# ALMFamily Theater "Lobby"



## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

Greetings all!

The days are getting colder which means it is time to start the inside projects again! And so, without further ado, the ALMFamily Theater Lobby commences!

This will not be the 2 year long project the theater was as I will not have to worry about soundproofing here - thank goodness!

Here is what we have to start with for space.

This is the entrance to the lobby - I am considering doing a tile / carpet combination for the floor so that I can create a "walkway" to the theater door:

  


These next two show the wall right to the left as you walk through the entry. This is where the counter will be with a sink and plenty of outlets for crockpots, etc. The wall to the left of the theater door (stained) will be made into shelving for movies and CDs with a backlit stained glass theater sign incorporated into the design of the shelving:

  

This picture shows where the diagonal wall will be with the door to enter my "finishing" room - I am putting all my cutting tools and such in my garage and I will just be doing staining / finishing work in this room. This will also be where the media server will be located:

 


These last two show where the washer and dryer will be relocated to. The second picture shows the wall where I am putting the door to allow access to the water heater and softener. To the right of that door, I will be installing my "drink" station - I am putting in a kegerator (a freezer converted to store 5 gallon canisters) that will store soda and my homemade beer. A future project will be to create a "brewing" area. As you can see, we have already studded out two of the walls:

  


Here is a picture of the start of the kegerator:

 

Let the fun begin!


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## mpednault (Dec 20, 2012)

You had me at kegorator.

Looking forward to this!


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

mpednault said:


> You had me at kegorator.
> 
> Looking forward to this!


I know right! My neighbor set his up a couple years ago which is what put the idea in my head - actually planning to brew up a batch today as it takes 2-3 weeks to ferment and I should have the kegerator done by then..


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

This looks interesting, will defiantly be lurking in the thread


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## mpednault (Dec 20, 2012)

I'll be brewing a batch this weekend too in time for the holidays! And as coincidentally our HT builds are, oddly enough our "lobbies" will most likely turn out very similar since I'll be incorporating a bar/brewing area!


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## Wardsweb (Apr 2, 2010)

Ok, I'm ready to watch.


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

tonyvdb said:


> This looks interesting, will defiantly be lurking in the thread


Glad to have you aboard Tony! 



mpednault said:


> I'll be brewing a batch this weekend too in time for the holidays! And as coincidentally our HT builds are, oddly enough our "lobbies" will most likely turn out very similar since I'll be incorporating a bar/brewing area!


What are you planning to make? Do you have any plans yet on the brewing area?



Wardsweb said:


> Ok, I'm ready to watch.


Welcome aboard Luther!


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

Home brew!! That brings back some memories!! Did it for over 20 years..and then I stopped drinking!! :rofl:
Looking forward to seeing your progress Joe..


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## nova (Apr 30, 2006)

Home brew, Kegorator, and home theater... count me in. I'm down to my last bottle and haven't started the next batch yet. I'm also interested in your plans for the brewing area. I'm considering it as well, kitchen not really big enough and hate lugging everything up and down the stairs.


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

That is quite the Lobby can't wait to see the finished product.


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

Finished the kegerator a bit earlier today - I will get some pictures up tomorrow.

I just finished watching the extended version of The Hobbit - I bought the box set so I could get the figurine to add to my room decor. Some very neat added footage...


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## mechman (Feb 8, 2007)

I'd need a scotch-erator! :bigsmile:


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## Owen Bartley (Oct 18, 2006)

mpednault said:


> You had me at kegorator.


You literally took those exact words out of my mouth when I saw the pic. Subscribed.

Joe, don't forget a pic of the new action figure while you're at it!


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

mechman said:


> I'd need a scotch-erator! :bigsmile:


Never been a big scotch guy - I actually tried it when I was in Scotland - a 12 year old Glenlivet (IIRC) and I could not even finish it... :doh:



Owen Bartley said:


> You literally took those exact words out of my mouth when I saw the pic. Subscribed.
> 
> Joe, don't forget a pic of the new action figure while you're at it!


Ask and ye shall receive!!


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

And, now for the pictures of the finished kegerator!

The finished unit from the front - I really love this color stain for oak as I am sure you can tell - it is all over my theater:

  


This is the analog thermostat that allows me to set the internal temperature to 38 degrees F:

 


The back side of the kegerator. I used 2x8 lumber to make the collar - I wanted to have a bit of extra space in the top for added storage. That reminds me - I should get a small freezer so I can frost mugs too...


