Starting a big permanent sim room build

[bm11]

Last winter I built a temporary sim room in my garage and it was a great success. I didn't track how many rounds I played, but I think 50 is a conservative estimate. This spring I bought a new lake house one mile from my Country Club, and a nice perk is that there is an unfinished bonus room over my garage measuring 450 square feet and it has 11 foot tall cathedral ceilings. It is insulated and wired already, so what is left to do is the walls, ceilings, floors and trim.

My plans for the room include:
1- Having my electrician re do the lights to a more suitable dimmer switch operated row of lights centered over my mat.
2- Sheet rock the walls
3- Tongue and groove pine ceilings
4- 5x10 width Country Club Elite mat to be able to swap between lefty and righty
5- 14x10 Carls premium screen
6- 24k BTU heat pump for climate control
7- Ventilation and air purification for cigar smoke
8- Home theater set up to also be able to watch football games

This setup will utilize my existing GC2, GT1080 projector, and TGC. I'm starting this thread as kind of a place to gather my thoughts. Let me know what you think!

-Bob

[Solstice72]

I going to follow this as, Same here, going to start grabbing ideas, today land being dug for custom home. Simulator room 28 x 22 x 11. I saw you went Carl's for your screen. That sounds like a good endorsement. 16 x 10 will likely be my size. Carl's when I contacted them didn't think it would have waves in it, and you do think it's good enough for home theater use? That's the added complication here . You have a short throw projector, what distance will you have it? In the floor? . I'm going to look into your #1 as well above per the lights.

[bm11]

OP here, resurrecting this thread from the dead! So- this project stagnated for a bit, it took a while to find a contractor to do this at a price I could live with. Finally, as of a couple months back, it started up again. I ended up going with rough cut pine on the walls and finished pine on the ceilings. Some odds and ends need to be done still- the electrical fixtures need to be trimmed, the heater isn't installed, and I need to do a bar. However, it is finished enough to start thinking about what direction I'm going in for the screen and mat.

Since my last post, I've changed directions and decided that its worth looking at a Fiberbuilt mat as my plan is to use this room every day, and too much hitting on the CCE really kills my joints I've found.

More to come as I figure out the bits and pieces.

[GoldenSim]

As I read your first post today for the first time I thought you might want to swap out the CCE for a Fiberbuilt! It sounds like you’re one step ahead. I think that’s a good call if you’re planning on using the sim a lot... and based on a room with that spec, you will be!

It would be great to see some pics when you finish it up. Good luck!

[bm11]

As I read your first post today for the first time I thought you might want to swap out the CCE for a Fiberbuilt! It sounds like you’re one step ahead. I think that’s a good call if you’re planning on using the sim a lot... and based on a room with that spec, you will be!

It would be great to see some pics when you finish it up. Good luck!

I'll keep it going for sure. One of the things that slowed me down three years ago when I started this is that I was having tech issues. I couldn't finish a round of golf without the interface stopping working. I upgraded my gaming laptop this winter and finally got my licenses moved over and all the setup done, and did my first shakedown run last night. 18 holes played successfully, so I feel confident moving forward.

Right after finishing, I ordered a Fiberbuilt 4x9 center hitting Studio mat. I've ramped up my indoor play quite a bit and the CCE is flaring up old tendonitis issues as well as bringing in a new golfers elbow issue. If I am going to get enough play time to justify this massive expense, I'm going to need to be able to play without it hurting me.

[GoldenSim]

I'll keep it going for sure. One of the things that slowed me down three years ago when I started this is that I was having tech issues. I couldn't finish a round of golf without the interface stopping working. I upgraded my gaming laptop this winter and finally got my licenses moved over and all the setup done, and did my first shakedown run last night. 18 holes played successfully, so I feel confident moving forward.

Right after finishing, I ordered a Fiberbuilt 4x9 center hitting Studio mat. I've ramped up my indoor play quite a bit and the CCE is flaring up old tendonitis issues as well as bringing in a new golfers elbow issue. If I am going to get enough play time to justify this massive expense, I'm going to need to be able to play without it hurting me.

I think lots of us have struggled with shoulder, elbow and arm issues playing more than usual indoor in recent months. General consensus seems to be that the Fiberbuilt is the most protective, but quality mat on the market. Hopefully it works out for you. Good luck!