Getting ready to build a shop- first time in many decades I have done so- perusing this forum for ideas.

-
Cruisingram

Cruisingram

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 1, 2020
Messages
407
Reaction score
250
Location
Pahoa, Hawaii
I live deep in the jungle, a tropical rain forest, next to steaming lava fields. - It sounds more like the begining to a cheesy romance novel than a topic on an Abody site I guess?

But anyway- I am building two 40x30 slabs with a 6' gap between them- on that gap will set a 40' shipping container. I will build a wood structure same as the width and length of the container 8' high. The peak of the roof will be in the middle of that wood frame. The roof will go out with a 4' eave over the outside of the slab. There will be no walls except for the container.

A high roof is important for the heat issue- It is just a metal roof supported by rafters and perlins. I am hoping for at least 10' from slab to roof at it's lowest point. One side will be a "clean" side, the other a "dirty" side- clean for building engines etc- the other for paint and welding.

This is actually my most important project now, as I gave up the place I was renting to build this place, and NO project will be able to be worked on until I have some concrete down!

I am doing it in stages, with a 20x20 slab at first, with a 20x20 tarp structure over it.
 
The only things I can offer in the way of advice are:
1. They're never big enough. Go as large as you can.
2. If you build them too big, you start acquiring more crap that you don't really need. Or it becomes storage for too many non-automotive things. And people start pestering you to store THEIR crap.
Catch-22.

Edit: you really should have some kind of walls, even if it's just lattice and screen to give you adequate circulation. You want to minimize the opportunity for critters and birds to foul up your workspace. Last thing you need is a gecko taking up residence inside your partially assembled long block!
 
Last edited:
All I can offer is, figure out how big you want, then double it.
 
RustyRatRod said:
All I can offer is, figure out how big you want, then double it.
Click to expand...
What R3 said.

Best to build a little work party space where you can hang out with your buddies. Keep the rest out of sight locked. Make sure everyone understands you have no space to store others stuff ( including your wife/girlfriend).

Wish I could follow my own advice.
 
Well fellas, I live in Hawaii- air flow is the most important thing to keep things dry, I have 18 acres in the jungle, room is not the problem, building expense is since my last name is not "Gates" LOL- I am mostly limited in cost by two things- 1) roofing is the most expensive item- metal roofing, I have been collecting used roofing for some time, but I will have to buy some new I think as well. 2) concrete- not too bad, but because of where I live, it's hard if not impossible to get a cement truck to deliver- the biggest we can do in 1-2 days with small mixers and pour is 20x20. So there will be 8 different pour days over 8 months. I have a stone wall going around it to keep the pigs out- but there is no way to keep critters out of it, at least not the kind we have- mongoose, rats and occasional birds. IN fact, that is one thing you notice here in Hawaii if you come here- the birds are up on your table in the restaurant begging for food LOL.

Honestly my main other consideration is solar- another huge expense, as I am completely off grid- I have been working on this aspect for 5 years, collecting solar panels and working on a "wood gasifier" to run a 20kw generator. I think I can get my power costs down to near zero after that investment.
 
gdrill said:
In floor heating........oh ya, you got that already!
Click to expand...
Oh boy- you have no idea LOL. Another power possibility is DYI geothermal, but I don't think I am in the right spot. I have lava tubes and cracks on my property that go to the very bowels of hell- we lost a bull in there, only way we knew he was in there was a slight whiff of the smell of rotting meat, the hoof marks and fur as he tried not to fall in. They are very unstable as well, a friend tried to find the bottom of it, at 150ft we ran out of rope, and the next day, it shifted and collapsed right where she went in. No more that! Hawaii a crazy place man. A guy on the right part of the "flow" drilled about 100ft down and uses steam power on his farm.
 
Sounds like you're on the big island. If the Mongoose would kill the rats, they would earn their keep....lol. If I remember right, there are no snakes in the islands, so the Mongoose have no enemies. Those are some mean critters though! Good luck on your build. I can imagine it would be a challenge out in the sticks on that island!
 
my best advice is that one of the worst things that happen in a garage is that they become damned near unusable if you don't have somewhere else to store what you aren't working on now. I have found that the easy way to do that is that it doesn't cost that much to raise the roof higher and either build a half story section to store parts, or hang heavy duty platforms from the rafters to do the same thing. Here's some pics of my current shop

DSC00113.JPG


DSC01824.JPG


DSC01825.JPG


DSC00110.JPG
 
Try to plan the shop layout before pouring concrete. How many bays? Where to put lifts, allowing room for work benches. How many extra parking spaces, storing the wife's car, etc. Lighting- arranged to illuminate where the work is to be done. Where will the air compressor go? How much electrical service? Water service? Restroom?
 
Build a shed 3 feet from the garage for the compressor and anything like a blast cabinet. You can get it wired and plump the air lines at the same time you build the main garage. It will be the end of compressor noise (including getting startled when the thing comes on unexpectedly). Having the blast cabinet not in the gagrage keeps abrasive media from making its way into places that you don't want it. I built an inexpensive 8x8 shed and had extra room for some more (all important) storage.
 
Not at all an intent to lure you off this amazing platform, but everyone reading this thread needs to be aware of The Garage Journal Forums.

Go see. You'll find everything shop / garage / home related you can imagine and thousands of the most talented people on the planet.

