Attic Panels

There isn't a whole lot to show off, since the one photo makes it pretty self explanatory.  A few things come to mind:  First, we were pleased with the consistency and uniform finished face of the panels.  I wish I could remember the manufacturer, so I'll have to fill that in later.

Kudos to the framers for making sure the rafters were spaced exactly 24" apart.  Once we lined up the first panel, all the rest of the seems were almost exactly centered on the wood.

Many thanks for Mike W who suggested using a pneumatic stapler to tack the panels up.  He even loaned me his gun and provided the staples.  It made quick work of the job, and I have no concern that the panels will pull away from the framing over time. The tiny heads on pneumatic nails would not have held up.  The staples, for the most part, were set flush with the surface automatically, with only a few needing to be tapped down with a hammer.  My plan is to use an iron-on edge band to cover up the staple heads and joints.

I used a Krieg circular saw guide with my skill saw, using a plywood blade to trim the paneling.  It worked great: fast, and super accurate.  The edges were nearly as clean as the factory edges. 

No more hideous foam insulation to look at! I still need to install some of the trim peices to clean up the corners.

Alternating Step Ladder

An important part of my plan to keep the downstairs un-cluttered is to lean on attic storage.  As a result, I expect to be making multiple trips upstairs (or up-ladder in this case) every day.  A conventional ladder would be inconvenient in that you need at least one hand to help negotiate the ladder, so carrying stuff would be a real pain.  I obviously don't have room to spare for a conventional staircase, hence, I've built an alternating-step ladder:

 Pictures are one thing, but the below below is probably much more instructive.  Note that I'm hands-free going up and down.  (For illustrative purposes, I should have held an ice cream cone in one hand and an open beverage in the other.)