Marc's Patio & Garage Studio

Congratulations Marc! :D

Thanks guys. I finally got a date for my electric panel upgrade and move, April 25, 06. I called electrician this morning, the secretary said they were waiting for permit office to let them know if permit was ready. She called permit office and it was ready, then scheduled power company for a disconnect at 8:45 AM on the 25th and scheduled inspection for the end of the day. Sharward, I won’t be able to compete with your pics of concrete truck turning the corner to your street, I’m not a morning person. I will get pics though. Andy, I can’t compete with your $8,000 pre studio construction cost, but my number is will still be ugly before I set the 1st nail close to $4,000. I’m real excited about this, it’s the single most expensive item for my studio (I hope) at $2,300 and I can’t start a lot of other work until the electrical service panel is taken care of. BTW Most exciting thing I’m looking forward to is knocking down my 9’8” cinder block wall :mrgreen: Since last writing about the wall I’ve discovered the keyboard player I work with knows how to operate the bad a$$ concrete saw to cut the wall up and several of my musician/singer co-workers have volunteered to come to a “bashing down the wall party” all in exchange for studio time. Free dust masks, safety glasses & gloves will be provided at this non-alcohol party…and I’m not sure if it’s something I’m actually going to do out of safety sake, but it’s nice to know I have some good brute force available. I haven’t asked a lot of questions lately because almost everything I need answers to I’ve found in Rod’s new book. I am on my 3rd study, read & skip through of it. Marc :twisted: 240 days till due date of studio.

Hey Guitardad72, Don't tell me this is your 73rd kid on the way... :shock: In all seriousness, CONGRATULATIONS! :D

guitardad72 wrote:

Sharward, I won’t be able to compete with your pics of concrete truck turning the corner to your street, I’m not a morning person. I will get pics though.

:lol: Ha! :lol: Actually, I must explain -- my contractor and I were standing on the driveway and I just happened to glance down the opposite end of the street when I saw the concrete truck go by. He passed the first leg of the circle I live on and picked up the second leg... So I knew to expect him to turn the corner at the top of my street. 8) Hey, what can I say -- I was inspired by Paul Woodlock's concrete pour pictures. :twisted: --Keith :mrgreen:

Nothing new with my studio build except for things which take time and money away from studio. Had to take a break last night from other things to read & write some posts on this forum. Things that are taking time & money: Tax Prep. Blew a tire on van, luckily in my driveway it went flat but that was after 600 miles of driving. End result was 4 new tires. Plumbing disaster: Right before I left for weekend gigs one of my tiolets/bathroom overflowed :x ... decided to buy Harbor Frieght electric drain cleaner (1/2" snake, 50' long, $180) when I got home. Got water flowing then used the "1 1/4" side scrapper" to clean pipe... dang machine would not turn off at a tangle point where I needed to back off, had to unplug the motor from power source. After 1/2 an hour of restling the tangled snake back into the drum I pulled it out of drain only to find the cutter attachment and end snake attachment peice had broken off 25' to 30' in the pipe :x Had to call plumber, after a few tries to push the cutter out of pipe, we could not confirm where the cutter attachment is, in the septic tank or still in pipe. BUT wads of toilet paper freely flow through pipe to tank. What a shitty day, well days. Only relationship of this story to studio build besides waste of time and money is: I hesitated from buying the $180 tool from Harbor Freight. HD and Lowes have similiar units for $280 and $500. I've already chewed harbor frieght out on the phone, they will take the unit back but... Has anybody else had any real problem with tools from Harbor Frieght a real discount hardware store? I don't think I will buy anything (especially a power tool) from them again :!: Marc :evil: 232 days till due date of studio.

sorry about the toilet man. that sucks. don't know that company you're talking about. the worst thing about that is the smug attitude of the plumber, i bet ... tax prep is espeially soul destroying when your time is soo precious ... having 3 kids now makes every minute of free time count. i spent probably half an hour (ok, well it SEEMED like half an hour) doing the worksheet for "qualified" dividends ... ended up saving me A DOLLAR. i am not kidding. ONE DOLLAR. what a freakin waste of time. no i will not pay to have it done ... that's adding insult to injury ...

