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Image: imgur/skerley1979
Image: imgur/skerley1979
Broadly speaking, basements aren’t places where we like to spend a whole lot of time. But one man changed all that with an amazing transformation that will turn you green with envy.
Image: imgur/skerley1979
When Reddit user skerley1979 hit upon the idea of converting his basement in St. Louis, Missouri, his wife was less than enthusiastic. Eventually, though, he won her round – and the results are incredible.
Image: imgur/skerley1979
Starting with a blank slate, he set out to create the ultimate chilling space. The first thing he wanted to do was create a cabinet to house a multimedia center.
Image: imgur/skerley1979
To do this skerley1979 built a large frame from wood before using drive pins to fix it to the floor. Next, he fixed the tops of the frame to the ceiling joists with nails. His dream project was starting to come together.
Image: imgur/skerley1979
With his inexperienced daughter lending a hand, things didn’t progress quite as quickly as skerley1979 would have liked. But the opportunity to pass on his skills to the next generation more than made up for any lost time.
Image: imgur/skerley1979
The next step was to cover the frame in plasterboard and tape. Then an initial coat of “mud” was applied.
Image: imgur/skerley1979
After the first coat had dried a second was daubed on. The space in the middle of the frame was then coated in black paint – two coats, naturally.
Image: imgur/skerley1979
Next, skerley1979 turned his attention to creating the perfect surround-sound experience. He built two sub-woofers into the bottom left and right corners of the cabinet.
Image: imgur/skerley1979
Spaces in the towers on either side were originally designed to house DVDs. Memories of his parents’ living room crowded with hundreds of VHS tapes, though, proved a bit of a deterrent.
Image: imgur/skerley1979
Instead, then, skerley1979 purchased two bookshelf speakers that slotted into the spaces. That was the practicalities sorted; now it was time to think about the visual side of things.
Image: imgur/skerley1979
Into the space between the towers he fitted a super-wide Elite ezFrame TV screen. The cinema-style feature would act as the centerpiece of the basement’s transformation.
The screen obviously needed a projector, so the DIY enthusiast opted for an Epson 8100. Designed for home cinemas, the projector is pretty expensive – so to save cash skerley1979 opted for a refurbished model.
Image: imgur/skerley1979
The projector was initially suspended from the ceiling, but this arrangement posed a problem – every time someone walked around upstairs, the projector shook. Adding a mount that secured it to a pillar fortunately solved the issue.
Image: imgur/skerley1979
Having completed the ultimate home theater project, there was only one logical next step. Skerley1979 got to work on his very own bar, complete with stools and St. Louis Cardinals memorabilia.
Image: imgur/skerley1979
Set behind the cinema, the bar is the perfect place for a pre-movie, and quite possibly post-movie, drink. By the looks of it it’s pretty well stocked – but perhaps best of all, there’s no cash register. These refreshments are on the house.
Image: imgur/skerley1979
Skerley1979’s wife isn’t into movies like he is, so the basement conversion took a little while to sell. As he revealed on Reddit, though, she now “really enjoys it.”
Image: imgur/skerley1979
When it was finished, the family christened the project by sitting down together to watch Step Brothers. The basement converter may have watched Star Wars by himself first, though.
Image: imgur/skerley1979
Since posting photographs of the build skerley1979 has been inundated with compliments – not to mention requests from fellow St. Louis residents to come round and watch movies. Graciously, he’s invited them over.
Image: imgur/skerley1979
Skerley1979 reckons the project cost him somewhere in the region of $2,500. Which isn’t bad for one of the best home theater projects you’ll ever see.