Mark's Bar - Cold beer, warm food, hot women

MarkP80

Established Member
Joined
Jan 15, 2005
Messages
1,012
Reaction score
107
Points
233
Location
Aberdoon!
As suggested, I've changed this first post to a bit of a "before and after"

MarkP


Hi all,

Well, the cinema project is finished, so time to move on to the next one :suicide:

We had a spare room at the back of the house, and I've managed to convince the wife that we need a bar. Of course, this being the av forum, it will need the appropriate av hardware, so I've included a few goodies in the plans.

Here's a couple of shots of the room at the start, taken from either end. As you can see, it's a bright room, being a single storey extension along the back of the house.

Bar02.jpg


finished002.jpg


In the photo below, the doors on the right lead in to the cinema, the last project :smashin:

Bar03-1.jpg


finished004.jpg


Plenty to do!

MarkP
 
Last edited:
OK, time to make a start, and this is where all those skills you learn making pelmets for electric screens come in handy -

Bar04.jpg


- can you guess what it is yet?

Bar05.jpg


If you're having a bar, then it needs a canopy above it!

Bar06.jpg


Some of you may think it odd to have a bar in your house, but I worked for some time in the Middle East, where it is the norm. They do make for a great focal point if you entertain, and anyway, I just wanted one!

MarkP
 
As you can tell, I've been taking photos as I progress, so have a few to post until I catch up.

So, canopy had to be covered in plasterboard and the electrics run for the low voltage downlights.

Bar08.jpg


Beading was put on all the edges, then I had to get someone in to plaster it - that's one skill I don't possess.

Bar10.jpg


So far I'm pretty pleased with the progress. It's hard to picture what it will all be like when it's finished, but I'm sure you will all let me know. And there will be some av content, honest!

MarkP
:thumbsup:
 
'We had a spare room at the back of the house, and I've managed to convince the wife that we need a bar'

god i hate you! :D

Seriously thou, looks good so far, dont forget the pinball machine! no bar sould be without one!!!

Matt
 
Looking forward to see how this develops Mark :cool::thumbsup:
 
This looks fantastic. Keep up the pics :D
 
what you gonna have on tap :) also anyone know where i can get a pub pump from?

I am sure there was something available from Heineken a while back that you could use. I will have a look for you.
 
Hi guys,

Thanks for all the feedback, it's much appreciated. I've got some more photos, which I'll post this afternoon.

I'm not planning on putting pumped beer in, but I did look into it. What you need is a "flash cooler". This is in effect a fridge, which cools the beer as it passes through, without needing to hold it at cold temperature - the warm beer flows from the keg, into the cooler, and comes out the other side cold, then out of the font. You can pick these up on ebay, usually from pubs when they've been refurbished. Pubs are tending to now have multiple coolers for many pumps, rather than the single or twin units you want for a home bar. (For "extra cold" style, you use a twin cooler, and simply go through both coolers in series, ie out of one and into the other)

The bar top fonts are also fairly readily available on ebay, you could simply fit one of these for decoration only if you didn't want to pipe it up.

My plan is to install two small fridges under the bar, and just keep cans in there, although if I have a big party I may look at a temporary flash cooler installation. Kegs only have a limited shelf life, and I don't drink that much!

Regards,
MarkP
 
Kegs only have a limited shelf life, and I don't drink that much!

Regards,
MarkP

well I do so hows about an invite:D:D

well done Mark it looks ace mate, can`t you rest or is it because you want to get it all done and over with

keep up the good work

Cheers (literally) Allan:thumbsup:
 
LOL, believe me Allan, I'd be happy to rest, but we moved into this house over a year ago, which needs completely sorting, and I've only done around three rooms so far. I'm just happy to be doing the av rooms before the non-essentials like bathrooms etc!

MarkP
 
OK, time for a bit of cabling! I'm going to install a plasma on the wall at the far end, along with a pair of stereo speakers. This room is mainly for watching sport, so I don't want to bother with 5.1, but I do want to be able to get the commentary loud enough. So that means stereo out from the cable box, into a stereo amp feeding the speakers. This gear will all be behind the bar.

The wall is dot and dab, so I had hoped to get the speaker cable in the gap. No such luck, but I was able to get a bit at a time, then I had to drill through the plasterboard to find the cable. Looks a bit of a mess, but I thought it would be easier to fill than cutting out a whole channel -

speaker1.jpg


speaker2.jpg


- that's the rugby world cup fixture list stuck to that wall - just to remind me I'm on a timescale!

Power supply and video cables for the plasma. There's a scart and a very nice Mark Grant HDMI cable there.

speaker3.jpg


Filling part done and one speaker bracket up. If you look at the sockets lower right, you can see one covered with a sheet of paper. That's to keep the dust out - it's a Keane IR repeater so that I can control the gear behind the bar from a comfy seat! -

speaker4.jpg


The speaker brackets are BTech, I've also got their plasma mount. Quite impressed with their gear

speaker5.jpg
 
Speakers in place and chasing plastered up!

speaker7.jpg


Then there's the other end... You can just see the artist's impression on the wall of where the bar will be, so these cables will all hopefully be in the right place for the electronics!

speaker6.jpg



That's about it for now. Thanks for all your feedback and encouragement,
MarkP

:thumbsup:
 
I thought your speaker brackets had been taking in a bit too much of the goodness from the bar then, but it's ok, it's just your photograpy :rotfl::smashin: (either that or it's my eyes..... :eek:)
 
Nice bit of chasing, what do you use to fill, I use polyfilla but have bulges in the larger chases (smaller ones are perfect mind)
 
Its coming on. Keep up the good work :D
 
SeanT, I just used polyfilla, but not the ready mixed kind - I find it much too hard to sand down compared to the mix yourself type. For the wider gaps, I tend to fill in a couple of stages then sand back and try a coat of paint. It invariably needs a couple of extra fills here and there, but is fairly straightforward.

Anything too wide and I get a plasterer!

MarkP
 

The latest video from AVForums

Is 4K Blu-ray Worth It?
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Back
Top Bottom