Company is: http://www.harborfreight.com/ Cheap tools but :roll: Taxes, agreed yup like everything else I do it myself. Even though self-employed musicians (entertainers to the tax man code) show up automatically on the red flag list... I still love the creativity part of dealing with cash accounts and taxes :mrgreen: Marc 232 days till due date of studio.

Finally and UPDATE about studio progress: Day 1 of electrical upgrade and relocation of service panel. The electricians came for about 4 hours to prep the job. (can't....help...but....go....off......topic :twisted: Please notice the lamp post in above pic. The plant surrounding post is the Mini Crape Mrytle I had to get out of way of studio build, it would have gotten destroyed building an exterior wall. Also the octogon edger built out of landscape lumber was a practice round of angle cutting pre studio build... it doesn't look like it, but I failed making all the angles and lengths the same... a good lesson learned.) They cut the hole in drywall for new panel: AND notice how un square that top cut is? They have to cut 3, 2" holes through the top plates of the wall into the attic. On the last hole they hit a nail (or so they said) and the drill took off (twisted) and broke the drywall. :x No big deal though I got lot's of other holes to patch (like I really wanted another) The electrician used a stud finder I've never seen before. A peice of stripped 12 gauge wire. He banged on the wall 1st with screw driver, then just kept poking holes with the wire till he found the studs. Much to our surprise we found out this wall does not just have 2 top plates, but 4. The 2nd top plate was on it's side (maybe it's not called a top plate in this instance) making the cut real fun. They did not get all the way through to the attic today: Luckily this unexpected obsticle happened today on the "prep" day. Tommorow morning @ 8:45am Florida Power & Light is going to disconnect my electric from my service pole. Hopefully, before my wife and son come home around 5pm, the inspector will have approved the work and let Florida Power & Light reconnect my power. :shock: So... if I do not post an update tommorow night (cause I do not have any power and no cooling HVAC) then... something will have gone wrong and I will definatley be in the "dog house" :roll: Wish me luck. Marc :twisted:

Jumpin' Jehosephats -- a quadruple header!!! :shock: Very cool pics -- can't wait for your next progress report. I'll keep an eye to the southeast for smoke signals from our guitardad! ;-) --Keith :mrgreen:

Day 2 of Electric Service Upgrade: Florida Power & Light (FPL) came and disconnected my house @ 8:30am: Service wire discconnected from pole and temparily tied to kitchen vent (on left): The old panel was ripped out: New service pole and meter box/panel with 8 breaker spaces: 2 grunts and one electrician: AND in this pic you can see from the left, the shelves I still have to tear down, the old panel location, my quiet HVAC handler, barely see dryer duct vent I mentioned in previous posts (to the right of middle grunt) and the new panel being installed. Inspector came, looked at the outside section for not more than 30 seconds, grabbed the cables to make sure they were secure, looked at nothing else signed permit and called FPL with the OK to hook service back up: Another FPL truck came: Got hooked up again: AND I got a brand new digital meter can, with a reading of ZERO: And finally new 200 amp service panel with lot's of spare breaker spaces located far away (well 10') from a studio wall. Also the sprinkler controller box got moved here to it's final location: Now it's time to start repairing busted drywall in garage and rip out storage shelves. Most exciting is now I can apply for permit of addition/modification to my house for studio. Only thing left for permit is I have to decide and submit tech info on the exterior door I'm going to use. Door has to meet Florida building code (something like Wind Sheer of 125 mph) Most important about the day the power got turned back on at 5pm, wife and son came home I was not in the "dog house" Marc

Aloha Marc, Congrats on a safe, successful and timely install! :D Aloha 8)

DAMN, that's a big ugly wallpanel there! Here's how they look over here in Holland, But good thing you got power again,

DAMN, that's a big ugly wallpanel there!

