muddyjoe15
Well-known member
Nice loft!
My Shop/House Build
- Thread starter JMartens
- Start date
drivesitfar
Well-known member
JM: looking good. Are you buttoned up for winter now? Getting a pool table to second floor couldnt have been easy. I bet you like the place maybe more than your ten year old. What a great place to live.
Any updates?
Any updates?
UnionMan
Well-known member
Very Interesting Build and Large pond. Nice Updates
drivesitfar
Well-known member
JM: how is the temperature in the big barn/home now that it's getting a bit cooler out? any more pictures of your pond or interior please post if you have time.
I need to update pics, but have gotten a lot done lately. The south gable is all sided. We finished the lower parts of the north gable today.
House is real comfortable, even in the cold. The first winter heating bill was $110 for the month. Haven't gotten the second bill yet. We did use about $30 in propane for the fireplaces, some for heat and some for ambiance. Both of the north facing bedrooms with thee exterior walls have fireplaces. We use them to get the rooms cozy before bed more out of want than need.
As for price, using the existing barn saved me a lot. With frugal choices and doing a lot myself, we are under $40 per sq ft.
House is real comfortable, even in the cold. The first winter heating bill was $110 for the month. Haven't gotten the second bill yet. We did use about $30 in propane for the fireplaces, some for heat and some for ambiance. Both of the north facing bedrooms with thee exterior walls have fireplaces. We use them to get the rooms cozy before bed more out of want than need.
As for price, using the existing barn saved me a lot. With frugal choices and doing a lot myself, we are under $40 per sq ft.
We did add a 20 x 24 lean too for my construction equipment and storage of anything that runs on gas. We really enjoy the indoor basketball court which we have started using for a modified version of racquetball as well. We have cleaned this area completely and keep it clean so we can play. We are looking at flooring options for sports and light vehicle traffic. Pond has come up nicely with all the fall rains we've gotten. Beach is a little rough. I am surprised at how much run off that area gets. We need to put some drainage around the beach this spring. The good news is the beach area under the water is now covered in sand.
Here's some pics of the fireplace in the master. My buddy picked up the log siding on a sale and I sanded it down and put it up. The pine around the firebox came from the original barn framing and was planed down.
https://scontent-ord1-1.**.fbcdn.ne...=f1691c3dce23a5eddfb7a9feda61bff4&oe=571CF7F1
https://scontent-ord1-1.**.fbcdn.ne...=556a363aad8150cd5612237cd032912c&oe=57031429
I have since added a recessed switch for the fireplace. It looks like a knot in the wood now.
https://scontent-ord1-1.**.fbcdn.ne...=f1691c3dce23a5eddfb7a9feda61bff4&oe=571CF7F1
https://scontent-ord1-1.**.fbcdn.ne...=556a363aad8150cd5612237cd032912c&oe=57031429
I have since added a recessed switch for the fireplace. It looks like a knot in the wood now.
C_F
ALLIANCE MEMBER
The fireplace wall turned out nice!
I finally finished the rail on the loft. The top rail is made out of barn oak salvaged from the build. I ended up with a knee high pile of shavings to get the 10 boards I needed. The top rail is close to 1 3/8 and the vertical rail is around 1 1/4. My wife still needs to stain and clear coat it.
The metal trim covering the edge of the loft is an old ridge cap we found under the roof. It's a little wavy for my tastes but my wife likes it and it has a neat story coming from the original barn. I definitely haven't seen a metal ridge cap like that before.
The metal trim covering the edge of the loft is an old ridge cap we found under the roof. It's a little wavy for my tastes but my wife likes it and it has a neat story coming from the original barn. I definitely haven't seen a metal ridge cap like that before.
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We got the ceiling up in the gym/shop space over the last two days. It is old metal from the original roof.
We also marked the gym floor. We are still looking at finished floor options but for now the concrete works pretty well if kept clean.
We also marked the gym floor. We are still looking at finished floor options but for now the concrete works pretty well if kept clean.
pitterpat
Well-known member
Nice looking pace, nice job
C_F
ALLIANCE MEMBER
On first glance, I thought it was fabric, but now I can tell it's metal. That's a cool tie-in to the original building.
