Do you like to "Do It Yourself"........

[Orion]

The stain? I don't recall off the top of my head; I can see if I have any leftover in the garage if I remember when I get home. Something from Home Depot.

The hutch itself, I wasn't going off any pre-designed plans, I just browsed similar things for inspiration then designed it in my head and built it. A few features, such as that ventilation strip across the top, were purely my own idea and not something I saw elsewhere.

I like the pan removal part.

How long ago did you build this and how well has the finish held up to the elements?

 

[kronin323]

I like the pan removal part.

How long ago did you build this and how well has the finish held up to the elements?

The pans were meant for that, made for some pre-built 3'x3' cages. I added the pull handles.

I built that over two weekends during the summer of 2013, so nearly four years. Overall it's held up quite well. The one exception is the roof, about half of the plywood layers have delaminated. I keep telling myself I need to redo that part one of these days but the original roof still serves.

Many pre-built designs use standard asphalt shingles, like on normal houses, but at the time I couldn't find a few leftover from some shingling job and I didn't want to buy a full bundle just to use a few.

 

[Orion]

My DIY project.

The Story (just about everything I do in life has a story, this is no different). We finished part of our basement about 13 years ago. Nothing fancy. As a result the other half became a storage. Storage for stuff we brought from our apartment when we moved in that we never used, and stuff we accumulated/didn't get rid off. After many years it became unmanageable and I finally cracked. My goal was to create an exercise room, useful storage, and a small workbench area. My goal was to do this for under $500 (not including exercise equipment). Flooring I used foam puzzle matts (Amazon & Harbor Freight) $90. Lights were track lights from Cheapo Depo $80. 30 x 8'x12" barn board was about $150. Electrician (my nephew) was $175. Then probably another $50 in misc stuff

Here are before and after pictures:

Cellar Stairs end just outside the door. All these pics were after most of this side was cleaned:

Before

After: Walls are rough sawn pine use most for barn boards. Made a padded IPAD wall frame with some scraps

Looking left from these pics which would be the front of the house basement wall:

Before: Shelves build a few years ago to deal with clutter - didn't have enough space :-(

After:

 

[Orion]

Turning Left again:

Before:

After:

Turning left, yet again:

Before:

After: - yes this is a recent picture and yes that is a Christmas tree. We celebrate X-mas 365

I have a few more pics of the "other side I'll get up soon

 

[Orion]

The tempered pegboard mounts for my cast iron? I previously posted that here:
Cast Iron Cookware discussion thread...

Though it's filled up a bit more since then...

Nice job bet there is some serious weight on that peg board

 

[kronin323]

Turning Left again:

Before:
View attachment 320982

After:

View attachment 320983

Turning left, yet again:

Before:
View attachment 320984

After: - yes this is a recent picture and yes that is a Christmas tree. We celebrate X-mas 365

View attachment 320985

I have a few more pics of the "other side I'll get up soon

I wish I had a basement...

 

[OakleyFrankFMJ]

I wish I had a basement...

Be a lot easier to hide the bodies

 

[Orion]

I wish I had a basement...

It's definately a nice thing if you need storage or extra living space. I guess it's a perk of being up north and having to deal with the frost line. Something I never thought of.

 

[Orion]

Be a lot easier to hide the bodies

shhhh......that's why I didn't take any pics of the other side yet. Need to find a new place to hide them.

 

[kronin323]

Nice job bet there is some serious weight on that peg board

That was my concern, it's heavy and cast iron is brittle so I can assume any piece that falls is a goner. And they're vintage so not as easily replaced as modern stuff.

So instead of normal pegboard I used 1/4" tempered hardwood, which is supposed to be 3X stronger. Then I anchored every 1' instead of the standard every 2', meaning a 2' x 4' panel got 15 anchors instead of 6. And I used "durahook" pegs, which screw in and are super-solid. All that really increased the price of the project but it was worth it for the peace of mind.

It would take some serious water damage to that wall and the pegboard before there was any risk of it coming off, now.