Yup sir, Ugly I agree with that dirty & busted drywall all around. Got some fixing and painting to do. Electric service panels seem to have grown over the years. My old panel was about 16" W x 25"H, had 30 spaces and the main breaker. This new one is 16" W x 31" H, has room for a main breaker but I got that outside now. The outside meter box is 10 times as big as the old one, but it's a panel too with 8 breaker spaces. Marc

HEY! I thought I had the monopoly on taking photos of commercial service trucks! :lol: Marc, I'm sure you're feeling terrific about having met this very major milestone. This is kind of the equivalent of your concrete pour! ;-) Congratulations! 8) --Keith :mrgreen:

HEY! I thought I had the monopoly on taking photos of commercial service trucks!

Well, you still win though. I couldn't get the shot of the truck turning the corner onto my street!!! Feeling terriffic and exhausted (had a late gig last night then up at 8am)... I decided at that price ($2,300) I had to watch them all day for not only making sure everything got put the way I wanted and learning purposes (learned some real good electrical tricks) but for shear enterainment :twisted: It was cooler in the garage then house by midday, reclining in one of my vans luxury seats, drinking ice water while listening to the "attic boy" grunt and groan as he skwermed through my attic. :evil: Marc & forgot on last couple of posts: 220 days till due date of studio.

Hiring professional contractor to move electrical panel... $2,300 Reclining in a van luxury seats, drinking ice water while listening to the "attic boy" grunt and groan as he skwermed through your attic... Priceless! :D

Priceless!

Sharward, you trying to sell me a Mastercard? :P I’ve been doing homework/planning on several parts of my studio build, so a report type post. :arrow: Existing Ceiling, outer leaf… how much PSF can I add? This is a one story ranch. Half my existing ceiling is 99” from slab (patio side) and the other half (garage) is 100” from slab. I will be using 2x6’s (99% sure) to create a completely detached inner leaf ceiling which I will hang 2 layers of ¾” drywall green glued together. Additionally I will have to figure in the weight of a cloud (similar to Kendale’s) for the 2x6's. The patio side existing, from bottom chord of truss down is ½” furring strips, ½” green board and ½” stucco with no lath. The garage side is ½” drywall (40 years old and has been exposed to too much humidity) attached directly to bottom chord of truss. I’ve got shingle on the roof (1 PSF) and 1x12 sheathing (max 3 PSF). In the back of my mind I’ve been figuring I can go to 10 PSF to hang from this ceiling but had to confirm the dead load of my Truss system. This was not easy to find with a 2/12 or 2.5/12 pitch roof. I’m going safe and using 2/12 The Truss system is the "common type" with 4 webs in between chords. Top chords are 2x6’s; bottom chord is a 2x4. It’s all #3 grade structural wood. Span from points of bearing is about 35 feet. I’ve got no snow load. What I got for the whole truss system is a load 32 PSF… and I’m hoping (almost sure) having 10 PSF hanging from the bottom chords (joists) will be fine. This is where I am really hoping some to say YES your fine, or no you’re going to kill yourself OR suggest I do the dreaded task of calling and then waiting months for a structural engineer to check it out. (Lot’s of hurricanes in Florida make structural engineers next to impossible to hire to look at small projects) I think I’m going to leave the green board/stucco side alone (might add just ½” drywall) and add one layer of ¾” drywall green glued to the existing ½” drywall on the garage side. Searching for one exterior door: I thought this was going to be easier, this is the only thing holding up me applying for my building permit for addition to hosue. I am going with double doors not one super door. I am looking for a full light (mostly glass) single pane window in this exterior door. Door has to meet Florida building code for hurricane 2 winds and I have to submit tech info with building permit. Most all full light doors are double pane window (which would make a 3 leaf system with other solid door). HD has one exterior door which is single pane but the door part is not solid… I could buy this door and modify it but that would be a PITA. I could buy a solid wood door and then cut and install a window but that sounds like an equal PITA. What’s my goal, why do I want a window in one of two doors anyway? I want to be able to open up the inner door and then I should be able to see in through my patio and into house… I should also then have an audio link with the house (on purpose) and then most important when the inner door is closed my wife and son will know to be careful before knocking. I like this idea better then installing a F^<& 0ff light, though I'm sad to let the light idea go. I’m continuing my search for this door, but if anyone has a suggestion feel free. I may just give up on the full lite single pane glass door. Urh. Beating myself up over the design: I’ve previously spent hours and hours working out the design. For the past month or so I walked away from the CAD program (SketchUp) on my computer and have concentrated on studying construction (mostly through Rods book & this web site). Now I feel like I’ve “passed” in my knowledge of construction (for my purposes) and I’m back at designing a simple one room studio & I can’t make up my mind. Currently I’m trying to figure out to splay the walls via drywall on 2x4 or to use splayed slot resonator walls. Then fit it all in my limited space, under 1000cbft. I got a thread going over in the acoustics forum if interested. Understanding why I am going to run Isolated Ground/Star System. The other day when I had my electric upgrade of course I told the electrician what I was going to do. Like stated by others on Star Grounding System Question thread; my electrician stated there was no real use to it… it’s all tied together anyways. I had no power to turn my computer on; all I had was Rods Book to show him. While relaxing in the luxury seat, drinking ice water I skimmed that entire chapter trying to give the electrician a “reason”. It was not until I went through that thread for like the 3rd or 4th time (and last time just now), reading the links from the thread including the lengthy one at RO, combined with reading rods books till I got it. Wish I had another chance to explain it to the electrician. :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: Previously I talked about the sprinkler manifold in the wall of studio, leading to all sorts of landscaping work. I won’t explain again but it’s lead to: Today I started digging post holes for the fence at the back of my property. Fun… :twisted: :twisted: Marc 217 days till due date of studio.

