Owie

What a way to finish the year. I’m aching today after spending hours working in the attic during the last few days. Now that the Christmas/Halloween decorations are ready to return to storage I thought now is the time to finally double the flooring space in the attic. Its turned out to be more work than I remembered.

Goal number one is to keep my feet and/or body from falling through the ceiling. Beyond that, I’ve cleared the insulation from the spot, put down some 2x4s across the trusses (which have been properly shimmed – kids don’t try this at home), and securely bracketed said 2x4s against the trusses to provide a place to put 3/4″ plywood sheets. I’ve used this raised-platform technique on the previous flooring as a way to keep from moving all the wiring running over the trusses. Seems to work fine, though it takes some time to assemble.

I’m about halfway through the project at this point. I would’ve been close to finishing yesterday but I discovered the 2x4s aren’t the right length. I’ll get 3 more 2x4s, finish the brackets, put down the insulation again, and hoist 4 8-foot strips of plywood into the attic. The plywood is the part I’m most not looking forward to as its heavy and unwieldy in the confined attic spaces, even in the 22″ widths I’ve cut it into.

Its not the lifting part that’s got me aching. When I’m working in the attic I’m constantly balancing, so all my muscles remain tensed. That, and I’m ducking all the time to keep from banging against the trusses. No wonder I put this task off for three years!