The Garage Journal
 
str12-340 said:
my best advice is that one of the worst things that happen in a garage is that they become damned near unusable if you don't have somewhere else to store what you aren't working on now. I have found that the easy way to do that is that it doesn't cost that much to raise the roof higher and either build a half story section to store parts, or hang heavy duty platforms from the rafters to do the same thing. Here's some pics of my current shop

View attachment 1716000933

View attachment 1716000934

View attachment 1716000935

View attachment 1716000932
Click to expand...
You are exactly right there- this is something I also learned from experience. So I am bulding an entire 8x40 room on top of the container for storage/AC mancave . I it also will be de-humidified up there, so parts that I don't want corroding will go up there. Nice shop BTW.
 
My advice would be for a guy in Hawaii: Make sure its on top of a hill and as far away from a volcano as possible. Also have a separate lavatory and washroom (mudroom) so your significant other isn't nagging you about dragging work clothes into the "clean" house. Have plenty of air drops and recepticles like every 6 feet along the wall. Have the air compressor outside of the workspace so that it won't rack your brain when it's running. Put drains in the slabs so that you avoid wet floors as much as possible.
I would add an extra shipping container (20' or 40' ideally) so that you have somewhere to store all of your future project extras and spare parts. Make sure you have plenty of electrical service amperage! Then add projects and enjoy!!!
 
COOL WHIPPS LLC said:
My advice would be for a guy in Hawaii: Make sure its on top of a hill and as far away from a volcano as possible. Also have a separate lavatory and washroom (mudroom) so your significant other isn't nagging you about dragging work clothes into the "clean" house. Have plenty of air drops and recepticles like every 6 feet along the wall. Have the air compressor outside of the workspace so that it won't rack your brain when it's running. Put drains in the slabs so that you avoid wet floors as much as possible.
I would add an extra shipping container (20' or 40' ideally) so that you have somewhere to store all of your future project extras and spare parts. Make sure you have plenty of electrical service amperage! Then add projects and enjoy!!!
Click to expand...
Well, the volcano idea is impractical;- as I live on it LOL. I was evacuated four times in 2018 before finally just staying at my business location for the last 2 months of the flow. Missed me by a mile though. I mean, a literal mile. Now it's really hard for the lava to hit me if it blows again- the lava made a type of dam depending on if the east rift zone pops off. right now though Mauna Loa is making noises, the big girl is dangerous for real to Hilo and Kona- but in that case, I live on Kiluea, and am safe from that one- Kiluea is probably not going to go off in my liftetime again due to the 2018 eruption- it takes 50-100 years for it to refill. The Pu'u 'O'o crater is empty down to 1800 feet! It's like a giant empty mine-shaft now over a 1/4 mile deep. Well, it was, now the sides have collapsed down to about 260 feet, just looked it up- it started erupting in 1983 and was continuous until 2018, but now it's super quiet.
 
Last edited:
Cruisingram said:
Well, the volcano idea is impractical;- as I live on it LOL. I was evacuated four times in 2018 before finally just staying at my business location for the last 2 months of the flow. Missed me by a mile though. I mean, a literal mile. Now it's really hard for the lava to hit me if it blows again- the lava made a type of dam depending on if the east rift zone pops off. right now though Mauna Loa is making noises, the big girl is dangerous for real to Hilo and Kona- but in that case, I live on Kiluea, and am safe from that one- Kiluea is probably not going to go off in my liftetime again due to the 2018 eruption- it takes 50-100 years for it to refill. The Pu'u 'O'o crater is empty down to 1800 feet! It's like a giant empty mine-shaft now over a 1/4 mile deep. Well, it was, now the sides have collapsed down to about 260 feet, just looked it up- it started erupting in 1983 and was continuous until 2018, but now it's super quiet.
Click to expand...
:rofl:WOW! I was literally "just kiddin'", not knowing anything about your proximity to a volcano. The FACT THAT YOU ACTUALLY LIVE ON TOP OF ONE is AMAZIN' to me!! As active as the "RING OF FIRE" is, I'd be moving to somewhere safer like DETROIT:thumbsup:!!!! 1983-2018=36yrs of eruption.....that could happen again in your lifetime unless you're in your 80/90s; which in Hawaii, could happen, since people tend to live longer because everything is "SO COOL" and CHILL!
 
Cruisingram said:
Well, the volcano idea is impractical;- as I live on it LOL. I was evacuated four times in 2018 before finally just staying at my business location for the last 2 months of the flow.
Click to expand...
Over here if that happened, you would be told no insurance if you build on that same land - mostly used for earthquake and flood prone areas.

Good luck with your build. Best advice I can give is make sure you have adequate ventilation - or good air flow. Humidity will hurt your tools, projects, parts and be unpleasant to work in.
 
What if you get 2 containers and build a roof on it?

(The extra cost of the one container may offset the less cost of the concrete pads)

Large-Shed-made-from-Shipping-Containers.png
 
Whatever you do, make sure those containers are adequately ventilated- believe it or not, even here in Wisconsin it gets so humid that things stored in shipping containers without proper circulation will rust like mad. I've seen some nasty stuff come out of them- even mold can become a problem.
With your limited power situation, I'd seriously consider some solar powered vent fans, maybe similar to something like this on an end or sidewall:
1668097167168.png
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
-

Back
Top