Search Results for: back door
media bench
We finished the media bench and it’s not even April yet! Actually, we were 90% done a week and a half ago, but we kept on tweaking. You know how it goes.
The bench itself is made of two fir 2×10’s. Kyle took them down to OB Williams one afternoon where they ran them through the jointer and sander so they could be fit together without any wonkiness. (Our process photos are sparse, but it was a similar (although much simpler) to the office desk.)
Once the boards were back home in the shop, Kyle biscuited them together and applied a few coats of SatinThane. (He also added a radius to the outboard edge to make it a bit more baby-friendly.)
Once the bench was ready, it was go time. We put Avery to bed then emptied out the space (and did a celebratory high-five that we were finally, finally getting rid of the last of our college furniture).
(Sorry for these crappy iPhone photos.)
The media unit is an IKEA Besta box.
In lieu of legs, Kyle used the cutoffs from the 2×10’s to create a solid wood plinth. (We actually ended up moving the plinth closer to the face of the cabinet and adding blocking behind for extra stability.) The bench sits on the Besta unit on one end and on two IKEA Godmorgon legs on the other (the legs have metal cuffs that hide the plastic adjuster). The span is only 4′-6″, so the 1 1/2″ thickness of the wood is adequate. Our original design was to do a wall-mounted unit but we realized that it would be better to be able to pull the unit out in order to access cords, etc.
We went with glass doors for the Besta unit, but did our own window film to downplay the components (yet still allow our remotes to work). We used this film, which is the same thing we used at our back door.
Bam! (I now realize I should have taken some “action” shots but Avery was napping and Kyle and Bailey were at the hardware store when I took these. Next time.)
Although Avery wasn’t crawling when we wrote the last post, your comments about keeping the records out of reach convinced us to go ahead and make it happen and to use the space for toy storage instead. (Good thing too, as she is now all over the place.)
The subwoofer sits under the bench and we put the protective cover back on (even though it doesn’t look as cool). We still need to add a cushion and although I’m sure we could have easily had a custom one made, in a moment of lets-just-get-it-done we ordered this one from West Elm. It’s meant for outdoors but the color and size was right so we’ll see.
Ahh…new bench, new storage, new TV.
Yeah, we’ll get to that.
We also decided to go ahead and move the turntable to the cabinet as well. We bought this pull-out frame (with shelf insert) which works perfectly. (We intentionally left the handles off the doors and have catches that we’ll install once Avery figures that one out.)
The next dilemma was that we couldn’t fit all of the media components on one side to allow record storage on the other. Our stupid cable box was gigantic and taking up too much room so Kyle spent one morning haggling his way to a newer (and significantly smaller) version. “It’s for our child’s safety”, was the tagline of the day. Our xbox is on the other side still and we use it primarily as a DVD player. We’ll probably eventually swap it out for a small blu-ray player. (The small black box on the left is our all-in-one receiver that we use to watch TV, stream music and listen to the radio.) We also left the masonite backing off of the Besta unit for cord management purposes and to allow better ventilation.
We also removed the clunky plastic cover on the turntable. Good riddance, I say! We have noticed that it’s easy for the turntable pull-out tray to catch on the door if it’s not opened all the way so we’ll probably add a tiny bumper to protect the window film from getting scratched.
I looked high and low for modern/fun/affordable toy storage options and finally landed on these felt bins from Land of Nod. These are 11″ cubes – they had 18″ versions that I preferred but they were slightly too tall. Now that the smaller ones are in place, I think they work fine. (We have to preserve a bit of space between the toy storage and subwoofer for an existing heat vent.) The bins come in other colors but we liked the yellow the best (I originally got aqua but it was much greener in real life than on the website).
So, the TV. Somewhere in the process Kyle bought a new TV. (My mom was in town visiting and I must have been distracted.) Ok, really I just like to give Kyle a hard time about it for being such a guy. 😉 We bought our old TV 4 years ago off Craigslist so the acquisition wasn’t terribly unreasonable. For those of you that have been following us for a while, you may recall that the original plan was to make the downstairs bedroom a media room and avoid a TV upstairs altogether. Maybe we’ll do that eventually, but we noticed that we’ve used the space a lot more since moving a TV in there (it used to be in the nursery when that was a flex room). We’re trying to keep the TV off around Avery, but most of our viewing time is after she goes to bed so it usually works out.
