Archive:2009 Brian Waddington hut renovations

Projects

Double pane the windows

Mostly done. Possibly move some outside?

Need a few more clips. Clips and screws are up there. Needs caulking.

Costs

$410 more or less

Fix the roof

Notes

Sounds like the previous roof fixers didn't think things were too rotted etc., meaning we can probably get away with relatively minimal repairs.

Probably need:

• vapour barrier
• some metal sheeting
• expanding foam or similar
• tar-like substances
• screws

Costs

$250

Kill the mildew

Notes

Probably need:

• bleach (not much since you dilute it a lot) or Behr #62 mildew remover (couple gallons)
• rags, rollers etc.
• scrub brushes, because the mold needs to be scrubbed off.
• handle extension for scrubbing difficult places
• dust masks have been recommended when removing mold.

Costs

$50

Paint the inside walls

Maybe use a marine stain (like what they use for wooden boats?) for the beams and off-white mistint all mixed together for everything else?

Sandra mentioned that if we use a standard film-based paint on wood that may be damp, the paint will likely blister and look like hell. A stain soaks in, so this may be better. An ideal stain should be (1) very light color because it's dark in there (2) contains mildew preventative. (3) strongly water repellent when dry. In order of increasing resistance to mildew, latex < traditional oil based < "industrial" oil based. Because we heed the above characteristics, we may not be able to use the economical mistint paint which was so successful at Brew. These comments refer mainly to the plywood where most of the mold is seen, but a darker stain would look good on the beams.

Personally I really like the look of the wooden beams in the hut. I think they add a lot to the character and it would be a shame to paint over them. I believe the mold is on some sort of plywood though, and I'm not so attached to that.Scott Webster

Notes

Probably need:

• paint or stain
• rollers etc.

Costs

I guess it's a pretty big hut and paint is likely expensive if we buy some brand new fancy kind. Don't know about the relative costs of stain, but it probably isn't so cheap either. $250?

Paint the unpainted bench/table

Notes

Probably need:

• paint
• rollers etc.
• a couple sheets of sandpaper

My kids painted the original table and benches, and they probably used 4 coats of paint. A gallon of industrial enamel of the mistint variety would be good, and would cost us about $10. If we want to choose the color, then $70.

Costs

I'd like to think we could get some cheap paint for this... $50

Move the outhouse

Notes

The outhouse is getting full. Renovation includes (1) deciding if it is full yet, and if so, (2) looking for a new site that will not drain into the lake but is still close enough to be used, (3) digging a really big hole that will last for years but hopefully not hit water. (4) Carefully taking apart the outhouse and carrying the pieces to the new site (5) Assembling the outhouse (6) We are done, but we should carry out any debris from previous failed outhouse attempts. None of this should be costly. Re-painting is probably not a priority.

Costs

None of the above will require spending money, but we need about 4 people x 1 day.

Required Tools

Screwdriver, hammer, dirt digging shovels.

Refinish the floor

Notes

Refinishing the floor is a major task. Normally you would use a huge power sander to remove the old finish and flatten the floor. This will be extremely difficult and labour intensive using only hand tools.

At least two coats of finish will be needed, with 12 hours or so to dry between coats (for floors, the finish has to dry enough that you can walk on it lightly while applying the next coat). After completion, there should probably be no heavy use for a week. No one can be in the hut doing any other work while the floor is drying. Probably no one will want to sleep inside either.

Equipment / supplies needed:

• sanding implements - normally power sanders are used for refinishing floors. For a manual approach, several half sheet (or larger) sanding blocks will be needed so multiple people can work at the same time.
• Dust removal - a vaccum cleaner would be ideal, but it we are less picky we can sweep up the dust.
• Finish

Costs

$150 for finish - urethane or similar. Sand paper - $100 (in the case of manual sanding, expensive fancy sandpaper will cut the manual effort by about half).

Add extra rails to honeymoon suite

Notes

Ideally these would be done well if we do them at all, ie. vaguely matching wood, non-flimsy attachment/construction (otherwise they're probably worse than nothing)

Costs

$100

Increase ventilation

More vents? Bigger vents? Vents in floor to allow (slightly) pre-warmed air to come in from basement? Something exotic (Nelson and Roland are thinking some exotic thoughts).

