The Uppening Part 4

So it's high time I wrapped up this project, and I'll start with painting the wall that I missed last time, because it definitely needs it.

The paint is noticeably dingy here compared with the fresh stuff along the corners that overflowed from the adjacent walls/ceiling. Thankfully picking up a new quart of paint and slapping it up went quite smoothly.

So let's have a quick stream-break to prepare us for vaulting over the last hurdle.

And that hurdle will be putting up the trim. Now there are a number of techniques people will tell you to follow where you measure the trim in place and cut it slightly long and then adjust and tweak it and whatever but honestly that's a giant pain in the ass to do, especially on a ceiling, so I just YOLO'd it. I measured the opening, added the width of the trim (times two) and cut the long sides of the trim to that number.

And I'll be danged, it worked. Not without a little bit of stress though, as I had rounded the width of the trim down to 2-1/2 inches, possibly neglecting that they were actually more like 2-9/16. So that meant that technically I was cutting the trim 1/8th of an inch short, and I didn't really have any wiggle room to spare since I was lining up the trim to exactly cover the aluminum frame of the attic ladder.

Luckily I decided to cut the end pieces to err on the slightly long side, and while the side pieces got cut 1/8th of an inch shorter than expected, it ended up working out perfectly because the gap between the stair panel and the frame was actually 1/8th of an inch larger at the end, so as a result the reveal is actually flawless all the way around.

You know what they say, it's better to be lucky than good.

Speaking of good, though, this trim looks far from it with the spackle in the brad holes, and the caulking I used to seal up the miter joints is going to yellow over time if I don't do something with it, not to mention that the trim is pre-primed and most certainly not pre-painted.

So let's get some paint up. Semi-gloss for trim, of course, to contrast with the satin on the walls.

Now that is some good looking trim, and a job well done.

Speaking of done, I think the dust mask I was using is ready for retirement.

It's a good thing that grime isn't inside my lungs.

And on the subject of MVPs, I want to give a shout out to my aluminum work platform.

This thing is without a doubt one of the best tool purchases I've ever made, and has been serving me well for over a decade at this point. It was absolutely the tool for the job on this project, and made accessing the ceiling way more convenient than it would have been on a ladder. If you have the means I highly recommend picking one up, it's so choice.

Before I wrap up this post I should mention that technically there's one last task to do, which is to crack open a can of spray foam and fill the gap around the attic ladder frame now that the trim is in. However I have an upcoming project that will also need a bit of spray foam, so I'd rather just open one can and do both at once, so that can wait.

In the meantime, I think it's time for a little well earned R&R.

For a little while at least, until the next project.

The Uppening Part 3

When we last left off, the old hatch had been patched, but the patch was, of course, lacking the knock-down texture of the surrounding ceiling.

So with the new ladder masked off, let's shake up this can of drywall flavoured spray-cheese and see if we can't fix that.

This is another long post, so click through to see how things go.

The Uppening Part 2

So when we last left off on this attic ladder project, we were facing the spectre of having to deal with an electrical run that went right through the middle of the opening I planned to cut to fit the ladder into. So, let's add a quick junction box.

And another.

To reroute that line around the outside (around the outside, around the outside). I also took the opportunity to disconnect the recessed light at the near end of the hall, since it will shortly be removed for relocation later on in the project.

Since it, too, is right in the middle of where the ladder is going. This is gonna be another long one, so click through to keep reading.

The Uppening Part 1

So it's another multi-part adventure. I thought I might be able to get this project done in one week with time to spare, but somehow I am impeccably consistent about underestimating how long it takes me to do these things.

So what is this project? Well, this is the access into my attic. There's not much up in the attic except for insulation, fossilized rat turds, and some poorly done wiring, and this sort of makeshift hatch is more than sufficient for accessing that.

But I have plans for putting some actual equipment in the attic, the details of which I will cover when the time comes, and so I'll need better access than this hatch can provide. Or, to be more specific, I need an opening larger than this to even get it up there in the first place.

So let's get to work improving that access. Click through to read on.