Building a new shop--tips, ideas?
 

I'm getting ready to build a new shop behind the house and want some input from you guys. Basic plans call for a 30x40 (possibly 40x40) shop with 2 roll up doors and one walk in door. I know lots of people have built their own (or had them built) so I'd like to hear all of the "Gee, I wish I had done that differently" beforehand. Basic tips, suggestions, ideas. Thanks

some cool stuff Ive seen in a friends shop.....

air fixtures plumbed with steel pipe thru-out....

as much storage as possible!

sink with foot pedals

steel I-beam with roller for engine hoist

im sure some more will come to mind.............. let me sleep on it

mike

A ramp where you can unload heavy loads to a dolly from the back of a truck is a great idea. Also along with Mike's ideas a bathroom, fridge for cold drinks, if possible drain pit, and a lift is always a nice dream :)

A good idea would be to have the doors in line so you can "drive through - but that calls for an extra roll up door which aren't cheap. Ventilation!!!!!! Ummm... cupholders? Oh - seal the cement with the slick paint ment for garage floors, oil will never have a chance!

right now.. a HEATER would be good....tubing running to vents in the roof so you could run the car/truck/bike with doors closed.. maybe a generator and ofcourse compressor, and have lines run down the walls in various locations, so you can hook up in various places and not have hose wrapped around everywhere..

Slope the floor! Very important. If you dont, you'll have puddles all the time. Also, a phone (for pizza) and a Small sandblast cabinet are always handy.

or a beat blaster.. you could always be like dave and carpet the floor.. but would have to invest in large amounts of carb cleaner.. or as dave calls it.. carpet cleaner.. :D

You guys forgot the bed to take a nap....then back to work.

A pit is good and also tiedowns inn the floor for Frame work is awespme

might as well have a chasis dyno in there somewhere.. :D

A corner mounted tv for nascar on Sundays.
A vent hole or two low in the wall (hook up hose between it and the exhaust to run the engine when the shop is closed up on cold weekends like this).

Sounds cool! Congrats on getting what most of us wish we had the space and money for!

I have a alignment pit in my garage that I hope to cover up this summer. It is a waste of space for me. I would much rather have a lift. I also have a I beam hoist, it is staying...

Get at least a 15' ceiling
Run water and gas to it

Early warning system so when the wife is on her way out you can know and act like your actually working. :)

Seriously though:

Parts cleaner bin
Multiple air lines (rigid or hoses)
Overhead storage for large parts (fenders, axles, etc..)
A "clean" area you can mask off (with tarps) to do painting
Good ventilation
A lift (obviously) :)
A 55 gallon drum with a screen on top to lay parts on and let them drain

I could list stuff for hours, but I'll stop for now.

Radient heat
 

If you have to heat your space in the winter. Seriously consider radient heat. Do an internet search, tons of info on the subject.

Also pour the concrete at least 5" thick at 4000lbs to accomodate a lift in the future, along with 14' ceilings. ................john

Also make sure to get it secured with alarm or even guard dogs. Never know when someone will try to break in.

Enough room for me!! lol


Jason

I would suggest wheels, a hitch and a site plan showing the thing parked on my property..... :D ;) :D

In all seriousness though - - colour me green. :whine:

:canada: :bowtie: :flag:

Shop
 

I always thought it would be a good idea to put the compressor in its own insulated room to quiet things down and then run hard lines around the shop for air as mentioned above.

Get an electric service big enogh for welders and plasma cutters and proton accelerators and... and ... and...
Just get a big electric service.:D

Just a suggestion, I worked at a hardware store in high school and in the shop in the back the compressor was mounted SECURELY on a shelf up high to save floor space. Just wire the outlet for the comp. to a switch. I put my comp. here at home in the attic above my puny 12x25 "garage".

Good luck with your shop! :D

Thanks much guys.

orionwy2002--(high mounted compressor) that's a great idea that I never thought of.

ponjohn--14' doors and 6" floors (for tractor)

79BIG10--2 pitbulls should provide the necesary security.

:o

BigRed--wife?? lack of a wife or gf is the only way I am affording this. . .

:)

Now I'm thinking one roll up door on the 30' side and just using the extra length
. . .disadvantages to this?

radio and high-mounted tv. along with a few chairs and card table for buddies and beer.



:D

I just finished my 40'widex30'deepx10'high block building with a 2nd floor workshop/storage area. It is built into the side of the hill then backfilled and has access to the 2nd floor by a 4 ft wide door off the upper driveway that runs behind the garage or the stairs inside. I put pex hydronic (hot water) tubing in the concrete when I did the floor that is heated by an oil fired hot-water boiler. Nice when working on your back under your projects and also nice when painting because the concrete retains the heat and there are no fans to blow around any dust. I installed 8ft high insulated garage doors so I could get my Blazer Chalet camper in without lowering the air pressure on the tires. I used 1"Schedule 40 PVC for my air line system around the outside wall instead of steel pipe. Much easier to install and it will never form rust inside that could get into a paint job. I have an 18"x6" I-Beam with a trolley and chain hoist that runs from the front of the garage to the back The beam supports the 2nd floor and is still heavy enough to use it to lift bodies,engines, or anything that I just need to load or unload out of the back of my truck.
My only regret is that I didn't make it 34'-36' deep instead of the 30'. I have my 61 T-Bird parked across the back wall in the one bay behind my full size conversion van and my truck and would have more room to work around the bird without removing the other two.

Garage/Shop Ideas
 

When you pour the concrete for the floor, put down a heavy layer of plastic sheeting, prevent moisture from coming up and condensing. Lots of plugs around the walls (20 amp circuit). Run in EMT conduit. Flourescent lighting as much as you can afford! Plan ahead where you want your work benches, cabinets and storage or shelves. I got a piece of poster board and made up some squares and rectangles to "SCALE" and laid out the floorplan on it, just like a Blueprint.
If your going stick built, put down 3 course of block (24" high) then your wall on top. When you wash down the floor your not getting wood wet.
Put in a couple floor drains for water. Lots of overhead storage room or a loft area. If you use any windows keep them high and narrow ( makes it hard on the thiefs!). Install an alarm! Put in a telephone line unless you like your cell phone! Cable TV.
For your overhead doors get the torsion spring type, not the wimpy spring and cable setups.
Insulation and drywall.
A parts washer. Nice drill press. Bench Grinder. Large Vise. 60-80 gal. Air Compresser.

I built a 24x30 back in 98. I wish now I had went with 30x40, but hindsight is 20/20, as they say. I guess it can never be big enough. Although I'll never have over one vehicle in it at one time. It's big enough for me the way it is. I guess if I were doing a frame off, my space would be real limited.

Anyway, I went with 8' ceilings, which is all I wanted. It would have been nice with 10 or 12, but I wanted it to look decent from the outside also, and not out of proportion with my house.

Make sure you go with 4 mil poly for the moisture barrier under the concrete, so you can paint the floor if you ever decide to. Depending on what your plans are for the shop, you may not need to run piping for air. A hose real works just as good for me. If you do go with piping, PVC will need external grounding. As the air goes through the PVC, it causes static electricity, and will ignite gas fumes in the shop. Personally, I would go with copper piping myself.

Add floor drains so you can rinse it down. Don't make the mistake I did and put it right smack dab in the middle of the garage door. This gripes me every time I get under my truck with a creeper.

There are a ton of things you can do. Make a good plan on what you want because it's a lot easier to do it now, than later.

As you probably know, the needs for a mechanical garage are a lot different than one for wood working. It's tough to try and use either one for both. Grease don't mix well with wood or wood with grease.