Time for an Expansion!!!!!!!

[dtomasch]

John,,
I've been pricing a slab for a 30 x 80 shop to house the future CNC machine and have come to the conclusion that a footer and block foundation with cap blocks is WAY cheaper than a monolithic slab. I'm not sure how concrete is priced in hickory, but I'm looking at $120+ a yard for 4000# and that adds up in a hurry. You do have a flat slope to deal with, which is in your favor, but I would definately price it both ways. The rest is cake, I mean wood, and we all know what to do with that! But remember..framing is not furniture

[NCPete]

Originally Posted by woodguy1975

BTW, I bought bandsaw number 5 today.... More on that later.

John

so, you finally got that 9" Craftsman you were looking for, huh?

[scsmith42]

John, lot's of good feedback on this thread. A couple of comments.

The distance to your lot lines from the building is referred to as Setbacks. You need to check both your county as well as municiple codes for your area. There are side yard, front yard, and back yard setbacks. It is usually much easier if you can stay within code, versus going for an exemption.

Consider building it so that you have 10' or more of interior ceiling clearance. This will keep it cooler in the summer and also provide more room for tall cabinet projects, etc.

If you go with radiant heating (great idea), you will want to insulate under the slab. Typically this is done with styraform sheets placed on top of the vapor barrier.

Travis's post about foundation type, etc is spot on. Pay attention to exterior grade.

If you go with the higher ceiling heights, consider a 24" tall masonary wall around the perimeter of your foundation, and then stud out your wall above that. This has two benefits - first, it places all of your wood above the termite line, second, it will allow you to use cheaper 8' studs in your walls.

For metal buildings, I use $25.00 per square foot as a budgetary estimate. For finished houses, figure $125.00. With you doing a lot of the work yourself, you will probably fall around $50.00 square foot or so.

Consider designing it so that you have an insulated room exterior to your main shop to house your compressor and dust collection system. This gets the noise out of the shop.

A covered carport adjacent to your entryway is a nice way to be able to unload materials when it's raining, w/o getting wet.

I've heard that there are skylighting systems that are tubular that are very effective - something to consider re reducing the light bill.

You might want to run large conduits in your walls and ceiling to make it easier to add future equipment wiring.

Good luck!

Scott

[cskipper]

Didn't we have a bet on how long it would take WG to add to his shop? Who won? It really does sound great - congrats! I'll renew my offer to give that poor Hawk a home where if feels loved (I am afraid that WG disease may have infected me and I need more saws ).

[alleng]

john,IF it were me doing it,i would dig and pour footings,have the block and or brick laid,then pour the concrete what this will do is eleminate any stress cracks in the floor caused by the outside load bearing walls,the gable ends would be fine,as the roof load falls on the walls that support the rafters or trusses..how do i know this???...well i have 2 cracks in my floorabout 10' from each outside wall caused by the load on the floor.i built myshop before i knew what i was doing,doing it like this sepperates the wall and floor,at least if there is any setteling,the floor wont get the cracks,and use plastic under the pad to prevent moisture problems..hope this helps,

[John Reeves]

John,

Please think about making the foundation for the expansion the same type as the foundation for the house. I am not familiar with the soil in Hickory but as an engineer with a soil background, I have seen so many mistakes mixing foundations in expansive soils. A slab next to a footer wall begs for differential movement. (cracks, splits misalignment that grows every year and possible water intrusion)

I will explain further if you want.

JR

[LeftyTom]

Hickory is about an hour's drive for me. Count me in, if you can tolerate a left-handed carpenter.

[woodguy1975]

Originally Posted by scsmith42

John, lot's of good feedback on this thread. A couple of comments.

The distance to your lot lines from the building is referred to as Setbacks. You need to check both your county as well as municiple codes for your area. There are side yard, front yard, and back yard setbacks. It is usually much easier if you can stay within code, versus going for an exemption.

Consider building it so that you have 10' or more of interior ceiling clearance. This will keep it cooler in the summer and also provide more room for tall cabinet projects, etc.

If you go with radiant heating (great idea), you will want to insulate under the slab. Typically this is done with styraform sheets placed on top of the vapor barrier.

Travis's post about foundation type, etc is spot on. Pay attention to exterior grade.

If you go with the higher ceiling heights, consider a 24" tall masonary wall around the perimeter of your foundation, and then stud out your wall above that. This has two benefits - first, it places all of your wood above the termite line, second, it will allow you to use cheaper 8' studs in your walls.

For metal buildings, I use $25.00 per square foot as a budgetary estimate. For finished houses, figure $125.00. With you doing a lot of the work yourself, you will probably fall around $50.00 square foot or so.

Consider designing it so that you have an insulated room exterior to your main shop to house your compressor and dust collection system. This gets the noise out of the shop.

A covered carport adjacent to your entryway is a nice way to be able to unload materials when it's raining, w/o getting wet.

I've heard that there are skylighting systems that are tubular that are very effective - something to consider re reducing the light bill.

You might want to run large conduits in your walls and ceiling to make it easier to add future equipment wiring.

Good luck!
Scott

Again all great information.... I think this thread will be a great reference for future shop builders.

The bulk of my shop will remain much the same. My plan is to use all the existing shop as the machine rooms and the new addition as the bench room. With this expansion I have a different focus.... I'll be including a finishing room and a grinding room. along with the master bench room. A sealed grinding room will really help keep the shop cleaner. Guys who have taken a chair class know why I want a room for dirty operations. Containing all the grinding and router dust would be AWSOME!

This is going to be fun.

John