 


The inside of the unit - I was able to get 4 canisters inside due to making the collar a bit taller. Two will be for soda and two for homemade brew. The runs to the faucets will be a bit longer, so I am going to run them all through PVC, insulate them, and run an extra tube that will go down and back and be hooked up to a pump inside the freezer. There will be water in the bottom of the freezer that will be pumped through that tube to keep the beer / soda cold as it sits in the tubes:


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

Looks like a nice set up Joe..Where's the fermenter/s?


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

Prof. said:


> Looks like a nice set up Joe..Where's the fermenter/s?


My neighbor and I are both actually brewing and he has been doing it for a couple years. I just did my first batch tonight which was an extract brew, and we are going to do an all-grain one on Saturday.

He has 3 six gallon carboys, so I probably will only have to get one. We already started plans for a full-on brewing station in my basement tonight while we were brewing!


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## Mike Edwards (Mar 10, 2011)

ALMFamily said:


> My neighbor and I are both actually brewing and he has been doing it for a couple years. I just did my first batch tonight which was an extract brew, and we are going to do an all-grain one on Saturday.
> 
> He has 3 six gallon carboys, so I probably will only have to get one. We already started plans for a full-on brewing station in my basement tonight while we were brewing!


ooooooo, whatcha brewing??? is your all grain going to be a full 3 tier setup or something simple like Brew in a bag?

I just finished the brew stage for a Bavarian hefeweizen late last night and have 2 IPA's and a Brown ale in bottles right now...I really need to get a kegerator


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

ALMFamily said:


> "so I probably will only have to get one".


That's how it starts!..If you turn out a good brew you'll have friends that you never knew and you won't be able to keep up demand!!


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

Mike Edwards said:


> ooooooo, whatcha brewing??? is your all grain going to be a full 3 tier setup or something simple like Brew in a bag?
> 
> I just finished the brew stage for a Bavarian hefeweizen late last night and have 2 IPA's and a Brown ale in bottles right now...I really need to get a kegerator


Caribou Slobber was the first - we decided to do that one as an extract since we were doing it during the week. We are planning to do a mash tun on Saturday - that one will be a cream ale.



Prof. said:


> That's how it starts!..If you turn out a good brew you'll have friends that you never knew and you won't be able to keep up demand!!


I hope so - I want to brew more often! . Of course, my neighbor has 4 five gallon canisters so I can always borrow from him!


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## Mike Edwards (Mar 10, 2011)

ALMFamily said:


> Caribou Slobber was the first - we decided to do that one as an extract since we were doing it during the week. We are planning to do a mash tun on Saturday - that one will be a cream ale.


Caribout Slobber is a great extract recipe. another one that's REALLY hard to mess up is a bavarian Hefeweizen... sooooooooo simple. just some wheat extract, some noble hops and some hefe yeast and you're DONE. everyone loves hefe's too so it's a great crowd pleaser.

and yes, it gets addicting REAL fast. sooner or late you have 2 kegs full, another 10 gallons in bottles and you're already planning the next batch or two.


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## mpednault (Dec 20, 2012)

I'm brewing a Bev Hef on Sunday. I'd love to start kegging but bottling has its advantages since you can give a bottle or two to friends or bring your OWN beer to gatherings and parties. Makes for good conversation when you bring a non-labeled bottle with you!


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## Mike Edwards (Mar 10, 2011)

mpednault said:


> I'm brewing a Bev Hef on Sunday. I'd love to start kegging but bottling has its advantages since you can give a bottle or two to friends or bring your OWN beer to gatherings and parties. Makes for good conversation when you bring a non-labeled bottle with you!


that's actually why I still bottle. so much easier in portability and keeping around... if you go through it really fast than a keg is fine, but when you just want a few bottles to take with you to a social gathering it's a lot easier than lugging the keg


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

Mike Edwards said:


> Caribout Slobber is a great extract recipe. another one that's REALLY hard to mess up is a bavarian Hefeweizen... sooooooooo simple. just some wheat extract, some noble hops and some hefe yeast and you're DONE. everyone loves hefe's too so it's a great crowd pleaser.
> 
> and yes, it gets addicting REAL fast. sooner or late you have 2 kegs full, another 10 gallons in bottles and you're already planning the next batch or two.





mpednault said:


> I'm brewing a Bev Hef on Sunday. I'd love to start kegging but bottling has its advantages since you can give a bottle or two to friends or bring your OWN beer to gatherings and parties. Makes for good conversation when you bring a non-labeled bottle with you!





