Claiming Half the Basement

[LeftyTom]

I am working on setting up shop in the back part of my basement. It is about 24' x 14', which (wouldn't you know it) sits under our living room and kitchen. There are no windows in the basement, save for the door.

I will have an electrician run me a 220V 20A circuit (2 dual outlets) and another 120V 15A circuit for the lights and 120v tools (2 dual outlets). I will rewire the two lights in that area to work on a serparate switch from the other basement lights.

Any suggestions for soundproofing (or noise reducing) that area from the living room and kitchen? The basement is unfinished. The back of the basement has a LP heater, so I am considering a sliding door to keep the sawdust contained. I can slide the door open and allow the heater to warm the basement (and floors) during the winter. The heater has built-in timers, so it won't be running hardly anytime I am making sawdust. I can easily cover it to keep it clean.

Any pitfalls with my idea?

[RobD]

Have you tried running any tools down there to see how much noise is heard in the rooms above? My shop is also directly below the living room (in the garage of a townhome) and I was pretty surprised when I found out that their was almost no noise making it up to the living room.

[sapwood]

Congrats on the new shop space Lefty!
You may want to consider more 120v outlets. Recharging batteries can easily use up several and so will benchtop power tools and other gadgets attributed to WGD.

Have fun,
Roger

[skeeter]

Definitely think about more plugs on designated breakers!

Then think about starting to move the workshop part of the basement forward.

[BumoutBob]

Right on Mike, the Dust collector is very important FOR YOUR HEALTH!!! I had a shop in a closed end basement for awhile and the dust has no where to go. You breath it all the time. Think about how you can get cross ventilation so that fresh air can come in and dust saturated air can be blown out.

[scsmith42]

Tom, the basement workshop idea sounds grand. A couple of suggestions:

1 - have the electrician install a 100A sub-panel in your workshop area, instead of running multiple circuits from your main panel. Then, add your 120 and 240 circuits off of the sub-panel. This will make it easier and less expensive to expand, and give you more flexibility to add circuits when and as you acquire additional tools. Ditto the other recommendations regarding more outlets.

2 - see if there is any way possible to install your dust collection system and compressor outside of your work area (or where it cannot be heard in the rest of the house). A small shed attached to the outside of the house works well, and facilitates chip removal.

3 - Re soundproofing - it's amazing how well regular old fiberglass batt insulation works. I concur that it would be wise to see exactly how loud your equipment is upstairs before spending the $ here.

4- Consider knocking a hole through an outside wall and installing a vent fan. This is very beneficial to use when you're going to be staining, finishing, etc, and will keep the fumes out of the house (and they can really permeate things upstairs).

5 - Consider adding a sink in your shop; I use mine frequently.

6 - Ingress and Egress- how small are the doors to access the shop? Think about how you will bring 4 x 8' sheets of plywood into the shop and finished projects out.

Regards,

Scott

[dozer]

Congrats on the new shop space. Can I have the other half of the basement

[LeftyTom]

Originally Posted by dozer

Congrats on the new shop space. Can I have the other half of the basement

The other half is a 14'x20' "L" to the 36" doors to the graage side nad the great outside.

The half I am working on in all below the grade, so I would have to route dust collection/ventilation to the basement door area, and out the wall. Or the shorter route is out into the garage (filled with lawnmowers and such). We park on the carport near the kitchen, for those wondering (or is that wandering?) minds.

[DIYGUY]

You did not say how much head room you have. My basement shop when I was living up in NE had about 6'6" which is not a whole lot when you are 6' or taller. If you have the height, you may want to consider laying down a floor over 2"x6" joists and running your power and dust collection system through that. Yes, an added expense but well worth it in the long run. I would use ordinary 4x8 sheets of plywood cut into 2x2 squares and screw it down. Then when you need to get at something under the floor you can do so fairly readily. Another plus for the floor is that your feet will be a lot happier after a long session in the shop. Have fun ...

[Travis Porter]

If you have the headroom, a drop ceiling with fiberglass batts would help to dampen the sound a lot.

I used to have a basement shop and loved it. Only downside was the ceiling was only 7ft tall.

[Steve W]

Originally Posted by BumoutBob

Right on Mike, the Dust collector is very important FOR YOUR HEALTH!!! I had a shop in a closed end basement for awhile and the dust has no where to go. You breath it all the time. Think about how you can get cross ventilation so that fresh air can come in and dust saturated air can be blown out.

Be careful about air circulation in a basement area -- particularly here in the summertime. I would only bring in outside air when you're using the shop and I would try to make sure that it is conditioned. Humid warm air from outdoors will attain 100% humidity levels in the cool cellar with the resultant problems (rust, mould, etc). I think I would be more willing to run a filter box and dust collector in the enclosed room.

If you want to make sure of keeping everything out of the living space above, seal any floor penetrations and create a finished room down there (drywall & tape) if possible.