Shop must haves

[dadsbee]

In reality, they only made about 1 Pepsi Machine for every 300 Coke machines and how many 7UP' s did they actually make in the Pepsi run? I had been looking for 10 years and lucked out, guy I bought it froms new Wife told him it couldn't be beside his chair in the living room anymore! His Daughter listed it one night.. I told her I'd be there at 8AM. 300 bucks and I got her a job at Bombardier with her fresh Aerospace degree. Compressor rebuilt and all rewired. It's so cold if you open a pepsi and put it back in the fridge it'll freeze.

As for my shop ceiling.. I have R 52 ROXUL in the ceiling, vapour barrier and a ridge vent. Zero condensention.

 

[1MeanA]

Lots of good points made already. Things I have done or would do if I had the space and $$$

• a 4 post and 2 post lift
• bathroom
• fold down large work surfaces...currently I use fold out tables for projects.
• air connections in various locations
• 230 volt plugs in various locations for welding
• wash/drain area
• place to hang commonly used tools
• mezzanine area for storage

 

[DentalDart]

2 post lift is either going to be a Champion 10k Heavy duty lift which I can get local and installed brand new with a 5 year warranty on structure and 1yr on pump. The cost is $4100.

Or the Amazon APlusLift 10k. Maybe about 500 cheaper with less warranty but I can use my CC points to pay for it so it would be “free.” Lol. It has just under 500 reviews and videos posted all on YouTube. It looks like the same lift as the champion even though the champion says it’s American.

I’ll have it installed right when the shop is finished.

https://www.championautolift.com/e3...51tK53Qyh5W4RnXzq6hrG0wW22zMv187tJRGf26Zq7604

 

[BSB67]

I have one of those lol just wish it was a 4 speed

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Mine had a 4 speed, and 383. It’s at a new home now.

 

[HemiSSDart]

I have one of those lol just wish it was a 4 speed

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I know, I delivered it! I should have bought it before it was restored 15 years ago...

 

[Oldiron440]

Nice choice of tractor but a larger one is always better…

 

[missing linc]

Gotta give you a gig 'ol red X on this one, Prof!

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My shed/shop is mine, and once it's done there's not going to be any Christmas tree storage, deck/patio furniture, or shelves for fancy pots and gardening things. Hell, it's not even going to house the mowers and snowblowers, if I can help it.

It's not a "she shed", and if she wants one, she knows how to contact the Contractor we always use!

When I built my shop, my financial advisor christened it the "Garage Mahal", the only time my wife's car gets in there is winter, unless I'm working on it, and she has a shed for all of the gardening/yardwork supplies. Snowblower gets inside for the winter for convenience, summer it lives between the garage and the fence.

 

[Mopar Momzee]

Planning stages of my shop I had about 1 year to figure all those important things out. 16’ to eaves gave me enough room to build a mezzanine. Mezzanine houses all my parts.
My paint booth unfinished is wired for fans and lights plumed for the sprayer it’s 16x26’. The engine area and all metal working tools are under mezzanine as well that area is 26x28 along with full bathroom that still needs finishing.
The air compressor is under stairs and I ran 1” copper around entire shop with drops by all roll up doors and along walls. Shop has separate 220 meter. Welding outlets also by roll up doors and lifts. Also every 8’ or so is outlets for whatever else I need
Spray foam entire shop covered with T-11 for easy removal if I want to add anything else.
I have a separate shop that I ran 4” pipe from 1 shop to the other for air lines if I needed and extra power if needed. There’s nothing I would do differently except go wider my shop is 42x96 was supposed to be 50x 96 but with was complaining . I put brighter lights under mezzanine easier to see.

 

[ProjectBazza]

Planning stages of my shop I had about 1 year to figure all those important things out. 16’ to eaves gave me enough room to build a mezzanine. Mezzanine houses all my parts.
My paint booth unfinished is wired for fans and lights plumed for the sprayer it’s 16x26’. The engine area and all metal working tools are under mezzanine as well that area is 26x28 along with full bathroom that still needs finishing.
The air compressor is under stairs and I ran 1” copper around entire shop with drops by all roll up doors and along walls. Shop has separate 220 meter. Welding outlets also by roll up doors and lifts. Also every 8’ or so is outlets for whatever else I need
Spray foam entire shop covered with T-11 for easy removal if I want to add anything else.
I have a separate shop that I ran 4” pipe from 1 shop to the other for air lines if I needed and extra power if needed. There’s nothing I would do differently except go wider my shop is 42x96 was supposed to be 50x 96 but with was complaining . I put brighter lights under mezzanine easier to see. View attachment 1716494889View attachment 1716494890View attachment 1716494891View attachment 1716494893View attachment 1716494892

And there it is, folks!

