Garage floor questions

[mitch6]

Hi all, I'm thinking about building a 16' x 24' shed in the spring. I'm 18 years old and still living at home, so I want to build something with a wood floor instead of concrete, that way I can move the shed when I get my own place. I'm confused on what to use for joists though. The shed will have some heavy items in it, such as a lathe, maybe a mill, a couple welders, heavy duty workbenches, big air compressor, several hit and miss engines, and a few tool chests. I was think 2x6 joists, 12" centers, and 3/4" ply for the floor, and some sheet metal on top of the plywood. Since this is mostly for welding/metalworking. I could sit the shed on 5 pieces of 6x6 for skids, that way there is about 4' of each joist that isn't supported. Would this be enough to support all of the weight? Thanks in advance.

Mitch

 

[mitch6]

bump

 

[PT Doc]

How would you be moving this I the future? I think that will be very important in the overall design.

 

[mitch6]

I thought I would hire a mini/mobile home moving company.

 

[DHS]

If you plan on moving it later I would limit the width to at least 12', you may have a hard time finding someone to move it any wider. I am sure it could be done but permits ect... maybe expensive.

 

[mitch6]

That's a good point. Thanks.

 

[darkk]

I would at least double the flooring to 1 1/2" thick for all that weight.

 

[woodrail]

I would give serious thought to building this in two halves much like you see modular homes running down the highway.

You biggest issue may not be what the floor can hold, but more likely what will stay together while moving.

I'm thinking this could be a really cool project and done sucessfully if properly planned out!

 

[SGKent]

Nothing of a quality stick built garage is going to be moveable that size. It will have to be built from the start to be modular and to be disassembled. If it done to mobile home standards to be light enough it will be a shed and no appraiser will ever value it as more than personal property. The costs are going to be nasty too in moving it. I'd look for something already known to be moveable, and something that was designed to be inexpensive. How about a Quonset hut? Put it on a thin slab with compacted gravel under it, no rebar. When you are done moving it bust up the slab. Pour a thick slab when you are done moving and insulate it.

Example - I found online. http://www.metalbuildingcosts.com/

 

[NUTTSGT]

I see an issue with what you want. More than likely you're going to get oil soaked in the floor using a lathe and mill. That's going to make the floor more susceptible to catching on fire when you're welding over just the danger of welding berries on a wood floor.

 

[bdamico]

I wonder if there are so many unknowns that it's not worth planning to move it. When you get your own place will it be allowed? Will you have the space? If you have space to fit an even bigger barn when you move, you may wish you had something bigger. Is the cost in making it moveable and in moving it more than the cost of building something new? When will you actually get your own place? Are you going to rent or own? How you going to afford to own?

When I was your age I'd plan out all sorts of stuff for the future and almost none of them came true. Just wonder if it's worth trying to be a crystal ball.

 

[Big A]

Planning to build a structure to move is not very cost-effective.

Have you thought about shipping containers? Might not be as much room as you need, but they are mobile and sturdy, not too expensive. There are plenty of websites with info and people doing some pretty cool stuff with them.

The other thing I'd look into is a prefab, portable jobsite building.

 

[kazlx]

Agreed...while it's good of you to plan something, I think it will be too much of a hassle down the road. I just built an 8x14' shed on a concrete slab. I would think the costs of moving something similar would approach building another one. Something like a shipping container would probably be a better setup. Plus, if you strapped everything down, you could move the whole thing at once in something that I already designed to be moved.

 

[fredybender]

This is what I did:
First I used hemlock from a local sawmill: it was cheaper, and a lot stronger than commercial pine found in lumberyard; It also has "true" measurements, ie a 2X4 is actually 2"X4", not 3-3/4" X 1-3/4" ...

I had to move my shed this summer, and the way it was built, made it a whole lot easier!
I laid 2 6"X6" on the ground to sit my floor joits on. they are 2X10 12" center to center.
The floor is 1X6, nailed to the floor joists. I have "dropped" engines on the floor, and its still in great shape!

If you decide to move it, the 6X6, will become like a sled, and just roll it out with metal pipes underneath.

My shed is quite heavy (I didn't take out anything out of it when moving it; 4 engines, a hydraulic shovel alone, could not lift it, they had to bring in a loader also, in order to lift it on the metal tubing. This floor, never budged...

 

[SGKent]

When I was your age I'd plan out all sorts of stuff for the future and almost none of them came true. Just wonder if it's worth trying to be a crystal ball.

I like the shipping container idea.

 

[wedge40]

The only other thing I haven't seen mention, do go very tall.

Wedge

 

[mitch6]

Thanks for all the help guys, I guess I didn't think this through as much as I should have. I also thought about putting 2 layers of 3/4" plywood on the floor, going in different directions. That's a good idea to design it to be disassembled, would make it much easier to move. I thought of putting sheet metal on top of the plywood, making it fire resistant for when I weld in there. I have considered shipping containers too. They seem to be awful expensive around here though. Best price on a 20' is about $3500, and a 40' is right around $5000. They would also be very narrow...