As part of our baby-proofing efforts, I had bought some anti-tip TV straps before we purchased the new TV. But they’re not all that attractive and the backside of the TV is actually somewhat visible so Kyle ordered this crazy wall mount that not only secured the TV but it has an adjustable arm so the TV can be rotated to an optimal viewing angle. Also, the base that came with the TV was an ugly chrome thing, so…win!
I also had concerns about Avery eventually being able to tip the speakers over so we installed these straps to the speakers and wall.
Done! Besides the cushion (which should arrive this week) we also would like to add some type of art piece above the TV. We’re thinking something organic or free-form so it’s not a rectangle sitting above another rectangle, you know? No idea what this piece of art would be, but we’ll keep an eye out.
All in all, we love it. It’s amazing how it changes the feel of the space and Avery has already logged some quality (supervised and supported) window seat time. This area of the house has always felt the least finished so it’s nice to finally remedy that.
studio loft: desk progress
A few weeks ago, we showed you those two big reclaimed beams that we bought to build a work surface for the studio loft space. It would be easy – two beams turned on their side and connected together. Boom! Insta-desk!
But of course, it’s never that easy.
We had a rough idea of how we wanted to install the desktop, but before we made any cuts or bought any supplies we came up with some detailed hand sketches.
The sketch above is a section through the desktop. Originally we were just going to biscuit the hell out of the joint where the two pieces meet, but after a chance meeting with a woodworker named Burly, Kyle arrived at a better solution. (More on that later.)
For the connection to the wall, we went with our original idea of using steel angles. The dimensioned portion of the sketch above shows a plan view of where the angles would go on the walls and the larger section detail in the middle shows how the angle will attach to the wall and wood. Once we had the design fully flushed out, it was time to take stock of our inventory, buy supplies and get on with our building business.
First, Kyle cut the steel angles to size and then grinded the edges smooth.
Next, he marked the locations of the holes…
…and used a center punch to create a divot for the drill. Definitely don’t want your drill going all wonky on you y’know.
To set the holes even further he used a high speed steel countersink to create a bigger divot.
Next he loaded a high speed steel drill bit into his grandpa’s old drill press and occasionally dipped the bit in cutting oil the keep it from overheating. (If the bit gets too hot it dulls down really fast.)
After the holes were drilled, he then made a proper countersink so the screw heads flush out with the face of steel.
Meanwhile, superintendent Bailey keeps an eye on the operation.
After all of the holes were drilled, Kyle used his angle grinder with steel brush attachment to smooth everything out and prep the steel for painting.
Enough with the steel, time for wood! In addition to biscuits and glue, Kyle decided to install four hidden pieces of 3/8″ all-thread that would literally tie the two pieces of wood together and create a stronger connection. To do this, he first had to drill a series of parallel 1-3/4″ deep holes using a 1-1/2″ diameter forstener bit. To ensure he wasn’t over drilling, he kept an eye level view as he went, stopping when the blue tape line on the drill bit was aligned with the top of the wood.
Ta-da!
Next, he attached an auger bit and drilled through the side of the wood, in the same line as his previous top-drilled holes. See where we’re going with this?
With a steady hand, he guided the drill until it connected with the other hole. We debated using the drill press for this but Kyle has a calibrated eyeball and mad drilling skills.
The long, skinny hole was sized to accept a piece of 12″ (3/8″ diameter) all-thread. Success. Phew!
But before anyone gets too excited about fasteners, Kyle still needed to chisel out a portion of the round hole to make a flat surface for the fender washer and nut to bear on.
Once the holes were all cut, we realigned the boards so Kyle could mark biscuit locations. (Since biscuits are like a type of tongue and groove connection, you have to be precise that you get both sides perfect so everything fits together.)
Then he used his biscuit joiner to cut thin, wafer-like slots along the entire length of each beam.
Taking a break from all that sawdust, Kyle set up the steel angles on his welding table (with an old canvas sheet on top) and gave everything a nice even coat our favorite automotive gray-black primer (same thing we used on the barn door track and loft ladder). As you can tell by the lack of sunlight, he’s officially been at it all day.
Back to the wood – Kyle calls this part “biscuits and gravy”. (Mmm…) Before inserting the football-shaped wood biscuits, he squirts a generous amount of wood glue into each slot. (Side note: we used this same process to join two pieces of lyptus for our kitchen island, saving a ton of money.)
Once all of the biscuits were inserted, we slipped in the 4 pieces of all-thread and pushed the two slabs together.
We needed the help of a few large clamps, but there she is, in all of her connected glory. (Note: we worked with the slab upside down so we could more easily install the hidden fasteners, so that’s why the wood looks a little less-than-perfect.)
