Ok its been a while since I've updated, so this will be a long post (or several, lots of pics).
I ended up finding a local place that sells a similar acoustic duct liner by the linear foot in 48" width (instead of by the 100' roll, lol I need like 10').
Wait til you guys see how I hookup the ventilation it'll be off the hook I promise.
Ok, so when we left off I had just removed the workbench from the wall. I removed all the studs except for two - one with the outlet in the way (I can't kill the power right now long story), and the one next to it partly because it's got a bunch of hammered over ramsets and partly because I can line it up and reuse it.
There was a bunch of holes in the block where I removed and ground off ramsets.
Since it's a below grade wall I thought I should get hydraulic cement to patch with, but the only bucket I saw is a shit load of cement. I only used like 2 or 3 cups.
First time ever working with concrete so it's a pretty mediocre job. The stuff set really fast and the water ratio they listed was totally not enough.
While that dried I worked on the bench. I was going to take the studs off the bench, but it was just not happening without destroying it.
So I'm sawing a couple down to mate to the two studs on the wall. It came out sorta close, I don't have a good finished shot, but it's not even close to a perfect line up. It's ok though because it'll be covered by pegboard later. I'm going to have to shim the front too because the floor is sloped different. The bench is a pain but I have to keep it so the room looks close to the same (and its a very useful 8' bench).
That's a
Eurekazone track saw rail. A table saw isn't that practical for me but these rails and a circular saw and I can slice up sheet goods with ease. I also have an attachment for my router which helps do dado's and circles etc.
It's so important to have good tools if you're doing serious DIY. The right tool makes every step safer and smoother. I don't have a SDS hammer drill, just a drill with the "hammer" feature and I'm paying for it trying to drill into the foundation with stripped and bottomed tapcons and burning up bits. It's one of very few tools I lack here thankfully.
Dust collection is important, too. People live here. It's going well so far, not much stray sawdust.
Here's the extension I'm building off the wall under the stairs. This wall is leaning pretty hard. Tried to use a plum to mark down and was off half a foot.
It's attached to the joists above.
Had to jigsaw a little curve around the duct.
Next up I covered the block wall with a solid sheet of XPS insulation. If this was a normal finished space I'd use 1.5" or 2" but I'm fighting every inch so I went with 1". My basement if very temperate and dry, great environment to work with.
I kept stepping on the stuff and nicking the tongue and groove. ugh.
I just used a T square and a utility knife to score the sheet. Then snap it and it's clean enough.
When you glue it you want to create a grid to prevent any air circulation, even in a sub-inch gap behind the insulation. I may have used way too much glue idk, I definitely underestimated and had to make a emergency Depot run.
Here's a base plate about to go down. I drilled through the stud and floor. Putting the screws through a bit helps line it up to the holes. Generous with the glue, want to make a good seal to seal thermal and acoustic gaps.
I drilled a 2" hole in for the fake PVC drain pipe going to the floor. Brand new hole saw. What a disaster! It kept getting gummed up and smoking probably toxic who knows what eeks. Pretty much destroyed the saw in one hole, barely made it through.
Here's the plate down and secured. Like I said, I'm having trouble making good holes and the tapcons aren't holding great, but once the glue sets it really doesn't matter I guess.
And here's where it sits now. Got some stuff propped against the insulation to keep pressure on while the glue sets. The part of the wall that's framed is where the secret entrance will be.
Enjoy that for now; I'm pouring every minute into the room right now and will update after I have a bunch more pics. :)
