[flatlandgamer]

Hey All,


About a year and a half ago I jumped into the world of projectors with my Epson 8100. At the time, my wife and I were just getting married, and we were living in a smallish apartment so I went with a cheap pull down screen from online. We just got done purchasing our first house...which happened to have a second living space that the wife gave the go ahead on letting me paint a more permanent screen. I've been reading pretty much all of DIY threads the last couple of months, but there is simply so much info that I really don't know where to start with my own project. Silver Fire...Or MaxMudd?


Some info to get going with:


Rough image of the Screen wall by the realtor(The room is green, but not quite as bad as the image looks):

I'm in the U.S. so materials shouldn't be too hard to come by


Projector: Epson 8100


Room - 20' x 20' roughly


Screen Size Goal:150" - 160" if possible


Based on the projector central calculator it's telling me for this size I need to have the projector between 14 and 16 feet away, with a screen gain around 1.2 or 1.3.


Use: Blu-Ray and Gaming and Sports on TV


Walls: Wood paneling with fairly low profile seams. Smooth surface on the panels themselves. (Should I try smoothing out the screen area, or attach gyp or something to the walls for a better painting surface?) We are looking at painting the walls a tan color.


Ceiling Height: Vaulted - 8' along the screen wall


Light Control: We can control the light fairly easily. We have several large windows, but all are going to be covered with black out curtains. A lot of our viewing is at night so I know that makes it easier, but during the afternoon and early evening I'm not sure we will ever get it pitch black in there.


I do have a paint sprayer



So with saying all of that, my big question is....Where do I start? I find that i can be fairly handy around the house, but I've never done anything quite like this, so any and all info is GREATLY appreciated.


Thanks for your time!

 

[MississippiMan]

Howdy flatlandgamer !!!


Welcome ro DIY Screens. That room....I'm turning green with....well, take a guess.


With Light Control, you'll have solved about 50% of your potential issue as far as Ambient Light. But that other niggling 50% involves that expanse of White Ceiling and your available "screen wall height".


With a projected (...a truly horrible pun....) screen size of 150" diagonal, such a screen would measure 74" x 131" and your working with 96" of "screen wall height". So let's suppose you determine that having the bottom edge of the visible "Screen Image" would be just 20" off the floor. Ow. That would leave just 2" space between the top edge of the viewable screen surface and the ceiling coming off the screen wall at a right angle. That makes the Ceiling amount to being a giant reflecting surface, one that will tend to wash the screen with it's own reflected brightness. A worst case scenario.


Dropping your screen size down to a terribly miniscule 140" (69" x 122") changes things so that 20" clearance at the bottom is combined with 7" at the top. That's still not a lot, and a specification that would demand that you mute the ceiling's effect by painting the entire ceiling (...or a space at least 5' out from the screen wall...) a darker, non- reflective Flat sheen-ed color. (...To quote Ruby Rhod: "Super Green"

)


Ok...so the Walls are gonna be "Tan" eh? Well awlllllrighty then, I would then advise that the ceiling be painted a 4x darker shade of the color chosen for the walls. BTW....FYI, light reflecting off a Tan wall or dark Brown ceiling carries with it a "Brownish Yellow" cast that tends to affect the Blacks on any screen surface. Considering your circumstances and environment, the screen color selected must be dark enough to offset the ceiling being so very close. Silver Fire 2.5 4.0 will give you approx 1.2 gain (17 fls) and a fairly dark Gray surface. RS-MaxxMudd "Standard" will deliver 1.3 gain (19 fls) but would a considerably lighter shade of "silvery Gray".


With the latter you'd have to accommodate painting the Ceiling as dark a shade of "whatever" you can get the "WAF" to allow. The former would grant you a bit more leeway, but be advised that nothing can take the place of effective "reflective masking" by an appropriately colored surface, when such a surface resides so close and at right angles to the screen itself.


So......you not happy and determined to have your 150:er at the very least? Well then, you can crowd the Ceiling by painting the entire wall panel. At least you could, except you have Paneling....and that suddenly presents another issue. You would have to use two 12' x 4' sheets of Drywall (...both cut to size...) , effectively joined and smoothed for your "least expensive" substrate that would not require a Frame. Or....build a Frame to stretch Black Out Cloth across and then paint that. (...that never thrills me....)


All this also involves your placing the PJ withing 6" of it's shortest Throw distance for any given Screen size you choose.


I know I'm interjecting a lot of variables here...and that some of them fly in the face of preconceived planning. But Hey! What am I good for if not acting like both the spoiler and one who also can empower you with the information you need to go forth with wild abandon and a carefree heart...assured that the direction you finally take won't turn on you with teeth to rend your hopes and aspirations for having a humongoloid-sized screen to enjoy.


(...was that "over the top"...? )


Anyway....where there is a will there is a way....I'm just trying my best to make sure you have enough facts to either self-determine a course of action, or have you decide to simply follow the advice I and others will provide....to a "T", so you arrive in that Happy Place", and have yourself a "Happy Ending".

mess it up, and you just might have to go without any "Happy Ending" for a good long while.

 

[flatlandgamer]

Wow, Thanks for the start MississippiMan!


As far as the screen...we can shrink it down no problem. We had a 120" screen in a smaller room in the apartment, and when we put it up in the green room it suddenly felt a lot smaller(I know, i know...insert joke here)...I'm sure a 140" screen would look amazing. Do you think we should even still shoot for a bit smaller screen size? That's exactly why i wanted to go ahead and get as much help as possible. I didn't want to end up over doing the screen size and being disappointed on how it looked compared to the old pull down screen once we fired the projector up!


