The Show Must Go On

During Hurricane Harvey, the Old Town Theater in Huntsville Texas suffered quite a bit of water intrusion. The proprietors believed that an earlier hail storm had severely damaged the metal roofing. I was retained to investigate these suspicions. As it turned out, years of poorly propagated maintenance led to several holes, mis-installed R-Panels, failing Urethane roof covering and the discovery that some rotted roofing had been buried under the spray foam.

A New Roof

Due to the severity of damage, I recommended a full roofing replacement.

  • 8000 Square Feet of R-Panel Roofing

  • Design and Construct New Valley System for Proper Drainage

  • 32 Feet in the Air

Interior Troubleshooting & Repair

During live performances in the summer, interior temps could reach 90º!!! I started by inspecting the “drop ceiling” and discovered the building had no insulation. I suggested we install R-30 Kraft Faced Batt style insulation to the attic while we were already up there replacing water damaged ceiling tiles. The ceiling is 30’ off the ground which is sloped for the seating (the seating itself obstructs and complicates access to the ceiling). Since there is no crawl space,  we needed to construct to reach the spacing.

We also utilized the scaffolding to address the inaccessible ceiling lighting (a bunch of burned out incandescent bulbs).  We replaced them with new long-life LED type lights. 

Next, it was on addressing the air conditioning ductwork (likely to be the cause of their poorly performing HVAC). I discovered that one of the Fire Dampers had failed and closed half of the duct system off. This is a VERY big deal when you’re trying to move 20 TONS of air through that system. I consulted with Comfort Pro Solutions to find out the proper procedure to replace the failed part. We installed the new part and instantly system came back to life and began performing as it was designed. 

  • Install R-30 Kraft Faced Batt style Insulation to the Attic

  • Replace All Incandescent Bulbs With High Performance LED Lighting

  • Troubleshoot / Repair HVAC Ducting System 

Drywall and Wall/Floor Coatings

On to drywall repairs throughout the building and texture where needed. We then painted the entire interior of the auditorium. Another tough feat as the sloped floors provide NO place for an extension ladder to base. So, i had to construct a raided platform to bridge over the chairs and accommodate the slope. Therefore allowing the ladder to be leaned and used. 

We then painted both dressing rooms, bathrooms and then recoated the floors using a very unique product from Sherwin Williams. This epoxy was layered on the floor, allowed to cure and has now provided an extremely durable surface. 

  • Drywall Repairs 

  • Painting Entire Auditorium Interior

  • Paint Dressing Rooms

  • Apply Epoxy Floor Coating to Bathrooms

The Stage

We removed, at last count, more than 15 layers of different paints and coatings applied by various sources. The removal thereof was difficult….make that VERY difficult. We used a tremendous amount of chemical stripper and good ol’ fashioned elbow grease! After 6 days of peeling, we were ready for new application. We used a waterborne enamel in flat black. Sprayed 3 heavy layered coats and allowed to cure. The finished product looked fantastic. 

Window Replacements / Bathroom Plumbing Repairs

The most recent renovation of the OTT has been the Installation or replacement of the exterior windows. We installed new vinyl windows to cover and preserve the originals and prevent water intrusion from those locations. Then we replaced the access window that leads to the roof of the marquee. We used a casement style window for this position. 

Stay tuned for further updates.