Mike Edwards said:


> that's actually why I still bottle. so much easier in portability and keeping around... if you go through it really fast than a keg is fine, but when you just want a few bottles to take with you to a social gathering it's a lot easier than lugging the keg


I would love to get the recipe and brewing instructions for the bavarian if you have them handy to give it a try. Since the brewing station is actually a part of the lobby build, I can ask this question without derailing my own build thread - are you guys inside or outside brewers? I want to do an inside brewing station, but I am struggling with whether I do NG or electric. Electric means I need to run a brand new dedicated line, and I cannot do that because of the theater build closing off the ceiling from the box.

On the other hand, NG means I have to vent really well and find some way to supply fresh air to that area. I would want to do something more than just an gas stove since the grates on a standard gas range are only 12" which would not allow for more than one 15 gallon kettle at a time. 

What are you guys using?


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## Mike Edwards (Mar 10, 2011)

ALMFamily said:


> I would love to get the recipe and brewing instructions for the bavarian if you have them handy to give it a try. Since the brewing station is actually a part of the lobby build, I can ask this question without derailing my own build thread - are you guys inside or outside brewers? I want to do an inside brewing station, but I am struggling with whether I do NG or electric. Electric means I need to run a brand new dedicated line, and I cannot do that because of the theater build closing off the ceiling from the box.
> 
> On the other hand, NG means I have to vent really well and find some way to supply fresh air to that area. I would want to do something more than just an gas stove since the grates on a standard gas range are only 12" which would not allow for more than one 15 gallon kettle at a time.
> 
> What are you guys using?


Extract Hefe's are EAAAAAAAAASY, and in my opinion, just as good as the all grain hefe's... they're so simple that going all grain for a hefe is just usaully a cost thing.

6 lbs of Wheat DME (or 7.5 lbs of wheat LME
1 oz of Tettnanger, Hallertau or Saaz hops
1 vial of WLP 300 or Wyeast 3068 (dry yeasts make a DECENT hefe, but the 2 yeasts I listed are the traditional hefe yeasts that yields a much more accurate result. 

use a 5-7 gallon pot... pour in 3.5 gallons of water and bring to a boil.
add in the 1 oz of hops (I really like Tettnanger and Hallertau)
boil for about 30 minutes... put in the DME or LME ... stir like crazy to get it dissolved and make sure the addition is done OFF the heat
finish the boil to a full 60 minutes

chill using worth chiller, ice bath or what not... all you need is down to 100-110 degrees F really. 

then pour in the carboy. at this time you top off with sanitized ice cold water (I boil 2-3 gallons and put in the fridge over night so it's really cold) and that should bring your temps down to pitching temps... toss in the liquid yeast (starter is always recommended for WLP, but a Wyeast smack pack is pitchable straight up because you always want to UNDERPITCH your yeast with a hefeweizen..that's where a lot of your bannana and clove flavors come from.. )

ferment for about 2-3 weeks. hefe's are fast so 10-14 days for fermentation is pretty standard.. then bottle for 3 weeks and you're gtg


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## Horrorfan33 (Jun 11, 2013)

Very cool.. this is going to be an awesome thread..I subbed


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

Well, it has been a while since I updated this thread, but I have not been idle.

I have the walls all studded out now for the brewing area and the lighting is done in there as well:

  

I have most of the electrical run - I just need to add an outlet for the exhaust fan and a 240V outlet for the control box. I am also planning to put in a laundry sink which will be used as a wash sink and a dumping spot for the water from the counterflow chiller:

 

The lobby area is all studded out now as well, and I have run the lighting for the laundry area and the workshop. I also got the washer and dryer outlets moved and the dryer vent line installed so I finished getting the drywall up in that area and moved the dryer:

 


The washing machine has to stay where it is for now - I have a friend who is a plumber who is going to cut in the lines and put shut off valves in for me, but he has been a bit busy. :sad: However, you can see roughly where I am going to put the kegerator:

 

The wall that closes off the workshop is where I am going to locate the popcorn machine and potentially a lit movie poster box:

  

The electrical is mostly done in this area - I just have a few outlets to add to the kegerator wall. The lighting will be on hold in there as I need to build some soffiting in to allow for door swings in some areas.


