Alright folks, BUILD THREAD (v2, now with pics!)

[z1 zonly]

Hi everyone. I could write an essay on my project, but I'll try my best to keep it short.

Bought a house about 40 mins from Charlotte, NC in late April with a 46x48 barn/shop with 8' ceilings and a tin roof on a(n uneven!) slab. It appears to have had different iterations and additions - perhaps was an open loft barn at one time. It has enclosed eaves measuring approximately 10' off the back and left side which are included in the 46x48 dimensions. But while the back eave is open to the main floorspace, the left side is its own enclosure (to house the mower and lawn tools), so the approximate interior dimensions I'm working with are 36x48 (with 10' of that 48 being dropped eave).

The previous owner appears to have done some light woodwork and/or metal work inside. I am a car/motorcycle nut and want to make it my near dream-shop. The plan is as follows:
1) Remove center wall to make interior open. (I will leave about a 10' portion to add wall storage and shorten the length of the necessary header beam).
2) Remove half-wall at the rear and build a mirror image half-wall on the other side to be the anchor for the main workbench and to partition a storage room.
3) Convert overbuilt swinging doors to garage door.
4) Seal against critters. I found snakeskins and evidence of mice in the old ceiling. My girlfriend already found a snake inside earlier this year. I don't do snakes and want to do anything I can to prevent this.
5) Rewire, add LED lighting, tons of outlets, maybe some internet provisions.
6) Prep for HVAC (it has a wood stove, but since I will have gasoline in the shop, and to regain floor space and have AC, I will use an external unit).
7) Plumb a sink and water fountain (already have these, and shop has water), and mayyybe a urinal.
8) Insulate.
9) OSB wall-covering.
10) Paint/seal tin roof and add a ceiling

I started by gutting it to the studs, which was a ton of work. Then I called a carpenter to come finish it out for me. He stalled me for four months and then stopped taking my calls. Now it's on me.

Here's the problem: I know pretty much zero about construction. I have BIG questions about nearly every item on this list. I need help! So, I'll make a deal with you: I'll keep you updated on my progress if you will take a whooole lot of questions. Sound good? Good.

Here are some pics. First question coming soon!

Pics from when we bought the place:













Junked up after we moved in.



Putting more pics in the next post due to attachment limit.

 

[z1 zonly]

Last pic of the early situation. Note the white wall that was a storage room. It's now gone.



These are from August, but same as it sits today. Excuse the mess.

 

[z1 zonly]

Here's some of the damage!





And the plan. Not to scale, obviously; just the layout.



That's it for now!

 

[z1 zonly]

So here's the first question.

This is the back side of the shop where the rear eave is. Per the drawing, I will be building a wall under the left side and eliminating the wall from the right side.

The left side has two 2x10s acting as a header. The right side has one 2x10 that starts at 2" thick but tapers down to .5" thick (wtf?!) at the other end. That board is not supported from the floor, just nailed to the wall, and the eave is nailed to the other side. The left side header is very poorly supported by one 2x4 in the center. What a mess, huh?







So the issue is that if I'm going to be removing the wall and constructing a header, I need to know how to properly support everything before tearing it apart.

The left side is easy - I can put a jack post under the 2x10s to hold it up.

The right side is more concerning. I need to support the eave while I remove the existing 2x10 and then support the truss as I remove the wall and replace with a header.



I'm thinking that for the eave, I could nail a 2x4 across the slats, then put jack posts under the 2x4 to support it. But this only supports it vertically - how will I keep it from falling in?

Then, how am I supposed to support the roof truss if 1) there's a wall under it that has to be removed and 2) I need access to the truss to put in a header? Will the jack post under the left side 2x10s be enough to support the whole truss? If so, I guess that eliminates this concern.

This is an old pic from before I removed the wall covering, but it's the clearest shot I have that shows the wall to be removed and the truss over it.

 

[01-7700]

Nice bike. You should be thinking about getting a different contractor although with readily available work close by due to the summer storms, it's going to be hard to find one for a while.

 

[z1 zonly]

Appreciate any help you guys can offer. I'm going to be stuck working in an unfinished shop if I can't find a contractor or figure out these roadblocks on my own.

 

[Falcon67]

Hard to get a clear idea of exactly what's what, but some thoughts - sandwich the bottom of the truss with some 2x10 or 12s temporarily. Don't remove the entire wall under it at once, leave and double some of the studs to support the truss. Build some angled supports that attach to the sandwich 2x? long the base of the truss to support it while you remove the remaining studs and jack in a beam under it.

Or - see an engineer about possibly covering the "truss" with a layer of OSB to turn it into a self supporting mass of wood, at least enough to get the beam under it.

And good luck with the critter problem - there isn't anything I know of that is mouse proof. Snake maybe, maybe not. I have mouse poop in the attic and there is no possible entrance outside the building for them, and the ceiling inside is solid OSB with the seams caulked. Tell me how the little pissers got up there. Nobody up there now, glue traps empty after a month.

 

[z1 zonly]

I think I've gotcha. Something like this?



I can't really sandwich it because the other side of the truss is the exterior with the awning/eave under it, but this looks like it could work, just with a bit of moment load.

I've got cats that are doing a good job taking care of the mice so far. As a matter of fact, I had an encounter with one last night and the cats came out of nowhere to claim that sucker. I will still try to find and fill every dang opening in the shop... Definitely a topic of future questions!

Trying to line up some friends for a shop day this weekend.

 

[Falcon67]

Yes, something along that line should work I'd think. once you get it braced up, then standing on a few remaining studs you'll just need the materials and a step procedure to get the remaining out and the new in quickly. Don't have any pictures handy, but basically did that on our old house - started working on the living room end wall below the gable end of the house. Plan was to R&R the old windows with something modern. As I opened the wall the wood rot from water penetration got worse and when all was done, there were 4 studs holding up that end of the house and you could see all the way to the back bedroom wall from the street.

 

[turbowoodworker]

Looks like a great space to start with. Good luck on the renovations.
I'm up here in Chatham County and will watch your build with interest.