Homeowner milestone

[Exterous]

I probably passed this a while ago but it really sank in as I've completed a number of projects over the last two days.

As most first time homeowners experience, every project I did usually needed at least a couple of tools, an attachment or a part I didn't have. This was especially true when I finished part of my basement - every new step either needed a new tool or some long work around because I didn't have the correct tool.

This weekend however was a very large turning point. I didn't need a single new tool or part or attachment for any of the projects despite some unanticipated needs. I was re-doing the faceplate covers to my home theater room since I changed out a few things. Man what a difference a few years makes! I had planned on using my palm sander to smooth the cuts but when that didn't fit in some areas I got out the sanding attachment to my dremel. I had spare wood around when I made a mistake. One blade wasn't cutting as well as I would like so I changed it out for a different type I had in the tool chest. And - most importantly - I have 3 of the exact same tape measures. I just leave them in the various work zones (in this case one in the basement and one in the garage). Before I would inconsistently take it with me often resulting in me having to wander around looking for it. Today when I was staining the deck I needed mineral spirits to clean the brushes and I had no idea if I had any but when I checked the paint supply shelves I found a 3/4 full bottle!

(2 left to go - the missing one and the old, ill fitting top filler plate - before I line them up and attach them in place)

 

[TwiceOver]

So what was the milestone again? Confused.

 

[purbeast0]

i too am confused by your post, but the av rack looks great.

 

[Exterous]

So what was the milestone again? Confused.

Sorry - too many hours in the sun sniffing stain fumes:

I didn't need a single new tool or part or attachment for any of the projects despite some unanticipated needs whereas in the past I would have

 

[Exterous]

i too am confused by your post,

but the av rack looks great.

Thanks! Its less than $45 in material even including the face plate re-do

 

[effowe]

Looks good. Is there proper venting? How hot does it get in there?

 

[Red Squirrel]

That's pretty awesome. What's on the other side though, to provide exhaust air flow?

 

[fleshconsumed]

Oh.... I'm half way* there myself.

* By half way I mean I got the same HTPC case already, rest is just piece of cake, right?

 

[disappoint]

Nice rack! (never thought I'd be saying this to a guy, is that a milestone of some sort?)

Also nice wall color, I like that shade of blue. Is that wall paper or paint?

 

[Exterous]

Looks good. Is there proper venting? How hot does it get in there?

That's pretty awesome. What's on the other side though, to provide exhaust air flow?

Its a storage room with a pass through to the furnace room so airflow generally isn't a problem

It is a bit of a mess at the moment though. The bottom two boxes are new - the larger media server case arrived Thursday. With the added room I moved the the receiver down some for better airflow* So now I am in the middle of re running the speaker, hdmi, power, IR repeater and ethernet wires. Keyboard, mouse and VGA hookup was because the server was being picky about boot order but I can do everything by remote desktop now

*You can see the fan I rigged up still mounted to the right of the receiver. The area around the power supply would get hot when I did extended music playback to the fan was hooked up the the HTPC and would spin up whenever it came out of hibernation)

Oh.... I'm half way* there myself.

* By half way I mean I got the same HTPC case already, rest is just piece of cake, right?

Sure!

 

[Exterous]

Nice rack! (never thought I'd be saying this to a guy, is that a milestone of some sort?)

Ha!

Also nice wall color, I like that shade of blue. Is that wall paper or paint?

Paint. The wife and I went back and forth for quite a while about it. She wanted light blue - in a home theater room!

 

[Gunslinger08]

I've been a homeowner for almost 5 years and I still run to the hardware store for every project. This is after finishing my basement and building a fence as well. I think my problem is that I throw stuff away if I don't have an immediate use for it.

HT rack looks nice. I considered doing a rack when setting up my basement, but I ended up just using a low entertainment stand under the screen.

 

[disappoint]

Ha!



Paint. The wife and I went back and forth for quite a while about it. She wanted light blue - in a home theater room!

People with racks are notoriously bad at picking out racks, or the interior colors for the rooms they are found in.

 

[grohl]

Confusing post, but I do see what you are getting at. I made the same comment to my wife - see? I did all that without a trip to the store to buy another tool!

 

[Ichinisan]

The thin Silverstone microATX half-height chassis...I have that.

 

[Rumpltzer]

See, this view is a lot more interesting than the blue and white side.


Also, I thought that this "homeowner milestone" thread would be about doing it on the kitchen table, or something like that... just me?

 

[Red Squirrel]

Its a storage room with a pass through to the furnace room so airflow generally isn't a problem

It is a bit of a mess at the moment though. The bottom two boxes are new - the larger media server case arrived Thursday. With the added room I moved the the receiver down some for better airflow* So now I am in the middle of re running the speaker, hdmi, power, IR repeater and ethernet wires. Keyboard, mouse and VGA hookup was because the server was being picky about boot order but I can do everything by remote desktop now

*You can see the fan I rigged up still mounted to the right of the receiver. The area around the power supply would get hot when I did extended music playback to the fan was hooked up the the HTPC and would spin up whenever it came out of hibernation)





Sure!

Is that 2x4 support at the bottom just "there" or is it fastened to anything? I'd be scared it gets kicked out of place by accident and the whole thing comes crashing down. :awe:

Otherwise looks like a nice setup.

 

[Exterous]

The thin Silverstone microATX half-height chassis...I have that.

Nice little case and surprisingly easy to build given its size

See, this view is a lot more interesting than the blue and white side.


Also, I thought that this "homeowner milestone" thread would be about doing it on the kitchen table, or something like that... just me?

It would be more interesting if it wasn't so messy! As for the other milestone - we passed that a while ago

Is that 2x4 support at the bottom just "there" or is it fastened to anything? I'd be scared it gets kicked out of place by accident and the whole thing comes crashing down. :awe:

Otherwise looks like a nice setup.

It only supports the keyboard tray. I originally had some ideas about a better support structure but I wanted something cheap and easily moveable due to close quarters. So I wedged a 2x4 in place Everything else is solidly held in place by brackets that can hold 100lbs per shelf screwed into a double 2x4 frame with 3.5" screws

The room also has its own dedicated 20amp circuit