Planning my shop Build-out for next summer, looking for advice.

[ProjectBazza]

I just responded to this thread regarding winterization, and it got me thinking:

On a beautiful fall day we were prepping the classics for winter hibernation, sigh....

Yesterday was a beautiful fall day, and my youngest son has some reorganizing of his single car garge to do this fall/winter and a winter car project as well ( another vehicle ) i told him his Duster could spend the winter at my garage. My garage isn't massive just a two car garage but like a...

www.forabodiesonly.com

I've always only had a garage, and never a Shop, per se, and this metal building was one of several reasons we bought the new place a couple years ago. Here's a picture from when we were moving-in:

Building measures 24' x 42' with a 10' ceiling, has 100 amp service, and the wall posts are 7' on-center. I'm planning on building the walls "sideways" (7' tall w/either 18" or 24" centers, laid-down sideways) so that I can utilize readily available R-25 insulation), and I already have a furnace and A/C for it. Floor is already in, and because I don't know the thickness, and don't want to drill (plus I don't have much height to work with), a lift of any sort is out of the question, sad to say.

I have all winter to think about what I'd like to do with this space, and I do have some ideas (such as adding windows, and getting rid of that back OH door), but I'm also smart enough to know what I don't know, so I'm looking for advice from those who have "Been There & Done That". What should I be thinking about, and what mistakes should I avoid?

Thanks, all!

Jim

 

[Super-Cuda]

I just responded to this thread regarding winterization, and it got me thinking:

http://[URL]https://www.forabodieso...-classics-for-winter-hibernation-sigh.570260/

[/URL]

I've always only had a garage, and never a Shop, per se, and this metal building was one of several reasons we bought the new place a couple years ago. Here's a picture from when we were moving-in:

View attachment 1716309791

Building measures 24' x 42' with a 10' ceiling, has 100 amp service, and the wall posts are 7' on-center. I'm planning on building the walls "sideways" (7' tall w/either 18" or 24" centers, laid-down sideways) so that I can utilize readily available R-25 insulation), and I already have a furnace and A/C for it. Floor is already in, and because I don't know the thickness, and don't want to drill (plus I don't have much height to work with), a lift of any sort is out of the question, sad to say.

I have all winter to think about what I'd like to do with this space, and I do have some ideas (such as adding windows, and getting rid of that back OH door), but I'm also smart enough to know what I don't know, so I'm looking for advice from those who have "Been There & Done That". What should I be thinking about, and what mistakes should I avoid?

Thanks, all!

Jim

If you have a compressor, build an enclosure for it outside and run the airlines from it into the building. Greatly reduces the noise inside. Great time to run air lines around the perimeter as well.

Also, now is a good time to install overhead electrical cord reels. These are a godsend! and keep cord clutter off the floor, especially when using a creeper.

 

[ProjectBazza]

Thank you!

Re:

If you have a compressor, build an enclosure for it outside and run the airlines from it into the building.

I like this idea, and I've often wondered about this, but I can't help but be concerned about moisture freezing-up inside the tank. I see you're in Canada, and thus I assume you're familiar with "hard water" there, so how do you get around this?

As for the cord reels, we have two of them in the garage, and I agree that they're wonderful!

 

[Super-Cuda]

Thank you!

Re:

I like this idea, and I've often wondered about this, but I can't help but be concerned about moisture freezing-up inside the tank. I see you're in Canada, and thus I assume you're familiar with "hard water" there, so how do you get around this?

As for the cord reels, we have two of them in the garage, and I agree that they're wonderful!

How I saw it done was to build a fully insulated area for the compressor attached directly to the garage with a small heater in it.

 

[ProjectBazza]

How I saw it done was to build a fully insulated area for the compressor attached directly to the garage with a small heater in it.

Makes good sense, thanks!

 

[missing linc]

I have a 10ft ceiling in my garage and I have installed a MaxJax lift. It raises the vehicle to about 4 ft high. I have a transmission jack as well and it fits under the car/truck too, allowing me to really do virtually anything I need or want to do. I have had my Bronco on it multiple times and have pulled the trans from it twice. No, it doesn't lift high enough to stand under, but at 6 ft 7 inches tall I have only seen one hoist that lifted high enough for me to walk under. You might be very surprised by how much you can get done even with only 4 ft lift.
Just my .02.

 

[missing linc]

How I saw it done was to build a fully insulated area for the compressor attached directly to the garage with a small heater in it.

Did that with my first garage, mainly because it was too small to house the compressor. Worked really well.

 

[Super-Cuda]

Makes good sense, thanks!

Another feature I'm thinking about doing in my garage is to mount LED tube lighting fixtures close to the floor on the walls so when I'm under the car, I get way more light rather than use a drop light that I can never seem to get positioned correctly or the creeper gets caught up in the cord.