 

[ProjectBazza]

Good luck with that!
"Mine and "Hers" logic gets thrown out the window the first time she catches me washing transmission parts in the bathtub or baking painted parts in the oven!
Besides, she was on the roof right next to me nailing down shingles etc. when I built the shop... She's earned it.

Alright, I get that! My wife was right in there with me as well putting up walls and ceiling panels this past summer, so I guess I'll give her a pass and let her put...uh, let's see....one flower pot in there!

And funny you should mention an oven, as I've been eyeballing used ovens on CL and FB lately. I mean, Eastwood sells that handy-dandy oven-baked powder coating kit....

 

[BSB67]

I don’t have a shop. More of a garage/multi purpose building. Was going to put a bathroom in it. Changed my mind during the design. That space now has a utility tub and refrigerator. Very happy with the choice. I put a small hot water tank under the utility tub. Hot water in 3 seconds. If I’m in the garage for an hour, probably use the tub 3 times.

Also planned to have a 16ft work bench, then 12ft, then 10ft. Have not built anything yet, but have been using a 5ft home built mobile bench, and a mobile Ikea piece of junk. The portability is kinda nice, and it forces me to cleanup after myself.

 

[dadsbee]

^^^ smart, my work benches.. or ANY flat surface just collect stuff. I ditched mine to make room and have a 2' x 4" metal bench from Princess Auto now (that doesn't have a bare spot useable!)

 

[ProjectBazza]

View attachment 1716494843
Beverage "fridge"...
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Gorgeous! But you left-out the best (non-auto related) part: That wonderful Seeburg "entertainment center"!

 

[ProjectBazza]

When building your shop or setting up your shop what are some of the things you feel like is a must?

Osb or drywall on the walls? Spray foam over batting?
More electrical outlets than you think you need?
Larger breakers?

And so on.

My 40x40 is getting the trusses raised stating next week, I’m moving the garage door to the side and adding a 2nd one, then insulation and finishing the walls. 2nd garage door is so I can have lifts on both sides. Im 100% getting a 2 post but was thinking about a 4 post on the other side.

I think I’m going to do OSB covering the walls but I’m open to other options. Figured OSB was cheaper and allows me to hang things anywhere.

So if you could do it again what would you have done differently, added or subtracted from your build.

Photo of shop cleaned out and quick rendering of where I want doors.

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Getting a little more serious now....

How "tight" are you going to make it? I'm about 90% finished with the build-out of my 24' x 42' shed/shop, and it's so tight (iso panels and foamed joints on the walls and ceiling) that I'm going to install an ERV to be used on days when I can't have the doors open. Thankfully I'm in the HVAC industry, and have "connections"...

Other than that, and based on my recent and on-going project:

* You can have too much lighting, particularly if you choose the wrong "color". Check online for lumens/sq. ft. (I think that's correct) when laying this out.
* You can't have too many outlets.
* You can't have enough cabinets and/or storage.
* Also, no matter how much you plan, you will find something you missed, so go easy on yourself when that happens.

Lastly: Enjoy the process, have fun with it, and Good Luck!

Jim

 

[Ottmundr]

Shop dog or cat.

I can't figure how all you guys missed that one.

 

[Murray]

Only one person remembered the frig for the beer. I am going to his house.

 

[str12-340]

inside walls - 3/4 inch plywood painted gloss white to make it easy to clean and to reflect the light around - mount anything you want, anywhere you want, now and in the future. Almost nothing will make your building stiffer and less prone to shifting. Think of it as frame connectors and torque boxes for your shop.

