EB5AGV's Shack 2.0 Project

The Next Generation Shack

Welcome to my Shack 2.0 Project page. I will add here information and pictures as the new shack project evolves. Works began on 1st October 2009 and, let's hope, will end in November 2009.

It all started about April 2009, when I decided it was time to expand my current shack, as it hosts now, in about 15 square meters, tons of radio and test equipment gear. I repair rigs as a hobby but lately there is a row of them waiting their turn on the bench. So, besides my own radio station, I have the need for some extra temporary storage and repair facilities. And this new organizacion, mainly done by the addition of some extra meters to my current shack, is what I call Shack 2.0

The idea is not only to add more room to store things but to sepparate radio lab from radio station. And organize them in a useful and comfortable way. This way I will enjoy more both things, as now all is pretty tight (as you can see here and here) and I can't even get good access to most of my gear, both radio and test.

I hope you enjoy the project evolution. Of course I encourage you to share with me any ideas you could have about this project. Thanks!

73 JOSE EB5AGV


Page INDEX

1-OCT-2009: Initial condition

5-OCT-2009: First works

15-OCT-2009: Assembling the metallic structure

16-OCT-2009: Assembling the metallic structure (II)

19-OCT-2009: Assembling the metallic structure (III)

20-OCT-2009: Roof works

21-OCT-2009: General works

22-OCT-2009: Walls begin to rise!

23-OCT-2009: Walls almost done

26-OCT-2009: Walls finished

27-OCT-2009: Surprise!

28-OCT-2009: Roof and electrical installation works

29-OCT-2009: Roof and electrical installation works (II)

30-OCT-2009: Windows!

2-NOV-2009: More work on the roof and removing old floor

3-NOV-2009: Even more work on the roof

4-NOV-2009: The great day: wall destroying!

5-NOV-2009: Some finishing works

6-NOV-2009: 50% of inner walls and all ceiling done!

10-NOV-2009: More finishing works

11-NOV-2009: Slowly reaching the end!

12-NOV-2009: Floor tiles placed

13-NOV-2009: Inner works finished!

20-NOV-2009: THE END

SHACK 2.0: Second Part


1-OCT-2009: Initial condition

This is how my house looked before works began. This is the area where the addition will be done. It is a 25 sq meters terrace in the rear side of my house, in the first floor, adjacent to my current shack.

These are some views from the terrace. You can see part of the nice 40cm side square area aluminum antenna tower

These are views from ground level:

My plan is to add about 2/3 of the terrace surface (about 15.50 sq meters of useful surface) to the new shack, remove the current shack window and make it a pass to the new area. All the terrace will be covered but 1/3 will be left open (no walls) as it will be the main room terrace (which now has already a door to the terrace).

I plan to keep the radio shack in the current shack location and the lab in the new area.


5-OCT-2009: First works

First thing was to assemble the construction scaffold and remove part of the balustrade

Then find the locations to attach the new metallic structure:


15-OCT-2009: Assembling the metallic structure

This is what I have found today, when I have arrived from work:

Here you have some details of the attachments to the old structure:

There is an explanation for the breaking of some parts of the current house structure and also for the attachment points: to get the maximum height. It will be 1.95m in the lower parts (where main beams are located) and 2.15m in most of the area. In order to get the necessary slope for the new roof, they will remove some rows of tiles and modify the slope from there into the new roof.

The plan for tomorrow is to continue adding to the metal structure and end it next Monday.


16-OCT-2009: Assembling the metallic structure (II)

Today, more work on the structure has been done. It should be ended by next Monday. Here you have some pictures of the works done:

An this is the antenna tower, waiting for the shack to be finished ;-)


19-OCT-2009: Assembling the metallic structure (III)

Today, still more work on the structure has been done. It should be finished today but there are some things which have not been done properly, so they should return on Friday :-(

Here you have some samples:

Well, architect checked this work and has not approved it. Let's hope they end doing it right!

This is a view from another point:

And here you can see the antenna tower. Lovely, right ;-)?

