I posted this in Layout Design, but didn't get enough responses. I'm going to take apart my layout in the garage and start over in the house. My garage layout just has too many things I'm not happy with, and it would be easier to start over than to go back and fix many of them. I'm planning on putting my new layout in my computer room. It's going to be a U shaped layout, roughly 10x7. The carpet in this room is shot, so I want to put down something new before I even start building benchwork. I've thought about carpet tiles, but I'd have to rip out the carpet and the padding to do so, and I'd have quite a bit of difference between the height of the carpet outside the room and inside the room. I'm also thinking linoleum tiles(vinyl), but correct me if I'm wrong, this would require its own subfloor base. I'd rather have linoleum, but carpet tile would be cheaper, and when I spill paint on the floor, I could just easily pull up the ruined carpet tiles and stick new ones down. Anyway, I'm looking for general ideas on a layout room. If you had the chance to design a small layout room from the ground up, what would you do about the floor, lights, etc? I'm going to do a LOT more research on this layout before I start than I did the last one. Benchwork will be the next subject, but I need to get the floor taken care of first.
I have used both vinyl and carpet in the past in my train rooms. Unless the train room is in danger of being flooded from time to time, I prefer carpet. In my last train room, I used the best pad and a cheaper short nap commercial grade carpet. It looked good 3 years later when I took the layout down. I will use the best pad and a cheaper short nap commercial grade carpet when I build the new train room at the new house. Glenn
My layout room is carpeted and it works out very nicely. Most of the layout was moved from a former home where the floor was also carpeted. In both I did/do no sawing of benchwork materials, relegating that to the garage. Care does have to be taken when using paint or plaster materials. Like vinyl drop cloths on the floor and mixing/stirring somewhere else. The one time I did spill PollyScale engine black it did wash out although the carpet color is beige. Resolve carpet cleaner works wonders. I like the carpet. It gives the room warmth. Like I need that with present temperatures in the 90's. I'll let somone else address lighting. Mine is not very good. Ben
I have carpet and enjoy it. As mentioned care should be taken when painting etc. I think its mostly a personal choice whatever one chooses. Jeff
Layout planning - what works for me Ryan, I vote for carpet with Glenn, Ben and Jeff. We built our retirement home around a double bedroom for the layout. Lotsa window along the north wall, carpeted like the other bedrooms and hall. Fortunately, the 'studio' is only a few feet down the hall from the utility and garage, so it's convenient to do my carpentry in the garage, then carry it to the studio. When I'm doing scenery or painting, I lay down large vinyl tarps first. Since there's not heavy traffic, the carpet looks brand new. I've made a lot of mistakes in 35 years of N-scaling, but allow me pass on some of the stuff I've done and espcecially what works for me. After I designed the layout on paper, I made a scale model with cardboard and clay. This was particularly valuable in planning scenery and visual dividers. Plan your wall murals. You can paint murals or use photography - several of us can talk to you about that later if you're interested. Consider how you'll 'play trains' - operate. Will you leave your rolling stock out on the layout? Do you need storage/staging tracks? My one serious regret is that my layout doesn't have a staging area - the room simply won't allow that, and we're not eager to cut through a wall into another room. To keep my rolling stock clean, I must remove it to storage units after an operating session (unless I'll be operating again soon). If you have a storage/staging area, plan it so you know what's happening in there and can access it easily. You don't have to have a modular layout, but consider designing it in sections that can be removed from the room and easily reassembled elsewhere. My layout is bequethed to an out-of-state museum, should I ever get run over by a garbage truck. I have a detailed instructional document for moving it. If you plan to photograph your layout, consider viewpoints. When we built our retirement home, we modified the layout from a wall layout to a walk-around. A 24" aisle allows us many more photo opportunities. HOWEVER... Most people consider 24" too narrow for an aisle. I'd tend to agree with that - 36" would be better, if you have the space. You're getting older - avoid duck-unders if you can. My layout is a "pinched circle" - the 2 sides of the circle come together for several feet. Weed is 11" above Edgewood. Although the 2 levels are separated by a short mural, I can work both sides of the circle while standing in one spot. No ducking. Lighting - a very debated subject, and a million different things you can do. I won't say my lighting is the best, but it works well for me. For my layout in a 10' X 20' room, I have 3 tracks for 12 adjustable targets. I just replaced the 50W tungsten bulbs with 50W halogens. For broader beams, I put 1-inch ceramic extenters on all the bulbs, and I get plenty of light for working and viewing. When I set up for photos, I use 2 worklight stands, each with 2 500W bulbs. So as not to burn down the house, I brought another 20A circuit into the studio for photography. To capture and share daylight, double glass doors separate the studio from the hallway. Cats - I love animals as much as trains, but they're generally not compatible. Only cats too old to jump and climb (1 at present) are allowed into the trainroom. Cleanliness (for smooth running) - congratulations moving indoors! You're gonna notice a big difference, and not just with expansion and contraction. To keep your layout clean, keep the trainroom doors and windows closed. Minimize pet visits. Since we were building our retirement home, we installed a built-in vacuum system - about $1K. Additionally, I bought a small shoulder-strap vacuum for the layout (and computers). With it, I can vacuum about 200 feet of track and roadbed in 20 minutes. Ryan, you're in a wonderful, enviable spot - opportunity to do a new layout. Take your time and do it right. "Right" meaning what will please you most through the years. Ask questions - several of your fellow TB contributors would like to help you. I'm forgetting several things, here, but these have been my major considerations through the years. Scott
Scott just covered many of the points I would make. Let me add my points about flooring and lighting, I do not like carpet in my train room. In the past carpet got stained or just plain dirty, no matter how careful I was--and I'm not very careful. I prefer bare concrete or ceramic tiles. I cover my aisles with interlocking foam-cushioned pads available at big box stores. These are inexpensive, and a real savior on my 60-year-old legs and feet. They can be removed, as they are about 2 x 2 feet. for a thorough cleaning. They are a bit unsightly but, if you spend a lot of time in the train room like I do, they are a godsend. For lighting, I use 4-foot thin-tube flourescents, daylight-bulbs. At first I used halogens on tracks, figuring I could move them around to light a scene. It turned out that it was much easier to use halogen spotlights on a workstand, rather than moving lights on the tracks. Now, in an 11 x 23 foot room, I have two banks of fluorescents extending 16 feet. That's four 4-foot fixtures, twin bulbs each, in two banks, for a total of eight fixtures, and 16 bulbs. At 20 watts per bulb, that's 320 watts--less than a TV. They provide plenty of light--I've retired my halogen spots except for special situations.
