In the spirit of the DIY section, I thought I would share our project. This one is a little bittersweet. When we added onto our house about 5 years ago I made some mods to the plans. Didn't really cost us much in additional materials at the time and left us with options down the road. Initially my thoughts were: Man Cave! The wife thought she could put her elliptical trainer in there to collect dust instead of the basement. The kids thought they were getting a play room. In the end, it became a collect all. Some because we really didn't NEED to finish the room. Some because I am a tight wad and didn't want to spend the money. Partly due to procrastination. And lastly because once I realized nobody wanted to use the room in its unfinished condition. . . it sort of WAS my man cave. haha Nice to spray cleaners and clean muzzle loaders in there when you really can't hurt the floor or anything.
Our needs have changed. We are bringing a family member into the home to stay with us and we are now in NEED of a fourth bedroom. Here are some pictures of the room with most of the stuff cleaned out of it. I also added a picture of some insulation I layed out today. It would be much much easier to do now while it is all accessible than to wait until we have drywall done. The section of the attic already had some insulation, but it was old, crappy, and done pretty poorly. Amazing how much benefit you can get from not a lot of money in insulation. I don't think a lot of people realize how quickly it pays for itself in energy savings.
Next is the view as you come to the top of the stairs. As you can see, I already had it framed, wiring 75% done, and insulation in place before the project began. With the ceiling shaped the way it is, the room should have some nice character.
Next is the view to the south or the front of our house. There is a dormer and window for natural lighting. We will probably either put a desk, bookshelf, or possibly a bench seat with piano hinge for storage under the window. To the right of the dormer we will have some built in shelves in order to increase usable space in the room. It is only a 10x10' room plus the area of the dormer, so we need to maximize storage space as much as we can here.
Last view is the view to the north as I was standing in the dormer shooting the opposite view. I ended up moving the vent one rafter to the right as you look at it in the picture. We will also be using this area for more built in shelving or cubbies. We had considered moving the kneewall back a couple of feet prior to finishing the room, but the way the rafters are supported, we could have only gained 6-9" and did not feel the additional work on our short time constraints would have been worth the efforts. I don't know. Worth the efforts for 9"x10' in an area with already reduced head room? We just didn't think so.
My Dad came over tonight and we readied everything for tomorrow's work. I said the wiring was 75% done. Well, it was run and most of the outlets were installed. The feed wire was there. We just needed to test everything to ensure it was done properly since it has been around 5yrs since we have thought about it. Some of the outlets were moved because there will be a closet going in. The light switch was moved to the other side of the door. Nothing major, but stuff which certainly needs to be addressed PRIOR to drywall being hung. Tomorrow, Dad is coming over to frame up the closet and work on the built ins. My foreman and I are going to be starting the drywall. Any gaps, spaces, or questionable areas in regards to insulation will be addressed. Did I mention I think insulation is the quickest payback you will ever get in your house? lol I am a stickler for a tight home. I think it is often overlooked. Small details we address tomorrow prior to drywall on the insulation will either save us or cost us money in energy for as long as I own this home.
Our needs have changed. We are bringing a family member into the home to stay with us and we are now in NEED of a fourth bedroom. Here are some pictures of the room with most of the stuff cleaned out of it. I also added a picture of some insulation I layed out today. It would be much much easier to do now while it is all accessible than to wait until we have drywall done. The section of the attic already had some insulation, but it was old, crappy, and done pretty poorly. Amazing how much benefit you can get from not a lot of money in insulation. I don't think a lot of people realize how quickly it pays for itself in energy savings.
Next is the view as you come to the top of the stairs. As you can see, I already had it framed, wiring 75% done, and insulation in place before the project began. With the ceiling shaped the way it is, the room should have some nice character.
Next is the view to the south or the front of our house. There is a dormer and window for natural lighting. We will probably either put a desk, bookshelf, or possibly a bench seat with piano hinge for storage under the window. To the right of the dormer we will have some built in shelves in order to increase usable space in the room. It is only a 10x10' room plus the area of the dormer, so we need to maximize storage space as much as we can here.
Last view is the view to the north as I was standing in the dormer shooting the opposite view. I ended up moving the vent one rafter to the right as you look at it in the picture. We will also be using this area for more built in shelving or cubbies. We had considered moving the kneewall back a couple of feet prior to finishing the room, but the way the rafters are supported, we could have only gained 6-9" and did not feel the additional work on our short time constraints would have been worth the efforts. I don't know. Worth the efforts for 9"x10' in an area with already reduced head room? We just didn't think so.
My Dad came over tonight and we readied everything for tomorrow's work. I said the wiring was 75% done. Well, it was run and most of the outlets were installed. The feed wire was there. We just needed to test everything to ensure it was done properly since it has been around 5yrs since we have thought about it. Some of the outlets were moved because there will be a closet going in. The light switch was moved to the other side of the door. Nothing major, but stuff which certainly needs to be addressed PRIOR to drywall being hung. Tomorrow, Dad is coming over to frame up the closet and work on the built ins. My foreman and I are going to be starting the drywall. Any gaps, spaces, or questionable areas in regards to insulation will be addressed. Did I mention I think insulation is the quickest payback you will ever get in your house? lol I am a stickler for a tight home. I think it is often overlooked. Small details we address tomorrow prior to drywall on the insulation will either save us or cost us money in energy for as long as I own this home.
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