So what would you have done different with your new shop?

[deanocraft]

I am also about to move into a new shop space, so the ideas here are helpful. I am primarily a woodworker, but I do a bit of metal work also... I have some experience with dust collection in my current shop, a 400sq/ft two car garage. Dust tubes will clog on you, so I would be fearful of putting them in the slab. I will put mine visible on the interior walls, so I can take them down to clear a clog if needed. Electrical will also be bolted to the walls in conduit, rather than inside a finished wall. There will be an outlet for every machine on a separate circuit, plus 110 receptacles for misc. tools and shop-vac, etc.

I don't think metalwork and woodwork mix well in the same shop. Sparks and a pile of sawdust can spell disaster, so I recommend separating your space with walls. I plan to move all my metalworking activities to a barn made from two shipping containers with an open area in the middle. Wood storage will be in one container and metal working in the open area or other container.

I can't really comment on the need for drains in the floor of a metal working shop, but for my purposes, I need a smooth level floor so my big heavy machines can be rolled around and remain stable and level. A level floor will also help you if you are adding any inflow/outflow extensions for any machines. I would also be pretty concerned about clogging up a drain with all of my dust...

I am going with a set of swinging double doors that will allow me to get my tractor in and out if I need to move something with my forks. I do not like a garage style door because it covers up my lights, and lighting is super important. I will put LED recessed can lighting in the new shop. I also agree with the suggestion of transom style windows that maximize wall space and still provide ventilation and light.

The dust collector and the air compressor are going just outside in a little shed. I will need to think about separating them to keep dust off the compressor, as has been suggested. I will be able to turn them on and off from the shop with either a remote control or a switch dangling from the ceiling. I am not sure how many air connections I will have for compressed air.

 

[flingwing1969]

I am also about to move into a new shop space, so the ideas here are helpful. I am primarily a woodworker, but I do a bit of metal work also... I have some experience with dust collection in my current shop, a 400sq/ft two car garage. Dust tubes will clog on you, so I would be fearful of putting them in the slab. I will put mine visible on the interior walls, so I can take them down to clear a clog if needed. Electrical will also be bolted to the walls in conduit, rather than inside a finished wall. There will be an outlet for every machine on a separate circuit, plus 110 receptacles for misc. tools and shop-vac, etc.

I don't think metalwork and woodwork mix well in the same shop. Sparks and a pile of sawdust can spell disaster, so I recommend separating your space with walls. I plan to move all my metalworking activities to a barn made from two shipping containers with an open area in the middle. Wood storage will be in one container and metal working in the open area or other container.

I can't really comment on the need for drains in the floor of a metal working shop, but for my purposes, I need a smooth level floor so my big heavy machines can be rolled around and remain stable and level. A level floor will also help you if you are adding any inflow/outflow extensions for any machines. I would also be pretty concerned about clogging up a drain with all of my dust...

I am going with a set of swinging double doors that will allow me to get my tractor in and out if I need to move something with my forks. I do not like a garage style door because it covers up my lights, and lighting is super important. I will put LED recessed can lighting in the new shop. I also agree with the suggestion of transom style windows that maximize wall space and still provide ventilation and light.

The dust collector and the air compressor are going just outside in a little shed. I will need to think about separating them to keep dust off the compressor, as has been suggested. I will be able to turn them on and off from the shop with either a remote control or a switch dangling from the ceiling. I am not sure how many air connections I will have for compressed air.

Sounds like you are on top of it. Great suggestions in this thread.

 

[MossRoad]

If you're going to put PEX tubing in the floor for future radiant floor heating, and are worried about freezing, you can put in a propylene glycol antifreez solution and never have to worry about that.

I've seen some systems that use a water heater as the heat source, and domestic hot water. If you wanted to do both in a freezing situation, like turning off the heat in your shop, or maybe an ice melter system in front of the garage or a sidewalk, you'd have to put in a heat exchanger to isololate the glycol loop from the domestic/indoor loop. But it is very doable....
https://www.radiantec.com/installation-manuals/installing-the-indirect-system/


We used that in the in-floor radiant heating system in airplane hangars. It would stay turned off for months at a time. If we needed heat, we'd fire it up, and it would take about a day to get the concrete warm. But man, that was nice. If your car needed work, and the boss was in a generous mood, you could pull your snow-covered car into the hangar at the start of your shift, and 8 hours later, the snow was gone and the puddle was evaporated. Then you could work on it in your shirtsleeves laying on the warm floor when it was 0F outside.

 

[flingwing1969]

If you're going to put PEX tubing in the floor for future radiant floor heating, and are worried about freezing, you can put in a propylene glycol antifreez solution and never have to worry about that.

