The EEVblog Bunker - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: November 26, 2014, 11:50:43 am
content: A tad excited, as mentioned on the Amp Hour I'm a getting a new storage spaceAbout the same size as my current lab, but taller and hence feels a lot bigger. Within walking distance to the lab.It's also got an existing bench right along one wall, power (just one I think, but can be easily expanded barring existing wiring capacity limitations) and lighting.So should be perfectly usable as a workshop as well as storage, and certainly could shoot footage in there if needed. Decent footage would require more lighting though.Underground so hence should be quite temp stable. No aircon of course.Although if I'm working for any extended period in there I figure I might need a carbon monoxide meter...Don't know about mobile/internet access yet, but lack of internet/distraction might be a good thing.So it means I can get absolutely everything not needed out of the lab, and have plenty of room to set up a decent mechanical workshop. Only issue is no ventilation, so no chemical stuff or tools that need that.No photos yet.

author: apelly
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: November 26, 2014, 12:48:38 pm
content: Nice, but;Quote from: EEVblog on November 26, 2014, 11:50:43 amBeans?

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: November 26, 2014, 12:53:58 pm
content: Quote from: apelly on November 26, 2014, 12:48:38 pmIt's a drive-up bunker.

author: janengelbrecht
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: November 26, 2014, 12:57:06 pm
content: Underground ? Maybe some way to measure Radon would be needed too ?

author: Monkeh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 26, 2014, 12:59:35 pm
content: Make sure any equipment you store there is kept in bags, or a ventilation-free mechanical workshop will quickly get things full of very unfriendly dust.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: November 26, 2014, 01:40:43 pm
content: Quote from: Monkeh on November 26, 2014, 12:59:35 pmYes. Using a drop-saw in there is probably not a good idea. But I could have a decent drill press and other metalworking tools.

author: Monkeh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 26, 2014, 01:41:59 pm
content: Quote from: EEVblog on November 26, 2014, 01:40:43 pmEh, get yourself a good vacuum if you want to do something really messy. Dust extraction isn't just for the professionals!Just beware of the Dremel/angle grinder.. That dust is no good for anyone or anything, and not so easily controlled.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 26, 2014, 04:42:33 pm
content: Start looking on trademe for some speed shelving, of various lengths. That will use wooden decking, which you can make from shutterply and timber if you have to ,or just use what it comes with or order new to size. Get some that will go almost all the way to the roof, and preferably with 3 rows per unit. Bottom feet have the lowest one placed just above them, then another at waist height and the top near the roof. Get a good ladder as well, and then you can have a work area and storage both under and above, and with the lower above the floor you have room for air to circulate to keep them from getting musty. As well provides some flood protection. Plus you can sweep the floor under it, or use the vacuum to clean there. The shelves will withstand 1 ton per bay for each level, or you can walk on it if needed.I have one at work storing PVC sheet, and it has 4 tons of film roll on it, in a 2m length. For that one I ordered new and ordered the high strength beams, 5 sets, at about double the price. The uprights though are standard. the fun was putting the 30kg rolls on each shelf when stacking, that was hard work, took 2 weeks to do the trips to the slitter to collect them in the van and load and unload at each end.

author: ConKbot
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 26, 2014, 05:09:43 pm
content: Quote from: janengelbrecht on November 26, 2014, 12:57:06 pmDepends on the geology. Around here, one county may have no problems with radon, and the next county over may it may be a common thing to have radon abatement in a house.

author: Len
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: November 26, 2014, 08:04:08 pm
content: Quote from: apelly on November 26, 2014, 12:48:38 pmMy first thought was magic smoke from fried chips.

author: PA0PBZ
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 26, 2014, 08:16:57 pm
content: Quote from: EEVblog on November 26, 2014, 11:50:43 amAnyone taking bets on how long it will take to fill up the now available space again?

