Help! My Shop Is Shrinking!!!

[PhoenixOp]

Just introduced myself over in the new guys section, now it's time to ask the really big questions.

I have this shop (see pics I hope) and I need to use more of what I have since I'm running out of room for all the cars/truck.

Behind the shop is an ex-stall, where, unfortunately, I am currently stuffing my dually into. Of course, it's whole ****-end is hanging out (not thrilled about that). Since I don't know squat about "Pole Barns", I thought I would ask. Is there a way to add another piece onto the end of the stall, seal it up a little better and possibly hang a door on the end? If that is possible, what would it take in materials and procedures to make it happen?

The other part of this equation is, when looking at the front, there are already 4 roll-up doors on the front (I had to add 2 of them, well I had a contractor add them). Bay #4 was a tack-room, so we tore the dividing wall down and added the 4th roll-up door. Incidently, there is a Dayton propane fired heater in the overhead of that bay.

That leaves bay #5. It is currently yet another stall, and I want to accomplish a couple of things with it. 1), put a side-hinged door or doors on it so that I can then eventually 2) install a 4 post lift for use and storage of yet another car someday. I am already planning on a 2 post lift for bay #3. So again, can I seal it up better, pour a 5"-6" slab (I figure it will need a slab that thick for a 4 post lift with 2 cars on it) and build some kind of door. Can't use a roll-up due to the 4 post lift.

Any thoughts, ideas, strategies, smart a** remarks or string theory, would actually be appreciated. This is a tough one for a city kid.

Oh yeah, there is another car in the tent...

Thanks

 

[Steevo]

Welcome, neighbor.

At least you have room to expand or build another building.

A '67 Rivy, way cool!

 

[FunkyfullWidth]

Looks like you could stuff a four post lift in there.. Maybe 2. How tall are the ceilings? Of course it looks like he garage doors might be in the way. But you could change it to follow the roofline type track.

 

[j p smith]

Just have a couple of things to help. I would consider making the building longer and perhaps raise the addition to accomadate the lift you want. Door tracks can follow to roof pitch to allow more head room. If you put the lift in the addition move the storage cars to bays 1,2,3,4,leave bay 5 for a work area and new bay 6 for your lift. Alot of the time you see a lean to off 1 side of the building for open storage, trailers, lawn tractor, implements. Hope this gives you another idea to work with, good luck with the project.

 

[ishiboo]

What are the dimensions of the building and lean-to?

 

[PhoenixOp]

Steevo;
Thanks for the welcome. Also thanks for the hi-five for the Riv. Where in southeastern Idaho? I'm in Kuna.

The stall/lean-to is roughly 12' wide and probably that long, cause the dually is nose to back wall. It's a standard cab, 8' bed.

Each bay is 12' wide with 10' wide doors on bays 1, 3, & 4. Bay 2 is a 9' wide door. Bays 1 and 2 have openers in them. My truck used to get parked in bay 1 until I got the Benz which displaced it. Yup it fit with room to spare.
Ceiling height dead center of the peak is 13'. If I've done my measurements right, a 2 post or 4 post will fit no problem. The 4 post for bay 5 because I will not install a roll-up.

Are these building tough to add on a section to, specially on the lean-to part?
Are they tough to add to on the main structure part. I didn't even think about eventually adding sideways. Bays 6, 7 ,8 whatever...

Gee thanks...

 

[Steevo]

Steevo;
Thanks for the welcome. Also thanks for the hi-five for the Riv. Where in southeastern Idaho? I'm in Kuna.

Um, Kuna isn't the boonies

You are a short drive from the biggest city in Idaho and the only city in Idaho with a nightlife (with the possible exception of Coeur d'Alene). It probably feels like the boonies coming from Phoenix, though

I am way across the state in Idaho Falls. It is closer for use to go to Salt Lake City to shop at the big chains (Mall stores, Trader Joe's, etc) than to head over to your neck of the woods. Of course, this is Idaho, so neither of us has any "normal" adult beverage stores like BevMo or Total Wine.

Looking forward to pics of the Riv!

 

[sberry]

I agree about adding on to the end with a taller new building.

 

[Falcon67]

Welcome, and i'd say its only going to get worse.

 

[redmondjp]

Us urban folk are drooling over that building - talk about first-world garage problems!