I've seen some systems that use a water heater as the heat source, and domestic hot water. If you wanted to do both in a freezing situation, like turning off the heat in your shop, or maybe an ice melter system in front of the garage or a sidewalk, you'd have to put in a heat exchanger to isololate the glycol loop from the domestic/indoor loop. But it is very doable....
https://www.radiantec.com/installation-manuals/installing-the-indirect-system/


We used that in the in-floor radiant heating system in airplane hangars. It would stay turned off for months at a time. If we needed heat, we'd fire it up, and it would take about a day to get the concrete warm. But man, that was nice. If your car needed work, and the boss was in a generous mood, you could pull your snow-covered car into the hangar at the start of your shift, and 8 hours later, the snow was gone and the puddle was evaporated. Then you could work on it in your shirtsleeves laying on the warm floor when it was 0F outside.

You might also want to consider one of the diesel/kerosene on demand water heaters. They are very efficient and you do what, buy diesel anyway. The new ones are not pressure demand but have a thermal switch to sense internal water temperature, when the temperature drops inside the heater, it comes on for a moment to heat the water again so it will never freeze. You will also need a circulating pump and a storage tank from which to store warmed water so that you are not constantly running the heater. I have a similar system in my home so I have virtually instant hot water at all of my appliances, some are 45 feet from the water heater.

 

[Wakey]

Here is a playlist for a girl building her new woodworking/metal fab shop. She's not yet finished, just insulated.
Building a Shop - YouTube

 

[bdog]

It sounds like everyone says it but definitely build it bigger than you think you need or at a very minimum build it in a manner that allows for easy expansion. Metal buildings are easy to make longer. I built my shop 8 years ago and thought it was slightly overkill at the time and I have added on to it twice already and am thinking about adding on again.

Definitely put in a basic bathroom with a toilet and sink.

I am a huge fan of lots of overhead doors. My shop has three 12' wide doors across the front essentially giving me three bays. I see people with shops bigger than mine with only one or two doors. That often means you have to move things around to get things in and out of the shop. I guess it depends what you use your shop for but with lots of doors you can access frequently used things and get them out of your shop without having to move stuff out of the way first.

 

[bcp]

Build two.

One for equipment parking and storage. No utilities except lighting and a few outlets.

Second for working on stuff, without everything else being in the way. Heated and cooled, etc.

Bruce

 

[bdog]

Build two.

One for equipment parking and storage. No utilities except lighting and a few outlets.

Second for working on stuff, without everything else being in the way. Heated and cooled, etc.

Bruce

Good idea but they still fill up. I have three. A 50x50 that is my "working" shop that is insulated, a 30x50, and a 30x40 that are just storage. All are full. I find the two smaller shops I use for storage that are not insulated and sealed well or regularly swept out get nasty. MY main shop has spray foam and it stays clean. The other two things get so dusty in there it is terrible. You can take a vehicle out of one and wash it off and six months later you can't even tell what color it is.

 

[EddieWalker]

Here is a playlist for a girl building her new woodworking/metal fab shop. She's not yet finished, just insulated.
Building a Shop - YouTube

I'm watching this without the sound on and trying to do other things at the same time, so I'm sure I'm missing a lot of why she is doing what she is doing. Overall, it's a very well build building and her video could be used for teaching others how to frame. So far, my biggest issue is how she did the gable eaves. They should never be done that way.

I've never seen a thin strip of house wrap, or whatever they used, installed behind the OSB, and the folded over it before. I'm really not sure what that accomplished?

I would not have relied on house wrap tape for the top of the windows like she did, but overall, it's much much better then 90% of how new houses are done. I really like Zip Tape and use it for everything now. House wrap tape will fail fairly quickly.

And now that I finished watching all of her videos, my biggest question is where did she get so much money to spend on a work shop? That foam alone cost a fortune. Who foams interior walls?

 

[Wakey]

And now that I finished watching all of her videos, my biggest question is where did she get so much money to spend on a work shop? That foam alone cost a fortune. Who foams interior walls?

Here is her bio;

I am an obsessed DIYer and Woodworker. I'm not professional or have any training, so I just pick the project I want to tackle and figure it out step by step.

I picked up my first tool in January of 2013. I couldn't afford to buy the things I wanted around my home, so I decided to try my hand at making them instead. I was hooked after my first project so I just never stopped.

I put out a video as well as a written tutorial on all the projects I do to improve my home and workshop. You can find my website at Wilkerdos.com

Being a pretty girl in a typically male hobby or profession has made her YouTube famous. She actually produces these videos for a living, I'm guessing.

She has 602,000 subscribers, not sure what her monthly take from YouTube is but... I know she gets free tools, perhaps she gets paid as well by manufacturers?

Here is a professional woodworker with only 200,000 subscribers and he's building an incredible shop as well.

Paul Sellers
- YouTube

Most of your questions were addressed in the videos, she foamed the interior wall to keep the woodworking and metal fab areas separate.

EDIT; forgot about Frank Howarth. This guy does amazing work and puts out better content than you'll ever see on TV. frank howarth
- YouTube

Yeah, I don't watch TV, I watch YouTube :laughing: