuration I ordered through Ben (thanks Ben).
http://images1.fotki.com/v314/photos/6/649633/3402899/Berks090s-vi.jpg
Bud

Thanks for the tip on Ben.

Well, carpet guys are here. Guess what? They messed up the stage measurement and shorted the carpet. Guess what? No carpet for the riser. :mad:

So, I'm fuming if you can imagine. They're part way through the install already. I called HD about three times,. talked to the Store Manager and bitched. Now I have to wait for the measurement guy to come out, measure again, special order the carpet and get opn the installers schedule again. I tried to set up a date, but they won't talk to me until the carpet is ordered.

I told the store manager that they just lost a cabinet order. He's suppose to call me back. We'll see what happens.

Bud

Give 'em HELL Bud!!

Kevin -

Kevin,

"Hell" is an understatement!

Bud

I tried every way from Sunday not to buy my drywall from them Friday, but everyone else in town is "cut off" from selling it " due to the shortage"(from a woman at USG). It's either them or the blue box...

I constantly scratch my head at the treatment I get at Big Orange...

Kevin -

Bud -

I thought I remembered a ways back you and the wife going to Dalton to look at carpet. What made you decide to go with Big Orange instead?

Kevin -

You are having Home Depot's subcontractors install your carpeting? Make sure you keep a close eye on them and pray that they hire better guys in Atlanta than they do in Omaha:

Omaha Home Depot carpet nightmare (http://members.cox.net/nebrunner/profloor.htm)

Kevin,

We did. The price differential was not significant for what we ordered, since we did the HT room and stairs in carpet only.

Bud

You are having Home Depot's subcontractors install your carpeting? Make sure you keep a close eye on them and pray that they hire better guys in Atlanta than they do in Omaha:

Omaha Home Depot carpet nightmare (http://members.cox.net/nebrunner/profloor.htm)

I've been watching them. Actually, there did a better job than most of the other guys I've seen. What they had is now installed. I'll take some pictures and post shortly. On a conference call.

Bud

Nebrunner -

Dang! That is just not right...

Kevin -

Bud -

If I only need about 500 sq ft. of carpet is it worth going to Dalton? From our house thats a 2 hr drive...

It would seem selection would be better there, even if the prices arent all that different...

Kevin -

Kevin,

HUGE selction of carpet up there, so if you're looking for something in particular that you can't find elsewhere, then sure. The money you'd spend in gas may counter the price differential if you're looking for standard carpet.

Bud

I see I am not the only one with this kind of luck. Sorry to hear about the carpet Bud. We have been looking at Home Depot for some carpet also. They are running a special through today where you get %10 off and free pad. Of course I will pay some additional and get the upgraded pad, but its still a deal. They told me its 3 weeks at least before they can install once you order. Seems like a long time.

Ronnie

Ronnie/Bud -

I'm thinking about a commercial grade of carpet. Something thicker with a short nap. My reasoning is that it should be more resilient to wear and bend around the radius' of the stage and riser better without the "dollhair" effect.

Any thoughts?

Kevin -

Not sure what to say. My theater will be low traffic anyway, so regular stuff would probably outlast everything else in the house by 2-3 times anyway.

As for the bending around radiuses like steps and etc, I have seen regular carpet done this way without issues. Now if you went really cheap, then you might have an issue, but if you get something fairly dense, i dont think you will be able to tell.

Home Depot carries commercial carpet also. They actually have a pretty good selection.


Maybe someone with experience can chime in and help us.

Ronnie

I see I am not the only one with this kind of luck. Sorry to hear about the carpet Bud. We have been looking at Home Depot for some carpet also. They are running a special through today where you get %10 off and free pad. Of course I will pay some additional and get the upgraded pad, but its still a deal. They told me its 3 weeks at least before they can install once you order. Seems like a long time.

Ronnie

Upgraded pad is 1.00 more a yard. It's pretty nice.

Bud

Ronnie/Bud -

I'm thinking about a commercial grade of carpet. Something thicker with a short nap. My reasoning is that it should be more resilient to wear and bend around the radius' of the stage and riser better without the "dollhair" effect.

Any thoughts?

Kevin -

What makes you think that regular carpet around the stage will be an issue? I actually looked at some of the commercial grades in Dalton, so different patterns for sure, but not very friendly to the touch.

Bud

Here's where we are with the carpet.

http://images16.fotki.com/v302/photos/6/649633/3577564/DCP_2196-vi.jpg
http://images17.fotki.com/v306/photos/6/649633/3577564/DCP_2197-vi.jpg
http://images16.fotki.com/v316/photos/6/649633/3577564/DCP_2198-vi.jpg

Here are the stairs. Notice the stained handrail.

http://images111.fotki.com/v740/photos/6/649633/3577564/DCP_2195-vi.jpg

Oh and HD hasn't bothered to call back with my appointment for remeasuring. I just called them again and they had to go find the store manager.

Bud

Well, at least what the installers did get done looks good.

They messed up the stage measurement and shorted the carpet. Guess what? No carpet for the riser.

Just making sure I'm reading that right... The stage was mismeasured and then they didn't bring enough carpet for the riser? So, two screwups on the same job? Makes me want to learn how to do carpet myself when the time comes.

*EDIT* You might want to call HD Customer Care at 1-800-553-3199 and see if they'll do something.

Nelson

Nelson,

Correct. Sorry, was in a rage when I typed it. The carpet width for the stage was about a foot short (not the width of the room, from the back of the stage to the floor on the front of the stage) and they didn't even have the extra carpet for the riser. I looked at the cut diagrams and sure enough, it wasn't even included.

I'll call customer care tomorrow. Thanks for the number.

Bud

Just FYI, I've always had commercial type carpet in my rooms. I like the low-pile look/feel of it for this space. Its not something you want to lay on, but my rooms never have any room for that anyway :).

Here are the stairs. Notice the stained handrail.


Bud,


Your hand rail is on the wrong side. ;)


I've been working thru your whole thread for the last 2 weeks (I'm sorry I've caught up -- but glad to see you are so close). I've learned a lot -- and I thank you for the effort. If I've learned anything from your thread -- it is the amount of planning required for a room such as yours. I have a 14" x 22" room -- finished by the previous owner -- and obviously so. Dry wall seams look like crap, cans are crooked, wall sockets have exposed gaps -- whole basement is on one breaker. Ugh -- remodeling in many ways is worse than starting from scratch. But I've started the planning -- inspired immensely by your thread.

Will you be using "butt-kickers"? w-w-w(dot)s-m-a-r-t-h-o-m-e(dot)c-o-m/8-2-5-7-2(dot)h-t-m-l

I wonder if one pair could be installed for a whole row?

Bud -

I guess I'm thinking that when it is pulled around the radius that it will make it look like someone's head when they've had hair plugs. From what I've seen of it at HD and elsewhere the commercial stuff seems denser and more resilient to wearing out. My mindset on this room is install the carpet once and never again. <shrugs> I dunno...

Kevin -

Maybe Bud's a Lefty!!

It's on the right side when going up the stairs :)

:rolleyes: Which is worse -

Falling UP stairs or falling DOWN?

After the day that Bud has had he's liable to drive over here and start handing out ass-whippins' if I keep teasin' him about that hand-rail...

Hang in there Bud - Dont let the Big Orange keep you down!!

Kevin -

Hopefully I can find some decent British beer in Atlanta when I pay him a visit tomorrow :D hopefully that will cheer him up :D

Bud,


Your hand rail is on the wrong side. ;)


I've been working thru your whole thread for the last 2 weeks (I'm sorry I've caught up -- but glad to see you are so close). I've learned a lot -- and I thank you for the effort. If I've learned anything from your thread -- it is the amount of planning required for a room such as yours. I have a 14" x 22" room -- finished by the previous owner -- and obviously so. Dry wall seams look like crap, cans are crooked, wall sockets have exposed gaps -- whole basement is on one breaker. Ugh -- remodeling in many ways is worse than starting from scratch. But I've started the planning -- inspired immensely by your thread.

Will you be using "butt-kickers"? w-w-w(dot)s-m-a-r-t-h-o-m-e(dot)c-o-m/8-2-5-7-2(dot)h-t-m-l

I wonder if one pair could be installed for a whole row?


tabraun,

Thanks for the kind words and post. Good luck with your adventure. I'm glad its been helpful. First post, huh? Well, welcome to the addiction.

On to the other items.... :p

I put the handrail back where it was. Didn't think too much about the side actually. I'm used to it! At least I didn't have to figure out the position. I actually used the same holes, except where the screws didn't go into anything but drywall. Those holes I used the 50 lb wall anchors that twist into place, then the screws go into those. I painted over them with the wall color, since you may be able to see a fraction of them behind the bracket, but boy is that rail solid.

I have Aura shakers. I think I have 8 of them. I bought them a while back, but may only use four of them if at all. I did run wires for them, if you look at the riser, the box in the front left is for shakers, while the one directly behind it on the back wall is another set. I ran two pairs of speaker wire to each. If I use them, I'll run a pair to each row. I think that'll be enough for me. If you want more shaking, you want one per set (of the Auras). Buttkickers have more umph to them, people actually install them in the riser itself. So the answer is it depends. I picked up my Auras from PartsExpress.

Bud -

I guess I'm thinking that when it is pulled around the radius that it will make it look like someone's head when they've had hair plugs. From what I've seen of it at HD and elsewhere the commercial stuff seems denser and more resilient to wearing out. My mindset on this room is install the carpet once and never again. <shrugs> I dunno...

Kevin -

Kevin,

Good visual. Maybe thats a good thing for us "hair challenged" guys. My radius is pretty gradual and when/if the carpet gets installed, I'll post some pictures. The black carpet I picked was pretty plush, so I've got my fingers (and plugs) crossed.

Bud

Hopefully I can find some decent British beer in Atlanta when I pay him a visit tomorrow :D hopefully that will cheer him up :D

You mean decent Irish beer? Ala Guinness don't you :D

Drew

Hey Bud, just thought I would let you know I just received my Panny 900 tonight. I am like a kid in a candy store. I will fire it up to check for problems then I will test my location for it in the theater. Then it will be back in the box for a while.

Good news is I am starting on the drywall in 13 days. Good choice on your chairs BTW. Same layout and style I decided to go with do to the room constraints.

I also got a old Guinness sign I think you might be envious of:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/guinness-sign.jpg


Drew

You mean decent Irish beer? Ala Guinness don't you :D

Drew

There are some great British beers too (just difficult to finf here) but must admit I'm partial to the Irishs beers, my tipple used to be Caffreys.......the Guiness outside Ireland isn't the same so I tend not to drink that.

Hang in there Bud - Dont let the Big Orange keep you down!!


Got a message from Orange that said the earliest they could get someone out to measure again was Friday. :mad:

.
.
.
.
.
1....2....3....4....5...6...7...8...9...10

OK, I'm calm now.

Lets see. Friday they measure, then enter it into the system on Friday (best case), the flooring "calculators" in TX see it on Monday.... they don't understand what a stage is for and mess up the calculations again (7th time now, including today) and I have to go back on Tuesday to explain it again (6th time)... I can't get on the schedule for the installers for two weeks, so I'm looking at three more weeks before they install a 3x12 piece of carpet and a 6x12 piece of carpet? Oh and with my luck I'll be on vacation when they want to install it. That would be 6-7 weeks to complete a carpet install? That was best case. Something wrong here?

So I call back the flooring department manager and he's gone for the day. Ever see a 6'4", 250+ lb bald guy get mad? :eek: These guys are lucky I just go back from the airport, otherwise I would have hightailed it down there.


.
.
.
.
.
1....2....3....4....5...6...7...8...9...10

So I call back and ask for the store manager that was suppose to call me back today and didn't. I think he finally got the feeling I wasn't going to go away very easily. So I explain the measurement issue and explained that why would I want to wait for anther bad measurement? Why couldn't I just give the measurements to the dept manager myself? "Well, its not the process, but I think we can do that in this case"... But the process IS the problem....

So I want the dept managers schedule and he's not in until 4:00 PM tomorrow. So I said I have the measurements, can someone take them tonight so the carpet can get it ordered and scheduled tomorrow? He tells me he's going to transfer me to Eileen in carpeting, who I already spoke to. He says he's going to walk over to flooring and talk to her. She answers the phone and says she's with a customer! I said "Jim's on his way to speak with you", so sure enough there he is. He takes my measurements and adds a foot to the widths and says they'll order it and confirm it with me tomorrow... He said they'll probably have to send someone to measure anyway because thats how the system works... Geez, please don't send the same guy, I'll sick the dogs on him.

So looks like I'll be on the phone again with them tomorrow. Stay tuned.

Bud

Hopefully I can find some decent British beer in Atlanta when I pay him a visit tomorrow :D hopefully that will cheer him up :D

If you're serious about British beer, try Sherlocks (actually, may be called Minks - I get the two confused) on Delk road (two exits up from 285 on 75N). Head west on Delk (two off ramps, stay to the right) and on the left about half a mile is a large liquor store. Easy on, easy off.

Bud

Hey Bud, just thought I would let you know I just received my Panny 900 tonight. I am like a kid in a candy store. I will fire it up to check for problems then I will test my location for it in the theater. Then it will be back in the box for a while.

Good news is I am starting on the drywall in 13 days. Good choice on your chairs BTW. Same layout and style I decided to go with do to the room constraints.

I also got a old Guinness sign I think you might be envious of:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/guinness-sign.jpg


Drew

Drew, good deal on the 900. You'll enjoy it. Not sure if you have a high definition provider, but if you do, check out some HDTV before you box it. Love to watch some of the baseball games on INHD in 1080i. That'll be enough to get you motivated.

Good luck with the drywall. You'll be done before you know it.

If you haven't ordered, send Ben a PM or email and get a quote from him....

OH, and I've seen the sign, I'll have to add that to my sign order when I'm ready to buy.

Bud

There are some great British beers too (just difficult to finf here) but must admit I'm partial to the Irishs beers, my tipple used to be Caffreys.......the Guiness outside Ireland isn't the same so I tend not to drink that.


You are 100% right about that. That is probably why I keep going back to the old country :rolleyes:

Drew

BUd,

It's looking good man! I'm scared about the HD carpet deal. My wife and I found a great carpet we love at HD over the weekend/ It's not for the HT, but is for the rest of the basement. I don't want to go thru one of those experiences....

Got a message from Orange that said the earliest they could get someone out to measure again was Friday. :mad:

...... ..... ..... ..... .....

So looks like I'll be on the phone again with them tomorrow. Stay tuned.

Bud

There is no way I would buy carpet from Big Orange. We tried it because they were having a special a "Free measure". BUt they could never get the schedule correct.

Instead we went too two local companies. One came out with in the hour and measured. The other made an appointment and showed early with samples in hand. That is the way to do business.

We bought from the second guy. Belive it or not no upfront money, on money on install, he sends you a bill in the mail that you pay with in 30 days.

Sure ... now you tell me!

Actually, I thought I was being smart and doing the whole basement at once with the 12 month deal they had. I may be kicking myself for the next twelve months!

Bud

tabraun,

Thanks for the kind words and post. Good luck with your adventure. I'm glad its been helpful. First post, huh? Well, welcome to the addiction.

Hmmmm -- aparently I've been lurking for years -- I was a bit suprised to see that was my first post. I guess there's just so much to absorb -- and until I actually started my own theater -- not much experience to draw on to contribute.

Another question -- did you ever consider a DIY screen? The DIY screen'ers are a pretty active bunch trying different paint combinations, materials, etc.

tabraun,

Sure did. I actually used some ceilign paint on the wall for a while. Once I knew I was going to do a false wall to hide the speakers, I wanted something to hang. The Carada is a great screen for the money. It's not nearly as expensive as the some of the others, but does the trick.

I saved a lot of money doing all the work myself, so spending a few bucks where it makes sense is OK with me.

Bud

Bud,

I'll bet this has been answered before but I might have missed it...

I know in your housing around your projector, you have a small thermostat that turns on an exhaust fan in the attic to pull out heat. However, are you pumping any cool air directly into the box or is all cooling flowing in naturally from the room?

I'm asking because I may be putting my projector against the rear wall and hiding it in a box. I was considering leaving the top open for easy access and airflow. Top access is an option since I have 10' ceilings and the bottom of the projector will be at about 6'6". However, if I seal it up more making a Hushbox, I could reduce noise a bit more at the same time. Still deciding.

Steve,

Nope, no cold air. How would you control cold air just to the box without having a dedicated system just for that? Unless you pump cold air into the whole room. Keep in mind that the purpose of my box was just to hide the projector, bit really "hush" it. I added the inline exhaust fan and switch to control it just in case, but the box is pretty vented. The back has a Middle Atlantic, 19 inch vent on the back. The bottom is almost completely cut out, it's just covered with GOM, so it'll allow air through that as well.

Bud

Bud,

I'm taking your advice and getting in touch with Ben about some Berklines!
I got a side job drawing a house in CAD for a guy building in the mountains, and managed to sock some money away!!
Thanks for the tip!! Now we have to get the purchase throught the finance commitee, because we all know it's "our money"...

Sean

Got a message from Orange that said the earliest they could get someone out to measure again was Friday. :mad:

Bud



Screw Orange. You might save a few bucks, but the aggravation with service cancels that.

Support your local small business owner !!

Steve,

Nope, no cold air. How would you control cold air just to the box without having a dedicated system just for that? Unless you pump cold air into the whole room. Keep in mind that the purpose of my box was just to hide the projector, bit really "hush" it. I added the inline exhaust fan and switch to control it just in case, but the box is pretty vented. The back has a Middle Atlantic, 19 inch vent on the back. The bottom is almost completely cut out, it's just covered with GOM, so it'll allow air through that as well.

Bud
Thanks Bud. If I pumped air into it, I would have a damper on the A/C. That way I could close it in the winter and open it in the summer. Here is Texas, the A/C is switched to cool about 80% of the time anyway. I may just leave the top open for easy access to the projector and good ventilation. I plan to put some sound absorbent foam around the parameter to keep the noise down a bit. The "box" will be pretty wide so the foam will be far enough away from the projector to allow it to breath.

Thanks again!

Bud,

I'm taking your advice and getting in touch with Ben about some Berklines!
I got a side job drawing a house in CAD for a guy building in the mountains, and managed to sock some money away!!
Thanks for the tip!! Now we have to get the purchase throught the finance commitee, because we all know it's "our money"...

Sean

Sean,

Great. Don't forget to tell him that I sent you, although he's probably lurking anyway! Have any idea what types of Berks you're looking for?

I told my wife I bought her home theater seats for our anniversary (15 years on June 8) and she said, "No, I bought YOU home theater seats!". So I can relate...

Bud

Screw Orange. You might save a few bucks, but the aggravation with service cancels that.

Support your local small business owner !!

I hear ya. Lessons learned ...

Bud

Sean,

Great. Don't forget to tell him that I sent you, although he's probably lurking anyway! Have any idea what types of Berks you're looking for?

I told my wife I bought her home theater seats for our anniversary (15 years on June 8) and she said, "No, I bought YOU home theater seats!". So I can relate...

Bud


Sean, Bud, yeah I just got my PJ and my wife said happy anniversary (10 years in June). So I can also relate. Did not even bother with the "but honey it is for both of us" route.....

Drew

Thanks Bud. If I pumped air into it, I would have a damper on the A/C. That way I could close it in the winter and open it in the summer. Here is Texas, the A/C is switched to cool about 80% of the time anyway. I may just leave the top open for easy access to the projector and good ventilation. I plan to put some sound absorbent foam around the parameter to keep the noise down a bit. The "box" will be pretty wide so the foam will be far enough away from the projector to allow it to breath.

Thanks again!

Gotcha. I know you were thinking about the IN76, have you heard it yet to determine if you need a box? Also, what sort of temperature control will you use to control the damper? I had a zone that was split in my old house with dampers, had a separate programmable thermostat and some other circuitry required. I'm not sure an attic fan switch will work. Any thoughts on that?

Bud

WOW, our 1st anniversary is June 6th. Looks like there will be a few of us busy getting the right gift or perfect night.... corse after 10 or 15 years you guys might have an "understanding" with the wives ;) :D

Sean

WOO..SA WOO..SA WOO..SA Bud.
I am going with the carpet companies around town. The big orange and lowes are over there heads when it comes to this finishing touch of laying carpet and sales satisfaction. It's like running 90 yards down the field and laterally passing off to the carpet measurers/carpet layers only finding out that they forgot there shoes to help get it in the end zone. :(

hang in there Bud.
crank up the projector and let the time roll by, and trust me it will!
Larryep

I will say that the people in the flooring department have been wonderful and I told the store manager that. It's when you have too many people involved, you have to add extra control and process in order to complete things. Usually wacky decisions like involving a measurement calculation/final sale team out of a remote location are made for a couple of reasons. First, somehow it supposedly cuts costs. Either it allows the flooring staff to focus on the customers, speeds up time, centralizes sales, inventory control, something like that. It could be a marketing/sales thing... maybe have the quote ready for the customer by phone and suggest additional product like floor cleaner, vacuum, or extended warranty or something like that. Generate more revenue by a team trained to do so rather than a person that knows a Frieze from a Berber. OR some software company sold them on the technology with false promises, faster turnaround, less mistakes.

Regardless, the decision wasn't made for better customer service or satisfaction. Some executive made the decision for one of the reasons above to either reduce expense or increase sales. Why? Bonus and stock options, baby. You hit your target, you get the cash. Sounds like a alot of companies/executives these days. Think about all the outsourcing these days.

Bitter? You bet!

Bud

HD is definitely off the list for my carpet purchase. I'll be going with a local store now. Thanks for the feedback.

I'm a huge Lowes fan and spent a LOT of $$ there happily, but they did not fair better when it came to carpet. Bid came in way over initial store rough estimate. They really tried to tack on every little extra charge they could. It was more the installer than Lowes though. Local carpet dealers seem to be the best bet. Luckily I found a huge commercial remnant for a steal at <$200 for 40 yards. Bought the pad at Lowes and paid an installer. %#@ HD I say. I'm a huge NASCAR/Jimmie Johnson fan therefor the love for Lowes since their name is all over my swag. Tony Stewart is an a-hole so I don't support HD. Pretty petty huh?? :rolleyes: . Bud, I wish you nothing but the speediest of resolutions. You must be chomping at the bit being SO close and than having some knuckleheads prolong this process.

I feel your pain my friend. When the HD installers ruined all the woodwork, I was livid. My wife came home and she said to me "honey are you ok?" and I said "yes, why?" and she told me that she was worried about me because she could see a vein throbbing in my temple and she thought I was going to have a stroke.

I am normally a meek guy but one thing that I really hate is incompetence, and when that incompetence is right there in your home destroying your stuff, thats just too much. Then add on all the run around that the HD managers give you with the ... "we will have the manager call you back tomorrow" and then he doesnt so you call back and they say "the manager is out today but should be back in next Tuesday"...etc.

They strung me along for weeks, I hope you get everything taken care of much sooner.

Bud hopefully they can get the same dye lot that you have other wise you need to replace all of it. I've seen dye lots run night and day. If its not the same run the shade difference could make it look like a completely different carpet.
Just make sure they ordered the same dye lot and you'll be fine. I would check with them though, before you get anymore surprises on the day of the install when the carpet doesn't match.

I'm a huge Lowes fan and spent a LOT of $$ there happily, but they did not fair better when it came to carpet. Bid came in way over initial store rough estimate. They really tried to tack on every little extra charge they could. It was more the installer than Lowes though. Local carpet dealers seem to be the best bet. Luckily I found a huge commercial remnant for a steal at <$200 for 40 yards. Bought the pad at Lowes and paid an installer. %#@ HD I say. I'm a huge NASCAR/Jimmie Johnson fan therefor the love for Lowes since their name is all over my swag. Tony Stewart is an a-hole so I don't support HD. Pretty petty huh?? :rolleyes: . Bud, I wish you nothing but the speediest of resolutions. You must be chomping at the bit being SO close and than having some knuckleheads prolong this process.

Thanks Jon, I'll get it taken care of.

Not a huge Lowes fan either, but they're warming up to me. I'm typically a loyalist and stick to something good. I was always a big HD fan, used to drive an hour to the closest one. Like a kid in a candy store! Had never heard of Lowes until I moved south. Atlanta is HD heaven. After a while Lowes popped up everywhere HD was. It was like McDonalds and Burger King... where one went the other moved in to steal customers. I only went to Lowes when I couldn't find what I wanted at HD and that wasn't very often. I mean they sold appliances! What kind of hardware store is that? Well, now HD sells appliances and not nearly the selection as Lowes. Anyway, times change, and so do businesses. I guess opinions do too.

Bud

I feel your pain my friend. When the HD installers ruined all the woodwork, I was livid. My wife came home and she said to me "honey are you ok?" and I said "yes, why?" and she told me that she was worried about me because she could see a vein throbbing in my temple and she thought I was going to have a stroke.

I am normally a meek guy but one thing that I really hate is incompetence, and when that incompetence is right there in your home destroying your stuff, thats just too much. Then add on all the run around that the HD managers give you with the ... "we will have the manager call you back tomorrow" and then he doesnt so you call back and they say "the manager is out today but should be back in next Tuesday"...etc.

They strung me along for weeks, I hope you get everything taken care of much sooner.

Were you there when it happened? I was here and was down there quite a bit. I explained about the fabric and the woodwork and that they really needed to be careful. I asked a lot of questions and the guys were very helpful. They go the job done and well. That's all that matters to me is they meet your expectation.

I went through your photos and I feel for you. I personally would have kicked them out of my house and went directly after the manager of the installer and HD store manager. Forget dealing with the floor people. I'm only 6 miles from the HD I bought from and been there in no time if what happened to you, happened to me. I got a few "we'll call you back" comments and I just kept calling until I got to the store manager. He even told me he'd call back yesterday and I ended up calling him back directly. I even called "Eileen" twice today, so now she knows me by name.

It'll get straightened out. I can be a real pain in the ass when I want to be.

Bud

Bud hopefully they can get the same dye lot that you have other wise you need to replace all of it. I've seen dye lots run night and day. If its not the same run the shade difference could make it look like a completely different carpet.
Just make sure they ordered the same dye lot and you'll be fine. I would check with them though, before you get anymore surprises on the day of the install when the carpet doesn't match.

That's obviously a concern of mine and they say they'll make it right. Fortunately the two piece won't actually touch, so if they're pretty close, I should be OK. I already told Jim (store manager) if they couldn't match it it was coming out and replace at their expense. He agreed they would make it right.

I spoke to Eileen about 8:30 and she said it was not the same dye lot, the next one up. Again, we'll see. If its not right, its unacceptable. Period. Eileen said that they were hand carrying the piece of carpet from the mill to the installers place tomorrow. They will expedite the delivery and will work around the schedule of the installers to correct the problem. BTW, they never even measure the piece for the riser and it was never paid for. The store is now paying for that as well, they're going to eat the additional costs for the extra carpet and installation. I also requested they get the same installers and they'd work to get that done.

A lot of promises. Lets see what happens. I'll be calling them again tomorrow, maybe even returning a few items, so I might just stop by the flooring department.

Bud

Bud...

You're on those HD guys like a dog!! I think I understand your user name now! :D :D

Sean

I feel your pain my friend. When the HD installers ruined all the woodwork, I was livid. My wife came home and she said to me "honey are you ok?" and I said "yes, why?" and she told me that she was worried about me because she could see a vein throbbing in my temple and she thought I was going to have a stroke.

I am normally a meek guy but one thing that I really hate is incompetence, and when that incompetence is right there in your home destroying your stuff, thats just too much. Then add on all the run around that the HD managers give you with the ... "we will have the manager call you back tomorrow" and then he doesnt so you call back and they say "the manager is out today but should be back in next Tuesday"...etc.

They strung me along for weeks, I hope you get everything taken care of much sooner.

I love that "The manager is out today stuff." That's when you drive to the store and find the manager on site. Then you ask him why people are lying for him on the phone and why can't he fix your problem in a loud voice so that other customers can hear. You'll be amazed at how fast a company can/will move when you can give prospective customers a bad feeling. I'm not a confrontational type of person, but at 6'3 and 300lbs I'm no pushover either. Also, there are very few retail stores on the planet that operate without at least an acting manager, even if that person is just the assistant manager or some other higher level employee working in the manager's place while he's out. The ones that don't are usually small retail stores. I know for a fact that HD has an acting manager on duty at all times, so never take "The manager is out today" as an answer.

When the department manager won't call, you go to the store manager.
When the store manager won't call, you call the district manager.
When the district manager won't call, you call the regional manager.
When the regional manager won't call, you call Corporate HQ.

That's pretty much how it works in all retail, and if you can't get satisfaction that way, then you may have no recourse other than legal.

Did you ever get your problems with the wood/trim damage resolved?

Joseph

Joseph,

I hear you. It's sad the hoops you have to go through. I'm not confrontational either, per se, but I've always been the type to speak my mind and tell you how I feel. I tend not to beat around the bush. It is what it is. What gets me worked up are these exact situations. Incompetence, laziness, brushing things off and not taking responsibility. Especially if its an underdog getting bullied. I hate that. When I get a bee in my bonnet, I'll take a bite and hang on like a pitbull. I'll escalate, make phone calls, letters, find contacts, etc. whatever is required to fix the problem.

I think you're referring to the imperfection in the door (picture posted a while back)? I held off on it. It's actually gone down some and if not noticeable unless you know exactly where to look for it. It's on the back of a door (in the concession area), so unless you're in there with the door closed and know where to look, you won't see it. The picture makes it looks larger than it is (was). Plus, I'm done with staining. I don't want to go through that again in the near future. Plus it was a prehung door and I'm not sure the hinges would line up and I'm not about to pull off all the trim and the jamb. I'll live with that. My time is not worth the defect.

Bud

Bud...

You're on those HD guys like a dog!! I think I understand your user name now! :D :D

Sean

And my bite is mighter than my bark! :D

Bud

Bud I was in the house while they were installing, but I was not standing over them watching their work. For one thing, I didn't want to bug them, and for another, I figured they are the experts, what do I know about carpet installation?

It was not until right after they left that I discovered all of the damages.

Profloor and Home Depot both refused to pay for the damage. ProFloor said it wasn't their fault, because the team that did the damage was actually not their employees. They said that they were full up on jobs that week and they farmed my job out to a independant team.

Home Depot just flatly refused to do anything, and why should they? They are a multi-billion dollar company, they don't need to worry themselves about the little guy.

I wound up taking Home Depot to the Douglas County Small Claims Court and won a $1600 settlement. The store manager showed up to defend the case. The judge asked me to show my evidence and I handed him a folder with all of those photos (but much higher quality). Then the judge asked the HD manager for his defense and he had nothing. HD paid me the settlement within a week.

All's well that ends well I guess, but I think the stress with the damage, the run around the store and the managers gave me, the general disrespect of my belongings and my business, and all the work gathering a case and documents and presenting them in court, all of that probably took 10 years off my life.

I wish I had originally gone with a small local carpet store that does its own work with its own teams, and in the future that is exactly what I will do!

Glad you got at least some cash out of it. That really sucks. They got into installation services to make money and sell more product. You figure they'd own up to it.

I used HD when I did the last basement and that worked out well. The installers also did a good job, except for some touch ups for paint, I was good to go. I felt pretty comfortable in about the situation, but that was before the new process. Even the people in the flooring department and the store manager said the process is a problem. Internal fighting, problems, etc. I heard it directly from the people working the floor. One guy told me that he actually started warning customers of the process before they purchased. Amazing.

Bud

Just wanted to post after my visit to Buds last night :D :D :D

Still in awe at the quality of workmanship that Bud has put into his HT. The GOM with bevelled edge looks even better in person - if thats at all possible :D

I'm now hard set on the Ascends for my fronts, I'm no audiophile but the clarity of the sound was very evident (I won't mention the playlist but my wife would have been VERY happy :D )......I've also been sworn to secrecy on Buds other previous speaker purchases - but hey he was a lot younger then (so he say's) :eek:

Had a great time - although Bud's wife was a little unsure of inviting someone you only know from the Internet - but hopefully I didn't spoil it for others.

Bud - hope you enjoyed the English beer (and the Irish).

Looking forward to seeing the completed HT but be sure you stay around after completion as us novices need your real life DIY experience.

Hopefully you can get a trip up to NoVA in future as I'm sure there are plenty of us that will happily show you around 'our' hopefully soon to be completed HT (except of course Jeff who will I'm sure be tweaking for decades to come) :D

Mark,

Very happy to accommodate. Glad you were able to work it out. The wife has always been a little leary if people I invite over, she must think that people that have anything in common with me must be just as wacked, I suppose. Once I've "opened the bar", I'll talk her into a HT meet!

Thanks again for the brew. I'll definitely enjoy it, I'm sure it won't go to waste and it'll be gone by the end of the weekend, you can count on that.

Let me know when you're in town again, we can throw some more steaks on the grill!

