The hardware was for bi-part sliding pocket doors to simultaneously open and close if one door was pushed or pulled.  The idea was to make it so you do not have to close or open one then the other.  After several calls around town, Angelo at Ricca Architectural Salvage http://www.riccasarchitecturalsales.com and Jay Seastrunk at Eskew Dumez + Ripple http://studioedr.com (coincidently found the desired hardware at the same time), handed me over to the HÄfele Hardware tomb.  http://www.hafele.com/us/

Here are the HÄfele specifications:

Top Hung System HAWA – Symmetric 80/Z

1. for bi-parting sliding wood doors
2. smooth quiet operation
3. rattle free bottom glide
4. simultaneous opening and closing of bi-parting sliding doors
5. special two way suspension
6. vertically and laterally adjustable
7. door stop with adjustable retention spring
8. maximum door weight per leaf 176lbs or 80kg
9. minimum door thickness 1” or 26mm

This week a similar situation happened to myself and a client while working on a renovation project here in New Orleans, but before we started moving the large Sub-Zero, Max Mendoza came up with a simple solution, we had some tight corners to clear, so after measuring and everything still looked too tight, Max replicated the large Sub-Zero using the cardboard from the box it came in, guiding the cardboard through the door openings and around the corners, we easily determined that one frame needed to be removed. This saved us so much back breaking moving of the refrigerator twice. I still picture Perry and friends circling the block with their side by side!

New Orleans Green Project

The Green Project carries a variety of donated items from doors, windows, shutters, window sash weights, door knobs, old glass, ironwork, and light fixtures just to name a few things!  This not so little non-profit’s main goals are to keep usable building materials out of our landfills.  Other places to find recycled building materials and other unique finds are:

• Ricca, www.riccasarchitectural.com, located at 511 North Solomon in Mid-City
• The Bank, www.thebankantiques.com, located at 1824 Felicity in Central City
• The Habitat ReStore, www.habitat-nola.org, located at 2830 Royal Street, in the Bywater

Soundproofing  is broken down into two areas: noise reduction (stopping the noise) and noise absorption (changing the noise).  These are achieved by different applications. I will approach this issue by separating floor, walls, and ceilings; there may be some overlap.  Measuring of soundproofing is usually indicated by an NRC value. (Noise Reduction Control)  .45 NRC is less sound absorbing than .75 NRC.

1. Floors

   • Carpet is a good noise absorption; one can put cork or neoprene underneath the carpet and carpet pad to further muffle the sound. This is good to do if you live above someone and want to reduce noise you make.

2. Walls

   • The best way to soundproof a room is a double layer of sheetrock, known as a resilient channel.  This can be done a couple of ways: placing metal tracks along the wall and hanging another sheet of rock. The metal tracks are put on neoprene pads or siliconed creating a cavity and noise barrier for apartments next to each other.
   • Spray foam does little for sound proofing, but what does well is sprayed-on cellulose.  Don’t forget to seal your outlet holes.
   • Sound Board is similar to a sheet of rock, only hard foam, and is placed between the stud wall and sheetrock.
   • Lead lined sheetrock, but is costly at 125 to 250 a sheet.
   • Windows; replacing your single pane with dual pane window units with a soundproof element.  Not all dual pane window units have soundproofing.
   • Fabric wrapped Acoustical Panels are used in movie theaters and public areas. These boards have noise-absorbing foam are hung on existing walls.

3. Ceilings

   • Sugarcane Panels are made from the stalks of sugar cane bound together into a panel.  The panel has a high NA value and can be spray painted up to 6 times with non-bridging paint; good for public places.
   • Acoustical Tiles; there is a hierarchy here, all panels are not created equal.  Please look at the NRC (Noise Reduction Control) value to see how much soundproofing you want to achieve.

Choose paint sheens based on the area in the home.

Flat paints are best for ceilings and low traffic areas such as bedrooms, home offices, or formal living areas. A matte finish has a very slight sheen above flat and might be used in the same areas. Satin and Eggshell are often used interchangeably and are great in medium traffic areas such as dens, kitchens, baths, hallways, mudrooms. Semi-gloss is most often used for high washibility on woodwork, baseboards, doors and casings, and windows. In addition, Semi-gloss may be used when more washibilty is desired in wet areas and cooking areas such as baths, laundry rooms, and kitchens (especially in the absence of back-splash and tile work).

For exterior applications, Satin is great for weatherboards and porch ceilings.  Semi-Gloss is good for all doors, windows, and trim work as used inside. At times a Gloss or High-Gloss my be desired especially for the enhancement of architectural details, millwork, fine cabinetry, and crown moldings. Paint sheens are not universally the same from one company to the next. What one company calls “gloss” may be considered “semi-gloss” at another.  So be sure to check with the manufacturer and get a sample to be sure you are getting the desired sheen.

Banana Cream yellow Sherwin-Williams paint

Over the last few years, all the major paint companies have offered “sample” cans that range in price from $3-$6 depending on the size to “try out” a color. This is the best way, to prevent spending $40.00 or more per gallon and the application time to only then realize this shade of orange looks like Macaroni & Cheese!! Ugh!! Samples on color chips look different in the store, than the actual paint on the walls, lighting effects the way the color is perceived as well, fluorescent in the store, warm incandescent at home. Colors will also look different at various times of day and will be affected by the shadows in the room. It is not unusual to paint several rooms the same golden beige and have it look like a different color in different rooms. At the same time you can paint adjacent walls one shade off from one another and not be able to tell the difference.

Color is very tricky and each person will see it a little different as well. Purchase the samples and apply a 3-4 ft square on two to three walls in the room you are painting so that some is applied opposite the window and some in shadowy areas.  Also make sure some is near any item you are trying to match or compliment, ie curtains, sofa, etc.  Going through this exercise a few times is far easier and less costly  than repainting the entire room or having to “live with” a bad choice. When you make your final color selection. Be sure to prime and paint over the sample areas. The samples are usually not “actual” paint and will deteriorate over time if not top coated. You will also always end with a better finish if you start with a crisp white palette. Beware, painting over samples, nail hole repairs, crack repairs etc can create a splotchy look. Happy Painting!

Colorful New Orleans French Quarter Condo

The ideal situation is to use leftover paint from the last application. If you do not have leftover paint, then you need to touch up with everything being the exact same as the original application.

For example: it seems obvious that you want to make sure to use the same color, but also important is the use of the same sheen, such as eggshell or flat.  And to help ensure the best possible match,  try to take the extra step of using the exact same product, i.e.,  Sherwin Williams 200, or 400.

Not as obvious, but very important, is to always buy from the same store. And even though you may not feel you have a need for it, you may need to buy a full gallon. Paint tint machines can vary slightly from store to store much the same as a fountain coke tastes a little different from one restaurant to the next.  Also many light colors are formulated for one gallon measurement in the original formula. If they have a 1/64oz of tint in the gallon it cannot be broken down to 1/256 oz of tint for a quart, therefore a small amount will be rounded down creating a noticeable color difference.  Try to apply the paint in the same manner, such as roller or brush.

Higher sheens do not touch up as well as lower sheen paint. In the same way, a higher sheen will show more imperfections in a wall or ceiling than a lower sheen.

Another helpful hint is to paint corner-to-corner if you have a slight color variation. Any break, like a molding , door casing, or corner will be enough to make any color variation less obvious.