The "tan" color, well, that's about as far as we've gotten since moving in on Sunday...Is there a color scheme you feel would benefit this setup versus the brown colors? I'd rather have better blacks versus brown walls. We just know we want to get rid of that green! For the walls and ceiling, my wife doesn't really mind too much what we do as long as it doesn't turn into a "Cave"...which I know would have been ideal. She wants it to still feel like a family room or den versus just a dedicated theater room.


The sheets of drywall sounds like a good solution to me, and I guess I'll try and develop a plan for what we are doing to the room itself before I figure out which mix to use for the screen.


Based on what you were saying, it's looking to me like know matter what we do, we are going to need to take the white out of the ceiling for the best results...correct?


Thanks again for all of the help!

 

[MississippiMan]

OK then......

Oh, there are lots of great color combos that will keep the room looking as good in the light as it performs in the dark....and anywhere in between. And we'll not give up on "BIG" less'in we hafta....so I'll respond again in depth when I'm not mobile.


Watch this space.


MMan

 

[flatlandgamer]

Sounds great MMan, looking forward to it!


BTW...would a dark blue(around navy) for the wall colors change anything that you've said so far? Brought home another round test colors this weekend and the blues were looking pretty nice with the things we are going to be putting into the room.

 

[MississippiMan]



Quote:
Originally Posted by flatlandgamer  /t/1420963/first-diy-painted-screen-need-some-guidance#post_22242366


Sounds great MMan, looking forward to it!

BTW...would a dark blue(around navy) for the wall colors change anything that you've said so far? Brought home another round test colors this weekend and the blues were looking pretty nice with the things we are going to be putting into the room.

A Dark Blue on the Walls, with a Dark Gray (Flat) on the Ceiling and the same color Gray on all the Base/Door Trim (Satin) is an excellent match-up, and one that I have used several times. In fact, the Blue on the Wall can even be just a bit lighter than a dark Navy as long as it is Flat. But just a "Tad bit", mind you.

You can also mix 25% of the Dark Flat Gray into that "slightly lighter than Navy Blue" color, and use the pure Gray for Ceiling and Trim. That combo creates even less disparity between a somewhat overly vibrant color and a truly dark shade like a Dark Gray.


By all means, you should experiment with those little jars of Color samples from the Home Depot. At least you seem to have the gist of the matter in hand.


BTW....I hope you didn't get to bleary eyed watchin' that space........

 

[flatlandgamer]

haha....we were so busy this weekend that my eyes are fine

Along with selecting the wall color, we are getting ready to do the drywall screen....is it as simple as it sounds? Just mount, smooth, and paint? Is there a specific drywall I need to look for, or should anything from HD work fine?


Thanks again!

 

[MississippiMan]

Using sectional drywall for a big screen is all about getting the Joint floated out properly. The Mud swath should be at least 24" or wider, preferably at least 15' on either side and feathered into the paper with consummate care. Screw heads should be "dimpled" not "sunk", and the diameter of each mud coating over each one at least 6' and also smoothly feathered.


If you want to assure yourself of having absolutely no chance of seeing any raised mud ridges pop out from under the primer / paint, then after you have everything (Joint & Screws) properly floated, then apply a very light skim of mud over all the other uncovered areas, then lightly sweep-sand the entire screen using a 3" x 8" x 1" Fine Grit sanding sponge (...located in the drywall Tool Section...)


Unfortunately if you go really "BIG" you cannot use the 3/8" thick variety of Drywall.


Just as simple as it sounds.......................................................

 

[flatlandgamer]

Simple enough I suppose

Looks like it's time for me to get to work!


Last questions for the day.... Are you still recommending either the RS-MaxxMudd "Standard" or the Silver Fire 2.5 4.0 based on whatever situation we end up with, now that we are set on the blue and gray color scheme? Right now the wife is still a bit uneasy about getting the ceiling much darker, so I am almost leaning towards the Silver Fire. If I was able to pin up a dark sheet to show off the difference after everything but the ceiling was finished, would it hurt to have the SF instead of the MM at that point?

 

[MississippiMan]

No....both are excellent choices. The mitigating factor is Screen size and closeness to the ceiling. The closer the Screen resides, the darker the shade of color whatever is chosen should be.


Silver Fire 2.5 4.0 will of course allow you the most leeway in choosing the depth of (...or lack thereof...) of the Ceiling color. RS-MaxxMudd "Standard" is a higher gain Mix, so it will produce an even brighter image, and that means all the more chance that any of the room's surfaces will also reflect such brightness.

 

[flatlandgamer]

Sounds good MM. We are going with the SF 4.0, and I have one last question to get me ready to shoot. Should the mix provide enough paint for the amount of coats required for this large of a screen, or should I go ahead and double up right away so that I have one constant mix to use?


Thanks again for all of your help

 

[MississippiMan]



Quote:
Originally Posted by flatlandgamer  /t/1420963/first-diy-painted-screen-need-some-guidance#post_22305307


Sounds good MM. We are going with the SF 4.0, and I have one last question to get me ready to shoot. Should the mix provide enough paint for the amount of coats required for this large of a screen, or should I go ahead and double up right away so that I have one constant mix to use?

Thanks again for all of your help

Sho-Nuff !


Double up to be safe, and if the budget can allow. To tell you the truth, considering your size, it's not a bad idea to have extra for some practice on a sizable sheet of scrap Drywall anyway.


You'll need some familiarity with keeping your arm level and the distance from the screen constant, as well as some practice at doing a shuffling side step at a constant speed.


Learning as you go is a recipe for cooking up a "Help! What do I do now ???!!!' post.