Well, It'll Do
Yeah, it has been a while.
Work has gotten in the way of real life, and that sucks. However, I have been able to get the downstairs game room into a semblance of order.
My original design for that room was to fix the cracks in the basement walls, seal the walls with Drylok (or the Home Depot equivalent), and then put up insulation and framing. However, when I got to the insulation/framing, I realized I had a problem. If I put up any insulation and framing on the walls, the usable space on the landing at the bottom of the steps was less than 3ft. x 3ft. According to code, that was the minimum allowed. In order to restore that size, I'd have to rebuild the stairs leading to the basement. The stairs are completely open so that could be done, but I lacked the time and (most importantly) the skill to get it done. Paying someone to build the stairs was an option, but I don't have the cash.
Therefore, I decided to abandon the insulating-the-walls idea and work with what I had. I'll eventually frame up the rest of the areas behind the bookshelves so that it looks like a separate room, but I've put enough together so that we can use it as a real game room. (Thank goodness for those 30"x72" banquet tables being on sale at Target; I put two of those together to create a 60"x72" tablespace.)
Yes, it'd be nice to put up a drop down ceiling, but that's going to have to wait for another time. For now, the kids can use it to play boardgames and RPGs, and during the summer it'll be cooler than being up on the first floor on Saturday game nights.
Now, if I've only the time to actually finish that wall framing. And read some novels. And work on the deck this spring. And...
Work has gotten in the way of real life, and that sucks. However, I have been able to get the downstairs game room into a semblance of order.
My original design for that room was to fix the cracks in the basement walls, seal the walls with Drylok (or the Home Depot equivalent), and then put up insulation and framing. However, when I got to the insulation/framing, I realized I had a problem. If I put up any insulation and framing on the walls, the usable space on the landing at the bottom of the steps was less than 3ft. x 3ft. According to code, that was the minimum allowed. In order to restore that size, I'd have to rebuild the stairs leading to the basement. The stairs are completely open so that could be done, but I lacked the time and (most importantly) the skill to get it done. Paying someone to build the stairs was an option, but I don't have the cash.
Therefore, I decided to abandon the insulating-the-walls idea and work with what I had. I'll eventually frame up the rest of the areas behind the bookshelves so that it looks like a separate room, but I've put enough together so that we can use it as a real game room. (Thank goodness for those 30"x72" banquet tables being on sale at Target; I put two of those together to create a 60"x72" tablespace.)
Yes, it'd be nice to put up a drop down ceiling, but that's going to have to wait for another time. For now, the kids can use it to play boardgames and RPGs, and during the summer it'll be cooler than being up on the first floor on Saturday game nights.
Now, if I've only the time to actually finish that wall framing. And read some novels. And work on the deck this spring. And...