Type and Color Paint for lower level, homasote

Painting Homasote is a good idea, will cut down on it picking up moisture.  Color may depend on you intentions about scenery.  Are you going to do detailed terrain and mountains or will it be a more tinplate / toy type layout.  If planning on scenery, then you will want to lay a foundation for the future scenery.  Forest green is a common base color for such purposes.  If a more toy like layout, then a wide range of colors is possible including green, black, blue, etc.  I have made multi-level toy like layouts and have painted each level a different color to add interest.  Bold colors can work on such layouts.  Suggest painting both sides of Homasote.

Fast Mail, from experience install the Homasote on your layout before you paint it. Painting it before it's installed will cause it to curl and make it more difficult to install. :-)

@ogaugenut posted:

Painting Homasote is a good idea, will cut down on it picking up moisture.  Color may depend on you intentions about scenery.  Are you going to do detailed terrain and mountains or will it be a more tinplate / toy type layout.  If planning on scenery, then you will want to lay a foundation for the future scenery.  Forest green is a common base color for such purposes.  If a more toy like layout, then a wide range of colors is possible including green, black, blue, etc.  I have made multi-level toy like layouts and have painted each level a different color to add interest.  Bold colors can work on such layouts.  Suggest painting both sides of Homasote.

Thank you for the reply,

I think another way to consider my issue is visualize the lower level track and yards more like a bookcase or display case. Over most of the room it will be 24" deep with a 12" overhead that is reduced visually to a approximate 9" by using a fascia along the top edge to hide the source of LED strip lighting. I don't really envision any scenery in this space,

I wonder if I should use a somewhat reflective (eggshell) light gray or white on the background or maybe a flat black so the trains and track stood out from the lighting and the background became lost in darkness. As for the homasote thank for suggesting sealing it. However I'm still trying to decide on the color over the homasote that will be visible between tracks? I guess a medium gray and then over that earthy colors and weeds or grasses? 

kevin

As was stated, part of the answer depends on what type of terrain (mountains, desert, rural, etc.) and scenery you are trying to replicate.

I have had success with first masking out roadways and then painting with a basic earth brown latex color and sprinkling WS fine turf (green and yellow) over the paint while still wet to "embed" the fine turf, but it's what you want that really matters.

Just painted and installed my Homasote. Used flat latex paint with a roller. I found a can of "Milk Chocolate" oops paint at Lowes. I did paint mine off the layout and then installed it. It does curl, but the screws bring it back down to flat again.

@WesternPacific2217 posted:

Fast Mail, from experience install the Homasote on your layout before you paint it. Painting it before it's installed will cause it to curl and make it more difficult to install. :-)

Scott,

Thank you, for suggesting after I install, you may have saved me a lot of trouble.

An additional Question: when my Mianne liftgate lowers into a train run position the homasote overlaps onto the stationary plywood at either end of the lift, there is a small gap between the homasote on the lift and the homasote that is stationary. Any thoughts how to seal the soft homasote edges?

kevin

Richie C.  Nice looking yards thank you for the suggestions.

Joe, Your benchwork is beautiful; did you use any adhesive putting down the homasote after painting it?

If you can't find Homasote or it's cost prohibitive there is an alternative... Sound Board. I've used both Homasote (NYC layout) and Sound Board (New Orleans layout). identical paper/fiber construction ...the sound board comes with a tough moisture barrier on both sides.  It's about one quarter the cost of Homasote... I bought mine at Loews 12.95 4x8 sheet about 18 months ago.  Paint it if you like... or not, as below.

Dennis,

Thank you for great advice, sounds like a superior alternative to Homasote. Now to see if it available in Pacific Northwest.

kevin

If you go to Loews it's in the section with the foam insulation.   I no longer ask for assistance from the employees...

My layout started in 1998 and I used homosote which was way cheaper then. I did lots of things wrong, including not sealing it before laying all the track. When I did get around to painting it years later I used an oops latex that after some re-tinting looked kind of muddy brown. It turned out fine and its a pretty good base color. DEFINITELY seal it before you lay track or do anything else!

