I built a lighting valence for my layout last week, and wanted to share the basic techniques used to build it.
Some background: My layout is a shelf layout, currently occupying two walls of an 11x24 foot room, mostly about a foot from the wall. The room is a basement with an unfinished ceiling, about 6’6" high, and the layout is 48" from the floor. I wanted to build a valence to hide my lighting system and give a more finished look.
My lighting system is fairly simple: right now, it consists of two sets of rope lights. The lights are mounted on 2x2 lumber. The back row is mounted to the wall and the lights hung underneath, the front row is hung from the ceiling joists via short segments of 2x2 lumber, like this:
Note: Most of the layout doesn’t have a duct running above it, just the yard.
The materials I used for the valence:
2x2 lumber
Drywall screws
Black 1/4" foamcore boards
White 3/16" foamcore boards
White cardboard
Electrician’s tape
Spray adhesive
Staple gun
The frame is first. Since I have an unfinished ceiling, I measured out a straight line along the front edge of the layout and screwed 12" lengths of 2x2 lumber every few feet from the ceiling, and attached 8’ lengths of 2x2 to the lower edges, measuring with a level to ensure that things were straight. Once the boards were in place I attached the mounting clips for the rope lights and plugged the lights in. By themselves, the rope lights don’t cast much of a glow, and their appearance is kind of distracting.
Second, I cut the black foamcore into 12" strips. This material is heavier than the regular white foamcore I have worked with, and while it’s not particularly strong it can take a bump and it is lightweight. Thes
I like that, that’s kinda novel. Did you ever think of using a string of Christmas lights? Two blue and two white strings. You could turn the different color strings on and off to simulate day light hours, evening and night.
Mom, where did you put that box of Christmas lights?[}:)]
Why is it that things which seem so daunting turn out to be simple and straightforward after seeing how someone else has done them?
Very nice! What I especially appreciate is that you haven’t over-engineered the system. For some reason, we model railroaders have a tendency to build a structure intended to hold a flat panel and some light fixtures in a manner that would support a platoon of Marines in full battle kit. You’ve avoided that, and achieved a very professional look. Well done.
Very interesting project. I am planning to build a valance for my layout which is in the garage. Where do you get the black foamcore boards and how big do they come?
The boards I used came from an office supply store, they are intended for presentation displays and are a three-part board. The middle part is 24x36", the two “wings” on the ends are 12x36", I cut each one into four 12x36 boards. It’s also possible to buy the black foam at art supply stores in sheets as large as 4x8.
It’s just the knob of the knob & tube, the remnants of the old system: the wiring was upgraded a few years ago, although I had some work done recently that included a whole-room shut-off switch for the train room. It also isn’t really a basement: my house is a “high water bungalow,” supposedly meant to help avoid flooding by putting the ground floor seven feet off the ground. The “basement” is actually on the ground floor, with the main floor above.
