The Austin Home Theater - Page 6

Thanks for the insight Patrick. I won't be leaving them on unless we are using them, which is rarely since it's only for trips, so I don't think the rust will be a problem. I can always just replace the U-bolts if necessary. They were only about $1.50 each.

Thanks Pete! Those acorn nuts look like they will be perfect. Great idea! That might even look nice enough for me to just leave them on all the time. And since then everything would either be painted or covered I don't think rust would be a problem.

I can tell you that I'm going 75 right now (Not driving of course. Updating the thread and driving would be bad. ) and I don't notice any whistling. I'm still going to cover the openings though to make it look nice and prevent anything from getting inside.

Thanks for stopping by Nick!

14 hours and two "Five Hour Energies" later and I'm back!!!

And guess what? I was visited by the theater progress fairies!!









That's right everyone, the drywall taping and mudding is finished!

It turns out our friend came over while we were away and got it all done. He said that it only took him one day since he used quickset joint compound for the first two coats and then skimmed everything with the 24 hour stuff to finish it off. I owe him lots of free movies when this whole thing is over!!

So tomorrow will be sanding and then I get to use the new paint gun! Yippee!

Thanks guys. It certainly is nice to have friends like that who are willing to volunteer their time to help out. It's a huge boost for me since the finishing would have taken me forever if I did it all. When I did the drywall in the basement bathroom I'd spend hours on just a few seams. Not to mention all of the corners in the theater due to the soffits.

Thanks for the insight on the spray gun practice RTROSE. I haven't had a chance to try it yet but I will be sure to grab some scrap cardboard or drywall and spend some time getting to know how to use it properly.

The vacation was nice. The weather was pretty good and I had a couple days with a steady wind so that I could throw the kites up in the air. Plus I got a killer deal on a new parafoil that's really nice. I also got to go to the aquarium which is always fun.

Alright so the sanding is done and now it's time to start painting!

I need some advice on the chair rail height. I think that the recommendation is 1/3 of the ceiling height up from the floor? But since the chair rail will be under the soffits if I do 1/3 the height to the soffit it is too low and looks strange. Should I do 1/3 the height to the full ceiling even though its under the soffits? Or something else entirely?

Those of you that have done chair rail, what did you do?

Thanks a ton RT!

I'm thinking that I'll put the top of the chair rail at 36" since my ceilings are so short. I'll make that final decision tomorrow when I start painting the actual colors. Today I finished priming everything.

I wish I could post pics of the room painted but I can't because.......it isn't!!!

Things have been pretty hectic this last week and unfortunately will remain that way for a little while as AP exams approach. I'm also in a completely student run musical theater group and we have a show coming up at the end of May-"The Producers". I'm the lead set designer, builder, and technical director (no surprise considering what I do in my free time ) so there's lots of things to do there. I'm hoping to make progress on the theater between all of these things. I'm getting so close!

I did work on the dead vent for the room's return and managed to get that close to completion. When I went to install the fan, the duct that goes through the drywall on the side of the dead vent was very tight in the hole. As a result, when the fan was on, it vibrated the whole structure and produced a very annoying buzzing sound. So I have to cut the hole a little bigger and then suspend the fan and duct with some wires to "float" it inside. I'll have some pics once it's all completed.

I also managed to get the first coat of black on the screen wall and ceiling. This is the "Mouse Ears" color by Behr.



To prove that I haven't just been sitting around all week, here's some pictures of what I have been working on.











This is for the electrathon club at my school. Electrathon is an "electric marathon" in which the winner is the vehicle that can travel the farthest distance in one hour. The car frame is all welded tube steel and it runs on two car batteries. It uses BMX bike tires and has an electric motor which allows it to reach a top speed of about 55 mph. It goes without saying that it's incredibly fun to drive around. The other black car that you see behind it is another one that we have been working on as well.

We've been working on it for a couple of months and our first race is supposed to be tomorrow, but unfortunately the weather doesn't look good as it is supposed to rain. I've got my fingers crossed though!

So if we have the race tomorrow then Saturday will have no theater progress. If it's canceled then I'll work on finishing up the dead vent and painting. Then Sunday I've got to meet with the director of "The Producers" and then make a Home Depot run to buy materials for the set, so this weekend potentially won't have much progress in the basement-sorry guys.

Haha Pete! My mom knows about "the forum". She seems to think that the fact that I talk to all of you on here makes this whole project more legit. She's always telling people, "he's on this forum with a bunch of guys who build home theaters so they help each other out and give advice."

Well the race was canceled ....... but that meant lots of theater progress!

I got the dead vent finished and the room painted (I'll do a post later tonight with a description and pictures) but right now I need some advice.

