I propose a budget of $2500 to renovate the lounge. This adds in a whole bunch of overhead - I don’t think I’ll use all of it.
This’ll cover things such as new ceiling tiles and grid, drywall repairs, new carpet, trim, paint, and so on.
I vote yes.
I support this effort, and think it’s long overdue, but it’s confession time. THE LOUNGE IS ICKY. I throw up a little in my mouth right now just thinking about all the human dander, sweat, and who know what ground into that upholstery. Yeah, we threw sheets over it, but they get gross and look shabby too. I’ve been a Hive member for long enough to know who has spent more than a “reasoable” amount of time sleeping, even living in there… Gross. Thrift store easy chairs and carpet are not appropriate for workspaces with a community of almost 100 people and even more guests every day.
We can’t change human behavior, oil, dirt, etc. We can make it easier to keep the space clean and inviting.
We’re a dusty, oily, techie shop, not Grandma’s house. Grandma would never let Grandpa sit in the furniture after working in the garage unless he took a shower…
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Avoid carpet at all cost! Impossible to clean. Does not make sense for a shop space. Gross, stinky, ewwww… Mold. Lots of inexpensive non-horrible alternatives now.
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Washable furniture. There are really nice vinyls & synthetic leathers now – cheap. All it takes is a spray of 409 and a rag vs uphosltery cleaning…
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Good lighting.
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Maybe install a drain in the floors so we can just power wash the whole space.
I don’t think we will ever take the time to periodically clean upholstery or carpet. It’s not hard to do, but it takes a lot of effort and time for me to clean my upholstery at home with my inexpensive bissell upholstery cleaner. If you want a real scare, I can show you what the dirty water tank looks like after cleaning (it’'s really foul, even with light usage).
Maybe some members would like to volunteer to do some space / interior design? We have an opportunity to make an inviting space people use instead of another dingy hole.
L
Quick update on progress: The old ceiling and wall are both almost completely down. I just need a little more time and some help to take the ceiling down.
There are a couple of structural things I need to fix with the ceiling in the lounge; nothing major and nothing a couple of screws won’t fix.
I’m certainly open to carpet alternatives, but there are a couple things to consider about the floor.
First, it’s bowed - quite impressively; it’s over an inch lower in the center of the room. Anything even remotely inflexible won’t work - no tile, no Pergo. I like the idea of carpet because it gives it a better feel in terms of “this space is to relax”, but if you’ve got some suggestions, I’m game.
Second, it’s OSB underlayment and I really don’t think installing a drain is feasible, as neat as that would be, because we can’t get access to the space below, nor tap into the sanitary sewer easily.
I’d like to improve the lighting. I need suggestions, because I’d personally go get like 8 torchières and call it a day. However, lighting can be upgraded at a later date and not hold up progress. Likewise with new furniture, and I think once we have the new lounge for a couple of weeks, we’ll know what furniture would work best.
Various flooring alternatives work in this case. Also consider that we can throw down area rugs, which can be removed and washed.
Nothing says hacker like paper bag flooring. Seriously. Bob Vila’s even into it, not kidding: https://www.bobvila.com/articles/paper-bag-flooring/ – cheap durable & crafty. We have some crafty people at Hive who would have fun with this project I think. And, of course, CHEAP.
Vinyl - There’s actually some rather cool, funky peel and stick vinyl now. Add some area rugs and we’d have a vomit-resistant floor.
Cork - Soft & cushion like. Flexible. Antibacterial. Washable. Resurface-able. Disadvantage is that it can tear and scrape. $3 sq/ft for simple stuff. Consider that $3 sq/ft is the cost of good high traffic (not landlord special) carpet.
Linoleum (real or original type, not the PVC stuff we now call linoleum) - Actual linoleum is strong and it is flexible akin to cork. More abrasion resistant. Linoleum was originally made from linseed oil & fiber, where it gets its name. In the 70s, PVC and fiberglass were added. That became popular and soon all “linoleum” was really PVC composite. This would be a more expensive option than others.
