My DIY project sounds very similar to yours. I've taken a few photos of the hatch progress, I'll put them up later. I'll take a photo of the finished flooring once it's done. I was going to put a camera up there and timelapse it, but it's so so filthy.

My dust mask from yesterday

Filth. :C

But I would like to see how it's going - always interested in DIY stuffs.

Glad to see you have the keys to the windows, in their rightful place, on the window sill.

And the getaway car parked nearby.

The other place is in the lock, but that's risky business when there's a chance the key will fall out when you open it!

Not totally finished but so far... (click for bigger)

Original hatch



Day 1 - widen hatch and put supporting beams across existing beams. Filthy work. Didn't realise that the developer I bought it off had put a suspended ceiling in the landing area, that made things a bit more complicated.

 

Day 2 - Give the hatch a box/carcass



Day 3 - Architrave

 

It will soon be painted white.

Day 2 - Started the boarding

 

Day 3 - Most of the rest of boarding done

 
 

You may notice I've not laid the tongue & groove as it should be. I've gone tongue-tongue, groove-groove. My original reason was because I wanted it to be easy to lift any boards in future, and as I've been laying the boards it became an even better idea because the beams I'm screwing into aren't level/even in the slightest so getting them to align nicely would have been impossible. The house is about 150 years old so that's not a surprise.

The best way would have been to build a frame across the area to lay the boards on to ensure it was totally flat. That wasn't going to happen.

Day 4 will be laying any extra boards and bits of boards that need doing.

I'll need to make a change to the door when the ladders arrive. Once that's done I'll crack open the paint.

:D looks like it's going well, but a pretty big job. Are you taking time off work to do this? How did you tidy up the top of the uprights (the bits that cover the gap in the suspended ceiling) from the hatch where it meets the boards above? It looks nice n' neat.

Are you boarding over the insulation stuff or removing that as you go?  That's reminded me, I had a look in our loft space the other week. Like yours it's got a suspended ceiling from when the attic was converted from a room and a corridor into one big room. They made some attempt at insulation - there's a bag of polystyrene pellets up there covering about a square meter's worth of floor space. It's just above my dart board, so at least that'll be nice and warm come the winter. :/

I like the light well. :)

 

I can't open attachments on my Kindle. I'm avoiding any new threads with attachments til I get home. Looks like you have a nice bit of attic space. Mine is pretty big but there are s many bits of wood supporting the roof (I don't know the tevhnical term for them) that it makes it very awkars to move around the attic.

On the windscreen wiper motor.

Is it generally a simple case of polarity changing to switch direction? Or is it a little more complicated?

Depends on the motor (generally: permanent magnets, no. electromagnets, yes), but probably easier just to use a linkage to reverse direction. That way for half the time the door is opening and half the time it's closing, but the motor runs constantly in the same direction.

The motor will fail, and you will be trapped up there, your muffled shouts drowned out by the tv and traffic.

After a week of missing posters on shop windows and telephone poles, and cops scouring the neighborhood, it will be assumed you ran off, or just got offed.

Years later, your dried husk will be found with broken fingernails and deep scratches in the hatch, after your family moves away.

Or, you can stop right now.

I still don't understand :((

So let's say I was to apply a voltage to the relevant wires it wouldn't turn 360 deg continuously? It would go, say, 180 deg and back again?

I just want a simple motor I can turn 360 for a set amount of time, then -360 deg.

Also, my hall effect sensors arrived, but I forgot to order magnets. I've had so much stuff from China arrive in less than 2 weeks recently. One item in 7 days too.

I think I'll fit an emergency axe in the attic.

https://youtu.be/D_KIOr_TpcM

Thank you :$

It's done like that because rapidly switching the direction on a motor (like windscreen wipers would have to) is really not nice for the motor, especially when there's a biggish load on the motor.

Makes total sense, and I quite like that video. I could probably get one for a fiver at the scrap yard or 7 quid buy it now on ebay. I think I'll buy one and have a play.

Worst case scenario you have a relatively small, relatively high torque motor. That'll definitely find itself another use if it's not suitable for the door thing.

Discovered you can make a H Bridge using two relays. I happen to have a 2xRelay module which is now working as a H Bridge. Really really simple to use. If the relays are the same (high/low) the motor would be off. Set one relay high to turn the motor, swap which is high to change direction.

Eg
L/L & H/H - Off
L/H - Forward
H/L - Backwards

Super dull video

Arduino, 433 MHz receiver, relay module and hall effect sensor.

The idea is to have the motor running for x seconds, but if the hall effect sensor is triggered it stops. A bit of a fail safe to stop the motor in case it is already fully open.