guitardad72 wrote:

I will hang 2 layers of ¾” drywall green glued together. . .

I've never worked with ¾” drywall... Has anyone here done so? :roll: How about 1 layer of 1/2" OSB plus two layers of 5/8" drywall instead (with GG between the drywall layers)?

This is where I am really hoping some to say YES your fine, or no you’re going to kill yourself OR suggest I do the dreaded task of calling and then waiting months for a structural engineer to check it out. (Lot’s of hurricanes in Florida make structural engineers next to impossible to hire to look at small projects)

I'm going to cop out and suggest the structural engineer... :roll: ...but maybe Rod (if he's willing/able) can bless your plan... :?

I’m continuing my search for this door, but if anyone has a suggestion feel free. I may just give up on the full lite single pane glass door. Urh.

How about closed-circuit TV? :roll:

Today I started digging post holes for the fence at the back of my property. Fun… :twisted: :twisted:

UGH!! :twisted: I don't envy you. Been there, done that. Yuck! :P

I've never worked with ¾” drywall... Has anyone here done so?

Oops, :oops: typos on my part, scratch every reference to 3/4" drywall in the last post and sub in 5/8" :lol:

How about closed-circuit TV?

Nope that will not really do. :( Reasons for this door with window... when the other solid door right infront of it is open (double door assembly) I will have some natural light in the room, I will be breaking sound isolation on purpose to hear slightly into the house and back yard, I will (or could depending on where I end up with design) have a line of site view to two 6' wide existing glass patio doors, one of which goes into kitchen and the other into family room. It would be nice to have this visual tie with house when desired, other wise I close the inner door. Marc Marc

I applied for my building permit today. :oops: Permit babble: I felt kind of guilty though applying… I’ve stated this before on this thread and repeating once again… My architect convinced me to not include the inner walls/leaf of my room or anything to do with isolation or acoustics on the permit. It’s a building permit for converting part of my garage & patio into a storage room. He was the only architect or structural engineer I could get a hold of. Hurricane damage and a million people a year moving to Florida, make these guys hard to a hold of. He was my “ticket” for getting permission to tear my exterior concrete block wall down. I’d probably still be waiting on some one else if he would not have taken on the job. :oops: I can’t help but think, once I get this renovation done, should I apply for yet another permit for additional work I’m doing which is the studio part. As is some of this job is going to be a pain in the butt :x I will be installing electrical and doing other work to pass an inspection, then I will be removing or repairing this freshly done work wasting time and money. Architects arguments against this is by keeping the cost of this addition on paper (permit) down (under a $2,500 limit) then my house taxes will not go up (tax would sky rocket because my house has almost doubled in value since I bought 2.5 years ago) and I’ll be avoiding potential hassle from building department. Putting my electrical service upgrade on a seperate permit was jumping through the loop of tax increase. Enough whining huh :cry: … guess my decision is to apply for another permit later OR research everything, build it by the book or better and continue to post pics and discuss here hoping that if I make a mistake some one will pick up on it. I realy want to build this thing to code. :roll: The Door: I visited 4 places looking for my one exterior door and it came down to a Jeld-Wen exterior steel door to: satisfy code (wind sheer & door has to be new), try to keep sound isolation (single pane glass & mass of door) and my budget (couldn’t afford real wood) The tech info on door I supplied with permit is general to 2 collections of Jeld-Wen Doors. I could back out of the exact door I’ve chosen should some one suggest. Door will look like this with just plane glass, no decorative glass: Corner (cross) Sample: A. Standard wood stiles and rails create a complete thermal break. A wood edge is standard. B. Two coats of neutral, low-sheen, baked-on enamel primer enables easier finishing. C. One-piece polystyrene core provides a custom fit, eliminating core voids and delivering long-lasting insulation. D. 24-or 25-gauge cold-rolled galvanized steel resists rust and corrosion. E. JELD-WEN® steel doors feature 1" LVL (laminated veneer lumber) lock stile and top rail for sturdy construction that resists warping and buckling. F. Epoxy primer on the back of the steel prevents corrosion from the inside out. G. Rigid/flexible PVC door sweep provides a more durable, energy efficient weather seal. H. 22-gauge continuous roll-formed steel edge meets market demands and 90-minute fire-rating requirements. I. Epoxy primer on the back of the steel prevents corrosion from the inside out. J. One-piece polystyrene core provides a custom fit, eliminating core voids and delivering long-lasting insulation. K. 24-gauge cold-rolled galvanized steel resists rust and corrosion. L. Two coats of neutral, low-sheen, baked-on enamel primer enables easier finishing. M. Steel bottom rail Above info is from http://www.jeld-wen.com/exteriordoors/steel/index.cfm (the 2 door collections I can still choose from are Energy Saver® and Gladiator®) My only concerns about the door: 1. Wood edge inside door is great but polystyrene filled core provides no mass. To my understanding this stuff is closed cell and will not make the steel act as 2 leafs. The whole door will be one leaf. 2. I’ve chosen a ½ lite door with a single pane of glass 1/8th inch thick. The glass insert is 22” W, 36”H. 3. It is pre-hung and parts of the jam I presume I will have to fill with mass of some sort. My design quest: I’ve decided to use slot resonator walls to splay my side walls and not go for the KISS method of just splaying the inner wall/leaf. Also considering using a “hallway” to get my garage/studio inner door off the rear wall of studio, to make room for more bass traps, and in this position (right rear) I may even try and make it a tuned slot trap. Hallway may also allow a slightly larger couch in rear of room. The downside of hallway is that I’ll loose valuable storage space in garage… if I don’ got for it, inner door will be in the position of the right rear bass trap. Here’s a simple quick drawing detailing design and shows patio doors I posted about previously… sitting at the mix position with the inner patio/studio door open I will be able to see into house. AND I’m waiting on a call back from architect to get dead load weight for existing ceiling. Marc 210 days till due date of studio.

I'm aware that the State of Florida has no state income tax and that they tend to make up for that in the form of property taxes... But do you mean to tell me (and everyone else) that adding (for example) a $10,000 improvement to your home will cause the entire home to be reassessed at today's market value?? :shock: Everyone can say what they want about California, but at least we have Proposition 13 to save us from that kind of nonsense. It appears that Florida now has a similar reassessment protection amended to its constitution. According to that page, "The full market value of physical alterations to the property such as additions or improvements (not including normal maintenance) will be added to the property’s assessment after the SAVE OUR HOMES Cap has been applied to the qualifying homestead property." Of course I'm no legal expert, but that information is promising and very much worth your looking into. That being said... Honestly, Marc, your best bet is to work closely with your local building department and/or your tax assessor's office every step of the way. Mine was really helpful. My city's building permit and plan check fees are based on the valuation of the work, and the clerk who helped me initially coached me on keeping the valuation number low while also not making it so low as to cause a red flag to be raised -- basically, working with me to keep my costs down. Hopefully you'll encounter some nice folks down there who can advise you along the same lines. Regardless, you are definitely doing the right thing by doing this project by the book. 8) Sometimes doing the right thing isn't easy, but it's worth it in the long run. --Keith :mrgreen:

But do you mean to tell me (and everyone else) that adding (for example) a $10,000 improvement to your home will cause the entire home to be reassessed at today's market value??

Well now... I guess I should have said that is what the architect lead me to beleive (or maybe even how I misunderstood him), I've not talked about this with anyone else nor done any research. Since I'm waiting on the arctitect to call me back for the truss load question, I'll have this topic of discussion fro him as well. I imagine he may not like me pulling another permit directly after I complete the work on his drawing... which is stamped plan and is suppose to be correct by his oath, he knew what the rooms actual purpose is, swayed me to not put it all down (didn't even want to look at or understand acoustics & isolation) and I suppose he could get into trouble. Thanks for pulling up that link Sharward :D :D :D that was extremely helpful, it also states:

the annual assessment of homestead property shall not exceed the lower of either three percent (3%) of the assessment for the prior year or the percent increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI).

So my statement above very well may be wrong (hopefully) and the only way my assessment could go up higher then 3% in one year is if I add an addition to the house with a value above $2,500. Permit application states for any additition below $2,500, permit office does not report to it to tax appraiser. Got to go soon as I have 2 gigs today... 1st gig is afternoon pool side gig at a time share/waterpark :D then on to a regular restaurant/bar gig where everyone is not in bathing suits :cry: ... not as much fun for the eyes. Marc 209 days till due date of studio.

guitardad72 wrote:

So my statement above very well may be wrong (hopefully) and the only way my assessment could go up higher then 3% in one year is if I add an addition to the house with a value above $2,500. Permit application states for any additition below $2,500, permit office does not report to it to tax appraiser.

Now that's not how I read that at all. My interpretation is more optimistic. It says (emphasis added): "The full market value of physical alterations to the property such as additions or improvements (not including normal maintenance) will be added to the property’s assessment after the SAVE OUR HOMES Cap has been applied to the qualifying homestead property." To me, that means your assement could go up no more than the 3%, plus the value of the improvement. It does not appear to be a "you made a significant improvement, so we're going to assess you at current market value" scenario. Then again, I could be wrong (and I hope that I am not), so you obviously want to find out what the real deal is. I can't overemphasize the importance of everyone finding out for themselves what their own local code (and, in this case, assessment) rules require. :) --Keith :mrgreen:

Keith, Got to admit after comparing both of our last posts, I’m struggling :? to see the difference in our statements to equate you saying