Bud

Mark,

BTW, the sub is the Hsu VTF-2 MK2. Info can be found here. (http://www.hsustore.com/vtf2.html) I figured you might want to take a look at the specs. Ascend recommends Hsu with their speakers.

Bud

Measurement guy called this morning and said he'd be out between 9-11. I told him to forget it, that wasn't going to work. Plan on calling Orange again this morning.

MY trim/baffles came for the rest of the basement. I have about half a second coat on the ceiling to do then I'll get to those shortly. Hasn't been a real productive few days here. Going to wrap the ceiling up and get the crown (1st coat) done tonight so I can put the second coat on the trim and the first coat of wall paint on tomorrow. If I can stick to that plan, I should be able to start the flooring on Sunday.

Bud

The Ascends certainly are great speaker! I can't wait till I have all 7 of mine hooked at once!

Bud, you just need to make sure you don't accidentally hit the beer, knocki it off a ladder or something and spill it everywhere like that paint! Beer is more important, so I'm sure you'll be careful.

Jerrod,

I usually wear one of the beer helmets when I work, just for that very reason. A little industrial velcro and it stays on my head quite nicely. :D Although the pints of Tetley beer and the Guiness cans that Mark brought over make it a little top heavy.

http://www.zymetrical.com/images/products/beerhelmet.jpg

Bud

No thats not me... :D

Geez, you guys don't laugh at my Chicken Foot Soup jokes and my beer helmet jokes. Hmmm.... You guys must be sniffing green glue or something.

Bud

So I just finished the second coats on the ceiling, all the crown and the base molding. Tomorrow morning I'll clean up a little, tape the molding and start painting the 1st coat on the walls in the gameroom and bar.

That moves flooring to Sunday. No news from HD today, except Eileen was out. Will call her tomorrow.

Bud

Cabinets for the bar and concession area!

I got the quote back from my neighbor and the same layout (different cabinet manufacturers) for the bar and concession area is 2K+ plus LESS than HD. Imagine that. They're price included installation as well. HD's didn't. So looks like I need to pick the finish on Tuesday and double check a few things, then get it ordered. It takes about three weeks I'm told.

Bud

Bud, just sent you a PM I think you may find interesting. It has to do with your bar....

Drew

When we were looking for cabinets, the difference in cost between HD and the local home store (larger, but focused on floor treatments and cabinets) was quite a bit... HD was a couple grand more, and was easily worse service. I guess it's a trend with them in that area of their business.

I'm going to stay away from any of their subcontractors, based on these horror stories. (Plus I like to DIY more anyway.. :))

Oh, and it took three weeks for mine as well. I ended up installing them myself -- wasn't difficult at all.. just needed some help lifting the wall cabinets in place due to their weight.

Bud,

Just finished reading you entire thread. Damn you have been a busy man. Outstanding job so far. Keep up the damn fine work.

John

Tim, I had planned to install the other ones from HD, but for 2K less installed, no thanks. They can do it. I'm getting a little fried!

Bud

Bud,

Just finished reading you entire thread. Damn you have been a busy man. Outstanding job so far. Keep up the damn fine work.

John

John,

Apparently you have too! Must have taken you a while. Thanks for the response and welcome to the forum.

Bud

I spent most of yesterday and half of Friday (up working until 1:00 AM) finishing up trim and painting. Here's were I left it last night.

http://images16.fotki.com/v316/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1227-vi.jpg
http://images12.fotki.com/v252/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1228-vi.jpg
http://images17.fotki.com/v307/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1229-vi.jpg

Still need to paint the doors and sashes and do some touchup.

Bud

Got a good chunk of the floor done today. Tomorrow I'l do the bar area, finish the bottom of the stairs and do the concession area. The floor wore me out.

http://images17.fotki.com/v306/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1231-vi.jpg
http://images16.fotki.com/v302/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1232-vi.jpg
http://images17.fotki.com/v313/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1233-vi.jpg

Bud

Wow !
Thats gonna be a really nice looking space Bud. Great job! I like the colors/flooring choice. Fantastic.

Okay, Bud,

Fess up...you have a gang of laborers working for you...you are absolutely amazing at the energy and outcomes of your efforts!

Randy.

Chris and Randy,

Thanks guys!

My Dad came by today to help, he opened boxes and laid out the pieces close to where they needed to be installed. I did all the cutting and installation. I spent maybe 7 hours today working on it.

It took me all day to paint. I stopped for about two hours to bring the kids next store to go swimming at the neighbors, then worked a few hours after that. That's only one coat of paint. The SW paint covers really, really well. I did prime and that helped. I spend a few hours Friday afternoon and worked up until about 1:00 AM Friday night to finish up all the trim so it would be dry in the morning. I wanted to be able to tape it.

Anyway, I'm fried. heading to sleep. More pictures tomorrow afternoon.

Bud

Bud - I cannot believe the change in such a short amount of time!

Putting me to shame.....spent Saturday and most of today with family. Got down to HT later this afternoon and got a fair bit of drywall done.....but nothing on your scale of activity.

Luckily my wife does not check out AVS or else I'll be in deep trouble :eek:

When I got back from Atlanta on Friday night had delivery of 4 boxes of Green Glue (all in tack) and my Star Ceiling Kit..... so lots too do.

Okay, Bud,

Fess up...you have a gang of laborers working for you...you are absolutely amazing at the energy and outcomes of your efforts!

Randy.


I agree. I think he is pulling a fast one on us. He has a team of guys doing all the work while he is out on the golf course. :D

Bud. You are a machine....... keep up the good work, its looking very nice.

Ronnie

Looks good my man! Any worries about hardwood/laminate being against the concrete floor? Is it cold or fairly comfortable? I'm thinking of a laminate or tile in my bar area, but am worried about it being cold.

The color looks good. Close to what I'm going to use... so of course I have to like it!

Bud, that floor looks incredible. You are going to really enjoy that space. I know I have enjoyed just watching it come together. Thanks for all the in depth detail on everything you have done.

I am inspired. We are signing the contract on a new house this week, and will be moving in by the end of the year, then I can get ready to start on my own creation, inspired by alot of what I have seen here.

Just like everyone else says, looks amazing. How was the floor to put in? I was thinking of getting some of that from HD, and what color is that, looks great.

Been a little while since I have been able to check out your progress. LOOKS GREAT BUD....LOVE THE COLORS IN THE CONCESSION AREA. That flooring looks really good next to that wall color. You may have unknowingly chosen my colors for my basement....thanks

Im finally cought up on your thread...looks great Bud!!!

Robert

Bud - I cannot believe the change in such a short amount of time!

Putting me to shame.....spent Saturday and most of today with family. Got down to HT later this afternoon and got a fair bit of drywall done.....but nothing on your scale of activity.

Luckily my wife does not check out AVS or else I'll be in deep trouble :eek:

When I got back from Atlanta on Friday night had delivery of 4 boxes of Green Glue (all in tack) and my Star Ceiling Kit..... so lots too do.

Glad you made it home OK and that your GG made it in one piece. I'm sure your anxious to get back at it ... I'm anxious to get it behind me!

Paint and flooring will always make a huge difference to a room. I'll be happy when today is over and the rest of the floor is done!

Bud

I agree. I think he is pulling a fast one on us. He has a team of guys doing all the work while he is out on the golf course. :D


OK, I confess. I'm a guest here at the State of GA Department of Mental health. For good behavior, I was allowed to use the computer and taught myself PhotoShop. The whole basement endeavor is an elaborate PhotoShop hoax. I managed to use AVS member photos and alter them to create the illusion that I actually have a basement with a home theater and gameroom. The whole build and basement is a farce. The Joke is on you guys. :p

Actually, I may need to be locked up after all this work after all. :)

Bud

Looks good my man! Any worries about hardwood/laminate being against the concrete floor? Is it cold or fairly comfortable? I'm thinking of a laminate or tile in my bar area, but am worried about it being cold.

The color looks good. Close to what I'm going to use... so of course I have to like it!

Jerrod,

No worries. The laminate is installed on 6 mil plastic (per the install instructions for warranty purposes). The flooring has the preinstalled foam backing on it, so it has some cushion to it. I have a slate laminate for the bar area, I'll post some shots when I finish it up. I was going to tile, but its such a small place. The slate tile interlock with the laminate, but I'll transition it in case I ever decide to go tile later. The tile will be colder than the laminate, although not too much of a difference.

Bud

Bud, that floor looks incredible. You are going to really enjoy that space. I know I have enjoyed just watching it come together. Thanks for all the in depth detail on everything you have done.

I am inspired. We are signing the contract on a new house this week, and will be moving in by the end of the year, then I can get ready to start on my own creation, inspired by alot of what I have seen here.

Thanks Michael. I think we will enjoy it. Keep us posted on your progress when you start!

Bud

Just like everyone else says, looks amazing. How was the floor to put in? I was thinking of getting some of that from HD, and what color is that, looks great.

The floor uses a glueless locking system (http://www.flooring.dupont.com/en/install/install.shtml) and the floor is installed over 6 mil plastic. The seams are very hidden, you have to really look for them once they're in place. I found that you have to get used to the locking system and how the pieces come together. The first row or two was the hardest because the whole row would move a little, causing the other pieces to pull apart some. Once I got through the first few rows and got the system down, it wasn't bad. Took a little strength sometimes getting the seams perfect, but thats just some grunt work.

One word of of advice (Jerrod, you too). If you decide on laminate, don't put the base and case molding on until AFTER you install the floor. I installed my molding so I could spray it all while it was on the walls, which as it turns out later, I decided against it and painted it by hand. Becuase you're dealing with 1x4 pieces of laminate, its a lot tougher to tile and snap a piece in place when you're banging againest a piece a piece of casing around the bottom of a door.

The wood laminate is Merbau Block (http://www.flooring.dupont.com/en/design/FG8010.shtml) and the slate tile for the bar is called Black Slate (http://www.flooring.dupont.com/en/design/FG8090.shtml)

Bud

Been a little while since I have been able to check out your progress. LOOKS GREAT BUD....LOVE THE COLORS IN THE CONCESSION AREA. That flooring looks really good next to that wall color. You may have unknowingly chosen my colors for my basement....thanks

Im finally cought up on your thread...looks great Bud!!!

Robert

Robert,

Thanks man. Flooring info is above and the color in the game room/bar area is Sherwin-Willaims "Reserved Gold #6129". The concession area is a shade lighter on the multi-color swatch, its called "Blonde 6128".

Bud

I think I'm going to look into this stuff a bit more. Do you have any pics of the bottom of the laminate and some in-progress installation? I'd just like to see a bit more instead of having to drive to the Big Orange.

Bud,
Keep up the great work. I can only hope my game room and HT turn out as nicely as yours. Especially impressive since you've done so much of the work yourself.

For anyone concerned about floor warmth, we have tile in our master bath. I installed an electric floor heating mat from this site (http://www.warmlyyours.com/homeowner/index.aspx). It was very easy to install and is very efficient. They have products for use under tile, laminate or carpet. The product comes with a programmable thermostat, and uses about the same amount of electricity as a single 100W light bulb. The area I'm heating is about 15 x 12. Huge WAF!