I’m going to draw a hard line against carpet. Rugs are fine. Seriously, though, people bring their dogs and kids and liquor to the hive lounge. Someone will barf and / or pee in there.
Finally, lounges just don’t get used unless they are inviting spaces. Lounges don’t get cleaned unless they are cleanable spaces.
Lorin
Also, tape floor: Yep. Vinyl flooring tape. Seriously, we could have some DIY fun with this not boring-time discount carpet…
https://www.apartmenttherapy.com/bring-crazy-color-to-your-floo-149972
oh man, it would be super cool to weave that stuff into a plaid pattern
The parts for the large laser have been ordered, and we could also custom cut etch materials for floor. There is actually a factory down the street that makes vinyl and rubber flooring – sunshine rubber. I’m sure they have remnants.
How about a big party to make tape & paper bag & other DIY flooring? We could add some honeycomb in there to keep it hivey! You’d never notice the sag in the floor for sure…
If we modify the pattern just right, the floor will look flat (from one perspective) 
Don’t rule out tile. Smaller tile fit to curves. Tile only has problems with flexy floors. The OSB floor isn’t that flexy. Seat 1 ft x 1 ft (or smaller) tiles in grout and they are solid.
Price installed could be at or near the $3/sqft. Grout/portland cement is a mild caustic, but it really only makes your skin dry.
Note many of the DIY floors; bags, tape, pennies and so on require some catalyzed resin. Installers probably should have an external air feed respirator for most of them. Maybe even a moonsuit.
Industrial epoxy coatings on warehouse floors are nasty.
Just for pricing information, the lounge is somewhere in the neighborhood of 36’ X 18’, for a total of almost 500 sq. ft. Give or take; I haven’t measured it.
I worry about linoleum - we’d have to surface the floor or else it’d look like absolute rookie garbage. I like the idea of cork, though - I think it’d have a hacker feel. However, I’m not too sure about the idea of peel-and-stick vinyl tiles - look at the bathroom. They look their sticky and become a mess.
I also am very fond of cork. You get what you pay for in vinyl (the stuff in the bathroom is outrageously cheap). Nice sheets that hold well + 3M adhesive is better.
Dave V – I agree, no floor epoxies. The trick with paper flooring is that the brown paper soaks up Elmers School glue and hardens into a composite of sorts really well. An oil stain added then hardens it further. I’ve never heard of anyone doing epoxy over it. The only finish needed is polyurethane. For tape, you use good flooring tape (no exotic finish).
I’m just saying, we could experiment with some small areas. What’s the harm?
I’ve got discounts with Prosource Flooring for carpet.
Commercial grade 12’ wide rolls run less than $1.60/ sq ft. Add pad and it will run under $2.00 / sq ft. So roughly $1300 for the lounge not installed.
I’ve used the better looking vinyl plank flooring in rehabs with wonky concrete floors. Home depot has Traffic Master Allure at $1.79/ sq ft. Roughly $1200
On the low cost long life end of the spectrum is the VCT 12" square tiles used in schools everywhere.
It’s in the $0.75 / sq ft all over town. It would go down in OSB with vinyl trowel adhesive, no problem. Cost Under $600
Epoxy or urethane coating sufficient to fill up the OSB is probably in the 1/8th inch range. Consider that a gallon is 231 cubic inches. 1/8" Thick gives 12.8 sq ft. 1/16" gives 25 sqft.
Grey garage flooring epoxy is $100/ gallon or from $3.80 to $7.90 / sqft for a budget of over $2500. Even shaving the cost per gallon doesn’t solve the problem.
Industrial operations that refinish warehouse floors in epoxy spend ridiculous money.
VCT is fine stuff. Use some good colors and it would be nice – we don’t have to have institutional grey… Solid, sturdy, not expensive. Throw down some washable area rugs for chill-spaces and save our money for more crucial improvements. I can donate a washable area rug if needed.