They have started putting some roof base:


20-OCT-2009: Roof works

Roof is starting to look serious:


21-OCT-2009: General works

It is planned to start building the walls tomorrow so they have prepared the wall support, adding some metal bars inside concrete:

This is the roof isolation:

And this is the temporary waterproofing for the current roof, as they work out how to join both (there is some fight about how to add slope to it)

An inner view of the new shack under construction:


22-OCT-2009: Walls begin to rise!

Today the walls have started to rise. I have finally be able to measure the real extension of the new shack, giving 16.35 square meters, very close to first estimations.

Here you can see the walls as they are today. They should be ended by next Monday.


23-OCT-2009: Walls almost done

Well, even if on Friday works stop at lunch time, there is some clear advance in the walls construction:

This is the view from main bedroom:

And this is the wall in detail:

Let's hope they finish the walls on Monday. I know they won't work on Tuesday but on Wednesday, roof concrete should be poured.

There has been also some fixing works in the metal estructure tie-points to old one. Now it looks lots stronger and architect has approved it:


26-OCT-2009: Walls finished

Today work has been mainly finishing walls:


27-OCT-2009: Surprise!

I had been told that today was not a work day due to other commitments of workers... but they have failed and I was supposed to mark electrical installation on walls to be done on Wednesday, so they were not done yet. So today they have prepared the roof in order to have the concrete poured on Wednesday (a day before it was planned. Great!)

Once I have returned home, I have drawn the electrical conduits and junction boxes location on the walls:


28-OCT-2009: Roof and electrical installation works

Today has been a productive day in the shack project. First, they have done part of the electrical installation works I had drawn.

Then roof has been covered with concrete:

And then, with my guide (as there are some tricky points, when old installation goes through the walls to connect to the other side installation), they have finished pre-installing tubes and electrical boxes so tomorrow it could be finished:

There have been also some destructive works today, as old electrical installation should be joint to the new one, and not all points were easy to access:

All in all, things are advancing fast!


29-OCT-2009: Roof and electrical installation works (II)

Today was the day to finish electrical pre-installation and also to make the roof slope. I don't have pictures of the later yet, as it was already dark when I have arrived home, but have some pictures of the electrical tubing and boxes already fixed:

Tomorrow the works on the roof will continue.

On next Monday the current window which sepparates old shack from new one will be removed and that window and another two new ones will be installed in new shack.

I still have some work to do to protect the radio and test equipment gear which is left in the old shack (I had no space to store all of it in other places) and I need also to remove the heater element which is just below the window. Also, old electrical installation should be removed from the below-window area and redone temporarily on the inner room.


30-OCT-2009: Windows!

It was not a work for today but it seems there was some extra time and now new windows are already on place, waiting for finishing details:

They are motorized so they have some wires. I will put them into the cabling tube soon:

The shack is each time closer to its final look from outside:

As you can see there is still a missing window (which will be the one located now in the old shack). Note also the roof slope already done:

Now roof should be waterproofed and then covered by tiles. All the material is already there:

Next week will be definitive: old window will be removed and then the two shacks will be one. I have covered with plastic what remains there to minimize dust setting into rigs... I hope it works!

This is the window which will be moved and then its place will become the passing between rooms:


2-NOV-2009: More work on the roof and removing old floor

Today work has been in the roof, mainly waterproofing it (no pictures of that) and in the old terrace floor, removing tiles and concrete (as it had some slope)... and damaging some cabling of the lower terrace lighting :-(

I fixed cabling the best I could:

This is the culprit of the damage ;-)

There has been also some concrete poured in structure joints:


3-NOV-2009: Even more work on the roof

Today it was time for roof finishing works, adding red tiles. Here you have some pictures taken at night, so the lousy quality. There was some area still without tiles, as you can see:


4-NOV-2009: The great day: wall destroying!

This was one of the milestones of the works: removing the old shack window and translating it to the new area. So, for first time, shack is only one room!

As you can see, there was a water heater element which has been removed, leaving the copper tubes, which should be connected to the two new water heaters. This should be done next week... and I hope they do it ASAP, as there is a cold wave arriving here in just some days, and heating is unworking due to this circuit breach!