Bud,

As the father of 3 kids, I don't see how you can get so much done in a day! That floor is simply awesome. The basement project looks like the perfect extension of the rest of you fine home (viewed from the outside theater pics). Congrats on a great job. Unlike you I'm sure, I will be sorry to see the project finished.

New thread idea:

Things to do during time I used to catch up on the Blazing Ridge Cinema construction thread. :D

I am sure there would be lots of contributors

Scott

I think I'm going to look into this stuff a bit more. Do you have any pics of the bottom of the laminate and some in-progress installation? I'd just like to see a bit more instead of having to drive to the Big Orange.

I don't have any in progress stuff, but will take a picture of the back side and use a demo piece to give you and idea. Having the trim in forces you to figure out how to snap pieces into place and slide them under casing, that sort of thing. I wish I had done the trim later, but its pretty much over at this point. It did kick my butt.

Bud

Bud,
Keep up the great work. I can only hope my game room and HT turn out as nicely as yours. Especially impressive since you've done so much of the work yourself.

For anyone concerned about floor warmth, we have tile in our master bath. I installed an electric floor heating mat from this site (http://www.warmlyyours.com/homeowner/index.aspx). It was very easy to install and is very efficient. They have products for use under tile, laminate or carpet. The product comes with a programmable thermostat, and uses about the same amount of electricity as a single 100W light bulb. The area I'm heating is about 15 x 12. Huge WAF!

Dave,

Thanks man. I tried to get my builder to use the under tile warming system, but he wouldn't go for it. It is a huge WAF. We're lucky we live in the south where its not a huge deal. I bought her a towel warmer instead. Another big WAF!

Bud

Bud,

As the father of 3 kids, I don't see how you can get so much done in a day! That floor is simply awesome. The basement project looks like the perfect extension of the rest of you fine home (viewed from the outside theater pics). Congrats on a great job. Unlike you I'm sure, I will be sorry to see the project finished.


Scott,

Thanks!

It ain't as easy as it looks/seems. My wife had a sinus infection the other night and took some medicine and was out by 7:00 PM. So I did the dinner thing and got the kids to bed, then headed down and painted. She was at the doctor most of Saturday, so the kids ended up in the movie room during the day when I painted elsewhere. Then to the neighbors pool, then kids to bed, then back to painting. Saturday the wife took care of the kids, as she did today. She knows I'm so close and want to wrap it up. Next week I'll grout the bathroom and finish the closet and bar (did not get to them today). I'm thinking about calling the plumber to finish out the bathroom just so I don't have to wait another weekend.....

I still have cabinets, countertops, etc. The major labor provided by me is done though. Don't forget the light boxes and probably a ticket both.

Bud

OK, here's what the crew did today (er, me and my Dad). We finished the area at the bottom of the steps and in front of the bathroom. Harder than I thought. Lots of cuts for notches, corners, casing, etc. We didn't get to the bar area and the closet behind the bar. Next weekend. I have to grout and finish that out. I also need to get some shoe mold to paint and stain.

I also installed the rack and put in the equipment. I temporarily hooked everything up to make sure it was working. I installed some plates today (buttkicker plate and outlet plate on the riser).

I have SOOOOOO much trash now. Need to get it to the curb in the morning. I have 7 boxes of flooring to return as well as a bunch of tile. I'll do that on the way back from the cabinet selection trip.

I have to admit, I' pretty tired. My hands are sore, my knees are cut up and my forearms got pinched (between sections of floor) a few times installing the floor. My knees are always sore anyway, so being on them most of the day didn't help.

So here we go....

Area in front of the theater room at the bottom of the stairs. The hard part is thinking ahead and getting the floor continuous between rooms without a transition. No easy task (especially with molding in place).
http://images17.fotki.com/v306/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1234-vi.jpg

Area in front of bathroom. Perfect transition to the marble threshold. Same height. That was a relief it worked out as well as it did,
http://images17.fotki.com/v312/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1235-vi.jpg

Concession area. I did the equipment closet as well without having to use a transition. A little trickier, since we're dealing with stained wood. In other words, no caulking and painting.
http://images1.fotki.com/v318/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1236-vi.jpg

Rack installed with equipment in. Need to trim this out (wasn't sure if I go with the rest of the stain or paint it black). Anyway, I need to get some drawers and some blanks to fill out the bottom of the rack. Bottom of the rack is just a little dusty (drywall dust).
http://images1.fotki.com/v318/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1237-vi.jpg

Bud

Bud,
you are the man.
Beautiful, tasteful work.
You deserve some R&R...
or Maker's Mark or Knob Creek or Jack.
Lubricate those knees son. ;)

Nicely done Bud. It's really coming together and looking very nice. Take a day and lick your wounds. I know the end is in sight but sometimes you just gotta take a day.

Bud,
you are the man.
Beautiful, tasteful work.
You deserve some R&R...
or Maker's Mark or Knob Creek or Jack.
Lubricate those knees son. ;)

Thanks Milt. I lubricated the knees with the rest of the beer Mark (BritinVA) brought last week!

Bud

Nicely done Bud. It's really coming together and looking very nice. Take a day and lick your wounds. I know the end is in sight but sometimes you just gotta take a day.

Thanks Bryan. I know what you mean. I'll be taking it easy this week, I have to catch up on some work and let the body heal some. I've got some vacation coming up, looking forward to doing NOTHING!

Bud

Doing nothing on vacation - what a concept. Maybe I'll try that on my wife - nah - not much point I guess ;)

Hi Bud -

I am new to thread. Your work is inspiring. I have just begun reading your post and have made it through page 7 as I often get sidetracked on links. I am just in the planning stages of my basement and will most likely borrow a few ideas from yours. Thank you for your time commitment to keeping the thread updated. Once I begin I will also try and start a construction thread. Good luck in finishing soon.

Chris

Hey Bud,

I've been following the progress for a few weeks now, nice work indeed! Thanks for the photo updates, and all the small, detailed information you've provided. It'll sure make it easier on those of us that are planning projects down the road!

Todd

Hi Bud -

I am new to thread. Your work is inspiring. I have just begun reading your post and have made it through page 7 as I often get sidetracked on links. I am just in the planning stages of my basement and will most likely borrow a few ideas from yours. Thank you for your time commitment to keeping the thread updated. Once I begin I will also try and start a construction thread. Good luck in finishing soon.

Chris

Chris,

Thanks and welcome. Borrow away and good luck with your build. Looking forward to seeing the pictures.

Bud

Hey Bud,

I've been following the progress for a few weeks now, nice work indeed! Thanks for the photo updates, and all the small, detailed information you've provided. It'll sure make it easier on those of us that are planning projects down the road!

Todd

Thanks Todd. I'm glad its helped. Thanks for the reply as well.

Bud

Just got back from my "returns" run. I went down to the cabinet place to look at the different styles and I think I figured out what I wanted. I then went to "Floor and Decor" and returned all the wall tile and floor tile I didn't use. From there, I returned a can of primer and trim paint. On the way back, I stopped at Orange to return the remaining laminate floor, wall tile and some misc things. I also picked up switch plates and some other misc stuff.

While there, I wandered over to the flooring department to check on the status. Saw Eileen and found out the the installers will have my carpet by tomorrow, she said the measurement guys will be here tomorrow and she's trying to get the carpet installed this week. We'll see what happens in the next few days.

Bud

Looks great Bud. Interested in a pic of the bottom of the laminate when you get a chance. You're close to being done. Just think of how much time you'll have when you don't updates to post?

Thanks Milt. I lubricated the knees with the rest of the beer Mark (BritinVA) brought last week!

Bud

Sounds like a return trip is in order to replenish your stocks :D

So what was your rating of the Tetleys?

Mark,

Tetleys were wonderful. I really enjoyed them. I'll have to see if the local store carries them.

Bud

Looks great Bud. Interested in a pic of the bottom of the laminate when you get a chance. You're close to being done. Just think of how much time you'll have when you don't updates to post?

Plan on me posting for quite some time. I'll take a shot of the back this morning for you.

Bud

Did a few small things yesterday in the game room and bar. I put on all the outlet covers and a few wall plates. I bought a few midways I didn't want to use. I also noticed a bunch of spots on the walls I need to fix around outlets. I also put up the register covers as well as all the trims/baffles for the cans. I also connected the four ceiling speakers.

I did manage to get all the trash out yesterday morning as well, although because of the holiday, looks like they'll be coming today. Glad it didn't rain yesterday, would have been a mess at the curb.

Measurement guy is suppose to be here this morning.

Bud

Jerrod,

Here are a few pictures of the laminate. As you can see the blue area is the preinstalled foam material.
http://images17.fotki.com/v311/photos/6/649633/3402899/100_1238-vi.jpg

The edging around the laminate is groved and is part of the locking system. One side fits in the other. You basically tile on side and line them up, then snap them in place for a very tight fit.
http://images16.fotki.com/v316/photos/6/649633/3402899/100_1239-vi.jpg

The "individual planks" of wood in the laminate have a microbevel so it looks like traditional hardwood put together. When you put the boards in place, the seam between the length of the boards disappears.

Also, you really need a table saw to cut this stuff. Especially when you get to a point where you need to cut it lengthwise.

Bud

Jerrod,
Also, you really need a table saw to cut this stuff. Especially when you get to a point where you need to cut it lengthwise.
Bud

I agree. For quick crosscuts on the floor I installed, I used a miter saw, but a table saw was invaluable for ripping lengthwise. Then again, my planks were only 3.75" wide; yours look a bit wider. I tried ripping them with a jigsaw, but just tore the boards up.

Joseph

Well, measurement guy was just here. He remeasured ALL the carpeted areas. He said because they made the mistake, they cover it. So we'll see what the deal is with the dye lot and if its not right, I guess they'll be replacing everything, including the stairs. The installers were suppose to have the carpet today, so I'll be calling Eileen this afternoon.

Bud

I agree. For quick crosscuts on the floor I installed, I used a miter saw, but a table saw was invaluable for ripping lengthwise. Then again, my planks were only 3.75" wide; yours look a bit wider. I tried ripping them with a jigsaw, but just tore the boards up.

Joseph

These are just shy of 12" wide and my mitre saw is 10", so I didn't even try it. I used a jig saw for those funny cuts and notches when I needed to, but they recommend you cut everything upside down so you don't tear it up. When you have funny cuts and have to transfer all the measurements on the back (mirror image) it gets you thinking!

Bud

Bud,

I used the same (cherry wood design, correct?) DuPont laminate in my living room and dining room just over a year ago. 500 ft^2 in all and we were able to knock it out a day. Easy install.

I'm enjoying watching your progress!

Andy

Well, measurement guy was just here. He remeasured ALL the carpeted areas. He said because they made the mistake, they cover it. So we'll see what the deal is with the dye lot and if its not right, I guess they'll be replacing everything, including the stairs. The installers were suppose to have the carpet today, so I'll be calling Eileen this afternoon.

Bud

Man what a pain in the rear. They keep draging it on and on and on.......

Bud,

I used the same (cherry wood design, correct?) DuPont laminate in my living room and dining room just over a year ago. 500 ft^2 in all and we were able to knock it out a day. Easy install.

I'm enjoying watching your progress!

