The weekend is over and the ceiling is about 2/3rds done. I'm actually pretty satisfied with that.
Saturday’s excitement put me behind from the outset. Since spring is here in the valley and freezing temps are only remaining for those unfortunate east coasters I crawled under the house to turn on the water to the exterior spigots. Thankfully I went down there when I did as one of the valves was leaking. After attending to that I got onto the main task at hand, albeit 90 minutes later.
Since there was 80 linear feet, at least, of J-channel to put up (much of it with notches for the drops coming out of the ceiling) I decided to speed up the process of aging them. I went to Harbor Freight and picked up this weapon… err tool.
It’s finicky but I highly suggest one for the pyromaniac in your family!
I heated and sprayed 8 pieces and wiped them down in the time it would probably have taken me to do one and a half with the small torch. The noise it makes is great, it got my neighbor out of his house and looking at just what the hell I was doing. You’d think, by now, he’d know me. Haha.
After the leak, I figured my excitement quota was met for the day but that was just a primer, I guess. As I was working on the J-channel I went to wipe something out of the corner of my eye. You know that area where the sleepy dust is? Well, that’s a very sensitive area, especially when you have trace amounts of muriatic acid or whatever the devil was on the tip of my finger because as soon as I touched that area nature took over. The burning was only secondary to how dang tight my eye had shut. No tearing or anything. It just turned a bruise color and burned like hell. I went to the kitchen and splashed a bit of water in my eye and it helped a bit. I could open my eye but still no tearing or anything. It was a different feeling than when I once got a splash of gasoline in my eyes. Even after flushing my eyes teared, that’s what I expected. I attempted to actually go back to the garage but it was still uncomfortable to the point where I wouldn’t be able to focus. I figured I’d really need to REALLY flush it. I couldn’t figure that Instacare would do anything different so I hopped into the shower, fully clothed and pointed the shower head into my face. After 5-10 minutes I was good to go.
Eventually I did get back out there and got the perimeter of the ceiling and the attic door finished without any further event.
That pretty much sums up Saturday.
Sunday was mellower. My plan was to get all the panels up but after messing with the first one, I realized that it wasn't a realistic expectation. The panels are a little longer than 14 feet. I think they’re like 14’3” or a tad longer. I wanted to use them at their full lengths. The best way for me to achieve that was to rent a drywall lift. For $32 that was probably some of the best money I spent on help, so far.
The first panel there was a lot of double-checking and such since not only was it the first piece but one of the pieces with the most cuts and holes put into it. It was a good learning lesson. I made a small error where I mis-measured/mis-cut but it was a good mistake to make because I was aware of it from the outset and used a tape measure with a smaller end hook. The Milwaukees have a large end hook and it was interfering with the tight spaces by the J-channel. That and their tapes are too busy. The Lufkins and Stanleys are MUCH easier to read.
Here’s what I came up with to lay out the marks for the roller guides.
And it’s in. It took me the longest out of all the panels but it felt pretty good to have the hose and cord set up and working flawlessly.
Previously we talked about how to lay out the can lighting holes. This is what I came up with. After plotting two measured points locating the light, I traced the saw I use to install remodel cans. A couple needed a little extra trimming or massaging the holes but really, it worked perfectly. I’d do it like this again. Well, since I still have like 8 lights to cut in… I will be doing it again, ha.
Not only was I putting the panels up but I was finishing each one by installing the lights and such, as well. For some things, like the recessed light trim, the work it could have waited but for other like the 4’ LED, I had specific blocks layed out in the ceiling and it was easier to locate them with the joists exposed.
Here’s an example of how I prep the baffles. I removed the paint from the lip and left the white inside. It blends in much better, this way.
This is what I used. It makes quick work of the trim.
So, this isn’t exactly done but I wanted to mount the door rail with something other than that angle bracket stuff. Although that stuff just plain works and I’m reinventing the wheel a bit. This piece is from a 1928/29 Model A fender iron. I chopped, cleaned it up, heated and bent it.
Like I said, it’s still not finished. I ran out of gas for the torch.
I need another piece (the chopped off section from this fender iron) to give the rail more than one mounting point. Although this is sturdy it’s not as rigid as I’d want nor do I want only one lag screw holding this up.
The lift is pretty handy.
My neck and back are telling me that I need to get back into the gym. This thing is heavy when you have to get it in and out of the truck. Wait, I lifted it in and out – by myself – so I guess I’m okay with skipping out on the gym for a while.
After moving so much stuff out from this side of the shop, I was thinking, a lot, about getting rid of a couple boxes in the garage and keeping some more open space. I like the feeling of more wall space.
Here’s what I was left with by the end of Sunday. I’ll rip down a sheet I incorrectly laid a hole out (and cut
) and do all the notches before renting the lift again.
The roughly 100 sq ft needing to be finished.
I like the dull look vs the shiny new panels.
