Home Theater

The basement had a large open room and a nook at the far end that was always destined to be a screen wall. The AWOL Vision UST projector and 120" motorized floor-rise screen were already in place, running on a Denon receiver through Bowers & Wilkins bookshelves, rears, center, and a Definitive SuperCube for bass. But the room wasn't a theater yet — it was a room with expensive equipment in it. Seating was at ground level, kids sat on the floor to get a straight-on view, wires were everywhere, and the screen table was a T-shaped assembly of brackets that looked like an afterthought. Starting point noted.

Floor-level viewing — September 2024

Wide room view — no platform, no stadium seating

Commercial platforms were looked at and ruled out — overpriced, cheap-looking, and none of them would accommodate hidden wiring for powered recliners. Building custom was the only path that allowed for a 14" raised platform, receptacles on the front face for a front row, a top outlet under the second row, RGB deck lights on the risers, and full electrical integration with Home Assistant. The perimeter frame was laid out on the carpet first, then raised on 4×4 posts and leveled. Joists went across for proper floor support. Cooper helped — his name is on a joist inside the platform, which is where it will stay.

Planning the footprint — December 2024

Perimeter frame assembled on the carpet

Outer frame together, about to go up

Raised and leveled on 4×4 posts — joists in

Full frame — moisture barrier down, nook visible behind

Cooper on the job

His name is on a joist inside — it stays there

Early framing — full span of the platform

Everything that would ever need power ran inside the platform now, before the top went on. A receptacle on the front face for the front-row recliners. A second outlet on top, tucked under the back row, so powered chairs would have no visible cord dropping to the floor — just floating chairs with no plug in sight. RGB deck lights were cut into each riser and wired to a Shelly relay, tied into Home Assistant. They come on at dusk every night on their own. The entire cavity was packed with Rockwool — not for warmth, for sound. A platform this size sitting on carpet over a concrete slab can become a resonance box at high bass levels. The Rockwool killed that. Steps were framed on the left and front so the platform is accessible from either direction. Cooper's name went on a joist before it was sealed in.

Steps framed — movie running while work continues

"Cooper ♡" — sealed inside the platform permanently

Step riser plywood — wiring routed through the cavity

Last look before it's sealed in

Rockwool in — LED step light mounts cut and set

Fully packed with Rockwool — step lights already live

Plywood sheeted across the top and steps, screwed down into the joists. A wire pass-through grommet was cut centered in the top surface to bring power up from below to the second-row recliners — no cord runs along the floor, no cord runs up the back of the chair. Just a black grommet flush with the surface, invisible once the chairs are placed. The full platform footprint was visible here for the first time as a finished structure: two-tier, steps on left and front, ready for carpet.

Plywood subfloor going down — February 2025

Wide view — full scale of the platform finally visible

Subfloor complete — dark walls going in behind it

From the front — steps done, grommet cut in the top

Corner view — two tiers, steps on left and front

Pre-carpet — platform fully sheeted and standing

The grommet — chair power runs up from below, invisible

Professionally carpeted throughout — platform surface, steps, and risers. The Shelly-controlled RGB deck lights shine through the carpet seams at each step edge, coming on automatically at dusk. The recliners went on the platform: the zero-gravity massage chair in front, the power leather recliners in the back row. Both rows plug in invisibly — no cords on the floor, no cords visible at the chairs. The platform became stadium seating. The front of the room was still bare, but the seating situation was solved.

Carpeted — LED step lights on, seating placed

From the platform — step lights, popcorn machine, screen nook

Rear view — the platform is now a proper theater back row

The carpeted platform was right, but the light-coloured room walls created glare and killed the theater feel entirely. The screen nook got painted full matte black — walls, ceiling, every surface. The old can light was swapped for a matte black low-profile LED bar. Every outlet and vent cover in the nook was replaced with black. The difference was immediate. On the switch side: what was a standard 2-gang box became 4 physical controls. Two of the switches are wired to a Shelly relay — they send commands to Home Assistant rather than directly switching anything. One raises and lowers the screen, one controls the step lights. Physical switches that look like any other switch, backed by full smart home logic. A Bambu slatted accent wall went in on the left side of the main room — requiring a gang extender to bring the switch plate flush with the new wall surface, and a black switch plate to match. Every detail was resolved before calling any phase done.

Painting the screen nook — November 2025

Full matte black — new LED bar at the ceiling line

From the back row — seating area meets black screen room

Equipment staged in the nook — screen table going in

4 switches, 1 gang box — 2 are Shelly smart triggers

Daytime finished view — slatted wall, black nook, everything in

Lights out, screen up, bass on. This is what it was supposed to be. The room is done enough — which is a deliberate stopping point, not a finished one. More is in the works.

First movie night — Deadpool & Wolverine, 120 inches