Finally, Kyle used his nimble fingers to install a fender washer and nut to each end of the all-thread. You’ll never see this connection unless you’re laying under the desk. And no one is going to do that. Except maybe for Felix. And we don’t make design exceptions for judgmental cats.
Here’s a top view of the all-thread connection. Pretty clever, huh? If you had x-ray vision you would see the piece of all-thread buried within the slab. But you don’t, so you’ll just have to trust us on this one.
The last thing we did that night was to install the steel angles (the primer drives super fast).
We used 3″x3″x3/8″ steel with fasteners at stud locations (which we figured out beforehand as seen on Kyle’s sketch). The wood desktop will be fastened from the underside through the screw holes in the top of the angle.
Structurally, we didn’t need continuous lengths of steel and this was also a much cheaper route to take. Additionally, the gaps between angles allows a slot for cords to go (since we’ll be holding the wood off the wall by an inch or so).
I can’t wait to get the big sexy slab up there. But first we have to finish the wood. (And when I say “we” I mean Kyle. No fumes for preggers.) In fact, Kyle is outside right now sanding it down. Then there’s epoxy filling, more sanding and applying a few coats of finish. Oh, and devising a way to get it into the loft (hint: strong and willing friends).
Still, not bad for a day’s work. (Who says Sundays are for relaxing and rejuvenating?)
Oh, I also thought some of you might be interested to know how Kyle and I tackle a project. For weekend tasks like this, Kyle usually does a majority of the manual labor (he’s detail-oriented and good at being “in the zone” for long periods of time) while I take care of all the other tasks that we don’t have time for during the week (laundry, bills, dishes, etc.). That’s not to say we’re not a team though. In fact, we’ve devised this high-tech messaging system for when Kyle needs a hand with something or wants me to take some photos:
Poor guy, I assumed “Elmo” was one final plea for help. Damn you auto-correct. (For the record, I tend to just act out charades (like putting food in my mouth) in front of the back door till Kyle sees me.)
So yeah, not an easy project, but that’s how we roll. If we’re lucky, in the end it will look elegant and effortless, masking all of the hard work, sawdust and time that went into it.
deck reveal
Over 6 months ago, we posted our big plans for 2011 which included a large backyard deck. Since the original SketchUp renderings, we decided to make it a bit wider and showed you our progress in a series of posts (found here). Construction was more or less done by early August, but the last thing on our to-do list was to apply the oil finish.
Ipe does not necessarily need a finish (it grays out over time similar to cedar), but the aesthetic difference is totally worth it. We used Penofin for hardwoods, which is a Brazilian rosewood oil that penetrates deep into the wood and turns it into a wonderous reddish-brown color. One gallon covered the whole deck (just under 400 SF) and we applied it using a bristle brush for the horizontal surfaces and a hand brush for the vertical surfaces.
Here’s what she looked like before. The product suggests that you pressure wash or clean with a mild detergent to remove dirt, debris or any mill glaze. We opted to pressure wash since we had rented one for the foundation work several weeks ago.
The best thing about Penofin? Instant gratification. (The exposed framing on the sides will eventually be covered by steel planter boxes.)
Although it’s still wet in this mid-progress shot, the finish actually dries to a very similar color.
The directions also suggest wiping any excess away with a nap-free cloth but we didn’t find it to be necessary since our wood soaked it all up. Working from the back door out, we were able to cover everything without walking on the wet surface.
(Of course we turned the lights on for the task – party lights make everything better.)
For the risers on the steps, I used a hand brush to apply an even coat. (As seen in the photo below, we dealt with the grass by placing boards under the final riser and then pulling them back out after we were done.)
Surprisingly, it only took an hour or so from beginning to end. Not bad for a weeknight.
Ipe can be pricey, but we saved about 50% by purchasing boards that had some type of imperfection. Was it worth it? Heck yeah. The Penofin really helped to blend everything together and mask any discoloration between boards.
I snapped the photos below this evening. It was cloudy and rainy (Fall is here!), but you get the idea.
We also experimented with applying the Penofin to our IKEA deck furniture. The wood is Acacia and it took the oil fairly well, turning it a bit more yellow than we would have liked, but better than what it was. We still have 3 more chairs to complete and then realistically, probably time to put them back in the carport for the season. Ooh…fire pit time?
The terrarced design provides informal seating and allows us to avoid handrails and guardrails. With eastern exposure, it’s a great place to sit and sip coffee on a Saturday morning.