Andy

Thanks Andy. I guess it has an aspect of cherry to it, its called "Merbau Block". It wasn't a bad install, just took longer than expected.

Bud

Man what a pain in the rear. They keep draging it on and on and on.......

Agreed, but I think it'll get resolved pretty quickly now. I have my fingers crossed at least.

Bud

Just bought a few EB6 blanks (6 space) for my rack on ebay to fill in the bottom section. I think I'm ok for shelves now, I have on 3U shelf left and one unused shelf in the rack now. I'd like to get a 2U or 3U drawer for misc supplies/tools.

Bud

Put in my order with the neighbor the for bar and concession cabinets this morning. He said he was going to order them today. I'm going for a color called "Cafe with a Licorice glaze". It's a darker brown with some detail with a dark glaze coat. Should take three weeks.

Bud

Bud,

Nice and clean look. Great job. Is that SW Restrained Gold on the walls?

Steve,

Thanks. SW Restrained Gold in the gameroom and bar. Blonde in the concession area. Just replied to you PM as well.

Bud

Steve,

Thanks. SW Restrained Gold in the gameroom and bar. Blonde in the concession area. Just replied to you PM as well.

Bud
I thought that color looked familiar. We have the SW RG in our house too. Also, thanks for taking my call.

Steve,

No problem. Let me know if you need anything else.

Bud

Hi Bud,

I'm about to start drywalling my basement (not dedicated HT) tomorrow morning. A while back I thought you put up a post saying what type of tape etc... you used for all of your joints. I can't seem to find that post now for some reason.

I'm going to go with the fiberglass tape for all the joints between the panels and the paperfaced corner beads for outside and inside corners.

I'm trying to find out what is used between the ceiling and wall corner? Is it the same inside corner bead used between walls? Or is the standard paper tape used?

Thanks in advance for your assistance.

Dan

Hey Dan,

I used the fiberglass tape for the tapered and butt joints.

I used the corner joints (tape with metal) for the the drywall pieces that came together at a 90 degree angle. In other words, everywhere where there was a inside or outside corner, vertically or horizontally. So in your case, where the corner meets the ceiling, I used the metal/tape corners for the inside corner itself (vertical) and where the ceiling comes to the wall, the same, inside corners (horizontally). You can use paper tape (or heavy paper tape) for the wall/ceiling joints, you basically fold it in half to make 90 degree angles, but for me, it was just as easier to use the corner pieces. Are you planning on crown molding? If so, it'll all be covered, so you might want to consider the heavy paper route to save you a few bucks.

When you use the tape/metal corner beads, makes sure you have enough mud to secure the corner in place, but not too much where you have "hills" under the tape. After you get it on the wall, take a mud knife and run it down the length to get the excess mud out. Same with outside corners. If you have too much mud under them, it's harder to correct later. Remember, the first coat of mud is there to act as a sort of glue to hold it in place. The outside coats are there to make it look right.

I think I posted info on those beads in the thread, there is some good info on working with them there as well (on the link to the site). When you work on the finish coats, do one side at a time and let it dry before moving to the other side.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Bud

Thanks a lot for the quick reply. I'm not going to be putting up crown so I think I'm going to stick with the paper faced corner beads for the ceiling/wall corners. Little pricier, but in the end, whats $40 (if that) extra if it makes my life easier.

Keep up the great work.

Dan

Thanks. Even though I did crown, I did the paperfaced anyway. A few bucks more, but a lot easier. You can just butt them together. When you cut them, I used linemans pliers to flatten the metal edges out.

This may help:
http://www.usg.com/USG_Marketing_Content/usg.com/web_files/Documents/Installation_and_Appl_Guides/Bead_and_Trim-installation_guide.pdf

Bud

Picked up my quarter round yesterday and got it painted this morning. I need to stain two pieces for the concession area. Comcast internet was hosed today, so I lost a lot of time online and for work, so ... I wandered downstairs. Managed to get 95% of the painted quarter round installed already.

I also called the carpet installers this mornng and was told they have one piece of carpet on hand, but not the other (the Sanded Silk), but they still won't schedule the install until they get the second piece. Called Orange again today and found out the section of Sanded Silk was delayed from the mill (contrary to what I was told before) and that it won't get shipped out until next week. SO, my installation will be running on like 6 WEEKS next week. Since I'll be away on vacation soon, my guess is they won't get me on the schedule until after I return, so it'll be two weeks after that. Time to call Jim the store manager again.

A few interesting articles recently in the paper about HD, the stockholder meeting (directors were a no-show), customer service, 20% decline in stock price since he took the helm, etc. I'm sure Mr. Nardelli is getting beaten up on a large number of fronts, as he should considering the $150M he's made over the last five years (not including stock options and retirement perks).

Bud

...A few interesting articles recently in the paper about HD, the stockholder meeting (directors were a no-show), customer service, 20% decline in stock price since he took the helm, etc. I'm sure Mr. Nardelli is getting beaten up on a large number of fronts, as he should considering the $150M he's made over the last five years (not including stock options and retirement perks).

Bud

Guys in my neck of the woods are beaming about those woes.

(for those who don't know it, Lowe's headquarters is here in Mooresville)

Bud, I just looked at all 64 pages of your theater construction this morning. Great work. I think these construction threads are the best part of this forum. Keep posting more pics.

Chris

Hey Chris,

Thanks. I'll keep posting as I make more progress. Caulked some quarter round today, painted one side of a door, and grouted the batthroom shower and floor today. All important, but not the most picture friendly. Tomorrow the rest of the laminate, hopefully the remaining doors will be painted and I'll trim out the rack. More pictures then!

Bud

Hey Bud,

You have probably addressed this recently but i might have missed it...what type/size seating will you be going with, how many rows/seat..etc etc

I was wondering if you would have room for the 90's or if you were looking more towards the 88's

Robert

Robert,

Decided to go with option A, two 90s in the front, loveseat flanked by 90s in the back.
http://images1.fotki.com/v314/photos/6/649633/3402899/Berks090s-vi.jpg

Bud

OK, some weekend shots. Got pretty much everything I wanted to done this weekend, except put the transitions in where the floor and the carpet meet as well as the laminate to the slate in the bar. Getting close!

I didn't take any pictures of the closet I did, but here is the bar area. Needs to be swept. the whole perimeter of the bar (except the wall on the right will have cabinets. You can see one imperfection there on the left in the second picture, well that's just a filler. I used a cut piece to start and needed something to level it out under the cabinets, so it won't be seen. Needs a good sweeping. I was afraid I was going to run out of slate, in fact, I used every piece.
http://images17.fotki.com/v311/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1241-vi.jpg
http://images17.fotki.com/v306/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1240-vi.jpg

Hung up the Mummy poster temporarily. Love the colors. I ordered a set of 20 old movie posters like that on ebay. All 11x17 though. Plan on putting a few around, including the bathroom! Where the mummy poster is, I'll make a lightbox.
http://images16.fotki.com/v316/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1243-vi.jpg

Finally, got some stuff cleaned up and started touching up the walls.
http://images17.fotki.com/v13/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1242-vi.jpg

Here is the bathroom grouted.
http://images1.fotki.com/v320/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1244-vi.jpg

Here is the rack trimmed out. Went with the stained trim, since it was already done. Looks good. Can always paint it black later. I've got 6 space blanks for the bottom of the rack coming.
http://images17.fotki.com/v306/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1245-vi.jpg

Bud

Is that a Heini or Becks on the bar.......glad to see it was not a Anheiser Bush brand :D

Looking real sweat - soon you will be done and can start enyoing!

You can see one imperfection there on the left in the second picture, How can you live with yourself ;) Beautiful tile work, Bud. Your grout lines are impeccable. Craftsmanship. Can always paint it black later Just my opinion. Don't. Looks nice the way it is.
Is that a Heini or Becks on the bar Beck's

Mark,

Milt is correct, it's a Becks. I drink both and stay away from AB. For some reason, the liquor store I go to sells 12 packs of Becks for 9.99, so its a steal for those hot day, chuggin' beers.

Milt,

Just want to make sure you knew. I actually tiled the bathroom. The black slate in the bar is laminate, like the wood floor. You might have missed that post, but thanks anyway!

Bud

Hark at me talking - I'm sitting here swigging a Micholob Amber Bock - its the only AB beer I'll drink (unless the only other choice is water :D )

So Bud keeps telling us he's not drinking when he's had the spills. Hmmm, I think we've caught him guys!

Seriously Bud, things are turning out beautiful. I agree that the stained trim around the rack is beautiful. Do you have an additional amp, or are you powering your speakers just with that Yamaha RXV2600?

Dave,

Thanks. I'm using the 2600 for the HT room. I had an old Kenwood receiver/CD changer laying around I'm using for music in the bar/gameroom. I have two pairs of in ceiling speakers (Hometech - ebay purchase) in that area. I also ran IR to the bar (as well as component/HDMI/CAT5, etc for future stuff) so I can control it and still have it in the rack. I have another Kenwood receiver that I bought for the sole use of buttkickers.

The 2600 does have zone two/three capability, but since I have to Kenwoods, I figured I might as well use them.

Bud

Bud;

Where did you get the trim that you used around your av rack? It looks really nice is that one piece or is it a stacked millwork job?

Thanks Bud. I was most interested in whether the 2600 would have any trouble powering all the speakers. I'm planning my budget very carefully and wanted to verify it won't be necessary for me to buy an amp right now. When I add buttkickers (Christmas present to myself), I'll get a separate amp to power those I expect.

You're going to love those laminate floors. I've had them in two different homes in the last 5 years and they're awesome. The wife loves how easy they are to clean up. Swiffer's work great on there.

Bud;

Where did you get the trim that you used around your av rack? It looks really nice is that one piece or is it a stacked millwork job?

Hey Don,

I bought it at a local molding/trim place about 15 miles from where I am (Moldings Unlimited (http://www.mouldingsunlimited.com/)) . I'm sure you can find something similar in your area. It's a case molding in yellow pine with a Rosewood stain. Here is the profile:

http://www.mouldingsunlimited.com/casemu3300gr.gif

Its put together in two pieces, but was done at the mill, not by me. They sell it at Orange, but its primed/paint grade. I wanted to match the same casing in the rest of the house, but wanted it stained for the HT room. Its the same casing I used for all the stained doors.

Here are the rest of their casing profiles in case you see something else you might like and give you some ideas:
http://www.mouldingsunlimited.com/casing.htm

Bud

You're going to love those laminate floors. I've had them in two different homes in the last 5 years and they're awesome. The wife loves how easy they are to clean up. Swiffer's work great on there.
That's one thing I noticed already, it's real easy to sweep and clean up. It should work out nicely.

Bud

Rack looks real nice. Heck everything does.

This tip is probably too basic for your skill level, but you may want to put a sealer on the grout. Our builder didn't do it, a neighbor suggested it, we didn't get around to it, and our grout is grimy now.

Dave,

Sure will, thanks. They say you have to let it sit 72 hours before you can seal it. I have to mist the grout once a day as well. One nice thing about this grout, it has a matching caulk. Both the caulk and the grout are sanded as well. I still need to do the corners with the caulk, but think I'll do that after I paint the bathroom.

Geez, I just keep finding things for me to do.