Can I just pull the old carpet out, lay carpet tape on the padding, and tape the new carpet tiles to the original padding?
I agree with avoiding the carpet. My layout is in a 10' X 10' bedroom with ceramic tile floors. My benchwork consists of heavy plywood over cabinetry. The cabinets are those commonly found in the remodel sections of places like Home Depot...ots of drawers and shelves. Access is through several openings in the layout as well as an aisle on one side of the layout that leads into an adjoining room. One of the things I have found most useful is an air purifier/filter that runs 24/7. It really keeps the dust down. I also always use a vacuum when drilling or cutting anywhere on the layout.
No, carpet tiles require a clean smooth base for installation. Keeping padding underneath will cause them to move all over the place. Remove the carpet & pad , sweep all debris out(you'll be surprised at the amount of dirt that filters through a carpet) and install tiles. The tiles have their own double-sided sticky tape that holds the tiles to the floor. Only teh outside edges and a strip down the middle are taped. The other tiles "float." If you use tiles, in my experience, they require lots of vacuuming and get dirty quickly and they don't clean very well (regardless of what the manufacturer says). Replacing tiles is easy (at $10-$15 a pop) but can add up over time. I wouldn't do it again. If this is going to be a bedroom someday (if you sell the house) , I would suggest going to a good pad and a berber-type carpet. If you aren't going to sell anytime soon, you should look into either laminate-wood (Pergo) flooring (looks nicer than vinyl) or a nice vinyl. Use the foam interlocking pads on any hard surfaced flooring - they work great. Peter
My layout room is a 10x12 bedroom. When the original carpet was completely trashed, I replaced it with glueless laminate wood flooring. It's not a cushy as carpet, but it's cleaner, easier to find escaped parts and is close to indestructable. I've used laquer thinner to clean paint spills and the floor still looks good. Easy to install, easy to maintain, looks pretty good and not too expensive.
The one place you don't want it is in a metal shed or the garage. Like mine. The dust that can collect is atrocious. I had to take a shovel and clear out the dirt...well...I'm exaggerating. However, a good vacuum and dusting was in order. A little housekeeping goes along way. You've gotten some excellent advice here. Give it a read and then read it again. You have fun planning your layout room.
My home office, where I'm building a small layout that will cover nearly half of the room, has beautiful wood floors. It would be a shame to cover them. I've had no problems with the wood floor.
I agree with the pergo type material, and if you want something similiar but a bit softer underfoot you might also look at cork, it too comes in glueless interlocking "planks".....dave
The floor discussions are great, and all I can say is that I'm in a basement and went with adhesive vynl squares. Really like them. Easy to clean, easy to find parts I drop. I've even cleaned up Floquil paint I've spilled. But lets talk power. I put in another whole 20 amp circuit for just my room, to handle the lighting and electrical. The ENTIRE CEILING is a drop-ceiling of diffusers with a 5000-degree flourescent light up there. I can photograph well in existing light, sometimes just put in a small 50W haologen kicker for shadows. There should be a wall switch for the overhead lights, and then to shut off MOST, but not ALL of the outlets. I have half the outlets on a switch and the other constant - so the dehumidifier is powered, but I can turn off ALL the transformers, soldering irons, etc., with one wall switch. I also put separate smoke detectors in the room, and inside the drop suspended ceiling, just in case one of those flourescent ballasts goes. Lets also talk heat. I had forced air in my previous house, and put in double filters in the drops to the layout room. I disconnected the cold air return so the room was mildly pressurized against dust infiltration, worked great. Current room is circulating hot water. As soon as this dehumidifier dies, I want one with a dust filtration system built in and I don't really care what it costs..... Oh, and don't forget a phone jack at the workbench area. Man, how I hate having to leave paint brushes to harden just to get up for a call for my kids!
Since my layout is in the basement, I don't care for a fully carpeted layout room. I've got a nice smooth gray painted concrete floor, with a couple of rugs added here and there. If the layout was upstairs the floor would be finished wood or tile. Again with throw rugs spread around. Have heat/a-c ducts in room, but NO return air ductwork. As stated before, keep the room just a little pressurized for some dust control. Starting with two separate 20 amp circuits in the room. One circuit for lighting and another for layout power. Put two separate power switches(one for each circuit), with pilot/indicator lights OUTSIDE the layout room. This way you can tell at a glance if ALL the power to the room has been turned off. I DID NOT install ground fault circuit breakers, I've had too much trouble with them tripping when nothing is wrong. For light I still learn towards straight florescent lights. I like to use daylight colors in the bulb, but lately have been trying other shades of bulbs. Florescents run cooler and last longer than halogen lights. I have a SMOKE DETECTOR, phone line and air compressor line in the room also. And I'm still thinking of things I want to redo in the layout room!!