The outside looks great, along with the rest!
wraith666
Active member
Wow that's awesome. Would love a place like that some day.
drivesitfar
Well-known member
JM: any updates? is your 10 year old (i think he's still 10) making 100 out of 100 free throws yet?
how's the pond?
how's the pond?
Pond is coming along nicely. We have a lot of small fish so the blue gill and bass are spawning. All of the bass we catch are very thick, although the bigger ones are getting harder to catch as I think they have plenty to eat. For the most part it stays clear with a reasonable amount of effort. We usually "weed" the pond once a month.
He's about a 6-7/10 type of kid so far. The gym saw heavy use this summer as a batting cage.
We are working on a waterfall design to filter the pond water through. It looks like we will be able to pull water from the deepest point and bring it back into the pond on the shallowest, effectively cycling the whole pond through the waterfall every four days. We are trying to adapt the filter features of small garden ponds on a larger scale.
We have settled on epoxy with flakes for the gym floor so that it will be an easy transition down the road to a workshop.
He's about a 6-7/10 type of kid so far. The gym saw heavy use this summer as a batting cage.
We are working on a waterfall design to filter the pond water through. It looks like we will be able to pull water from the deepest point and bring it back into the pond on the shallowest, effectively cycling the whole pond through the waterfall every four days. We are trying to adapt the filter features of small garden ponds on a larger scale.
We have settled on epoxy with flakes for the gym floor so that it will be an easy transition down the road to a workshop.
drivesitfar
Well-known member
JM: the pond and the house sound like they are moving forward nicely. we'd love to see more pictures when you have time to post a few.
have a great weekend
have a great weekend
Very interested to see what you come up with for the waterfall filter. I have seen this done on a large scale for a pool before, so I dont see why it wouldnt work for your pond. Great idea.
1/2 Cup
Member Emeritus
JMartens absolutely fantastic...
Regards
Regards
jconnor3
Well-known member
Couple question for you. How did you attach your horizontal boards to your 4x4 posts on railing for the loft? Also, for the wire part of it, did you drill holes in your center posts and only connect it to the 2 end 4x4's or did you attached wires to each 4x4? Tough to tell from the picture. I'm wanting to do the same as you have but not sure exactly how I want to go about attaching everything.
Oh and where did you get your wire and turnbuckles for it? Local store or did you buy a kit online?
Thanks for the help, your place looks awesome!
Oh and where did you get your wire and turnbuckles for it? Local store or did you buy a kit online?
Thanks for the help, your place looks awesome!
For the rail, I plumbed and leveled all of the 4 x 4's in place first. Once I was satisfied with that, I removed them and set up the drill press to drill all of the holes so they would be perpendicular and spaced perfectly. I then counter sunk the holes slightly to soften the edges. We then re mounted all of the posts. The cables then run from the 2x4's on each end, passing completely through each post. No cable touches a post at any point. I didn't want any deflection in the cables from rubbing a post.
The cables and hardware came from lowes. My wife actually had the patience to thread the wire through the crimp fittings. I had to remove the stops from a set of bolt cutters and then set the jaws on my floor mounted vise and strike the jaws with a 3 pound hammer to cut the cables clean at one time. I think it took my wife and I about an hour per cable, but it was worth it. I was able to adjust the turnbuckles so that they all look the same as we got the cables so close in length.
The horizontal top boards are screwed into the top of the 4 x 4's. The vertical supports under them are screwed to the top boards making a nice stiff "T" top rail.
Let me know if I missed something.
The cables and hardware came from lowes. My wife actually had the patience to thread the wire through the crimp fittings. I had to remove the stops from a set of bolt cutters and then set the jaws on my floor mounted vise and strike the jaws with a 3 pound hammer to cut the cables clean at one time. I think it took my wife and I about an hour per cable, but it was worth it. I was able to adjust the turnbuckles so that they all look the same as we got the cables so close in length.
The horizontal top boards are screwed into the top of the 4 x 4's. The vertical supports under them are screwed to the top boards making a nice stiff "T" top rail.