Bud

I'm planning my budget very carefully and wanted to verify it won't be necessary for me to buy an amp right now. When I add buttkickers (Christmas present to myself), I'll get a separate amp to power those I expect.
External amps are never necessary when you're using an AVR, that's the nice part. You can always upgrade that later, even if it's considered underpowered. Get the receiver/pre-pro for its features first, and power second. Power is easily upgraded.

Sorry for the hijack..

A couple of updates. Plumber called, he's coming out Friday to install the toilet. I've done it before, but I want to check on some things with my pump anyway, so he can install the toilet. In fact, he's going to even bring it so I don't have to go buy it and lug it downstairs. Going to run out tonight and get a vanity, sink and the matching faucet (same as the shower).

Called the big "O" again, carpet is on its way to the installer and I should get a call from them later this week to get on the schedule. I was told I'm suppose to get "priority" scheduling, so it looks like it'll be after I get back from vacation next week before I see the carpet installed.

Bud

looking good bud, your in the home Stretch now. What is the opening night DVD?

looking good bud, your in the home Stretch now. What is the opening night DVD?
What do you mean opening night?? He's has over 250 hours on that projector already. It's more of a "Grand Re-Opening" IMO :D

The official opening, with all the inviteeees.

It doese not mean you cannot test the hardware. after all you need to make sure it all works, right Bud........

Steve and Greg,

I agree, you need to make sure things work! Maybe not 250 hours worth (probably closer to 350 now).

Lets see, carpet is 2-3 weeks out, cabinets are 2-3 weeks out, seats are 2-3 weeks out. Hmmm, I guess we're looking at the 4th weekend for an opening. Still need countertops for the bar, but hey, can't have everything.

My guess is we'll do a outdoor movie first, not positive though. Have to think about the movie though. I'll have to see what's coming out in the next few weeks and see if there is anything good. I might do a kids movie and invite all the neighbors, then the adults can pound a few. Or just me!

Bud

Tonight I bought a 48" vanity and cultured marble top. Both in boring white. I did see a nice wood vanity, but it something about the symmetry to it I didn't like. The guy at Lowes (yes, the Big L, Big Blue II, Big Blue Box) helped me get it off the shelve and on the cart and then I decided against it, so back up on the shelf it went. That's OK, I paid for that, since I had to put it in the back of the truck myself since no one was around. Just me a a 48" vanity. Picture that one.

I did have to go to Orange since Lowes didn't have the matching Delta faucet that I bought for the shower. I also picked up a few double gang wall plates and could not find a three gang plate in Decora white. Found every color though but white. Asked the returns chick for someone in electrical and after a few minutes SHE comes over. She couldn't help, she said I had to wait. I'm like "Sorry, gotta go....." I wish I knew what Jim the store manager looked like. Second damn time I can't find a stupid plate.

Bud

Bud - For Kids think about the Nanny McPhee movie - a nice id movie and I think the LFE of her cane striking the floor will be superb! We watch it lat weekend and my $500 Sony HTIB was quite impressive (but I sit right by the sub).

looking good - looks like i need another trip to Atlanta in 4 weeks :D

Mark,

Good call. I didn't realize that was out. Need to pick that one up when we get close.

Anytime you're in the area, give us a shout. You're always welcome.

Bud

I second Nanny McPhee. Good family flick.

A few updates from this morning. Got a ship date for the Berks from Ben, looks like the seats will be here around the 23rd. That's great, since I'll be gone a week and didn't want them arriving while I was out. Now I need to make sure the carpet is installed before the seats arrive.

Neighbor called, the cabinet guys want to measure for some verification, which makes sense. They were going off the HD measurements done before. He should be out this week, I'll find out later today. That means the cabinets will be pushed out a week probably. I'm OK with that though, since I'll be saving a ton.

Bud

Painted the bathroom last night in preparation for the plumbers coming on Friday. Still need to put the base molding in there, now that that the tile is done. Will do that tonight.

As I recall, these guys didn't show up on the correct day last time when they did the plumbing for the bar/broke up the floor, I hope they get it right this time.

Will snap a shot this AM.

Bud

Here are a few shots from this morning. Had some more goodies arrive today, I got my MA blank panels for the bottom of the rack. Still need to stain and do the quarter round for the concession area.

http://images2.fotki.com/v22/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1248-vi.jpg
http://images17.fotki.com/v4/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1249-vi.jpg

Bathroom painted and vanity/sink/faucets waiting for a home.

http://images17.fotki.com/v13/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1250-vi.jpg
http://images2.fotki.com/v22/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1251-vi.jpg

Bud

Bud,

the rack turned out real nice!!

larryep

Larry,

Thanks, I'm pretty happy with it. Need to do some stuff behind it still, organize the wires, install some plates, etc. I also am on the hunt for a 2U or 3U drawer on the cheap. I keep seeing 4 space ones with locks and I just don't need something that big (or expensive).

Will keep checking the worlds biggest flea market...

Bud

I also got my extra bulbs from goodmart.com for my cans in the gameroom/bar area. One broken out of a case. Was actually surprised one was broken. No big deal, they were like a buck and a half each and I have plenty of extra.

Bud

Looking good Bud! I think this is the first time I have said this to a man, but NICE RACK! :eek:

Looking good Bud! I think this is the first time I have said this to a man, but NICE RACK! :eek:
Umm.. is THIS (http://lizzardsbranch.com/images/nice%20rack.jpg) what you had in mind??? :D

Ahh, there was a "show me your rack" thread last year. Now lets not go and start posting deer racks, spice racks, racks of ribs, etc.

Bud

Carpet installers called today, remaining carpet will be installed on Tuesday, June 20th now. At least I'm on the schedule (again). I requested the same installers I had just to be safe.

Bud

Plumbers are suppose to be here today, we'll see if they make it. Just in case, I painted some more base molding and installed part of it this morning. I hadn't done that in the bathroom because I wanted to get the floor in first. I also have to have them put in the vanity first so I can get a final measurement and cut the piece behind the toilet. I want to make sure I can get it in before they put the toilet in, otherwise I may have to piece it. I couldn't put the vanity in yet because they have to move one of the supplies for the faucet. We were going to put a three foot vanity in initially, but the four foot one will will look better. The supply is in the way of a drawer. Should be no big deal, since they have access to it from under the stairs. I didn't drywall that (yet).

Cabinet guy has not shown up for measurements of the bar yet. http://www.clicksmilies.com/s0105/traurig/sad-smiley-056.gif

Bud

Plumber called, they'll be here in about 45 minutes! Geez, maybe my luck is changing for the better. :p

Bud

Plumber was here and is gone. Shower faucet is in, toilet is in. Vanity was just broken (I left it in the box), but was too wide anyway. Based on what he told me about the toilet width I thought I was good. Now I have to go back and get a 36" one now. Also, the faucet didn't fit in the vanity due to the hole spread, so I have to return the top anyway and get a new one.

Oh well, at least some of its done.

Bud

Well, at least the new throne is in.

And just for others and Bud if he ever builds another rack, you might not want the largest blanks available. You can get 2 large blanks and then a bunch of smaller blanks. The smaller blanks can go between the components to give them more room to breath and make the rack look fuller. But here's the main reason, look at Bud's very nice rack and suppose he were to get another component. That means he would need another shelf of course but that would also mean that one of his large blanks wouldn't fit anymore and he would have to buy a whole new blank rather than just removing a small blank. Now I know, blanks aren't outrageously priced, but I would rather just pull out a 2 space blank instead of pulling out a 6 space blank and having to buy a new 4 space blank. Just a thought to maybe save you a little money in the future if there's a chance of adding more equipment to a rack.

I built my own large blank. I went to a metal sign shop and got them to cut a black metal piece to the size I wanted, drilled my own holes and installed it. If I ever need the blank to be smaller, then I just cut some off the top, drill new holes and reinstall. It cost me like $8 or something like that and I have one solid smooth blank in my rack.

Toxarch,

That is true what you said. I am looking at getting a two space drawer, whihc means that I'd need either a 4 space blank or two 2 space blanks after I do get the drawer. I already have a few extra shelves, but I bought the blanks for an ex-MA dealer on ebay, so I paid next to nothing for the blanks. You are correct though (but you have to buy twice as many screws!!! j/k).

EDIT: Also, I tried to keep my receivers on top so not to keep the main source of heat traveling through the rack. I also have the fan in top of the closet, so it will be pulling the heat up and I have a vent panel on the very bottom (plus the door is not airtight). I may rearrange some things based on that Middle Atlantic white paper, but I'm a ways from finalizing the rack. I also wanted to cover up the open area to keep the kids from going through the rack and I wanted to keep everything (er, anything expense) away from the kids reach, but still give them access to put in a DVD. Same for the game console (when I get it).

Bud

Yeah, judging where the hot components go is always tricky when you start thinking about where to put them. I've read the white paper, but it's still tricky thinking about it. If you put them at the top, then the heat goes right out the exhaust, but then that means they are being cooled with warm air from the other lower components. If you put them at the bottom, they will cool the best, but the heat will warm all the other components. It's crazy. Maybe we should start a dual level rack where there are two levels to the rack seperated by a plate and a second fan half way up the back door. Then each level can have its own intake and exhaust so that both levels can stay cooler. Copyright 2006 by Toxarch.

I didn't put a back on mine so that it's open to the rest of the crawlspace closet. There is a vent at the top and two fans between the two amps near the bottom. The fans help the amps a lot. The amps are about all that kids can reach and those just have an on/off switch so that's no big deal. I also have an A/C vent that blows from inside the closet toward the amps near the bottom of the rack (this needs to be rearranged to look better, but it's just a closet). And all the air going into the closet gets pushed out the 2 space vent at the top of the rack. So with all the room in the closet and all the air moving through, the rack stays pretty cool, but all that heat goes into the theater. Luckily, I had the A/C unit zoned so I can use the 3.5 ton unit and 4 ton blower to just cool the theater.

Toxarch,

What kind of fans did you use? Was it on of the MA rack fan panels?

I have a separate HVAC for the whole basement. So far the HT room has been pretty stable temperature wise. I have two supplies and one return, but have an option for an extra return. I have a storage room off the equipment room and that has a supply and a return, so I can always reroute a few things depending on if I need it. I also have that bathroom fan in the closet and the inline fan for the projector. So far so good.

Bud

So far the HT room has been pretty stable temperature wise. I have two supplies and one return, but have an option for an extra return.

Bud,

You may have put this into an earlier post, but how do you contain sound from escaping through your HT HVAC? I realize you have the entire basement on a separate system, but how do you keep the other parts of the basement from sounding like the HT? thanks,

Scott

Bud,
I went back through the thread and realized you don't have anything behind the GOM on the upper half of the room. Obviously that was how it was designed, I'm just curious as to how that will affect the acoustics. I was under the impression most people treat the bottom half, roughly, of the wall with Linacoustic, and the top half with something else. Since the GOM is AT, with just drywall behind it, will this be an issue? Maybe bpape could pipe in here to explain.

I'm mostly curious because I'm trying to finalize my design and budget and need to know what I will need for acoustics besides Linacoustic, Insulation, and mineral wool (for bass traps).

