Category: Projects

February 4, 2020 – Three down, two to go (plus a lot of work)

February 4, 2020 /

I finished the third cabinet on Monday. So the whole set of bottom cabinets are complete.

The biggest cabinet, with an adjustable shelf

Today, I ripped out the old pantry. With it, there was some hole patching and it got a paint job. Part of my motivation to do this at this time is I am starting to run out of room for the new cabinets and working at the same time. I am also anxious to check my measurements before I start building the uppers.

Ready for paint
Watching paint dry

I didn’t know that there was an outlet hidden behind the exiting cabinetry. I am going to test rearranging the bottom cabinets to see if I can take advantage of the outlet placement for the refrigerator. That will only work if the rifrigerator door will open properly in that position.

I also noticed that tile was placed over the existing floor so there will have to be a small amount of chiseling to do to remove some grout that is in the way for final cabinet placement.

Aside from building the final two cabinets and shelves, I need to build a counter top, a face frame for all of the cabinets to lock them together and a toe kick. So, while I am making good progress overall there is still a lot of work to do.

January 27, 2020 – One down and four to go

January 27, 2020 /

My first cabinet is assembled. It is the most complicated one. Hopefully, the rest will go quicker. In fact today I did all of the millwork to go from rough lumber to panel glue up for the second cabinet. With any luck that one will be near completion tomorrow.

The broom ‘drawer’

Here are five tips I have learned by building this first cabinet.

  • Bandsaw setup for re-sawing is critical. This is an area that I have really struggled with. I have tried to get half inch boards from 1 1/4″ and ended up with firewood because the blade wandered so badly. Make sure the blade is tensioned and the guides are tight. I have also learned my saw better and know how much allowance I need to make a quality cut.
  • Dust collection saves time and gives better results (usually). I have never really used dust collection preferring to cleanup the mess later. After hooking a shop vac to the tools, I believe that it improves precision (in re-sawing) and productivity.
  • Mobile bases on tools in a small shop are worth the cost. I don’t have mobility on all of my tools and what I notice is that instead of moving machines to optimum positioning, I will suffer with less than desirable results rather than milling a new piece. That will be in the works for the next project
  • Water-based polyurethane is a great product. It is a little pricey at $50/gallon but you save tremendously on clean-up and I can get six coats on in a day with a serious two hour dry time. I still prefer the warm look of an oil based product, but it is really hard to argue with the performance of a water-based.
  • Pitch still runs after 15 years. When you hit a pitch pocket that hasn’t been exposed to air, it drips out and makes a mess of everything. I have some paint thinner on hand to wipe it off, but usually after it gets all over.

I am technically nearing the end of week two on this project and there are still lots of things to do, but I am enjoying the process. The next update will be after I hit another milestone.

January 22, 2020 – Introducing the “Pantry Project”

January 21, 2020 /

A few days before Christmas, we had a problem. It was a big one. The supply line for the toilet had been leaking and it caused the ceiling in the pantry to collapse. Of course I had no idea that was going on and the kids said “oh yeah, the floor is always wet”. Days before Christmas we had a ruined pantry, a leak, a mess and to top it off we were leaving for two weeks.

Fortunately, we have a friend that has done some work for us before and we were able to get him to work on the repairs while we were gone. After fixing all of the damage I started looking at the empty pantry and thought, this would be the time to make some changes if I wanted.

The old pantry

I talked to my wife about the situation and she was game. So I started thinking about what I wanted to change. I didn’t like how full it was or all of the clutter, brooms and mops blocked the dryer door when carelessly stowed. I wanted to add a wine cooler (mini fridge for now). The bank of drawers were largely useless. The shelves were added as an afterthought and were at risk of tipping over or collapsing when pressure applied.

At first, I wanted to do this the tyical way. I was going to use prefinished plywood and build cabinets quickly. But, my wife didn’t want the expense so we compromised on this idea that I had always had. Back when we moved into this house, there was a Douglas Fir that we had removed. I hired a portable mill to cut the lumber and it has been dried and stacked, waiting to build a project that belonged to this home. So, that is what I am going to do.

Plans for the pantry

It wont be the fastest way to get this done, but in the end, I think the story will be worth it. Stay tuned for updates, I estimate this will take six weeks or so to complete.

January 9, 2020 – Painting your front door

January 9, 2020 /

In the Winter? Yes, as long as it is not freezing, exterior painting can be done, even in the Winter. I choose to do it now because I had the time and it wasn’t raining.

First prep the surface

To start with, it is helpful to know what you are dealing with. This door is a fiberglass door that was stained with a water-based stain. Read, the substrate is stable and the surface had some oxidation, but nothing a quality paint couldn’t cover. I didn’t need to sand or repair anything before I started

To prepare the surface, I brushed off all of the cobwebs. I also masked around the glass with some very flexible tape. I didn’t do this, but you could run a loop of masking tape around the locksets. However a careful paintbrush drawing away from the hardware on each stroke saves masking time.

I used a high grade, hardware store exterior paint and primer in one to paint. I really prefer a well known paint store branded paint, but they do not sell my preferred line in quarts and the sample size paint is not as durable as I would like. Think $80-100/gal for high performance paint.

Why expensive paint and what is the difference? I happen to know a lot about this area so here are some reasons. You want a paint that is performance tested in your climate. Not all major brands test in the Pacific Northwest for our conditions like consistent wetness. More expensive paint is going to have better hide – less recoats to get the final outcome. The additives are more durable, colors are going to stay truer, longer and not fade as quickly. Adhesion to less pure substrates is much better with expensive paint.

This is what it looked like after three coats. I will probably give it a fourth coat (not what I was hoping for) to finish this, but the overall result sure is striking. I like it so much that I am thinking I will pain the back door again this summer.