Notes

Ideally this contraption would not be ultra-ugly.

Costs

If we're going to do Roland's idea I would probably vote to do it "right" which might involve spending a little bit more money than the bare minimum. Unless we wanted to see if it worked at all first and then upgrade it later... $350

Bridge/Trail around lake

Notes

Probably need:

• gabian cages
• expanded metal for bridge deck
• miscellaneous hardware, bolts etc.
• signage to tell people to stay on the trail

Costs

$200

Haul out accumulated Junk

Notes

We may make several trips from the cars to the Hut bringing in tools, materials, food, beer, etc, so on the way out we might haul some of the accumulated junk. Some of the things we might consider hauling out if we have enough personnel, include

• empty propane tank
• several empty kerosene cans
• several empty garbage cans modified for composting poop
• the two lead-acid batteries if they are indeed beyond help.
• abandoned spondonicles, dishes, etc
• construction debris if it is known to be useless.
• empty paint tins
• two kerosene heaters
• broken Coleman stoves

Costs

If we haul in a couple cans of white gas, this will help with drying out the hut before painting it. $25

• beer
• food

Notes

The vent holes are 5" in diameter.

Other measurements, while I'm looking at this ready-to-be-lost piece of paper:

Windows could be plexiglassed on the inside fairly easily. Requires: 4x 29.5" x 41.5" 2x 29.5" x 31.5" 1x 25.5" x 25.5" And some clips around the outside (bathroom mirror style). Note that the glass can't much bigger, otherwise it will interfere with the latches. Can't be much smaller either. The plexiglass will be right on frame/retainer interface (ie - the same size as the glass), so clips with some length would be good so they are further from the edge (reduce chance of splitting). Pre-drill the holes.

Measured from the inside, accurate enough to figure out how much paint we need:

• Main Floor:

Length of hut - 7.3m Width of hut - 3.9m Length of vestibule - 1.8m Height above wainscoting - 1.8m Ceiling height - 3m

Beams are 24" around (8" against wall or 6" free standing): 10x 3m 20x 1.2m 20x 3.9m

Unpainted table - 3'x6' 2x Unpainted benches - 1'x5'

• Loft:

Length of hut - 7.3m Width of hut - 3.9m Length of 'roof/wall' - 3.6m Length of vestibule - 2.2m (yes longer than downstairs - it's not as high and the roof slopes) Length of 'roof/wall' in vestibule - 2.3m

Beams are 24" around 8x 3.6m 20x 1.5m

Other thoughts: More mallion and chain for lanterns trim for messy paint jobs? paint the ladders? floor appears to be sealed already - should we do it again? outside paint seems to be alright - should we do it again? railing for upstairs traverse to honeymoon suite? (2x1.6m posts, 2x1.6m rails) plexiglass on inside better - glass absorbs UV without turning opaque. The "Brian Waddington Hut" wood sign is still only half complete. A chisel could fix this quickly. Vents suck, and only sort-of open. Maybe a simple tube, pointing down, that cannot be closed, would be good. Or supply a cap which can be taken on/off - this would be less confusing than the 'rotate 180 degrees and wonder whether it was open or closed to start with' vents we have now. Plastic probably gathers less condensation than metal. Roof doesn't appear to be leaking enough to see it inside anymore, probably could still use some repair.

When deciding how much to do, we need to keep in mind whether is it a helicopter job or a carry in job. In my mind (and probably the club's budget this summer) it is a carry-in job. We can still make the required big improvements carry-in style, but maybe won't have enough man-power to carry enough paint for both inside and outside. I guess we'll see. Probably a good way to do it would be to conscript some porters for a work weekend and a small number of people to stick around for a few extra days.

Also, the hut seemed plenty warm with just the two catalytic heaters and 11 people (there were some french people up there too. The big catalytic is harder to light (you're supposed to use some alcohol-based priming fluid, which we did not have). Not Brew Hut warm, but I had to unzip my sleeping bag.