Let's Get to Work

The Hired Help arrived on Valentine's Day, 2009 to begin work on converting the garage. Luckily for me, Valentine's Day doesn't get recognised in Picton so work could begin without ramifications.
First thing to do was to nail up some gardener's chicken wire so insulation batts could be installed. It's one very hot garage in the summer so any relief from the baking heat will be needed to stop me and the models from melting. I don't enjoy summer at all. It doesn't like me and I don't like it, so maybe  down the track, I'll have to install some air conditioning. We'll see.

Let the scratching begin

Get down, Funkster

Elscotto's practical knowledge soon got things underway and we had most of the chicken wire up over a couple of weekends. The challenge for us was finding time in our busy schedules to do work so consequently what I thought would take a couple of weekends ended up taking about 3 months!!! We had to extend the rafters downwards to give clearance for the fluorescent light pots I had bought as well as provide something for the new ceiling to be attached to.

Batts in and additional rafters installed

We decided to get a real electrician in to cable up the power and lights

Next, came the hard bit of putting up the ceiling and installing the cornices. The ceilings took a couple of days and again, what I thought would take a month or so ended up taking about 4 months. I am not, nor ever will be, a ceiling installer. The amount of rework I did as I kept stuffing things up was amazing.
Anyway, bit by bit, I managed to get the cornices done and all the filling at least presentable to a point where I could paint the ceiling and get the lights installed. Soon after, the walls and main support beams were attacked next by filling holes and removing nails etc, followed by a coat of azure blue paint. Elscotto helped again with fixing up the dodgy window and putting some eves up at the back to keep the grape vine from invading the trainroom. Next to last task was filling and painting the floor so that the final result looked like this:

Dodgy window fixed

You could eat your dinner off that

There are 12 double fluoro lights installed. Turns night into day!

The window you can see in the last photo above was totally rotten so it came out and was replaced by a new Aluminium window. Locks have been installed and now the garage is complete and ready for the Per-Way gang to start.
It's only taken a year but it's been well worth it as I can now start on the fun bits and get trains rolling into Picton.
And as I said before, it's been with Elscotto's help, advice and encourgemant that has got me off my lily white behind to get things done.