On the brewing side, the cream ale is kegged and the caribou slobber will be kegged today!


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## dougc (Dec 19, 2009)

Some pretty good progress there. I have have some friends that brew beer and keep trying to pull me in. My wife would kill me if I added yet another hobby. HA! I accidentally typed "hoppy" instead of hobby, I wonder if it is meant to be then. Hm.


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

Looks like it will be a nice setup Joe..


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

dougc said:


> Some pretty good progress there. I have have some friends that brew beer and keep trying to pull me in. My wife would kill me if I added yet another hobby. HA! I accidentally typed "hoppy" instead of hobby, I wonder if it is meant to be then. Hm.





Prof. said:


> Looks like it will be a nice setup Joe..


Thanks guys - it sure seems like a mess down there right now. It will be nice once the walls are all up - kind of like the theater in that it felt like a room at that point...


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## raZorTT (Jan 17, 2008)

Hey Joe,

Great work so far! 

A buddy of mine is into home brewing. His place looks like Walter White's meth lab 

Cheers,
Simon


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

It dawned on me that I have not updated this thread in quite some time. I will try to get some pictures up in the next day or two as I have done quite a bit...


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## mechman (Feb 8, 2007)

ALMFamily said:


> It dawned on me that I have not updated this thread in quite some time. I will try to get some pictures up in the next day or two as I have done quite a bit...


About time Joe! :foottap:

:T


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

You mean you still haven't finished it yet!?


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

mechman said:


> About time Joe! :foottap:
> 
> :T


:R



Prof. said:


> You mean you still haven't finished it yet!?


To be honest, I am not awfully far off. Definitely over halfway - with the lobby AND the brewing area.


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## mpednault (Dec 20, 2012)

Pics or it didn't happen... 

I shouldn't say anything though. I haven't posted pics of my build progress for months even though I've made a bunch of headway on the drywall and other side things.


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

OK, after much promising, I am finally caught up enough on the fifty-eleven (one of Sonnie's famous quotes) projects to get some updates in.


The utility sink put together - this is to be set up in the brewing area:




I built a "laundry box" for it and got all the plumbing for it and the washer / dryer done:

 

The walls studded out for the brewing area:

 

I had not got the plumbing in to get the washer set up in its new home, but here is the dryer sitting in its new home:

 

The wall studded out to enclose my soon to be "finishing" room:



I decided to run a 4 outlet box to the middle of the wall to have plenty of places to plug stuff in:

 

One problem I have is with storage in a finite space - with all the screws / nails I have laying around, I was running out of space. So, I happened upon an idea and decided to incorporate it:

 

Now, that space between the studs is not a waste!

Here, you can see what will be the final resting home of my music server:

 

I needed storage for tools, stains, paints, etc so I built a couple of shelving units that could fit between the support pole:

 

Last, a view into the "finishing" room:


 


I have more updates to follow as these pictures are from a few weeks ago, but I wanted to break these into separate posts to show progress.


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

Haha... "how to build a distillery and brew beer" tutorial. You drinking too much beer to get finished. 

A typical day in the life of Joe:

Hmmm... well... let me go work on my lobby for my home theater today. Ahh... the beer is ready. Been working on that brewing process for a while now, I deserve a beer. Hmmmm.... good beer. (after about 30 minutes of working on the lobby) I think I might just take a break and have another one. (20 minutes into the break) Well... let me grab one more beer before I get started back. (20 more minutes working on the lobby) Man, them beers are going down sooo smooth, gotta have another one. (another 20 minutes goes by) Whew! I am feelin' gooood, itsa time to listen to som musik and have anudder beer. (the day goes by pretty fast and the wife gets home) Hey baby... I thought you were going to work on the lobby today. And baby... where is all the beer you said would be ready today? 

:rofl:


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## Mike Edwards (Mar 10, 2011)

Sonnie said:


> Haha... "how to build a distillery and brew beer" tutorial. You drinking too much beer to get finished.
> 
> A typical day in the life of Joe:
> 
> ...


that sounds right for a home brewer


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## NBPk402 (Feb 21, 2012)

Sonnie said:


> Haha... "how to build a distillery and brew beer" tutorial. You drinking too much beer to get finished.
> 
> A typical day in the life of Joe:
> 
> ...