Let me know if I missed something.
My wife and I finished the gym/shop floor tonight. We used Seal Krete due to the amount of color choices and it is a gym first, shop second. I would have liked to use an epoxy given the prep was the same for both but it cost significantly more and the color choices were so much more limited. I might try to get some carpet runners for when I drive across to get to the lift.
Added some pre primed base boards with trim screws so I can pull them down when I fit door frames or I want to paint them. Looks a whole lot better than no trim.
Added some pre primed base boards with trim screws so I can pull them down when I fit door frames or I want to paint them. Looks a whole lot better than no trim.
wasfast
Well-known member
Autonasium? 
Very nice.
Very nice.Terrick down Under
Well-known member
Ha, are you going to play Dodge ball in there?
Hadn't thought of dodge ball. The floating baseboard on the right wall is the line for "racquetball" All shots have to hit above that. We stretch ropes from wall to wall for the out of bounds and makes for a fun game. We use the same out of bounds lines for volleyball. 2-4 players on a side works pretty good.
drivesitfar
Well-known member
JM: you've made an amazing home out of that old Barn. WELL DONE on the new floor for your BBall and game court. any current pictures of the pond so some of us that haven't seen what a pond looks like that is made from scratch like yours was?
cheers
cheers
I thought I would update on how well the floor has lasted.
It has been 7 months almost with a lot of gym use and some automotive use. If you look at the floor from a low angle you can see sneaker scuffs in the clear coat but no scratches or worn spots yet. The gym has seen a lot of use over that time, actual basketball practices with 8 kids, batting cage, "racquetball" and scooter riding.
I have made several oil changes and installed fuel injection on my TA during this time. I do put down drop clothes over the court to drive on, but under the lift is just the floor. The floor has seen several courts of hot oil when I didn't have enough room in my catch can. Gas sat on it for a day before I found it during the fuel injection install. No problems with the floor from either of this chemicals.
Floor jack and jack stands haven't left any marks. No marks from tires.
Not a lot of heavy use, but for the price of the product, I'm pleased so far. I do plan to clean it and apply another couple coats of clear this spring. After that I would like to wax it ever six months to keep it nice for playing.
Will try to get pond pics.
It has been 7 months almost with a lot of gym use and some automotive use. If you look at the floor from a low angle you can see sneaker scuffs in the clear coat but no scratches or worn spots yet. The gym has seen a lot of use over that time, actual basketball practices with 8 kids, batting cage, "racquetball" and scooter riding.
I have made several oil changes and installed fuel injection on my TA during this time. I do put down drop clothes over the court to drive on, but under the lift is just the floor. The floor has seen several courts of hot oil when I didn't have enough room in my catch can. Gas sat on it for a day before I found it during the fuel injection install. No problems with the floor from either of this chemicals.
Floor jack and jack stands haven't left any marks. No marks from tires.
Not a lot of heavy use, but for the price of the product, I'm pleased so far. I do plan to clean it and apply another couple coats of clear this spring. After that I would like to wax it ever six months to keep it nice for playing.
Will try to get pond pics.
onemanarmy
Banned
always good to see updated pics.
space is incredible.
may have missed it, but how many sq ft. for the house?
space is incredible.
may have missed it, but how many sq ft. for the house?
drivesitfar
Well-known member
JM: sorry to see all your Photobucket pictures are not showing cause you've got an AMAZING PLACE there.
any chance you might have all the pictures to just post using the paperclip method (just above where we write our posts) and you can post 7 pics per post and post up a lot cause your old barn with a home and gym and shop and the cool pond are something a lot of us would have loved to raise our families at.
cheers and again thanks for sharing.
any chance you might have all the pictures to just post using the paperclip method (just above where we write our posts) and you can post 7 pics per post and post up a lot cause your old barn with a home and gym and shop and the cool pond are something a lot of us would have loved to raise our families at.
cheers and again thanks for sharing.
Firebrand
Well-known member
Even from the four pictures I've been able to see, I'm impressed, and ready to see more!