Rod

@Fast Mail posted:

Dennis,

Thank you for great advice, sounds like a superior alternative to Homasote. Now to see if it available in Pacific Northwest.

kevin

Kevin, When I added 8” in the front and right side of my layout last year, I couldn’t find Homasote in the SF Bay Area, or as far as I can tell, the west coast. I found the sound board mentioned in this thread at Home Depot. It was $15 for a 4x8 sheet at the time. Not all Homey Depots carry it though. FYI - the sound board is softer than Homasote and the edge gets damaged easily, so I painted on 2 coats of Elmers glue as it dries harder than latex paint. It really helps to protect the edge from damage.

The generic sound board is also like a sponge, it soaks up the paint. I had to do 2 heavy coats.

Happy railroading!

@WesternPacific2217 posted:

The generic sound board is also like a sponge, it soaks up the paint. I had to do 2 heavy coats.

Happy railroading!

The 'generic' version is UN-faced.  I used  the 'Faced' version.  I've spilled coffee, Manhattans and various other liquids on it and it just sits there beaded up.  It's not water proof... but, it is quite moisture resistant.  The little paint I've applied here and there does adhere very well and I've not had to apply a second coat.

I painted my Homasote after it was screwed down and all the screw holes and seams were filled with patching compound.  I just picked a generic brown color.

First all the screws and seams were filled and sanded.  Yes, the ones that aren't filled in the picture were filled before painting, I just missed them for some reason on the first pass of filling.

@gunrunnerjohn posted:

I painted my Homasote after it was screwed down and all the screw holes and seams were filled with patching compound.  I just picked a generic brown color.

First all the screws and seams were filled and sanded.  Yes, the ones that aren't filled in the picture were filled before painting, I just missed them for some reason on the first pass of filling.

Wow!  Looks good!

@gunrunnerjohn posted:

I painted my Homasote after it was screwed down and all the screw holes and seams were filled with patching compound.  I just picked a generic brown color.

First all the screws and seams were filled and sanded.  Yes, the ones that aren't filled in the picture were filled before painting, I just missed them for some reason on the first pass of filling.

John, looks great, I haven't checked out your layout progress thread in a while. Did you make the cutout heart shaped on purpose? I like how you built the layout around the vertical supports.

@WesternPacific2217 posted:

John, looks great, I haven't checked out your layout progress thread in a while. Did you make the cutout heart shaped on purpose? I like how you built the layout around the vertical supports.

No, the heart was totally by accident, when I was taking progress pictures after the initial deck was on, we noticed what it looked like.   A total accident, but pretty cool.

I actually could have removed those columns, they're not structural supports.  However, I decided that maybe it would look cool with them sticking out, and the tracks run outside the one.  I am thinking of a "mouse hole" in one with a road through it.

Gunnerjohn,

thanks for the reply. It looks like you used something to protect the bare edges of Homasote at the Mianne liftgate. How and what did you use??

@Fast Mail posted:

Gunnerjohn,

thanks for the reply. It looks like you used something to protect the bare edges of Homasote at the Mianne liftgate. How and what did you use??

That is aluminum J-channel from your home store.  The Homasote is routed with a slight recess to fit the J-channel in flush with the top and it goes under the Homasote to secure it with the PL3 adhesive.  It really does do the job, I'm sure I'd have lots of damage there if not for the protection.

I also used it around the pop-up access panel on the one end away from the liftgate access.  Same rational, accessing that panel would be sure to beat up the edges of the Homasote.

@Fast Mail posted:

Richie C.  Nice looking yards thank you for the suggestions.

Joe, Your benchwork is beautiful; did you use any adhesive putting down the homasote after painting it?

No adhesive, just screws.

I just used screws as well, for a 24 x 12 layout, there are about 700 drywall screws holding the Homasote in place, it ain't going anywhere!