Monday, November 18, 2019

Warp Wrestling....




A Twisty Business.....

I Left you last week, Dear Readers, with the unfinished repairs to the base of the Dollmaker's Studio and the woeful discovery of my dead drill. You can imagine my happiness when I happened to mention the dead drill to a co-worker the next morning and she said "You can have the one Randy (our boss) gave me when I moved here. I'm not using it!" And she brought it to work the following day! So I was able to tackle the Warp Issues on the weekend without having to purchase a new drill! I wish I could say the rest of the repairs were that easy. The plywood I used is quite thin... only 1/4 inch thick, so any screws used need to be pre-drilled quite carefully right along the edge of the facing board. This is hard to do with a bent and twisted board! I decided to get the less warped side done first and screw it in place (not yet with glue so it was still removable) and then wrestle the warped side, one screw at a time until all of them were aligned correctly.

This is what the base looked like to begin with... 
the front panel not attached. 
(Sorry for the blurry photos....! My camera
 is getting old and the light is not the best...)

And because I did not remember to take photos
 of the Wrestling match in progress.... 
here you can see the front panel
 with screws on both ends... still not glued.
The next step was to add the cross-beams
 at the front and back which would tie
 the warped walls firmly together at the top.

Here you can see both of them added, 
making a sturdy framework at the top of the room.
This required screwing a longer screw through
 from the outside corners into the long beam. 
The front panel is still removable.....

Because it is easier to add the hinges to the doors
 while the whole panel is unattached...
(And the newly added cross beams are holding 
the warped wall in place... for the moment!)

And this time when I attach the panel, 
I added glue to the joined edges.

Here you can see a close-up of the more warped side.... 
wrestled into alignment as best I could!
And yes, there are a Mighty mess of screws involved!
These will be covered by the "stone" facade of the base.

But first I needed to add primer to the doors....
And even though the walls are straightened out... the floor is not!

Here you can see I am testing the upper floor added onto the base.
I have increased the ceiling height of the upstairs room
 by extending the walls of the base above the floor level...
The junction of the walls will require some finesse... 
still in the "development" stage!
But the floor does help hold the building "square".

Meanwhile, I have begun to make the egg carton "stones" for the floor....

I am not attaching them until I figure out
 what to do about the warp in the Floor!
Should I build a framework to go under the floor... 
thereby raising the whole structure?
 Or should I just screw the floor 
to the base board now.. and forever...?

I don't really want to do either!
I am reluctant to raise the floor... 
it is supposed to be stone on the ground....
 

And I don't want to attach the whole building 
firmly to the base at this early stage of the build....
Hmmmmm...... this will take some thinking....!


Even though, without thinking it through...
 I started to attach the "stones" 
on the outside of the wall by the door!
(Which will make the courses wrong
 if I add a framework under the floor...!)
Aiy-yi-yi!!!
I declare, Dear Readers,
This Warp-wrestling is a Twisty Business
That might just have me tied up in knots!


15 comments:

  1. What a week you have had Betsy! And, apart from the still warped floor, it looks to me like you won the wrestling match.
    As for the floor.. I don't know, but could you level the inside somehow... like you would poor a screed in a real house? The front edge could then, perhaps be tidied up with a bit wooden strip - or however you plan to finish the front edges.
    I am sure you the solution will come to you.
    Have a lovely week,
    Anna x

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  2. Hi Betsy, I think that you have solved the warp problem brilliantly, and I am sure you will find a solution for the floor, no doubt! Have a nice week.

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  3. I'm confident you'll win your wrestling match - and that the final product will be another lovely little house.
    Enjoy!
    Much love, Mom

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  5. I applaud your determination and skill with a drill, Betsy! I have no doubt those walls will behave from now on! And what a turn of fortune with the new drill! Hooray for friends who help friends in need!
    Now for that floor... Is it possible to add another piece of 1/4" plywood to the bottom/under of the floor, cut exactly the same size, and laminated with Liquid Nails? If you did this with some significant weights applied on top of the floor until set, it may just straighten out. And in terms of the height, it's only 1/4" which could be easily covered with landscape rock or soil? I hope the perfect solution comes to you soon so that you can move forward with this exciting build!

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  6. Great work! For the floor, I'm sure you'll find a solution.

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  7. Yay new drill! I think Jodi's suggestion would work pretty well.

    An alternate suggestion would be to spray some water to the underside and add those weights to hopefully warp it back to straightness?

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  8. Yes I agree, Betsy, that it's hard to get warped walls/parts straight AND screwed! Good you added some cross beams for a sturdy base. And what will you do with the warped floor...? I really don't know how this will end...to be continued ;)?? But I'm sure you'll find a good solution to this.
    It was so very kind of your co-worker that she gave you her drill.
    Hugs, Ilona

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  9. You must have been over the moon when your co-worker gifted you with her unused drill: which just goes to show how God answers prayers: even the ones we don't say aloud. :)
    The warped floor looks like a it might domino a series of even more problems down the road for you, Betsy, but I KNOW that you will come up with a good solution once you've had more time to consider it.
    Meanwhile, the entire structure is taking shape Beautifully and the floors are adding that OLD ENGLISH character which I Absolutely LOVE.
    I'm very curious to see how you'll solved the warped floor AND what you'll be doing next with your Doll Shop project.

    elizabeth

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  10. Ya le has ganado la batalla a los muros torcidos por lo que,no me cabe duda que encontrarás una solución para ese suelo,ánimo y a por ello!!
    Besos.

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  11. Three cheers for your co-worker! In Germany we have a saying "Das Glück ist mit den Tüchtigen" --> luck is with the competent ones. Regarding this the drill could not have gone to a better home. ;O)

    It's amazing how you and your new drill managed to turn a warped into a sturdy construction. And I am very confident that you will come along with a solution for your wonky floor very soon. Until then your egg carton stone floor looks very promising!

    Hugs
    Birgit

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  13. Hi, Betsy - You've had quite a workout during this warp-wrestling match! But you seem to have won this round, although that warped floor is definitely a challenge. But judging from your inventive solutions to other problems that you've encountered, I'm sure you'll resolve this one in good time. I love the way the stone floor is taking shape, and I'm looking forward to watching its progress.
    Marjorie

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