Room Construction

I started designing and building the Placerville Branch in 2010. I had switched prototypes in 2008 when I moved into town after living on acreage in the Sierra Foothills. I had been building a large GN layout of the Cascade Division in a separate shop building on the property. After moving to our in town home in 08 and with the help of several friends I started the design and building of a steam era SP layout centered around the iconic Placerville Branch that ran from Brighton, Ca. to Placerville in the Sierra foothills. The layout originally was to be in one bay of a two car garage, but my house faces east/west and afternoon sun really heated up the garage space, making it unbearable to work in. I did start insulating to try and beat away the heat, but my wife suggested an alternative area under the back porch. I looked this over and after some measurements decided it would be the future home for my Placerville Branch layout. The space measures 11 x 27 ft, so it is long and narrow with a low 8 ft. ceiling. Below shows the initial exterior construction photo's.

2x6 studs are installed along the long side of the porch

then T11 siding

Trim

and paint

The entrance is to the the narrow side, with a door that mistakenly opens in. Soon I will reverse it as it needs to open out to make room for a track running across the door face connecting upper and lower levels.