Ricky's Audio Video Barn Build Project

[mandrix]

We don't need no stinkin' city water! But it is hard to train the squirrels to run on a treadmill for the generator!

 

[DrKlahn]

An interesting thread.

My experience having visited about 25 or so home theaters in IA, MN and MO/KS is that a proper AT screen does almost nothing the sound of the speakers behind it. And there is a lot of measured data to support this.

Also, having all 7 of my base layer being B&W D3 speakers I can state without a doubt that the center does not impact imaging or spaciousness. A phantom center does not work well for anyone not seated in the sweet spot. And I feel folding a fully discrete channel into others is not an enhancement to the presentation.

 

[Sonik Wiz]

where do you city boys think sewage goes when you live in the country? lol. .....and I have my own well.

I never pass up the chance for a friendly discourse on septic tanks, since I grew up with one.

After the war my dad bought a 5 acre plot of land just south of the KC MO area proper, far out enough it was unincorporated. The plot was quite rectangular going up a hill & the house was maybe 2/3rds towards the back, away from the street. Big home custom built, swimming pool, a couple of horses. We had electricity, gas, water available but no sewer. So the septic tank outlet was downhill, pretty much in the middle of the yard. Smelled sometimes. But the grass loved it. Grew at about 10x the rate of the rest of the yard.

Eventually the city annexed the area and along with that came new taxes. About 15 years later they decided everyone must hook up to city sewage pipes they had put in at home owner cost. Vaguely I remember it was $15k which was a lot in 70's money. But he did it and no more cleaning out the septic tank every 10 years or so.

A friend of mine used to live in a KS town called Tonganoxie (or as most of us called it, Toxic Nazi). So far out he did indeed have a water tank filled up by trucked in water, propane, and of course septic tank. They loved it living there keeping bees, chickens, a horse... It seems like the simple life but all those extra expenses, dial up only, and city not clearing all those quarter mile stretches of gravel road in the snow makes me glad it wasn't my lifestyle. There are still some real advantages to urban/suburban living.

 

[armyjazzer]

I'm on a well also. You might consider getting an Alexapure or Berkey water filter to run the drinking water through. Lot's of contaminates and toxins found in ground water now days! Another tip....run Ethernet cabling to your rooms where you think audio and PC's will be located. It will provide better service than wireless and it's easy to run during construction.

 

[cbmmm3]

I'm on a well also. You might consider getting an Alexapure or Berkey water filter to run the drinking water through. Lot's of contaminates and toxins found in ground water now days! Another tip....run Ethernet cabling to your rooms where you think audio and PC's will be located. It will provide better service than wireless and it's easy to run during construction.

thanks AJ ---Ive been riding the fence on this issue. Im more and more inclined to spend the money to do this. Especially if I want to attempt to stream all those yummy Atmos selections that seem to be avail only in streaming

 

[mandrix]

I never pass up the chance for a friendly discourse on septic tanks, since I grew up with one.

After the war my dad bought a 5 acre plot of land just south of the KC MO area proper, far out enough it was unincorporated. The plot was quite rectangular going up a hill & the house was maybe 2/3rds towards the back, away from the street. Big home custom built, swimming pool, a couple of horses. We had electricity, gas, water available but no sewer. So the septic tank outlet was downhill, pretty much in the middle of the yard. Smelled sometimes. But the grass loved it. Grew at about 10x the rate of the rest of the yard.

Eventually the city annexed the area and along with that came new taxes. About 15 years later they decided everyone must hook up to city sewage pipes they had put in at home owner cost. Vaguely I remember it was $15k which was a lot in 70's money. But he did it and no more cleaning out the septic tank every 10 years or so.

A friend of mine used to live in a KS town called Tonganoxie (or as most of us called it, Toxic Nazi). So far out he did indeed have a water tank filled up by trucked in water, propane, and of course septic tank. They loved it living there keeping bees, chickens, a horse... It seems like the simple life but all those extra expenses, dial up only, and city not clearing all those quarter mile stretches of gravel road in the snow makes me glad it wasn't my lifestyle. There are still some real advantages to urban/suburban living.

I've been living on this 5.3 acres since the late 70's. In all those years only had to have the septic tank pumped out once, because the original drain field was not done well. I rented a tractor with a backhoe and split it off in two directions and put down 16 of those "coffins" that interlock together. I used to have a grey water setup for the washing machine discharge but when I redid the drain field I just ran to the very end of one leg of the drain field directly into the fitting.

BTW RidX really does help. I put it in monthly.

 

[cbmmm3]

a properly engineered Septic and drain field will pose no problems. great little Bio Digester if its done correctly.

 

[mandrix]

I'm on a well also. You might consider getting an Alexapure or Berkey water filter to run the drinking water through. Lot's of contaminates and toxins found in ground water now days! Another tip....run Ethernet cabling to your rooms where you think audio and PC's will be located. It will provide better service than wireless and it's easy to run during construction.

