gtae07
Well-known member
Wife and I are planning to add a pad in front of my shop, and an expanded patio, preferably at the same time to save on concrete pump costs. However, I have a few technical/design-type questions.
First, the parking pad. You can see pictures of the shop in my build thread (see signature). Due to lot layout etc, the roll-up doors are on the "side" of the building, as viewed from the back door of the house. Our lot is narrow and slopes down away from the house, so I had to add dirt for the shop to sit. The ground thus slopes away from the shop on the sides and rear.
As it stands now, I think it is just barely possible to back a vehicle down, make the turn, and pull into the shop--the wall with the doors is about 25ft from the fence. I've never actually done it though, since working on cars isn't the purpose of the shop and I don't have the room to park one there anyway. I've pulled up close to unload stuff but never tried to get in through the doors.
I'd like the pad to go in front of the rollup doors, having it run the length of the building (28ft) and extending about 14-15 ft out. This would allow a vehicle to park long-ways and be worked on if need be, and I'd be able to unload stuff and move it inside a little easier. I could also plop a basketball hoop on one end for my son to use since our driveway isn't really suitable.
The problem(?) with this plan is that, in doing so, I'd pretty much permanently keep any vehicle from being able to park in the shop. I don't care personally, but a future owner might. The reason why, is that by putting the pad there, I'd have to do more dirt-filling and there'd be a somewhat steep drop from the end of the pad to the fence. There's a 10ft easement along that side for the city to have access to the drainage ditch behind my property, and I need to keep that at least somewhat clear. Plus, the drop from the far corner of the pad to the existing grade would probably be in the 12-18in range, which I'd have to slope down from there.
Anyone see a problem here?
Second, what kind of thickness/footing should I be looking at for this? Should I tie into the slab of the shop or just leave it floating?
For the patio expansion, it's just a standard foot traffic and furniture load. Anything special here, or just a 4" pad? Any footers?
First, the parking pad. You can see pictures of the shop in my build thread (see signature). Due to lot layout etc, the roll-up doors are on the "side" of the building, as viewed from the back door of the house. Our lot is narrow and slopes down away from the house, so I had to add dirt for the shop to sit. The ground thus slopes away from the shop on the sides and rear.
As it stands now, I think it is just barely possible to back a vehicle down, make the turn, and pull into the shop--the wall with the doors is about 25ft from the fence. I've never actually done it though, since working on cars isn't the purpose of the shop and I don't have the room to park one there anyway. I've pulled up close to unload stuff but never tried to get in through the doors.
I'd like the pad to go in front of the rollup doors, having it run the length of the building (28ft) and extending about 14-15 ft out. This would allow a vehicle to park long-ways and be worked on if need be, and I'd be able to unload stuff and move it inside a little easier. I could also plop a basketball hoop on one end for my son to use since our driveway isn't really suitable.
The problem(?) with this plan is that, in doing so, I'd pretty much permanently keep any vehicle from being able to park in the shop. I don't care personally, but a future owner might. The reason why, is that by putting the pad there, I'd have to do more dirt-filling and there'd be a somewhat steep drop from the end of the pad to the fence. There's a 10ft easement along that side for the city to have access to the drainage ditch behind my property, and I need to keep that at least somewhat clear. Plus, the drop from the far corner of the pad to the existing grade would probably be in the 12-18in range, which I'd have to slope down from there.
Anyone see a problem here?
Second, what kind of thickness/footing should I be looking at for this? Should I tie into the slab of the shop or just leave it floating?
For the patio expansion, it's just a standard foot traffic and furniture load. Anything special here, or just a 4" pad? Any footers?
