John Sayers' Recording Studio Design Forum

In the meantime - there's other work to be done. Vapor barrier is going in.

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'We're just amateur lovers with amateur friends' - Switchfoot

1st layer of drywall is going in. It certainly is a good thing that I had help working on the ceilings - I wouldn't have got it done by my self!

I'm a little torn as to how to fill the seems between sheets. If I used the Tremco acoustical sealant I'll have to tuck tape it all so it doesn't get everywhere. Otherwise, I could use a white silicone caulk or simply use drywall compound.

Drywall compound really isn't much of an option since it will obviously crack and pull apart pretty easily with the shifting of the structure. Any thoughts on using silicone?

The gaps around the ceilings have been filled so far with Tremco and covered with tape before the walls got their drywall.

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'We're just amateur lovers with amateur friends' - Switchfoot

1st layer of drywall is complete.

I think I might go with acrylic painters caulk for most of the wall seams and around wall boxes. Floor seems will still get the Tremco Acoustical sealant covered with tuck tape and I may also use Tremco on spots where the wall seams will have to be aligned on both layers (corners, etc.). And any large gaps will get Tremco. And I'll probably fill the screws with drywall compound.

My HVAC contractor and I decided the best way to put in the air handler units would be to hold off on the drywall in those areas until we can know exactly where the units will sit and exactly where the tubing/cabling will need to poke through the wall - thus the hole at the back of the control room.

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'We're just amateur lovers with amateur friends' - Switchfoot

quick update - not much exciting:

1st layer of drywall is caulked, mudded (screws) and ready for the 2nd layer. And my HVAC contractor and I finally finalized the location of the air handler units so we knew where the cables needed to punch through the drywall.

Getting there!

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'We're just amateur lovers with amateur friends' - Switchfoot

Hello Switchfoot[?],

Interesting thread, thanks for posting it all so thoroughly.

Do you have any idea of how much this has cost you to date?

JB

Hi Jan - welcome to the forum!

I've put out around $14 600 so far - but there are also a few very large items/services that have been or are in the process of being received but aren't yet paid for. Including those I'm right around $22 000. $20 000 was my initial budget. I think I'll quite easily be around $25 000 invested by the time I'm done.

All the best in your build!

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'We're just amateur lovers with amateur friends' - Switchfoot

I've put out around $14 600 so far - but there are also a few very large items/services that have been or are in the process of being received but aren't yet paid for. Including those I'm right around $22 000. $20 000 was my initial budget. I think I'll quite easily be around $25 000 invested by the time I'm done.


Thanks for posting the figures. Do you envisage getting the income to keep pace with making a living, maintaining the studio and future refurbs?
JB

Looking fantastic!
Keep us posted.

Ok - update:

I wasn't planning on using Green Glue but decided that isolation from my neighbors is worthy investment. I got two cases at $15.97 Cdn each - picked up locally from a distributor in Mississauga (about a 40 minute drive each way).

I planned on the minimum recommended coverage of 1 tube per 4x8 sheet to go in the live room and iso booth. I was really impressed with the removable nozzle that come with the tubes. This allows you to get all of the material out - usually the portion in the nozzle is wasted. Fantastic!

I've done some mudding and taping before but had slightly less than professional results. I was determined to do better this time.

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'We're just amateur lovers with amateur friends' - Switchfoot

And then yesterday and today I was priming! I worked for a few years as a trade painter before engineering started paying the bills. I always found that a coat of primer really showed where the imperfections in the mudding/sanding were. So after the second coat of mud I decided I'd prime everywhere and then go around with a light and patch up where it was needed (did this as a matter of course as a painter).

My sliding glass door has taken a ridiculously long time. I decided to hold off putting up the second layer of drywall around where its going to go. Once I've got it I'm going to install the jams to ensure a snug fit and then finish off the drywall and install the door. I probably didn't really need to wait since I know the dimensions of the door, but I made that decision a while back.....The door is supposed to be ready tomorrow.

Once all the patching and priming is complete I'll be moving on to painting, installing doors, flooring and trim in that order. While I'm doing all that my HVAC contractor and electrician will be out at some point to finish up there part.

Almost there!

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'We're just amateur lovers with amateur friends' - Switchfoot

I've really been slacking with the updates. I've been pulled away a few times from the project by the need to earn money but progress has still been happening so I'll try to get all caught up with a handful of posts.

The sliding glass door took 9 weeks from order to pickup! Pretty awful. But everything was as ordered. It cost an extra $75 to have it assembled by the manufacturer so I tackled that myself. Actually assembly is still in progress but the frame is in.

One concern I had was the large amount of hollow space left for getting the panels in and out of the track. This is a serious weak point for sound transmission but obviously necessary. I could stuff some insulation in there on the fixed panel but the slider's operation would be hindered if I put some in its cavity so I'm not sure that'll work.......

Once the slider frame was in I finished off the 2nd layer of drywall around it.

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'We're just amateur lovers with amateur friends' - Switchfoot

Next up was installing the rest of the doors which meant first cutting out the slots for the hinges on the jams and doors. I borrowed a baby router from a buddy. This was an invaluable tool. The process was to measure out the location of the hinge, screw it on temporarily with a couple screws, score/trace it out with a utility knife, pull the hinge off, router the area out and then finally attach the hinge. I did this 42 times! (7 doors, 3 hinges each door - door and jam).

My two door openings to the exterior were both too small for the doors for a few different reasons. That meant I had to rip the doors down to size. At first I thought I'd use a table saw but the doors were so heavy and wide that it would be extremely difficult to keep them tight against the fence while cutting. So I decided I should use a circular saw with an dependable attachment guide/rip fence. I have two circular saws, a $50 Ryobi and a 20 year old Black & Decker. I trusted neither to do the job properly so I planned to rent a saw. The first Home Depot didn't even rent a circular saw - the 2nd had one but didn't have the guide for it. PITA!

In the end the doors got cut and hung.

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'We're just amateur lovers with amateur friends' - Switchfoot

We got some unusually cold weather and I realized I'd better hurry and get the exterior work done. The windows and doorways needed trimming out and of the course the doors had to get painted/stained and all sealed up.

The windows that were originally installed in the garage were taller than what I was doing which meant I either needed to fix the siding on the exterior or create a trim finish large enough to cover everything up. I used a 1x8 primed board to create a sort of 'lintel look'. It didn't quite cover the red tuck tape residue from my garage bag covers I put up so I'll need to take that off with some glue remover or something.

I REALLY love the combination of stone wood and metal so I'm quite excited about the way the front entrance is looking! Still need to get that door trimmed out. You can see that I installed a door closer - one will go on the rear entrance as well.

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'We're just amateur lovers with amateur friends' - Switchfoot

Then I threw up some paint and stained all the interior doors.

Electrician should be out this week to get power all hooked up! My flooring is ready on Tuesday so I'll probably get that in right away and start trimming out the interior. I bought a bunch of ball catches/latches for the doors - once they arrive I'll work on the seals for the doors. And next week my HVAC guy will be out to get that all going.

And that's about where things are at. Slowly but surely.

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'We're just amateur lovers with amateur friends' - Switchfoot

That's why our parents taught us not to eat paint.

Great thread by the way!
Did you manage to de-fog the windows?

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Warehouse Studio
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