Building an art studio #8 - flooring and insulation
Now the building is watertight I have been working sporadically over the last few months, work and family commitments permitting, to insulate and finish the inside. First was to cut phenolic foil-faced insulation boards to fit between the floor bearers, using special plastic 'Celotex clips' to hold the boards in place. The seams are sealed with foil tape to create a vapour barrier (this is theory stops warm wet air from condensing on the cold wood on the other side of the insulation as damp) and then floorboards are nailed on top:
Next was to insulate the walls. Since the cabin walls are made up of individual logs which may expand and contract, it's not recommended to tie them together with vertical beams, thus the battens that will support the insulation and internal walls are only fixed to the floor and don't go all the way to the top. Note that this gets a bit fiddly around the windows! More insulation goes in between:
Then plywood boards are cut to cover the insulation and nailed on (I've never been so glad I bought a rechargeable circular saw, there's a lot of cutting to do):
Note that I've covered two of the windows to make more wall space for painting: but if Alex changes her mind and needs more light, these can be easily removed as the covering boards are just screwed to the battens. Eventually I'll fit more insulation just below the roof, using some Rockwool between the insulation boards to create an expansion gap. Some more plywood, hanging down from the roof, will overlap the boards on the wall and hold everything together. The overlapping plywood boards will (hopefully) cope with any movement in the cabin walls.
The large pile of flooring, insulation and boards is now gradually reducing - this weekend I should get close to finishing the walls, and we should then be on the home straight, ready for Alex to paint the internal walls and move in before Christmas:
Next was to insulate the walls. Since the cabin walls are made up of individual logs which may expand and contract, it's not recommended to tie them together with vertical beams, thus the battens that will support the insulation and internal walls are only fixed to the floor and don't go all the way to the top. Note that this gets a bit fiddly around the windows! More insulation goes in between:
Then plywood boards are cut to cover the insulation and nailed on (I've never been so glad I bought a rechargeable circular saw, there's a lot of cutting to do):
Note that I've covered two of the windows to make more wall space for painting: but if Alex changes her mind and needs more light, these can be easily removed as the covering boards are just screwed to the battens. Eventually I'll fit more insulation just below the roof, using some Rockwool between the insulation boards to create an expansion gap. Some more plywood, hanging down from the roof, will overlap the boards on the wall and hold everything together. The overlapping plywood boards will (hopefully) cope with any movement in the cabin walls.
The large pile of flooring, insulation and boards is now gradually reducing - this weekend I should get close to finishing the walls, and we should then be on the home straight, ready for Alex to paint the internal walls and move in before Christmas: