Double Garage Studio Design - Melbourne, Australia (7/10)

[rockindad]

Some progress pics...

The frame all ready to go.

Front external wall framing.jpg

Wall wrap, with flashing at the bottom

Front external wall sarking.jpg

Cladding layer 1 (of 2) up with the window in place. I'll need to take that back out once the second cladding layer goes up to add flashing to the sill.

Front external wall cladding part 1 and window.jpg

...with a little help from my friends. Got the garage door out, just need to work on getting the frame it was running on out next, as well as seal up the cladding - and look at working on the gaps around the window...then on to layer two. This is easy...said no one ever!

[xSpace]

Looks good:)

[rockindad]

Thanks Brien. Got a little more done today. Lots of sealing done, with LOTS still to do!

External front wall cladding L1 jointing.jpg

Got some of the old ceiling out.

External front wall inside detail.jpg

Found some more work to do...

Front wall left - gaps to seal.jpg

Front wall across.jpg

So...here...should I seal all the way up to the tiles? I had a thought to put a bearer underneath the I-beam (parallel with the top of the frame), and to use that and the existing frame above the I-beam to hold a panel of some sort to seal up from left to right - perhaps stuff rockwool or glass fibre of some sort into the I-beam cavity.

Yikes!! LARGE crack to fill...there's always something.

Right wall crack - yikes.jpg

Anyways, I reckon I won't get back to this 'till next year at this rate - Happy New Year!

[Soundman2020]

STOP!!!!

That ain't just a little surface crack that you can fill! That's potentially a major issue.

I can't see the rest of what is going on up there from that photo, but the alarm bells are ringing and the red flags are waving madly.

Something major has moved to cause a crack like that, and you cannot ignore it. The top of the crack is wider than the bottom, suggesting that one part of the wall has sagged or sunk while the other part did not.

Before you do anything else at all, get your structural engineer back in to take a look at that, and tell you all about what caused it, what the consequences are, and how to fix it safely.

Do not do anything more until you get that checked out by a professional.

Hopefully, it's not a big structural issue, and can be dealt with relatively easily, but it is still a sign that something shifted that should not have, and it needs professional attention. Maybe I'm just overly precautionary, and your guy will tell you it's no big deal, but to me from that photo, it looks potentially serious.

I'll say it again: DO NOT PROCEED with anything more until you get that checked out and fixed.


- Stuart -

[rockindad]

Roger that

I thought someone might say something about that. Yep - better safe than sorry.

[rockindad]

Engineer being sorted...bad time of the year for getting on to people...

While still planning - is this reasonable insulation material for lining walls with? I calculate it at around 18 kg/m^3. I assume I need to line the inside of that front wall?

http://www.bunnings.com.au/earthwool-r- ... k_p0810602

[Soundman2020]

is this reasonable insulation material for lining walls with? I calculate it at around 18 kg/m^3. I assume I need to line the inside of that front wall?

Yup, you sure do need to fill the cavity with insulation! As much as you can fit in, without compressing it.

That stuff is a little on the lightweight side: for fiberglass, optimum density is about 30 kg/m3, or if you are using mineral wool then about 50 kg/m3 is optimum.

- Stuart -

[The_Fiddler]

Autex do Aussie made Acoustic insulation and they're up near Preston. They'll give you a list of local dealers or let me know and I'll hook you up with one.

[rockindad]

There's not a lot of info on the Autex stuff.

I think these are more the go...

http://www.betterbattinsulation.com.au/ ... -per-pack/

From the info I can find on them, the density is more in the order of 40 kg/m^3

[rockindad]

And we're back sports fans...

So, I've had a few people foundation/engineer types out and it seems there is no need for major works on the wall (cracked) in question....phew!! I discovered the source of the problem...a leaky spout that has probably been doing it's work for some 10+ years. That problem is sorted, along with appropriately sealing the cracks in the concrete etc. I have, as advised, put some re-bar across the crack fixed in with epoxy as well.

Re-bar across wall crack.jpg

Sealing concrete out front.jpg

Back to the main event...for now, which is sealing up the area above the front wall.

External front wall inside detail.jpg

Question: should I put insulation in the cavity above the eave - which is on the other side of the I-beam? I'm planning on sealing directly up from the I-beam to the tiles...somehow(?)...all the way across.

Front wall left - gaps to seal.jpg

Looking for ideas on how to seal up this front wall.

[rockindad]

So...render begins

Front wall external render pt2.jpg

What do you think of this proof of concept for sealing up the large gap between the I-beam and the roof created by the eave construction?

sealing between I-beam and eave gap.jpg

It's 12mm ply which gives me a platform to attach mass to if required - of course I'd seal around with acoustic caulking etc. There is still the question of adding insulation into the eave cavity...?

Here's a side view of what I'm trying to describe from the outside...

eave side view external.jpg

The triangle section you can see is the bulk of the cavity.

The question remains...what to do with the rest of the roof?

Roof internal detail - tiles.jpg

Do I attach plywood to the battens all the way up and seal all of that? They are concrete tiles and there are numerous gaps, as you can see in this and the previous pic. There is a long term plan to have the outside of the roof painted and sealed...but it is part of the looong term plan ($$). Thoughts?

[Soundman2020]

So, I've had a few people foundation/engineer types out and it seems there is no need for major works on the wall (cracked) in question....phew!! I discovered the source of the problem...a leaky spout that has probably been doing it's work for some 10+ years. That problem is sorted, along with appropriately sealing the cracks in the concrete etc. I have, as advised, put some re-bar across the crack fixed in with epoxy as well

Excellent! I'm really glad it could be fixed relatively easily, and also that you were able to find the cause and fix that too. Now you can have some peace of mind that the studio won't fall apart the first time you turn up the volume!

Question: should I put insulation in the cavity above the eave - which is on the other side of the I-beam?

I would. It certainly won't do any harm! And any air cavity is a potential resonant problem, so damping it with insulation is always a good idea.

What do you think of this proof of concept for sealing up the large gap between the I-beam and the roof created by the eave construction?

I'm not sure I'd do it that way: the underside of the roof deck usually needs ventilation, which is why the eaves are open in the first place. With that type of situation, you may have no choice but to do a three-leaf ceiling, and leave that ventilation space between the outer leaf (roof) and the middle leaf (mass you add under bottom chord of the trusses). So you could seal up above the beam like that, yes, but only as far as you need to go to get up to the middle leaf.

The question remains...what to do with the rest of the roof?

As above: leave it as is, add mass /plywood/OSB/MDF/drywalll/etc) under the trusses, and call that your middle leaf. Then build your inner-leaf room below that. If you need good isolation, that's pretty much your best plan. That's what I'd do if that were my place.

- Stuart -

[rockindad]

Excellent! I'm really glad it could be fixed relatively easily, and also that you were able to find the cause and fix that too. Now you can have some peace of mind that the studio won't fall apart the first time you turn up the volume!

Yes, it was a huge relief, let me tell you.

I would. It certainly won't do any harm! And any air cavity is a potential resonant problem, so damping it with insulation is always a good idea.

Yeah I was arriving at the same conclusion.

I'm not sure I'd do it that way: the underside of the roof deck usually needs ventilation, which is why the eaves are open in the first place. With that type of situation, you may have no choice but to do a three-leaf ceiling, and leave that ventilation space between the outer leaf (roof) and the middle leaf (mass you add under bottom chord of the trusses). So you could seal up above the beam like that, yes, but only as far as you need to go to get up to the middle leaf.

I did see a build thread recently where a similar road was suggested. OK. I've got some planning to do.

Once again - A big thank you Stuart! Appreciate the look in.

Scott

[rockindad]

Update...

Front Wall external render complete.jpg

Two lots of render done - trowelled the first coat, then did a top coat with a roller for a textured finish. Next to paint it and replace some trim at the top where it meets the eave. I might be able to sign off on this wall soon....!?

[rockindad]

How about something like this?

Roof design top-rear perspective.jpg

Roof design top-rear perspective 2.jpg

Roof design top-front perspective.jpg

This is all above the current rafters. The height gets me to the same height as the steel truss that spans the space (see below). The board in the picture is coming out - fyi.

Roof truss detail..jpg

To be covered in 16mm plywood. Thoughts?

What to do about insulation...just lay some on top?