My well has been tested by the State (by their request) and they sent me back a full analysis of the water. No pesticides, etc, just an abundance of Calcium which clogs stuff up in my goldfish pond.

 

[mandrix]

a properly engineered Septic and drain field will pose no problems. great little Bio Digester if its done correctly.

Do a little overkill from the start and don't use that corrugated hose on a bed of gravel unless it's required. I find the "coffin" approach works very well. I had one of those corrugated 4" hoses for the drain completely clog up and back up the septic tank.

 

[Owen Smith]

thanks AJ ---Ive been riding the fence on this issue. Im more and more inclined to spend the money to do this. Especially if I want to attempt to stream all those yummy Atmos selections that seem to be avail only in streaming

Personally I'd run CAT 6 structured cabling to every room in both the barn and the house, and a link between the two buildings. For large rooms have multiple outlets so you can put equipment in different locations. wifi doesn't work well with big properties, and modern insulation with foil backing blocks wifi so your construction requirements may or may not cause wifi problems.

 

[cbmmm3]

Personally I'd run CAT 6 structured cabling to every room in both the barn and the house, and a link between the two buildings. For large rooms have multiple outlets so you can put equipment in different locations. wifi doesn't work well with big properties, and modern insulation with foil backing blocks wifi so your construction requirements may or may not cause wifi problems.

thanks for the great advice Owen

 

[barfle]

I never pass up the chance for a friendly discourse on septic tanks, since I grew up with one.
...
Eventually the city annexed the area and along with that came new taxes. About 15 years later they decided everyone must hook up to city sewage pipes they had put in at home owner cost. Vaguely I remember it was $15k which was a lot in 70's money. But he did it and no more cleaning out the septic tank every 10 years or so.

My grandfather had a septic cleaning service. I got to go with him on a few rounds. This was back in the 1950s, so regulations were a lot looser then. At the end of the day, he'd go out to a farm field and dump the tank, trying to spread it around as much as possible.

The truck had a hand-feed throttle, which he would set, then while the truck was in motion across the field, get out of the cab, climb around to the back of the truck and open the drain.

 

[barfle]

run Ethernet cabling to your rooms where you think audio and PC's will be located. It will provide better service than wireless and it's easy to run during construction.

I'm running Ethernet (CAT6) to every bedroom and family room in our house. Fortunately, I can get in all the crawl spaces, and I've put a switch on a board nailed to the studs in one of the crawl spaces close to the cable modem. At the same time, I'm running RG6 to the same locations. More wire is always better.

 

[cbmmm3]

My grandfather had a septic cleaning service. I got to go with him on a few rounds. This was back in the 1950s, so regulations were a lot looser then. At the end of the day, he'd go out to a farm field and dump the tank, trying to spread it around as much as possible.

The truck had a hand-feed throttle, which he would set, then while the truck was in motion across the field, get out of the cab, climb around to the back of the truck and open the drain.

your grandfather had a real crappy job

 

[mandrix]

Do Cat 8 cables make a difference?

The key distinction is that CAT 8 cabling has faster throughput over short distances — 40Gbps up to 30 meters and the standard CAT 6 rate of 10Gbps at up to 100 meters. This evolution from CAT 6 also has a bandwidth of 2000 megahertz, twice that of CAT 7.

 

[mandrix]

Before fiber gets hooked up I'm going all CAT 8. Probably overkill, but there it is.

 

[barfle]

your grandfather had a real crappy job

#1 in the #2 business.

 

[barfle]

Do Cat 8 cables make a difference?

For most residences, I doubt it, but if it’s compatible with your connectors and you can afford the difference in price, I’d say go for it.

It’s definitely overkill if you’re on DSL or Starlink. But no problem taking steps to future-proof.

 

[mandrix]

For most residences, I doubt it, but if it’s compatible with your connectors and you can afford the difference in price, I’d say go for it.

It’s definitely overkill if you’re on DSL or Starlink. But no problem taking steps to future-proof.

Well 2 gig fiber is coming this year. They have already placed the line down my driveway, on the power poles.

 

[cbmmm3]

How are taxes, I should take my Calif money and move next door
Can I have a gun, a fishin' pole and a razer for off road, and of course a cow to eat and a horse to ride.

Markie @marpow
3 to 1. One dollar in California gets you 3 dollars in Michigan when it comes to real estate. You could build a helluva castle here. And - yes - you can have a gun. Its Michigan - you are not allowed in the state unless you have one.
A Razer is badass, Im old - I got a Gator.

I own the 2 acres next door. Its yours. Cmon up - but - fair warning - the weather here is not as nice as Cali. Also, we only have 2 seasons in Michigan - winter and Road Construction