So I am a long time lurker and have been on the process of building a 60x40 shop for a few months . Started clearing the land on march. Being in New England every place I dig I hit a boulder . Took me a couple months to get the site prepped. 
Above 1200 Sq/FT 40x60 shop build
- Thread starter jsd245
- Start date
Wokspaces above 1200 squarefeet.
I was going on vacation in August so I had to hustle to get the pad prepped. I also put down two inches of foam under the pad and around the perimeter for frost protection. While I didn't do radiant heat I am
Heating and air conditioning the building eventually. They poured to pad towards the beginning of August and I covered it with plastic and wet cured it for about 25 days until I got back from vacation at the very end of August. Pretty happy with the slab. Not one shrinkage crack in the whole thing about 90 days later. It's 6" 4000 psi concrete with fiber reinforcement. No rebar or mesh.
Heating and air conditioning the building eventually. They poured to pad towards the beginning of August and I covered it with plastic and wet cured it for about 25 days until I got back from vacation at the very end of August. Pretty happy with the slab. Not one shrinkage crack in the whole thing about 90 days later. It's 6" 4000 psi concrete with fiber reinforcement. No rebar or mesh.
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Now I'm working on the floor. I want to use that solid pvc tile with the hidden seam. We use it at work in an industrial setting and it's super tough. . Stuff you can buy here is like $13 a square foot. So it would have cost like $30k to do the floor. Crazy. So I found it on alibaba and had it shipped over. I had ordered it in August and it took a couple Months. It ended up about $1.65 a square foot. We ordered some for work too, so I got it pretty cheap with a full 20' container. 
. It's pretty decent, the seams don't lock together as tight as I'd like but once it settles it's good. Heat will probably help too. Running tracked equipment over it is no problem.
. It's pretty decent, the seams don't lock together as tight as I'd like but once it settles it's good. Heat will probably help too. Running tracked equipment over it is no problem.
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Yeah I like the jack shaft openers. I also
Like they have a battery backup. As far as activities go I have a couple old 1952 dodge trucks I work on. Car maintenance, equipment maintenance. Plus of course one corner is going to have a a big couch and big tv!
Like they have a battery backup. As far as activities go I have a couple old 1952 dodge trucks I work on. Car maintenance, equipment maintenance. Plus of course one corner is going to have a a big couch and big tv!
So I tell you, I'm pretty handy. I've done light construction and remodeling on all my homes. Electrical, plumbing, HVAC , roofs, you name it. And when I contemplated this in my mind it was going to go much quicker. The size of this didn't really register. At each stage I've been thinking it was taking way too long, but it's 2400 square feet. Not a bathroom or kitchen remodel. I guess it's only new since the beginning of September that I've actually been able to do interior work, but the clock is ticking. I want the heat in before it gets too cold so I can reclaim the attached garage and actually put our cars in over the winter.
coldh2o
Well-known member
Very nice, the attention to detail on the insulation is going to make it very cozy.
What are the light fixtures?
What are the light fixtures?
GlennSullivan
Well-known member
Looks really nice. I'm interested in knowing more about the floor tiles. Are the similar to traditional CVT, just larger and glue down? Do you have some closeup pics of the tile and install you can share?
So this is not getting glued down. It's free floating locked together. The only place I'm gluing it is at the garage doors where the little ramp transition piece is. I started looking for this style because we put it down over a wood floor at work and for 20 years it's held up well. What I wasn't prepared for was the cost. The stuff we used at work which locked together super securely with a hidden seam was now $20 a square foot. An online search showed anything domestic similar was between $6 and $15.00 a square foot plus freight. So I found this on Ali baba.
I ordered a sample and it seemed ok.
This is what they look like. The specs say 6.5mm thick, my measurement says 7mm.
Since we planned on using some at work we ordered a full container which brought the cost down to $3.04 a tile. Plus Tarrif and freight it ends up at about $3.65 per tile. So for my floor at least $10k cheaper than the nearest option.
. It's solid pvc- slightly resilient but I would not say flexible. You can get a slight bend on it if you are holding a tile . It stands up to jacks no problems. I've beat **** out of it with a dead blow hammer with no discernible damage.
Like I said it's ok. I think one of my problems is it's cold- about 50 degrees. So it has a bit of a memory. They packed it well but they aren't perfectly flat. They have an ever so slight dished shape to them, I assume for the molding process. I think if it was 75 degrees it would be much better to put down. After putting it down you'll have to go back and snap part of the seam down because you will see it's popped up. What I've seen as the oldest stuff I put down is now lying nice and flat after a few days of me walking around and snapping the seams back down that popped. And I mean like they pop up a millimeter- not much.
I've run tracked equipment- my excavator and skid steer which both weight about 12000 pounds on it already and they are unaffected. Same for cars and my tractor. So they are going to be fine, probably better when I get some heat in there, I assume that will speed up the laying down perfectly flat.
I'm just about done with the floor.
I ordered a sample and it seemed ok.