The painting was going great until the red. I've come to the conclusion that there must be something wrong with the paint. Even after two coats it dries very blotchy, almost like lots of little bumps and if you look closely at it you can see the white of the primer. In addition to this, even after drying all night it still felt tacky in the morning.

It's a Glidden paint in eggshell finish. What's really strange is that the gray color on the bottom of the walls and the soffits is also a Glidden paint (although in their Martha Stewart line) and it covered beautifully in only two coats. The gray and red are actually the same base with different pigments.

I just put on a third coat and will let it dry to see what happens but I'm not optimistic.

So what should I do now? Take it back and get my money back then re-prime and try again? I really like the color so should I try the Glidden again and hope that the one I have now is just a bad batch? I also thought about having them color match the little paint swatch and then get it in a different brand like Behr which also covered beautifully on the screen wall and ceiling.

Any advice that you guys may have would be appreciated.

Gray Primer-Doh!-I should have known! Well now I'll be prepared for next time I guess.

I just finished the fourth coat and it finally looks like it's covering nicely so I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I will probably have to pick up another quart to have enough to do a fifth coat. I'm still a little worried about the tackiness when dry but I'll give it a few days and the reevaluate.

Thanks for all of your responses guys!

Well this weekend was supposed to have almost zero progress but it ended up being one of my best yet!

I tackled the painting and then worked on the dead vent in between drying coats and ended up getting a ton done. Here we go.....

Let's start with the dead vent:

I built a simple frame that would sit in the corner outside the theater next to the bump out for the projector box. The dimensions were 20" x 30". You'll also notice in this picture the drywall that was put up on the outside of the theater walls.



Then I covered the top and the side next to the foundation with double drywall and green glue. I put one layer on the back that attaches to the theater wall since the drywall that is already up will act as the second layer. Then I slid it into place and secured it to the theater wall. I ran the flex duct through it and then filled the cavity with insulation. So.....much...insulation......



Then I covered the remaining side with double drywall and green glue.



You'll notice in those last pictures the fan that draws air out of the theater. Here is a close up.



It is an 8" inline fan that I got at Home Depot for about $30. I don't know how long it will last but it has been working great so far. I thought I might as well try it first since other fans (such as ones by fantech) can get pretty expensive. It is suspended by the wires which are used for drop ceilings to "float" it inside the hole where the duct enters the dead vent to prevent the vibrations from making an annoying buzzing sound. The gap between the duct and the drywall is sealed with caulk to prevent any sound leakage. The fan is controlled in the room by a dial commonly used for ceiling fans. I've got to pick up a cover for the junction box next time I'm at Home Depot.

Now onto the fun stuff!









I've got a painted room!!

I started with the black on the screen wall and ceiling and did three coats. Then I moved onto the gray for the bottom of the walls and soffits. That only took two coats. Next was the red which after four coats is finally looking good, but I'm thinking that I will do a fifth to finish it off.

I must say that I am VERY happy with my color choices. I always knew that I wanted to do dark red walls and a black ceiling but it wasn't until I saw some other theaters on here (RTROSE and azula) that I decided a two tone wall with chair rail would look even better. I really couldn't be happier with it.

So my list of things to do looks something like this:

-Door jamb extensions
-Add MDF to door
-Paint door
-Paint entrance hallway
-Baseboards, chair rail, crown molding
-Laminate Screen Build
-Install lights, outlets, switches, and A/V wallplates
-Carpet
-Shelving in equipment closet
-Install and connect projector, speakers, bass shakers, sources
-Watch movies!

I've also got to do a drop ceiling in the hallway and baseboards in the basement bedroom but my goal is to get the theater area finished so that I can work on those things during the day and then watch movies at night. I've got to leave for college at the end of August so my time is ticking away!

This week is going to be devoted to set building for the musical but I'm hoping to get most of that done so that i can tackle more theater stuff over the weekend.

Thanks guys!!

Thanks guys!

The car is awesome and I have really enjoyed working on it since it has given me the opportunity to learn some new skills (like welding) that I wouldn't have a chance to do otherwise.

You're absolutely right about the speed RTROSE. Remember that low riding exotic car from azula's thread? Well this is it's young child!

Thanks for the advice Tim! I will definitely pick up those materials and do that.

Thanks Tom. I noticed that the Behr was a little thicker as well. I definitely prefer it over the Glidden.

Vanice;

It is very nice to have the fan be easily accessible. It's located in the adjacent storage space.

I have been impressed with it so far. It has been running on high since Saturday to cycle some air through to hopefully aid the paint in drying. I can only faintly hear it when I stand in the open doorway so once I get that all closed up it should disappear.

The real test will be once I get the door sealed and I have a chance to test out how air tight my room really is. If I did everything correctly then the only place for air to enter the room will be through the other unpowered dead vent under the stairs. So ideally the airflow coming through there should be almost the same as what the fan is pulling from the room.