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Getting Real Column - 13
After thoughts
Continued
...
Lower deck lighting
The lighting on the lower deck, visible in some of the “before”
pictures, actually worked out very well. I used linkable under-
cabinet fixtures. I ended up with two different brands – Lights
of America (Wally World) and GE (Home Depot). They are not
interchangeable. But both brands worked fine, didn’t intrude
on the “sky space” of the lower level, and I plan to re-use
these lights to illuminate some of the dark pockets on the
single-deck layout.
Layout height
I planned to use step stools or some raised platforms to make it
easier for operators to reach the upper level. But I had some real
concerns about this as well. I had someone take a header off a
one-step step stool years ago (not a modeler, a plumber install-
ing some pipes). Luckily I was home, heard his step ladder fall
over and came downstairs to find blood on the wall and floor
and this poor fellow wondering where, and who, he was. I called
911 and he ended up in the hospital for more than a month – if I
hadn't been around he likely would have passed out and I would
have found him in a coma – or worse. That experience has really
stuck with me and I was always hesitant about using step stools,
etc ... to build and operate the upper deck.
Let's face it, a lot of model railroaders I know could ben-
efit from some time in a step class, but I didn't want to risk
someone taking a header. More likely one of the more – uh –
"robust" members of the crew would need to give themselves
a boost up the step and might take a large chunk of the layout
down as they hoisted themselves up.
Although it’s impossible to have an ideal height for both decks,
I felt the upper level ended up just a little too high. I set the
lower level between 45” and 48” as it seemed like a nice height
for the lower level yards. At some point I decided the upper
level needed to be 16”-18” above the lower, which put the
track at 61”-64” – which always seemed a little too high for
most folks to see/operate without a step or raised platform.
The narrow aisles (32") meant building a permanent step
would interfere with standing near the lower deck.
Laying the track and painting the backdrop I also got sick of
going up and down the step ladder to work on it - and a few
times caught myself reaching just a little too far. I never fell,
but I "forgot" I was on the step a couple of times. The takeaway
is you can easily get away with less than 16" of separation
between decks – 12”-14” seems like a reasonable separation
provided the decks are kept relatively shallow.
And try to avoid having to use step stools or short ladders, or
even platforms. But, if you must use them try to limit their use
to isolated "pocket aisles" away from the main aisle and make
them true platforms and not steps. A low "toe guard" is also
suggested. – MM
MRH-Mar 2013