 

[matt_i]

If you spend time looking it over carefully, you can copy the design of the shed that has the dually inside, and just extend it down farther. Not sure of how many feet but you could easily make it long enough for two cars if it does not stick out past the end of the main bldg.

You could also improve it with a concrete floor + short concrete wall to build the wood walls upon.

 

[PhoenixOp]

Steevo;
I'm actually from Los Angeles, the phoenixop is what I did in Vietnam, and yup, Kuna feels like the boonies. I have to drive 19 miles round trip to go to the grocery store, 6 to the gas station. Boonies...
I'll throw a couple pics of the Riv up. It's a work in progress... Kinda like life...

redmondjp;
I used to be an urban guy. Since all my toys wouldn't fit in a 2 car garage, I filled up the back yard with them. In fact at one point in my life I had 8 Mini Coopers. Real ones, not BMW's. Been there, done that. That's mostly why I bought this place, just for the shop and room to breathe.

matti;
I was looking at the lean-to part and figured I could extend it based on the existing structure. I guess other than a bunch of pressure treated wood (place size here), and more aluminum roof and sides, that would at least get the truck's **** out of the weather. My biggest question is the door on the 5th bay in front behind the tent. I'd like to use the existing skin for the door, so that when it's closed it doesn't really look like a door. I was thinking of making it 8' high vs. 10' because it's just for cars (stacked), I'm not a motor home kind of guy, so I don't really need a tall door.

The hinging and framing of the door and jam itself is what I can't get a grip on. One of the pictures is of the inside of the 5th bay (currently a stall), so you can see what I'm working with.

I'll get a shot of the inside of the lean-to so maybe you guys (who know about this stuff and know about the construction) can tell me if I can, at some future point seal it up and insulate it etc.

Oh and falcon67, thanks for the "it's only going to get worse". Yeah, don't I know it...
Since I moved into this place in July 2014 I added 4 cars. Started with the '14 Dart and the '15 Ram and it just sort of snowballed from there. Hope it doesn't get too much worse, I'll have to hit the lotto to pay for it all.

Thanks again gentlemen...

 

[shortykorte]

Pole barns are usual symmetrical and modular which generally makes them easy to add on to. A good contractor should be able to blend/align new with old. One issue would be getting the same profile and color of metal.

You might also what to weigh the difference (cost/taxes/hassle/convenience) in a bigger footprint versus going vertical and using multiple 4 post car storage lifts.

I vote for "go bigger and taller."

 

[PhoenixOp]

Hey Shorty;

This is farm country out here. They don't bang on you for outbuildings, but they sure do on the house. I could build a 4 acre shop under one roof and it wouldn't change my taxes whatsoever.

It seems like it would cost more to go up than sideways. I know that's true in houses because everything bigger or heavier costs more. This add-on and stall conversion I had planned on doing myself trying to avoid the cost of a contractor. When I had the two holes punched for bay 3 and 4 it was $1700 plus a grand for the doors. That may sound cheap to some people, but that will pay for a lot of car parts. Maybe even another car.

See ya

 

[oldmxracer]

Behind the shop is an ex-stall, where, unfortunately, I am currently stuffing my dually into. Of course, it's whole ****-end is hanging out (not thrilled about that). Since I don't know squat about "Pole Barns", I thought I would ask. Is there a way to add another piece onto the end of the stall, seal it up a little better and possibly hang a door on the end? If that is possible, what would it take in materials and procedures to make it happen?


From the picture I see, looks like a easy cost-effective fix to get the dually's ****-end covered, do not know what You might be thinking for the floor maybe just some compacted stone ?

 

[PhoenixOp]

oldmxracer;

I was thinking eventually a slab. Temporarily probably just dirt. I may look into compacted stone though, might be a good idea. My only concern is, the lean-to doesn't seem to be made as well as the rest of the shop, so I'm not sure if putting in a slab and insulation etc. is going to be workable. The wall on the right is the back wall of the shop, there is a passage door into the shop and that wall is insulated. If I extend the stall, it would mean I only have to insulate 2 and change walls and the ceiling. I could then open the window that's just out of frame in the picture where the truck is and the passage door and get some heat out there in the winter. But maybe I'm just dreaming.