author: rollatorwieltje
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: November 26, 2014, 08:31:53 pm
content: Quote from: PA0PBZ on November 26, 2014, 08:16:57 pmSo true.Getting more storage space is not a solution, it just temporarily slows down the process. Maybe the space is worth it if it's an investment, but if it's a rental property it'll not only move your stuff out of the way but also your money.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: November 26, 2014, 10:19:59 pm
content: Quote from: rollatorwieltje on November 26, 2014, 08:31:53 pmIt's an investment. I'm currently renting a storage space.It would be a wiser investment if I rented it out and kept renting my smaller cheaper current tiny storage space, or installed a screen and rented out half of it, but I'm sick of skimping on space.Ideally I'd simply like a bigger lab space with workshop as I have proposed before, but it ain't that easy for many reasons.

author: Kohanbash
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: November 27, 2014, 01:56:01 pm
content: One thing to be careful with being underground is moisture. I have worked in some underground labs where things rusting from moisture in the air was an issue.

author: nfmax
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 27, 2014, 02:11:10 pm
content: Once, I worked for a start-up located in the basement of a former factory (1960's vintage) on an industrial estate. I spent an interesting couple of hours working out why I was getting electric 'tingles' when I touched something on my bench that was supposedly earthed, butonlywhen I stood on one of the cracks between the floor tiles (at least there weren't any bears!). It turned out my bench was plugged into a socket which was a) fed from a distribution board in the next building and b) 'earthed' only through the rusting metal wiring conduit.Later on that winter, it got a bit damp, to the extent of occasionally having a cm or two of water on the floor at the other end of the lab.

author: Unknown
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: November 27, 2014, 09:59:02 pm
content: Can we see photos Dave?As for moisture, air conditioning would soon take care of that.

author: Dave
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 27, 2014, 10:16:38 pm
content: Yeah...

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 28, 2014, 05:21:12 pm
content: If it is a hole and you cannot put in an AC just put in a dehumidifier and leave it running all the time, with the drain line going to a drain. It will keep the humidity at a low level, even if the room is heated up a little.

author: Towger
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 01, 2014, 09:04:58 am
content: Re:It looks good.Does the air duct above the bench do anything?That the plans for lighting/painting? Just leave the bare walls (maybe paint the ceiling white) for the 'gungy industrial look' and add loads of lights or paint it all white and just add a few additional ones.Re the sound, as others have commented on. I am sure it will improve when you fill the bunker up with shelves and junkCarpet works wonders for sound, but I know you don't want to worry about keeping it clean... Maybe dumpster dive an old one

author: Stonent
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 01, 2014, 09:12:22 am
content: Painting the concrete floor may help with the echo. If you could get some foam padding on the ceiling or maybe just suspended, it could absorb some of the noise reflected up from the floor. Padded walls may help as well.This company has a variety of paint and paint-like products for noise reduction.http://www.acousticalsurfaces.com/coat-of-silence/coat-of-silence.html

author: SL4P
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 01, 2014, 09:23:36 pm
content: Or just keep stuff from touching the raw concrete - and use it as a STORAGE bunker.Good cataloging system + door open/close = in & out.Maybe a timer & fan to circulate the air to avoid corrosion.

author: Towger
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 02, 2014, 10:54:28 am
content: Quote from: SL4P on December 01, 2014, 09:23:36 pmNotice how there is already a shelf under the bench to keep stuff up off floor.

author: mikeselectricstuff
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 02, 2014, 11:39:09 am
content: Probably worth sealing the floor to reduce dust before you fill it with crap.

author: rs20
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 02, 2014, 11:46:54 am
content: Quote from: Stonent on December 01, 2014, 09:12:22 amDidn't look too closely, but that link describes a paint that attenuates sound getting to neighbouring rooms; it claims nothing about echo. The pictures even show the sound bouncing right back.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 02, 2014, 06:06:50 pm
content: Cheapest floor sealer is to buy 10l of liquid polymer floor polish ( or more if it is a big area, but buy the commercial stuff) and wash the floor then apply 2 coats using a string mop. Leave to dry overnight and use it, and when it starts looking scruffy again give it a wash with water and it will recover, and after a year you might want to give another coat. So far surviving well in a garage area at work to keep the concrete sealed nicely.If I have to remove it Khanye will definitely not like me any more, it is hard work to strip polish off floors, even with an industrial machine, and I am going through the stripping mats at an alarming rate. On the plus side you do not need to have a gym membership running the polisher all day. When training in operating we both were building upper body strength.