That sounds like one of my days except I don't drink all day... I am in the forums most of the day. :T


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## MrAngles (May 1, 2012)

ALMFamily said:


> One problem I have is with storage in a finite space - with all the screws / nails I have laying around, I was running out of space. So, I happened upon an idea and decided to incorporate it:
> 
> 
> 
> Now, that space between the studs is not a waste!


Thank you, your idea has now been stolen.:T


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## JBrax (Oct 13, 2011)

Sonnie said:


> Haha... "how to build a distillery and brew beer" tutorial. You drinking too much beer to get finished. A typical day in the life of Joe: Hmmm... well... let me go work on my lobby for my home theater today. Ahh... the beer is ready. Been working on that brewing process for a while now, I deserve a beer. Hmmmm.... good beer. (after about 30 minutes of working on the lobby) I think I might just take a break and have another one. (20 minutes into the break) Well... let me grab one more beer before I get started back. (20 more minutes working on the lobby) Man, them beers are going down sooo smooth, gotta have another one. (another 20 minutes goes by) Whew! I am feelin' gooood, itsa time to listen to som musik and have anudder beer. (the day goes by pretty fast and the wife gets home) Hey baby... I thought you were going to work on the lobby today. And baby... where is all the beer you said would be ready today? :rofl:


That's awesome!


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## mechman (Feb 8, 2007)

Sonnie said:


> Haha... "how to build a distillery and brew beer" tutorial. You drinking too much beer to get finished.
> 
> A typical day in the life of Joe:
> 
> ...


Joe will confirm all of this tomorrow after he sobers up! :heehee:


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Yup, we know where this thread is going....LOL


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

Some neat storage ideas there Joe..:T


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

Yeah, Joe thought I wanted to see the HT when I visited, but the real motivation was to go to the lobby. Pretty decent brew there. Nice theater as a side note.


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

He won't remember a thing tomorrow.


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

Sadly, I do not drink it near as much as I should. I had a glass of my Russian Imperial Stout today for the first time in two weeks!


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

OK, to try to get caught up close to current...


This is the view looking in the entry door - you can see the washer and dryer in their final location now - you can also see where the theater sign will end up being:

 

A closer view - you can get a glimpse of the floor there - it is not yet complete in that picture, and it is now. I will get a picture of that up soon:

 

A closer view of the theater sign location:

 

Here is a picture of the ceiling which is pretty much complete - I have a bit of touch up work to do from installing the celing and some scratches that evolved from that. In the corner where you see the two vent lines, that will be a display cabinet above the beer keezer where I will display my beer steins:

 

A few more pictures around this space:

 

 

 

 

Here is where the movie shelving will be built:

 

This is the entry door to the finishing room all stained and set to go:

 

The music server is done and in its final resting place. Some day, I will get that thread updated too! 

 

I had some extra chalkboard paint laying around, so I made my storage shelves so I could label what was stored on each:

 

That gets me close to current in that area...


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Hey Joe, that's starting to look real nice and clean. How does the wife like it?


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

On to the brewing area!

The drywall is all up and the room has been painted. I also have the utility sink all set to go:

 

 

The framing is all built and the countertop installed for the area:

 

 

 

Here is a picture of the ceiling where the exhaust line and in-line fan will be so I can vent the steam outside:

 

I have a fair bit more done in this room, and I will get some pictures and an update in as soon as I can...


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

tonyvdb said:


> Hey Joe, that's starting to look real nice and clean. How does the wife like it?


Thanks Tony! I think she thinks I am nuts - hopefully, when it is all set and done, she will like it as much as I do. She has said a couple times it is starting to look nice, so there is hope.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Keeps you busy and it's something you enjoy. Im sure she sees that and puts up with it. You do good work. I wish my finishing skills were as goos as you.


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

tonyvdb said:


> Keeps you busy and it's something you enjoy. Im sure she sees that and puts up with it. You do good work. I wish my finishing skills were as goos as you.


She does - and looks past my expensive hobbies. 

Thanks - ironically enough, before I started all this, I was really not handy at all. Doing this for the last couple years has really made a difference...


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