Floor Box - Day 6-7

(1.75 hrs, plus drying time)                                  

Painting makes for easy--and boring--work days. I rounded out the first week of work on my tiny house by applying two coats of pale green latex house paint to my undercarriage, all of which took under two hours--including set-up and clean-up--and barely broke a sweat.

I was going to stop with two coats, but I may add a third tomorrow. The paint had been sitting in a closet for nine and a half years, had separated, and I wasn't able to shake/stir it enough with my own muscle power--so the first coat was so thin I could still see the color of plywood through it! (Through it and the undercoat of primer...) If I'd had any experience with house paint, I might have known I had to mix it more thoroughly... but I hadn't, so I didn't.

I have a little more experience now, though:

Lesson 14: If your paint has sat around for a while, and you don't have a mechanical means of shaking or stirring it yourself, you can take it to a paint/hardware store and have them shake it for you in their machine.

...Which we did, and it worked beautifully. The second coat went on much thicker, just like it was supposed to. What a relief! But my, the things you learn as a novice...

Speaking of novice mistakes, Lesson 15: Read the labels. Turns out, the kind of caulk I used on my undercarriage was not intended for filling voids, which is why (as you can see in the bottom 1/3 of the photo to the right) those voids are here to stay. The caulk dried up and shrank, leaving a hole almost as big as the void I'd tried to fill. Oh well! The paint still covers all the surfaces, which is the important thing.

Now, if we can just avoid freezing weather for a few weeks. The paint only takes a few hours to dry, but it takes two weeks to a month to cure--that is, to dry and harden to full toughness--and a freeze before curing can compromise the paint job. It looks like we'll stay above freezing for at least a couple of weeks, but if the temperatures start to drop, I'll have to take action with a tarp and heater.

Lesson 16: Winter building means not just cold fingers, short daylight, and wet materials, but building products might not function properly in low temperatures. Cold-weather versions of some paints, adhesives, etc., are available, so use those whenever possible. Although I noticed today that the cold-weather Liquid Nails we applied five days ago is still very soft in places; it's supposed to fully cure in seven days, but we'll see.

In other news, lots of research going on about siding, reclaimed materials, and shower options! I'm starting to lean toward a DIY or custom shower surround and/or shower pan or mini-tub... but without using cement and tiles. We'll see about that. Thankfully, the only part of that that I need to decide soon is where the drain will be, so that I can add 2x6 blocking in the floor around it for support.