Oh hey, what’s this…
Raw steel panels! In that post from March, we talked about building planter boxes to flank the deck out of corten steel. Well, corten steel is $$$ so Kyle’s been scoping out Craigslist for other options. A few weeks ago, he found a seller south of Olympia with a stock of 4×8 steel panels for a really reasonable price. So we bought them. Last week, Kyle took them to Ballard Sheet Metal (gotta love living in a historically blue-collar ‘hood) to have them cut to size and now they’re back and ready to be welded.
Although we planned on adding soil and grasses to the areas of the driveway that we jack-hammered out earlier this summer, we have since decided that plants are no longer on the 2011 agenda (next year!). But no plants = giant mud pit. So we put down filter fabric and a layer of pea gravel for the meantime. I’m not usually a fan of temporary solutions, but I am a fan of maintaining my sanity this winter by not constantly mopping up paw prints. And Bailey understood. He has already taken to sprawling out in this new zen garden of his.
Finally, in the spirit of progress, he’s a reminder of what the back of our house used to look like:
And here’s what she’s looking like today:
Yay for progress! We still plan on adding an awning over the back door and window to protect the door and allow for inclement weather grilling. Maybe 2012?
Five years in and still so much to do.
decked out
Ever since finishing the big 2010 project we’ve talked about hosting a celebratory post-reno house party. Now, we’ve had a few blow-outs at chezerbey before, but somehow they always seem to happen when the house is a complete mess. Case in point: three years ago we had a party for Kyle’s 30th, approximately one week after we demolished our bathroom. As if a sink-less bathroom and black plastic shower curtain wasn’t enough, we were still wrapping up the bedroom project and sleeping in the living room.
Then we had grand plans to ring in my 30th last year with the finished interior. And well, we all know that didn’t happen. (Although at the time it seemed like we were really close. Ha!) But by this spring we were ready for a real party. Oh wait, no. Let’s build a deck first! So a month or so ago we finally picked a date (coinciding with Kyle’s 33rd b-day) and in typical Zerbey fashion we worked right up to our self-imposed deadline, installing the final deck boards and hauling concrete just days before the event.
But the party happened. And it was good.
Pony kegs! I haven’t seen one of these contraptions since college, but it really did make the most sense for the 50+ people that we invited. (Besides, we classed it up with some local Maritime brews.) For the non-beer drinkers, we whipped up some sangria and a couple of pitchers of strawberry margaritas and noshed on mini sliders, an assortment of side dishes, and birthday cookies from Specialties.
Although the deck has greatly improved the backyard, we thought there was still something missing. No, not the planters, awning and fire pit that we still need to build. Party lights! Ok, so well-designed string lights were not the easiest thing to track down the day before the shindig, but we finally found some at a party supply store in North Seattle.
“Hi. Do you have string lights that aren’t flamingos or palm trees?”
“Yes, we have Midway lights.”
“??”
“Y’know, the kind you see at carnivals.”
“Perfect!”
We originally wanted to do all clear bulbs, but they didn’t have enough so we alternated with the amber color. It’s fun without being too carnival (if you know what I mean).
The weekend before the party our driveway was still a haphazard (and hazardous) pile of concrete rubble. We put an ad on Craigslist thinking everyone would rush to get our beautifully cut chunks of driveway, but by Sunday evening we didn’t have a single bite. I panicked a little and quickly considered my options: 1) e-mail my family that was coming into town and tell them to bring their work clothes or 2) pay to have a hauling company come and take it away. Fortunately, neither scenario happened because Craigslist saved us (like he always does). Early last week we were contacted by a local landscaping company who saw our ad and wanted it all. Best of all, they had the crew and trucks to move it. PHEW. There was still a truckload worth of small rubble that Kyle, my brother and I shoveled up and disposed of late last week.
Ok, so the remaining dirt pile wasn’t exactly awesome, but it did provide us with a nice venue for corn hole! (And the dirt was a big hit with the toddlers at the party.) Eventually this whole area will get planted, but we’ve got all sorts of grading and amending of soil that needs to happen first.
In a last-minute stroke of genius, Kyle bought and installed a magnetic door stop that allowed the back door to stay open throughout the party. It also helped pump the tunes from the living room to the backyard. (Don’t worry, we gave our neighbors a heads-up and many of them even joined us. In fact, one of my favorite memories was seeing our neighbor passing out a tray of birthday cake shots.)
We’ll do another post that shows more finished shots of the deck, but you get the idea. We pulled the bbq out for the event, but it will normally reside under the kitchen window where the kegs were.