author: mikeselectricstuff
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 02, 2014, 06:32:19 pm
content: Quote from: SeanB on December 02, 2014, 06:06:50 pm...By which time there will be so much stuff on the floor that even the thought of clearing it to re-coat means it won't happen

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 02, 2014, 06:48:14 pm
content: Then you just do the visible parts, as the covered side will still be fine.

author: TerraHertz
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 07, 2014, 02:51:06 am
content: A good fix for echo, is to find some old carpet (free) and hang it on the walls. Before you put shelves up.

author: David_AVD
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 07, 2014, 02:59:39 am
content: Painting the block walls will increase the echo.

author: Monkeh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 07, 2014, 03:20:52 am
content: Quote from: David_AVD on December 07, 2014, 02:59:39 amBut decrease the dust.

author: Whales
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 07, 2014, 05:41:02 am
content: No ventilation is going to be a pain in the long term. Even if you don't have moisture problems, it won't smell nice or be fresh. You can imagine the look on Sagan's face when he's told he has to visit daddy in the fart chamber again.Can you poke a hole through the besa blocks to the outside world and install a low-speed mains fan? If the owners don't like it, tell them it's for ducting your air con, but you've found a way to do it without having to bother them with the outside unitHave you tried finding out who operates the system for the ducts on your ceiling? Who knows, they might not mind if you ask about 9mm'ing some holes in it.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 07, 2014, 06:27:49 am
content: Look for old curtains and hang on the wall so you can just close them over the wall when needed for recording. Cheap and you only have to look at them when recording, otherwise they are out of the way. Lined ones you just hang with the lining facing inwards and look at unbleached linen.

author: pickle9000
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 07:20:43 pm
content: Things to do with old doors,- Bench tops (handle holes at the back for cable feed through).- Slide for Sagan. Also good for car toy races.- Corner box for packing materials.- Just sit them on the floor to stack stuff on, keeps stuff off the cement. Bubble wrap helps between cement and door.- Make a couple EEVblog signs and just keep moving them from place to place.- Train set table.- Get a couple saw horses and make a tear down bench for the really nasty stuff, flip over when destroyed.

author: Monkeh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 19, 2014, 07:33:53 pm
content: The stuff running down the walls is just slurry from the roof slab. Worked its way past the shuttering. Pretty normal, usually it's hidden above drop ceilings.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 21, 2014, 09:06:34 am
content: That though is pretty neat brickwork, all lines even, all blocks fully seated and all joints are levelled off. Takes skill to do that, especially on an unplastered wall. Paining though will be an issue, you need a rough surface roller, and at least 3 coats to get a coat that will not show all than the worst imperfections, or learn how to bag wash the wall to get a plaster layer over them to make a smoother surface.Here though those walls would be put in after shuttering and casting the floor slab above, not as part of the support structure during casting, along with it being a load bearing structure.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 21, 2014, 10:55:38 am
content: Quote from: Whales on December 07, 2014, 05:41:02 amI was wrong, it has excellent ventilation. That ducting comes directly form the outside and is dedicated to my unit and unit next door. The fan turns on automatically when I switch the lights on, and pumps fresh air from outsideintothe lab, not out as I had assumed.In theory, fresher air than my lab.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 21, 2014, 10:57:00 am
content: Quote from: mikeselectricstuff on December 02, 2014, 11:39:09 amYes, I plan on doing that.

author: nowlan
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 21, 2014, 11:06:34 am
content: fan drawing air would play havoc for temperature, summer/winter.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 21, 2014, 11:20:31 am
content: Quote from: nowlan on December 21, 2014, 11:06:34 amI'd rather have the fresh air thanks.But in any case, no it shouldn't. 30m or so of internal ducting will take care of most air temp differential by the time it gets there. And then the volume is so low that it won't make any huge difference. I've done these sorts of measurements on my solar air heater design.