 

[ch1ll]

You can buy insulation in a big blanket that goes around the roof trusses right on the underside of the roof and down the walls. It insulates better cause there are no 2x4’s to transfer cold to the inside wall. On mine I ran siding faced plywood up 4 feet on the inside walls and the rest metal siding in including the ceiling. There is 10 inches of blown in insulation on top of the ceiling plus the blanket insulation on the underside of the roof. This is where most of your heat loss is. Don’t forget to put a vapor barrier between inside walls and insulation.

 

[jeff alder]

Thank you!

Re:

I like this idea, and I've often wondered about this, but I can't help but be concerned about moisture freezing-up inside the tank. I see you're in Canada, and thus I assume you're familiar with "hard water" there, so how do you get around this?

As for the cord reels, we have two of them in the garage, and I agree that they're wonderful!

We like having our air compressor inside the shop just for a clean install and maintenance. No pipes or wiring going through the wall or floor. The outside of the building always looks better without a "compressor shack" ganged onto the main building. Good air compressors with noise suppression are much quieter nowadays. You definitely want to put some good vibration dampers under the compressor feet to cut down on the noise and vibration. Ours is inside under the stairs that go to the second story with a sink and toilet in the same room. We have a gable end barn style building. The upstairs is all one giant room. It's great for parts storage, a bar and pool table ping pong or whatever you like. It had a man door in the gable end, but we plan on putting patio doors in its place with a small second story deck and a grille. But we are in the same shoes as you about retirement so it might be a while before we make changes to the upstairs. A couple floor drains are nice tied to a common drain by the overhead doors. Good windows for natural lighting and skylights in the second story metal roof. You have the makings of a nice shop with the building you have.

 

[ch1ll]

I got these from Amazon and have had really good luck with them. Way cheaper than florescent and I only had 1/2 of one go bad in 5 years. I replaced 50 florescent fixtures which I tossed out cause no one wants them. Big improvement, brighter and cheaper than buying bulbs and ballasts.

 

[Super-Cuda]

You can buy insulation in a big blanket that goes around the roof trusses right on the underside of the roof and down the walls. It insulates better cause there are no 2x4’s to transfer cold to the inside wall. On mine I ran siding faced plywood up 4 feet on the inside walls and the rest metal siding in including the ceiling. There is 10 inches of blown in insulation on top of the ceiling plus the blanket insulation on the underside of the roof. This is where most of your heat loss is. Don’t forget to put a vapor barrier between inside walls and insulation.

This will work well as long as you don't plan on painting in the garage.

The vibrations from the compressor will knock dust and debris down from overhead.

 

[ch1ll]

This will work well as long as you don't plan on painting in the garage.

The vibrations from the compressor will knock dust and debris down from overhead.

Insulation blanket is paper backed, thick paper as well. Anyways its all behind inside walls and ceiling and there is vapor barrier covering it all.

 

[Super-Cuda]

We like having our air compressor inside the shop just for a clean install and maintenance. No pipes or wiring going through the wall or floor. The outside of the building always looks better without a "compressor shack" ganged onto the main building. Good air compressors with noise suppression are much quieter nowadays. You definitely want to put some good vibration dampers under the compressor feet to cut down on the noise and vibration. Ours is inside under the stairs that go to the second story with a sink and toilet in the same room. We have a gable end barn style building. The upstairs is all one giant room. It's great for parts storage, a bar and pool table ping pong or whatever you like. It had a man door in the gable end, but we plan on putting patio doors in its place with a small second story deck and a grille. But we are in the same shoes as you about retirement so it might be a while before we make changes to the upstairs. A couple floor drains are nice tied to a common drain by the overhead doors. Good windows for natural lighting and skylights in the second story metal roof. You have the makings of a nice shop with the building you have.

Floor drains are a nice touch!

My friend John who helped me build my car had a compressor room the size of a closet behind his garage out of sight.

Hardly could hear it when it was running. 80 gallon 2 stage Dewalt. 230V

It had a door and was easily serviceable, The compressor looks as new as the day he bought it .

 

[Super-Cuda]

View attachment 1716309832
I got these from Amazon and have had really good luck with them. Way cheaper than florescent and I only had 1/2 of one go bad in 5 years. I replaced 50 florescent fixtures which I tossed out cause no one wants them. Big improvement, brighter and cheaper than buying bulbs and ballasts.

I will definitely look into these.

Thanks!

 

[jeff alder]

Floor drains are a nice touch!

My friend John who helped me build my car had a compressor room the size of a closet behind his garage out of sight.

Hardly could hear it when it was running. 80 gallon 2 stage Dewalt. 230V

It had a door and was easily serviceable, The compressor looks as new as the day he bought it .

I've seen it done many times...in the end it all boils down to personal preference and if you want to add that cost to your current building. If you pour a nice pad, frame the room side it roof it and insulate it even if its small the cost adds up quickly. But it saves room and some noise if you can't hide it under the stairs in a bathroom...LOL There are certainly pros and cons to either way.