Plumber was here and is gone. Based on what he told me about the toilet width I thought I was good. Now I have to go back and get a 36" one now.

Bud


Damn you got some big folks in that house. At least it will be comfortable.

Hey Dave, I'll jump in here before Bud just because he and I used the same designer and have a similar setup in treatments. Bryan is not a believer in using the poly batting in non-treated areas. He believes it kills the highs too much. That batting is not nearly as absorptive as the Linacoustic or OC 703 but it does have some absorptive properties and filling all those voids is a lot of square footage. According to BB's spreadsheet it has about half the absorption as linacoustic on the high end. So, that will have an effect...

When I'm completed, I should be in a pretty good position to offer an opinion on this issue as well since I've had two rooms with the poly treatment and now this one will not have it.
I will say, I always felt my previous rooms were a little dead on the high end. I always ended up boosting with EQ to get the sound I wanted. We'll see what happens this time.

Nice work on the rack Bud,

Gary

Hi Bud,

Just doing my normal (of late) 2 week check in and I wanted to compliment you on your rack, it turned out great. Also like the shots of the other rooms, looks like you need some cabinets, a bar top and and some beverages and you'll be pretty much done.

Dave

Bud,

You may have put this into an earlier post, but how do you contain sound from escaping through your HT HVAC? I realize you have the entire basement on a separate system, but how do you keep the other parts of the basement from sounding like the HT? thanks,

Scott

Scott,

Sounds containment wasn't a huge thing of concern for me. The return an supply in the room use the insulated flex duct and have many turns in them. You can hear a movie if you have it cranked down there, but not necessary through the ducts, but just because I did not do a ton of isolation besides the R19 through out..

Bud

Bud,
I went back through the thread and realized you don't have anything behind the GOM on the upper half of the room. Obviously that was how it was designed, I'm just curious as to how that will affect the acoustics. I was under the impression most people treat the bottom half, roughly, of the wall with Linacoustic, and the top half with something else. Since the GOM is AT, with just drywall behind it, will this be an issue? Maybe bpape could pipe in here to explain.

I'm mostly curious because I'm trying to finalize my design and budget and need to know what I will need for acoustics besides Linacoustic, Insulation, and mineral wool (for bass traps).

That was the recommendation from Bryan as well as no batting, based on the analysis of the room he did. I'll let Bryan explain.

Bud

Nice work on the rack Bud,

Gary

Thanks.

Damn you got some big folks in that house. At least it will be comfortable.

That was the vanity I was talking about, not the width of the toilet!! :D

Bud

Hi Bud,

Just doing my normal (of late) 2 week check in and I wanted to compliment you on your rack, it turned out great. Also like the shots of the other rooms, looks like you need some cabinets, a bar top and and some beverages and you'll be pretty much done.

Dave

Thanks Dave. Pretty close now, just a few more weeks...

Bud

Bud
sounds like your rounding 3rd!!
my progress has come to a halt with equipment in the room.
Bud are you using battery backup for all your equipment? I bought 3 conext UPS's. They all have USB to computer and then monitor on the power management of operating system. very cool. Each UPS is monitored.

larryep

Larry,

Not at this point. When I get to the HTPC phase, I'll do something. I picked up a new furman power conditioner from ebay, but haven't gotten it yet. I'll have to check that out.

Bud

Bud,
I'm sure it's somewhere in the 66 pages, but I thought I remember you saying you're putting in "bass shakers". Are you using a separate amp to power those?

Dave,

Yes. I bought an older Kenwood receiver off ebay sometime last year. Plan on powering the shakers with it. I've got the front of the platform wired as well the back wall. I bought the Aura shakers from PE a while back. I may wait to install them though.

Bud

Bud - everything is looking good. I like the rack - Where did you buy your rack?

Thanks. I'm pretty sure I got it at www.bswusa.com. At the time the price was great and the shipping was free. Haven't looked lately.

Bud

Sorry for the slow responses this week guys, I was on vacation with limited (dialup) access to get online. The 40-50 year old beach front house in North Myrtle Beach we rented needed work. The phone lines were down a few days, the roof leaked during Alberto, there was a cast iron waste pipe that was cracked in the wall causing flooding, etc. Sad part is the house was up for sale for 3.2 million!!! Man, i just can't get over that.

Anyway, things should be "back to normal". Remaining carpet and seats this week!

Bud

Let me guess.....it was a "steal" at 3.2 mil huh, lol.....

Well glad to hear you didnt get swept away with Alberto and we are all looking forward to your seating and carpet.

Robert

Sad part is the house was up for sale for 3.2 million!!!

Sadder part.....someone will buy for $3+ million. Location, location, location.

I bought the Aura shakers from PE a while back. I may wait to install them though.

Don't wait! I just installed mine and the effect is amazing! Seems like my crappy 10" sub is going to tear the house apart :) My kids love them.

Welcome back. I hope you and your family had a relaxing vacation.

Scott

Robert and Scott,

I think if someone can afford it, it'll be a big company looking to rip it down along with some of the houses next to it and be replaced with a hotel/timeshare.

View of the back of the house:
http://images1.fotki.com/v321/photos/6/649633/3682230/100_1293-vi.jpg

Ocean view from back deck:
http://images1.fotki.com/v321/photos/6/649633/3682230/100_1288-vi.jpg

Looking south down the beach:
http://images1.fotki.com/v6/photos/6/649633/3682230/100_1297-vi.jpg

Looking north:
http://images1.fotki.com/v6/photos/6/649633/3682230/100_1299-vi.jpg

On the shakers, we'll see. Got to get the seats first, then figure out the install.

EDIT: Got a picture of UTAN, King of the Crocs (http://www.alligatoradventure.com/crocs.html#) , from Alligator Adventure (http://www.alligatoradventure.com) while we were there.
http://images17.fotki.com/v9/photos/6/649633/3682230/100_1381-vi.jpg

My son loved that!


Bud

But, I agree with your assement, it's only time before that rental is gone and replaced with something bigger.

Cabinet guy came today! He just left. Made a few minor adjustments, but looks like three weeks until cabinets. Also, we had two doors upstairs in the kitchen that he's going to replace (one large door was warped, the other was looked to be be slightly damaged and never noticed it before). It's the same company that did cabinets for the kitchen, so that worked out well.

Bud

Scott,

Especially when you look up and down the beach and see cranes everywhere!

Bud

Bud, on the warped cabinet doors - was that a pricey fix? I assume they are going to just replace the doors? Is there a custom matching type service (up)charge? My POS builder-special kitchen cabinets are warping left and right. Not a priority, but eventually it needs to be addressed.

Dave,

Not sure yet. Been in the house almost three years now. Since its the same company that did the original doors/cabinets, I would assume it wouldn't be too much. He didn't quote me a price, he's going to call back in a day or so with the price of the bar and concession are cabinets, so I'll find out then. He said he had to order two new doors, so maybe its under warranty. Not sure. I'll post back when I find something out.

Bud

Forgot to mention, returned the bathroom vanity/sink/faucet and picked up new ones yesterday. New twist now. The vanity has drawers on the right hand side and when you open them it'll hit the door casing. So, I could shift the vanity some to the left, to give it clearance, but will have a small gap on the side. Suggestions? It looks OK, slightly shifted, I can put a piece of base molding on the side and give it a finished look. I can move it more left to give a larger opening (so not to look as though it won't fit), but only about 4-5 inches.

Bud

Surprised nobody mentioned it yet.....

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!!!


Your theater is officially one year old, bake a cake and have a party!

Geez, hard to believe this thread is already a year old, approaching 2000 posts and over 140K in views. Gonna be plenty bored when all is said and done!

Bud

Bud,
I say shift it as little left as possible and finish it out with a piece of wood. Noone will ever realize it isn't the actual cabinet.

Just out of curiousity, since I never make remodeling deadlines myself, what was your original timeline plan to have the basement and HT done? I'll be extremely happy if I make the progress you've made.

Dave,

I think I said March for the whole basement since I was doing it all once. Then I started shifting right from there. I believe if I were to do the theater again the same way, I could probably do it now in about 6 weeks (nights and weekends) without all the distractions of course. Just a guess though.

On the vanity... the tough part about your suggestion is that the cultured marble countertop will not cover the extra piece. It won't have any overlap at all, I don't think with the extra inch I'll need. Its just too tight. I tried that yesterday. I'll double check it again though.

EDIT:

I said "spring" and EOY for the HT room. Funny to look back at the old posts.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6035852&&#post6035852

Bud

Bud,
Now I understand the problem. I'm used to the countertop overlapping the cabinet at least a little. Any way you could put some type of wood casing around the countertop that would look "natural"? Some type of moulding that would look nice enough to make it appear the countertop is built into the wall.

you might be able to get a cultured marble surround custom made to match and fit your situation from a cultured marble shop.

or they might have a better solution.

Thought about the custom route, not sure how much that would run. I could also get a different vanity, I suppose.

Dave, I don't think the top would look right with molding, it's got a small lip do to a routed edge.

I'll take a few pictures today.

Bud

Carpet installers to be here about noon. Stay tuned....

Bud

Well, carpet guys are here. The new piece does not exactly match the other, but is very close. Since it's on the platform and separated with the bullnose molding, it'll work. Will post pictures in a bit.

Bud

Well, carpet guys are here. The new piece does not exactly match the other, but is very close. Since it's on the platform and separated with the bullnose molding, it'll work. Will post pictures in a bit.

Bud
Bud,

I hope you are not surprised about this -- I wouldn't be. Glad you can "hide" the color difference.

Steve,

Not at all, I knew it wasn't the same dye lot, HD told me that early on as well.

Bud

Well, carpet is installed. Looks great. I'm pretty happy with the way it worked out, especially the stage. Now I just need to finish up my front panels.

Stage:
http://images17.fotki.com/v322/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1469-vi.jpg
http://images7.fotki.com/v152/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1470-vi.jpg
http://images17.fotki.com/v323/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1471-vi.jpg

Riser:
http://images17.fotki.com/v9/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1472-vi.jpg
http://images17.fotki.com/v325/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1468-vi.jpg

Bud

Here's the bathroom vanity situation.

1st picture is about where it needs to be to get the drawer open. Would need to put in the base molding/quarter round down the side wall from the casing.
http://images17.fotki.com/v8/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1473-vi.jpg

Second picture is if I scoot the vanity over a few more inches so it looks like I'm not trying to get it in the corner. Still needs the molding from the casing.
http://images17.fotki.com/v323/photos/6/649633/3422362/100_1475-vi.jpg

Bud

Looks absolutely beautiful. If that home theater was a woman I would be coming over with flowers to woo her.

Hell, I might be coming over with flowers to woo you! You've got to love it when a plan comes together.

Tell us if you have found yourself just sitting in the middle of that room and basking in the glory of all your hard work!

Bud,

I think you should pull the vanity away from the wall like you did in the second pic (and add a small piece of baseboard trim). With your vanity's "leg" style, it will look great.

BTW -- the carpet looks great.

Well thanks, but my wife may get a little freaked out if you showed up with flowers looking for me. :D

Still waiting to wallow until I get everthing else done. Close though, very close. Want to see the seats, the cabinets in, then maybe.

Bud