proposed materials/budget estimates

This design is SERIOUSLY beyond our budget. We need to make revisions.

Plywood ribs:

• At Lowe's, plywood costs $45.95 for a 4' x 8' x 3/4" oak sheet (7 ply).
• There is also the option to use pine, depending on the other structural considerations, which costs $24.95 for a a 4' x 8' x 23/32" sheet.
• It looks as though each rib area-wise will take about two sheets of plywood, because there is not a good way to orient the pieces in order to fit more wood on one sheet, unless the pieces are divided up smaller. It is proposed that each rib is two layers thick.

Each rib (using pine) would cost about $99.80.
So far there are six ribs proposed, amounting to a total in plywood alone of $598.80.

Joining the ribs would be 9 threaded rods.

• Lowe's has threaded rod (1/2") for $6.47/yd.
• This will require 9 rods, each being 30 inches in length.

The total for threaded rod would be $58.23.

Cushioning and Insulation:

• The cost of a simple twin-sized piece of foam matress pad at Walmart is $9.94.
• Spray foam (cellulose - used in attics) at Lowe's costs $7.97 for 40 sq.ft.
  
• Fabric covering:
• to cover the insulation, we need roughly 205 sq. ft. (2.5 width linear measurement)
• fabrics at Walmart cost anywhere from $0.99/yd. to $40.00/yd.
• selecting a mid-range linen (for durability), it is $4.99/yd.

I believe that 1 twin foam pad will be enough to cushion the occupiable areas, costing $9.94.
The one package of spray foam will be enough - $7.97.
We will need 23 yd. of fabric - costing $114.77.
The total for the cushioning/insulating system is $132.68.

It seems that the biggest challenge will be what to do about the transluscent side panels.

• The side panels must have a level of structural value.
• The most durable and translucent (or available in translucent shades) material is Lexan.
• We need roughly 24 sq. ft. of Lexan , and most widths come in 4' x 8' sheets, so we would need to buy three.
• The best option is Lexan 9034. The best price I found for a 4' x 8' sheet was 1/4" thickness for $307.82.
  
• Half-inch thickness costs $672.60.

The cost of the Lexan, if we go for 1/4" thickness, would be $923.46.


Lowe's and Home Depot both did not have the high-density foam (at least according to their employees) and I am having trouble finding it online. My father's business actually works with Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) which the technical name for what we need, and he is going to email me a powerpoint about it later on tonight.


The total budget (according to the model presented today) that does not include the door, hardware, all AV equipment, material for the handle system and the foam is

$1713.17!!!