The RTROSE (take my sweet time) HT Construction Thread - Page 2

Yes it pays to remember how many steps your ladder has as you are coming down it. I hit face first on the compressor right on my cheekbone. I thought sure I broke the eye socket but no just one heck of a black eye. I also had the gallon of paint that I was using at the time come down on top of me on my head. just to add insult to injury as they say.
I should not have been up there in the first place since I go between being able to stand or walk at all and being in a wheelchair sometimes, but I feel so useless letting my husband and occasionally sons do everything, other than all the planning, designing and decisions, that I just had to try to do something myself to help. BAD IDEA. LOL

How guilty are you feeling today?

Long time working on the basement?

I think I can relate. Started on the "Basement Bar and Theater Project" November 21, 2001. Still not done. It was actually going not to bad until I bought...dum dum dum...the keg fridge.

Pretty sure the garage is going to take me to court seeking sole guardianship of my tools.

Cheer-up. It's taken me a year to build my home theater and that's after spending three years finishing the other 1000 SQFT in my basement. I'm mostly done with the exception of the equipment rack with is now half done in the gaurage.

Check out the photos below. I've never gotten around to writing one of these new construction threads.

You should! Sometimes you have to officially schedule the time down in the basement. Just like you would schedule going to a ball game or a movie. Another strategy is to schedule something for the significant other to do. "Why don't you go out with the girls tomorrow?" "We could really use a new bedspread. Why don't you go shopping for one tomorrow?" Instant basement time!

Sounds like a keeper to me!

Here is something I did that looks similiar to what you want. Click Here

I made the plans on Google Sketch Up. You don't want to do anything woodworking related without a plan. I've found Sketch up to be invaluable as a home owner. It helps nail down the design between you, your wife, and anyone else that may get involved in the project. I had my father in law help me, and he always has his opinion. I was able to point to the plans when there were questions on any demensions. I put the plans here

The wall with the cabinet on it is 12.66 feet long and the other wall is 13 ft.

The wall unit is 8 ft high on the sides and about 5 ft high in the center.
the bottom sides of the bookcase are 18 inches deep and the middle is 22 inches deep. The top is 12 inches deep all the way across.

It's actually easier that you think to make since you can do it in stages. Basically making cabinet by cabinet, assembling all of it and then putting the trim on in the end.

We've found this room to be plenty big for a bunch of 3 year old kids and a couple wadults. Furniture is minimal, We one couch in this room. and the play table.

In our exercise room that is roughly 16x12 I'm just putting six 4" can lights. 300 watts of light ought to be plenty.

Well it's easy enough to put up the lights and test them prior to drywall. I too will be double checking the lighting prior to closing up the ceiling.

Good luck.

I took my own advise and got my lights working this weekend. 6 cans with 50 watt bulbs are perfect for me. I did have a short in one box that took me forever to find. I had pinched a wire when tightening the gasket where it enters the light's circuit box. (no clue what the darn thing is actually called)

With only two more cans then me, you should be fine. Especially if you are planning on using a dimmer.

RT -

I've just now read through most of your thread here. They say everyone has a double somewhere. I believe you must be mine. As you can tell from my couple of posts in your lighting thread, I'm 2+ years into my build. I didn't see the value of starting a thread until there was actually something to see and some actual progress being made. I'd gone months in between getting anything done "down there." I made it pretty clear that I was spending this past President's Daylong weekend working. Wife spent all of one day at craft shows. And I got most of the lighting done. LAST President's Day weekend I was plumbing. In between, I cleaned up a lot of loose ends here and there, but that's been it. I find that this is about the best time of year to get things done....no Sunday football, no golfing yet, no vacations or Holidays to go crazy over.

Now, this time, I REALLY think I'm close to moving faster. Once I get the electric and framing inspections, that is.

Just like you, when I put my dricore subfloor down, the room was empty. Now, 2+ years later, I spent two hours the Saturday of the long weekend moving "stuff" (that's the nice word for it) so that I could get to the walls to run the electric I needed. Now it's all in the middle of the room. And I can never find that D!@# something when I need it.

One tip for you at this point in your lighting since you are planning a shopping trip....

Spend another $25 or $30, and buy yourself a tool belt. I hadn't really needed one until now. I bought a small nylon one, labeld "for electricians," and a belt. Then I bought a "nail pouch" and ran the belt through it. Total was about $25. You'll find that you need a lot of different tools while you're working on the electric. Two or three screw drivers, slotted AND philips, the little stubby one, wire strippers, wire cutter (nipper), two or three pliers ("electricicans" and needle nose), razor cutter, circuit tester(s), hammer. And put a bunch of what you need for what you are working on in the pounch...when I was pulling and stapling wire, I put the insulated staples in there. When I started connecting everything, I put a couple of kinds of wire nuts and the bag of wire clamps you need to attach to the recessed cans, and just recently the little nailing plates.

Oh, and buy yourself one of those $1.99 cable strippers. The ones that are just a folded over piece of metal with a cutter on the inside and a hole in the bottom where it's "folded." You slide it over the cable hanging out of the box, dig the cutter into the cable and give it a good pull. It splits the cable really fast and never nicks the actual wire inside. MUCH easier than trying to do it with a razor knife.

Good luck!
Tom