new shop

[jpkerley]

i am building a new garage at home and would like some input. it will be 30x32. what have any of you done or would do different, ie height of ceilings, room for a lift, air compressor in a different room, how many 210 outlets, etc.

[cdowns]

i'va always liked having the compressor outside(outhouse type extension) to keep noise level down// also keeping the floor clear is helpfull store stuff as high as possible, rafters are GREAT!!

[mbgmike]

two doors in line with each other (front and back of garage) to let a breeze blow thru. I air condition mine but wouldn't have to on breezy days if i had the doors

[1972C10]

Only downside to the outdoor compressor is theft and moisture intake Id rather hear mine being loud and noisy than have wet air or a missing compressor.

[faribran]

go as high on the ceiling as you can.... i enjoy 12 ft ceilings.... sometimes i have things that are long/tall.. i dont have to worry about taking them apart or hitting the ceiling.......... my $.02' s worth...

[mbgmike]

Originally Posted by faribran

go as high on the ceiling as you can.... i enjoy 12 ft ceilings.... sometimes i have things that are long/tall.. i dont have to worry about taking them apart or hitting the ceiling.......... my $.02' s worth...

yeah a high ceiling is good. you can move an 8ft step ladder around with out hitting lights and stuff. I have a ten foot and is adequate but it is nice to be able to stand up stuff in the corners longer than 10ft.

[Crank]

In the case of the compressor, you could build a lean to type extension of the building, put the compressor there, with access thru the garage and none thru the outside, that'd eliminate the theft and moisture issue, then just throw a door or something to block noise
Brandon

[mbgmike]

Originally Posted by Crank

In the case of the compressor, you could build a lean to type extension of the building, put the compressor there, with access thru the garage and none thru the outside, that'd eliminate the theft and moisture issue, then just throw a door or something to block noise
Brandon

I know this isn't any help about garages but your post reminded me about blocking noise. When i was younger and smarter I worked in a shop that used alot of Urethane foam. Our compressor was so loud we got tired of hearing it. We took some 12" thick foam boards and boxed that sucker in. Man it was so quiet you could hardly tell it was on. We did put it out of its misery though. we learned about vents after that.We got a new one.

[Crank]

Oh yea, I've never built a garage either, but I've heard you take an figure out how many plugs you're gonna need, then double that. As far as welder plugs tho, just put them in a couple easily accessible places, worse comes to worse and the plugs are too far from where you need them, you can always go purchase a buttload of copper wire and make you some extension cords!
Brandon

[lilred67]

on the 220volt plugs,try to arrange your shop so the welder,air comp.,etc.are close to your breaker box.electrical parts are getting very exspensive and the closer you are to the breaker box the less wire you need to buy for the bigger equipment.as for the 120volt plugs you can never have to many,i have one hanging from the ceiling in the middle of the shop(an extention cord wired into a j-box) to plug drop lights etc. into without running a cord across the floor.build your shop as big and as tall as you can afford.i have 12' walls and a 12'x10' & 10'x10' rollup doors in mine.

[gregfull]

Try to use engineered trusses or I-beams to avoid any support posts in the middle of your garage. Posts are a pain to drive and work around. Also, run pvc or copper air lines with drops every 6 feet or so, and don't forget to run filters on you air line to keep the condensation out. Good luck!

[Jr_Blazer_Boy]

My shop is 24x18 and 14' tall. Love it.. I also have 22v for the welder and another 220v for the compressor. Im thinking of installing an Eagle auto lift in the near future. That where the 14' roof comes into play..

[Longstep70]

Is PVC acceptable for air lines? I want to plumb in my compressor and i'm not sure what to use.

[BUXMAN66]

no! don't use pvc for air lines! black steel pipe in 1/2" i.d. only runs $9 for a 10' length.be smart and do it right the first time. my own little tip is if you are going to have 2 different doors/entrances on opposite sides of the shop/garage/pole barn ,....put up a separate set of light switches at that doors/entrance so you don't have to go clear over to the other side to shut everything off as you leave the building,....trust me it's a p.i.t.a. and also use regulators and oilers and water filters as often as possible on your air lines. have a dedicated line to run your air tools that require oil for lubrication, and a dedicated line for the sandblast cabinet,... and for your paint gun if you're planning on using one. have a water separator and a pressure regulator as close to the outlet as possible for the paint gun. sit down and draw out the layout of your garage/pole barn and then further narrow it down to specific walls and how youre gonna run everything.too much planning has never been overrated!

[faribran]

a retractable air hose hung from the ceiling is a wonderful thing......
being in the center allows use to all areas of a shop your size..

[Mickey_D]

As said above, figure out how many 110V outlets you'll need, then when you go to install them, make them all quad boxes (two outlets side by side to make 4).

Find your local HVAC people (heating and air conditioning) and get a squirrel cage blower fan from them. Mount it somewhere out of the way at floor level blowing outside. Very handy to have when working with flammable fluids / gasses. Turn the fan on and evacuate the fumes.

Lights are a good thing. Many lights. Line the entire ceiling in them. Nothing worse than HAVING to use a trouble light to see your air cleaner bolts.

Find an old Shop-Vac at a garage sale to enclose in a cabinet somewhere and route the hose and floor attatchment down to the bottom of the cabinet right at floor level. Put a kick switch in to turn it on and off so when you're sweeping up, you just sweep it to the cabinet, kick the switch and let it suck up all the floor sweepings.

If you haven't laid the floor yet, think about running in-floor radiant heat. It's worth the expense to be able to lay on a warm floor when getting under the truck. Nothing worse than laying on cold cement and turning wrenches. Not so bad for you in Tennessee, but up here in the frozen wasteland, it's almost a necessity.

As with 110V outlets, when running your airlines double the amount of connection points that you think you'll need. Great PITA to have to keep disconnecting one tool to use another.

While on the subject of air, buy as big a compressor as you can afford. It sucks majorly to keep running out of air. Especially when painting.

Don't forget the metal foot-operated trash can for oily rags. Seriously sucks to make the ultimate garage only to burn it down with spontaneously combusting used rags.

Speaking of things catching on fire, put at least one ABC 10lb dry chem fire extinguisher in each corner.

Also have a Master Off switch for ALL of the electrical in a handy place.