Today, I have also placed the new windows sheets, protecting first them with some yellow tape and clear plastic... I hope it helps to prevent damage during rest of works:

And this is the old window on its new place:

Well, it seems tomorrow they will end roof small details and work on walls and ceiling, giving them the finishing layers.


5-NOV-2009: Some finishing works

Today the works have been on finishing roof and some inner walls work. This is the aspect viewed from outside:


6-NOV-2009: 50% of inner walls and all ceiling done!

This is the view from the old shack. I have placed a homemade plastic curtain to prevent dust from entering old shack:

And, finally, repaired electric tubes have been protected:

This is one corner of the two walls which are finished:

And this is the finished ceiling:

Roof if practically finished today. It is a 30 sq meters terrace!

And this is a novel view, from the outside:

Next week works should end (let's hope!)


10-NOV-2009: More finishing works

Yesterday there was no advance, as workers didn't come due to other commitments. Well...

But today, some more finishing touches have been done!

This is another wall finished:

And this one was done last week, but was not pictured back then:

There is still plenty of raw materials around:

This is one joint of old and new constructions:

And this is a pretty view of the sky from the shack window:

As you can see, windows have been conveniently framed. Tomorrow they will finish the outer wall:

There are some dirty places around. They should be cleaned in short time:

This is the roof of the now smaller (but covered!) main room terrace:

And, yes, there is some work still to be done here!

Tomorrow there should be some plumbing works, in order to fit the water heater elements (one on each room), so the remaining inner wall could be finished. And they perhaps will begin with the floor tiles.

I am beginning to see the end of the works, great!


11-NOV-2009: Slowly reaching the end!

Well, I must say that the end is relative as, when the workers end their works, I will began with mine: cleaning, wall painting, electric installation, antenna distribution, workbench building and so on. But, trust me, I am eager to start that work!!!

One of the reasons is this: today first new thing I have found was this mess:

Yes, obviously someone didn't fully understand me :-(. Well, it will be fixed tomorrow.

I have removed a table in order to get better access to this area, which is the junction of the old electrical installation and the new one, done by means of some tubes which go from these boxes (one for power and another for TV, phone line and low voltage) to the ones in the other side of the wall. Yes, in order to get to them from the other side of the wall there was some collateral damage as you can see:

Some part of this installation is alive, as it powers, among other things, the ceiling light, needed tomorrow. But I have placed wires so they won't interfere with the wall repair works.

And this is one of the two antenna cabling entry points to the radio shack (the old room will be the radio shack and the new one will be the radio lab). I plan to have in this area some of my (mostly Yaesu) solid state receivers

All of this mess should be fixed tomorrow.

There have been some works in the external walls, as they are now fully finished, but it was already dark when I have arrived home and I have been unable to take pictures. I will photograph them soon!


12-NOV-2009: Floor tiles placed

Finally tiles have been laid on the new floor :-)!. I have not got yet good pictures as they are just placed and all is very dirty... but, well, you can get an idea of how they will look.

Please, note also the interface between both floors, old and new. I think it is a nice solution:

And, well, it was also time to fix some collateral damage ;-) previously done:

This is the current view from the entry door of my old shack. I hope to remove all plastic covers soon, once I can clean the new and old shack, presumably on next weekend:


13-NOV-2009: Inner works finished!

Finally!!!. And they have removed some of the raw materials and the construction scaffold:

This area is still unfinished (both ceiling and floor) but, luckily, access to work on it next week will be from the outside:

Some shack inner views:

Here you can see a large hole in the wall: this will be the entry point for antenna cables:

This is a detail of the floor tiles:

And these are the tubes for the water heaters, which will be placed also next week. Note also the interface from old to new shack:

These are views from the four corners of the new room, clockwise:

And this is the pass from old room:

Well, today I have been able to start cleaning the shack. Next step is painting it. I hope to start tomorrow!


20-NOV-2009: THE END

Yes, the most anticipated day has come!. Today ALL construction gear is out of my garden :-)

This is the final look, as workers have left it:


This is all for first part... now begins my work at:

SHACK 2.0: Second Part


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