This is what they look like. The specs say 6.5mm thick, my measurement says 7mm.
Since we planned on using some at work we ordered a full container which brought the cost down to $3.04 a tile. Plus Tarrif and freight it ends up at about $3.65 per tile. So for my floor at least $10k cheaper than the nearest option.
. It's solid pvc- slightly resilient but I would not say flexible. You can get a slight bend on it if you are holding a tile . It stands up to jacks no problems. I've beat **** out of it with a dead blow hammer with no discernible damage.
Like I said it's ok. I think one of my problems is it's cold- about 50 degrees. So it has a bit of a memory. They packed it well but they aren't perfectly flat. They have an ever so slight dished shape to them, I assume for the molding process. I think if it was 75 degrees it would be much better to put down. After putting it down you'll have to go back and snap part of the seam down because you will see it's popped up. What I've seen as the oldest stuff I put down is now lying nice and flat after a few days of me walking around and snapping the seams back down that popped. And I mean like they pop up a millimeter- not much.
I've run tracked equipment- my excavator and skid steer which both weight about 12000 pounds on it already and they are unaffected. Same for cars and my tractor. So they are going to be fine, probably better when I get some heat in there, I assume that will speed up the laying down perfectly flat.
I'm just about done with the floor.
Heat and AC are in. I'm glad I slightly undersize these units, because one 18,000 BT unit was keeping it at 65° with overnight temperatures in the low 20s. So it looks like my insulation detail worked really well. Plus I have no windows in the building. I also put those green hinges on the garage door so they seal pretty tight. The second 18,000 BTU unit is in neither appear to be working very hard and it was even colder last night. Heat I thought was gonna be the biggest challenge.
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kitdoctor
Well-known member
That build is looking very neat inside and out.
meathooker
Well-known member
Great looking space. I’m curious to hear how the floor tiles hold up.
are you doing cabinets? I’ve been curious how hanging things works out with metal siding like that.
are you doing cabinets? I’ve been curious how hanging things works out with metal siding like that.
Probably no cabinets. I put 48 feet of those slat wall panels up to hang stuff on. If I have to hang other stuff. I use super strut that screwed to the horizontal Purlins behind the metal. They are 2 feet apart, so I just stretched the super strut between two of them and it's pretty sturdy. Where I knew I was gonna hang stuff like the TV. I put a plywood panel behind it to screw into it
brit vet
Well-known member
What a great space! I did the same tile design in my last garage and the lighter coloured tiles did stain easily with warm tyres and were a ****** to clean. My current I've just done with one colour - graphite 500mm x 500mm x 7mm interlocking tiles. Felt so good saying goodbye to bare concrete and of course it'll be less dusty.
Dave G in Gansevoort
Well-known member
Keep us updated on how well those floor tiles hol up to fabrication, like welding or cutting. Be interesting to know…
southalabama
Well-known member
Shop looks good. 
Well if I'm welding or cutting something down to protect them- because they are plastic. Not gonna hold up to molten metal . They are holding up surprisingly well to turning tracked equipment on them. I've used the tracked skid steer to move and position a bunch of stuff in there which necessitates pivoting on the tracks. But it's clear I need some kind of floor machine. The excavator skid steer and car tires bring in a lot of dirt from my gravel driveway. Not really much to be done about that I guess.
jblnut
ALLIANCE MEMBER
I really like the foam between the poles and purlins. I bet you can heat it with a fart and a candle.When I got back I started insulating. R19 in the walls covered with 1 inch foil iso foam with all the seams taped. Purlins went over the foam to attach the interior metal. Garage doors also went in.
It’s a really sharp looking building all the way around !
So I am gonna say im done. Compressor and air lines are piped in, water got trenched in so I have a sink and hot water now. It was a project for sure. Everything cost way more than i thought it should. But it is pretty amazing to have a heated and air conditioned space like this To work on cars and stuff.
ModernMuseum
New member
What kind of gravel is that? I have a ~1/4 mile driveway and need to get another layer of gravel put down soon. Looks like your setup there wouldn't be very dusty.
Different people call it different things- but the gravel bank I get it from calls it process gravel. I get the 1 1/4" minus. Its a little rough when it first goes down but end up very smooth and hard. Its more durable than the 3/4" minus.
The stuff I get is the best driveway material around- its just crushed rock- so crushed angular rock form one and one quarter inch all the way down to stone dust. Packs super hard, doesn't wash out, doesn't get potholes. They are essentially blasting ledge to make this stuff. There is no dirt or round stones in it. Hard to find unless the gravel bank is blasting and crushing ledge like this. I am lucky in that I have a place 5 miles away. My wife doesn't want me putting down recycled material. She works in the Environmental industry and she knows what can end up in that stuff. This is all virgin material.
But its still dusty when it gets real dry
Jacko264
Well-known member
That is one of the best and nicest coloured shops / garages I’ve seen and the way it’s in-between the trees love it
G
G
Thank you for that compliment! I am pleased with the way it turned out.