Oh, and just so you don’t get any crazy ideas that our house is always perfectly clean and organized…
(Ok, yes – as soon as the last guest left I totally started cleaning up.)
The next morning, summarized in one photo:
(FYI – the floors were a hot mess the next day, but they cleaned up nicely with a wet microfiber mop.)
Big thanks to everyone who pitched in at the last-minute to make the party a success. With an actual space for people to gather, we’re thinking about doing this party thing on a more regular basis. (Dancing on the coffee table again? Maybe not.) At any rate, those string lights aren’t coming down until winter.
deck progress: week three
With the framing complete, we were finally able to start the deck boards last week. And you know what? It is taking forever. So we don’t have a completed deck to show you just yet, but we do have ample Bailey photos so we hope that will help fill the void. Metaphorically speaking of course, it’s not like Bailey actually helped fill any voids in our deck. As usual, his home improvement skills are seriously lacking.
For the decking material, we chose ipe (a Brazilian hardwood, pronounced “e-pay” ). Ipe is a good choice for a deck because it is durable, naturally resistant to rot and never has to be refinished (unless you want to). We used the same wood for our front stoop and have been really happy with it. The downside of course is that because it is so tough, every single hole must be pre-drilled and having quality drill bits is key.
So last weekend, Kyle and Anton started with the upper two platforms that lead from the back door down to the main deck. We knew these smaller, more fussy parts would take longer and we were not disappointed.
Fortunately, Bailey and his buddy Chase kept themselves entertained on the make-shift plank walk that was temporarily installed to access the upper deck levels.
Y’know, the ONE point of access to get from the yard to the back door.
See what I mean? Lazy and obtrusive golden…
We bought our ipe (via Craigslist) from East Teak in Sultan, WA. Like most quality decking, ipe is not cheap, so we were intrigued to find that East Teak was selling their stock of non-perfect boards for about half the price. These boards were advertised as having imperfections in the wood (like splits, knots, etc.) as well as some bowing. Concerned about the appearance of the wood (and that it would be a total nightmare to install) Kyle drove over to Sultan a few weeks ago to check the goods out in person. The verdict? The flaws were minor and definitely worth the 50% savings.
Progress was slow over the weekend and Bailey finally got bored and retreated to the side of the house for a little afternoon snooze by the trash can.
On Tuesday night, the first of the main deck boards were installed! After laying out the first row of boards, we snapped a chalk line at each joist location to mark where to pre-drill the holes and told Bailey not to walk on the loose boards. Apparently, he likes to live on the edge.
Since some of the boards are bowed, Kyle is using this fancy BoWrench tool (that he picked up at a local hardware store) to straighten out the boards. Basically, one end of the wrench has a saddle that sits over the joist and uses it as a brace to bend the deck board straight. Once the boards are screwed in (we used 316 grade stainless steel, 6-lobe screws for extra durability – we’ll show more detail photos in the next post), the wrench is removed and voila – straight boards! Also, instead of butting the boards together, Kyle is using a piece of 1/8″ steel as a spacer (providing a small gap between boards allows water to flow through but isn’t big enough to be a tripping hazard).
Here’s a look at the corner detail for one of the landings at the back door. The edge boards were installed to be flush with the top of the horizontal boards. This protects the end grain of the flat boards and also helps serve as a guide during installation. I’m a little worried about pine needles and other stuff collecting in this slightly wider gap, but in general we think it looks good and will be worth the trade-offs.
The color of the ipe really varies with how the sun is hitting it (and of course, if it’s wet). After everything is installed, we plan on sanding the wood and putting a protective finish on it. It’s not a routine that would have to be maintained (like cedar, ipe grays out a bit over time), but the process usually brightens the wood and brings out the reddish-brown hues that ipe is known for.
The cut ends of the boards are coated with paraffin wax as extra protection (you can see the still-wet evidence in the photo above).
By dusk on Wednesday, about half of the deck boards were down and either screwed in or at least pre-drilled. To create a smooth border at the deck edge (on the left in the photo above) Kyle just ran the boards a little long and then snapped a chalk line and zipped the skillsaw across to create a clean edge. (We’ll eventually have a planter box on this end to hide the exposed framing.)
And here are a few shots of the current status:
(As a reminder, the deck was specifically designed this way to avoid guardrails and handrails that would otherwise be required by the building code.)
A cool art installation or a half-finished deck? You decide.
(Note: we put a lot of thought and research into the type of decking we chose and its environmental impact. I was going to talk about those decisions here, but thought it might worth an entire post. Stay tuned.)