Now that's not how I read that at all

Now worries, no harm but I guess the difference would be your more accurate wording and my use of the $2,500 number which is not stated in the “save our homes cap” doc OR MAYBE my backward babbling is invisible to my own eyes :roll: For the hell of it here is what I meant with more definition: So my statement above very well may be wrong (hopefully) Referring to previous post : “keeping the cost of this addition on paper (permit) down (under a $2,500 limit) then my house taxes will not go up (tax would sky rocket because my house has almost doubled in value since I bought 2.5 years ago)” and the only way my assessment could go up higher then 3% in one year Referring to the Save Our Homes Cap : "any change from the prior year's assessed value is not to exceed the lower of 3% of the assessed value or the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index. In no instance may any assessment exceed full market value." is if I add an addition to the house with a value above $2,500. Meaning if I add an addition or alter the house then like you said it could go up the 3% plus the “full market value of physical alterations to the property such as additions or improvements”. Also addition or improvement would have to be a permitted significant improvement with a fair market value over $2,500… Permit application states for any addition below $2,500, permit office does not report to it to tax appraiser. The only way an alteration gets reported to the assessment office/tax appraiser is if the permit/building code office reports it to them OR if I report it. On my permit there is a place to put value of alteration (actually called cost of project) then there is another part for “Notice Of Commencement” which only has to be filled out if cost of project is above $2,500. If it is above $2,500 then they send the Notice Of Commencement the clerk’s office and others. This is the route of info to the assessment office/tax appraiser, which would make my property tax go up. BTW I put down $2,000 as cost of project. 8) This is also the number code office uses to figure out how much they are going to charge for building permit. “Fair Market Value” is something to be concerned about. I’m only using the cost of materials and no labor cost. Like most of us, I am doing the labor myself. If the permit office decides my number is wrong, decides to add in labor cost (which is my sweat) then I could easily go over the $2,500 for cost of project and my property tax will go up a small percentage (but for years). Some of the above info I've copied from the Save Our Homes Page from my counties web site (Brevard County): http://www.brevardpropertyappraiser.com ... #amendment If I am feeling confused about this on Monday I'm going to call. :D And on a lighter note, some pics from gigs this week. I live in vacation land and never plan to get a real job: I work on this Casino Ship 3 to 4 times a week, we like to call it "The Torture Tub". It's a 5 hour sail to nowhere, I/we entertian on the way out to and from the 3 mile limit where the ship opens. This is a gig where I have lots of down time: Views from deck before leaving: Note the smoke off in the distance from one of the many wild fires we've had lately. Kennedy Space Center is about 5-10 miles from here. We watch launches from here and can clearly see vehichle assembly building, though I couldn' get it in a pic clear with my cell phone camera. This is where I gig almost every Friday afternoon, poolside @ a waterpark: My rig: And the most important part of the rig is?????? You can steal my guitars but don't you dare steal my rock'n'roll dolly :D Marc 208 days till due date of studio

Very cool pictures, Marc! :-) I love seeing photos that offer a glimpse into the life of the people we've come to know on this forum. 8) Anyway, I think you and I are in agreement on everything -- what made me think that we weren't on the same page was the use of the term "skyrocketing" to describe what would happen to your property taxes. "Skyrocketing" is what happened to my property taxes as a result from moving two years ago. They went up over 300% because of the difference in purchase prices between our current and previous homes. Having your assessed value go up a few thousand dollars, even if it is over the lifetime of your residency in that home, doesn't constitute "skyrocketing" in my eyes. :) Also, another thing about the value of your improvements... Typically the cost of labor is factored into the value, even if you are doing the work yourself. Using the City of San Jose's policy as an example, "When you apply for your permits, you will be asked for a realistic estimate of your project's value, including the fair market value of all labor and materials. This information is compared to a State approved table of construction values for similar projects. Construction taxes and some permit fees may be calculated based on the valuation of your project." If your building department is anything like mine, though, they'll help you come up with a number that is low enough to save you some money, yet not so low that would be subject to some kind of override. In my case, with their guidance, I used a value that is representative of a more typical partial garage conversion, rather than the beefy soundproofed structure I'm actually building. The main thing they want to avoid is people buying a tiny home on a big lot, being assessed for the value of the tiny home, and then having those people DIY themselves into a mini-mansion of sorts, and paying a fraction of the taxes than that of buying a home of equal size. As far as the $2,500 figure goes, I think they're basically saying that anything less than that is insignificant, such that the assessor's office probably doesn't even want to bother with reassessments resulting from projects that small. Break a leg on those gigs! Looks like fun. :-) --Keith :mrgreen: