The New Studio Saga
April 1, 1999
The insulation company arrived yesterday, and covered everything with plastic.
Brandt Wade of Insulation Technologies of Rossville, Tennessee is spraying in Icynene foam. This stuff expands 100 times when it is sprayed on filling every crack and crevice. It even filled nail holes and blorped outside.
The studio is looking like it is filled with whipped cream. Brandt says I should be able to heat it with a candle. It is warmer already!
Here is the insulation crew after finishing. It took a day to mask and a day to spray, and a half day to clean up. If the insulation blorps out too much, they trim it off with a saw-as on this 2x4 stud wall.
Note: I have had many inquiries about this foam. I have lived with it now for a couple years, and it really is great. My heating and cooling bills are low for a building this size, and I am able to keep temperatures comfortable. More information including how to find an installer near you is available at www.icynene.com . You can reach Brandt Wade of Insulation Technologies at 901.854.0840. They are in Rossville, TN-near Memphis. This was the closest dealer to me in Nashville, but they were willing to travel for a fee. Give them a call if you are anywhere near Memphis.
April 13, 1999 (my birthday)
I called every drywall company in the book, several times and couldn't even get a call-back. I finally got one guys' wife and she said it would be at least 6 weeks before he could consider it. A friend of a friend knew some guys and they said they could do it - for double the national average price, cash money off the books, I would supply all materials. I added it up and it came to over a dollar a square foot. Suddenly, materials that looked too expensive seemed much more reasonable.
I found a plywood "bead and board" panel for the machine room and bench room.
Tim Hintz came over to work for me for a couple of days, and we got the sheet rock up in the gallery and bench room ceiling. I rented a panel lift for a few days - it is worth every dime. We insulated between the gallery and machine room-primarily to cut down on noise.
April 20, 1999
I have been busting my butt the last week to get my sheet rock taped and finished behind the area where my duct work will go and to get the ceiling up in the gallery.
I decided to go for the cool look of exposed trusses and galvanized tin in the gallery. The ceiling is corrugated tin, and Mid-State Air Conditioning and Heating from Fairview agreed to do an extra neat installation of exposed ductwork.
These are the furnace installers in front of their handiwork. The furnace is gas and is located above the bench room. Dampers will allow for adjusting the heat and cooling between the gallery and bench room. The machine room will be heated by a separate heater, and is ventilated with a 4 foot fan in the gable.
Ready or not I start moving in a little over a week. I hope to get the machine room stained and the paneling up in the bench room before then!