I would put all your utilities (electric, air etc.) on the outside of the walls, in conduit with boxes, so that when you decide to reconfigure something 15 years from now it will be easy without opening up the walls. This includes the electric for the overhead lights

lights on the side walls in your work area so you can see under the car, inside the car, etc

a lift - the older you get the more you will bless the day you took that step (double the need for wall lights).

a shed off the outside wall of your shop, well insulated for your compressor. After years of getting surprised while I was working on something intricate when the compressor BURST INTO ACTION unexpectedly...

you can NEVER have enough storage. I can't count the number of shops I've been in where you have to move half the contents to make room to work (and can never find anything).

 

[DentalDart]

Planning stages of my shop I had about 1 year to figure all those important things out. 16’ to eaves gave me enough room to build a mezzanine. Mezzanine houses all my parts.
My paint booth unfinished is wired for fans and lights plumed for the sprayer it’s 16x26’. The engine area and all metal working tools are under mezzanine as well that area is 26x28 along with full bathroom that still needs finishing.
The air compressor is under stairs and I ran 1” copper around entire shop with drops by all roll up doors and along walls. Shop has separate 220 meter. Welding outlets also by roll up doors and lifts. Also every 8’ or so is outlets for whatever else I need
Spray foam entire shop covered with T-11 for easy removal if I want to add anything else.
I have a separate shop that I ran 4” pipe from 1 shop to the other for air lines if I needed and extra power if needed. There’s nothing I would do differently except go wider my shop is 42x96 was supposed to be 50x 96 but with was complaining . I put brighter lights under mezzanine easier to see. View attachment 1716494889View attachment 1716494890View attachment 1716494891View attachment 1716494893View attachment 1716494892

That shop is amazing! It’s also as big as my barn lol, my barn is 40x100. My shops are 40x40 and 30x40,contractor said to connect them would cost 30-50k, said it’s easier and cheaper just to build a new one later down the road as these ones were built 35 years ago.

The upstairs storage area is fantastic, I wish I could do something like that. My small shop has a bunch of racks in it on the sides holding parts that are just in the way.

 

[DentalDart]

Shop dog or cat.

I can't figure how all you guys missed that one.

We have 5 dogs, but my shops are on the other side of the electric fence, because they like to take off and roam the neighboring farms if the collars aren't on them.

Only one person remembered the frig for the beer. I am going to his house.

Had one of those but the kids liked it so it’s in the basement now.

 

[DentalDart]

Mine had a 4 speed, and 383. It’s at a new home now.

I looked for a manual would love BB but none were for sale at the time.

Nice choice of tractor but a larger one is always better…

This was the bigger one in my case. It’s big enough to do everything I’ve asked from it except… lift an entire pallet of 55 bags of concrete and lift the entire black car off the ground from the side. Which is weird because it’s supposed to be able to lift 2700 pounds.

 

[Righty Tighty]

Water, toilet, 200 amp service (3 phase if you can), and if you're redoing the roll up doors, make them as big as possible.

One of the biggest limitations I've faced is the height of my roll ups. You never know what you're gonna want to move in and out of there.

 

[str12-340]

If you don't have a shop cat, get a bunch of those plug in pest repellers around the walls of the shops and never have mice in your interior and stored parts again!

 

[RustyRatRod]

My old *** has had enough of crawling around on the floor or bending down to set lift arms. If I get a lift, it'll be a heavy duty drive on four post with alignment capabilities.

Oh and "must haves" for a shop? Titty pictures. Lotsa titty pictures.

 

[Righty Tighty]

Oh and "must haves" for a shop? Titty pictures. Lotsa titty pictures.

When I was growing up, my friend's dad had a shop where the walls were LINED with centerfolds. And beer signs. He was a Ford guy, so looking back, I'm a little surprised that the centerfolds were ladies.

Anyone who remembers centerfolds is officially old...haha.

 

[jbc426]

I installed 50" of 3/4" galvanized pipe that zig-zags up the wall, and has a vertical drop at the flexible connector from the compressor and another one at the end of the far end. They both have ball valves to drain each one. I also ran a dog-leg up to the water trap and then on to my outlets.

I've never even had one drop of water make it to the water trap, because the hot, moist air out of the compressor cools off and drops its moisture which flows back down the pipe before it reaches my higher mounted water trap. I drain the vertical down legs at the beginning and end of my pipes. The one closest to the compressor gets most of the water out.