Shabin Loft

We made it up to the camp again this weekend. This trip was marked by lots of progress in the sleeping loft. The first task was to install our air conditioner, which would make working up in the loft feasible in the 90+ degree heat. I purchased a portable air conditioner, the kind that sits in a room and vents out via a duct to a window. My idea was to use it instead install it as a tiny permanent air conditioning system up in the loft, from where the cold air would pour down into the rest of the shabin.



The first step was to cut hole through the rear wall of the loft. This was a bit daunting, given the implications of messing up, but I managed to cut the opening exactly the right size for the vent hose.



I sealed the vent hose to the sheathing with silicone sealant.



From the outside, the vent is unobtrusive.  This model of conditioner is designed to expel most or all of its moisture in the air venting to the outside.  It also has a water reservoir and a fitting for a hose to drain the excess if it falls behind.  For now, I will leave the drain alone and see if it becomes an issue.  If it does, I plan to put a pipe through the outside wall as well to continuously drain any water.



After installing the vent, it was simply a matter of plugging in the air conditioner to an extension cord running to our generator.  Ah, wonderful cold air!  At 10,000 BTU the conditioner does not have the capacity to cool the entire uninsulated structure.  It was enough to make the loft livable. Once the shabin is insulated, I expect it will be enough to take the edge off the hottest days.



Once the air conditioner was running, I got to work laying down a floor in the loft. As I described in my last post, I got a click together laminate floor. Not having to deal with glue or nails was nice. The flooring also came with a thin foam underlayment layer already attached. It turned out that the pieces did not really just click together easily, but were rather obstinate. However, after a few rows I worked out the right techniques to deal with them, and the floor went down a few hours.



Here you see the finished floor. The last part over by the edge was the slowest. I had to cut lots of irregular shapes to go around the opening for the stairs, as well as the small rail I screwed into the floor. That rail is important to the next project, which is to install safety railings along the open end of the loft and in front of the stairway opening.



My last project this weekend was to assemble a bed for the loft. I found this simple steel frame on Amazon. The frame does double duty substituting for a box spring. It also provides plenty of space underneath for an all important storage area, without raising the mattress up too high to the low ceiling.



Moving our mattress up to the loft exposed open space downstairs, which was largely taken up by the mattress on the floor. This makes room for the craigslist prize we will bring up on our next trip, a sectional  sofa with a fold out bed.



We made it down to the river on both days for much need cooling off.  Here are some pictures from our time down there.