So its finally happening

[05snopro440]

I'm going to add a window or two to my shop just to let in some light. I've discovered that when the power goes out, it's pitch black in there. Not good in a building jam-packed with hard, heavy, sharp stuff, as you try to make your way to the door. I'm going to put in a couple small, non-opening windows up high so no break-in risk.

My last garage had no windows. I liked it for security (in town) but not for working. My current garage (rural acreage subdivision) has two large windows in the east wall (roughly 6' tall and 3' wide) one medium sized window in the north wall, and windows in all 3 garage doors on the west wall. It's really nice to work in there on a nice sunny day where I can get a lot of natural light without having to have a door open. I also have LED lights, but the natural light makes it so much more enjoyable to work in there.

 

[Fasthotrod]

shop will be used for automotive work with a 2 post lift and will have other tools along the walls such as blast cabinet, grinders, work benches, shelving, welders, press and later on a lathe and mill.
is 16' excessive? seems like most people here are doing fine with 12-14'. i'm just trying not to regret anything in the future. if i had raised the roof on our garage when we built the house i wouldn't have to be doing any of this right now.
reason for the rear door is just to let air and light in, no other reason.
i'm now also considering installing sky lights, i figured it wouldn't be too difficult considering they type of roof.

Just a few thoughts, based on my own shop experience.

16' is a bit much. I went 40 x 50 with a 14' sidewall. 4/12 pitch roof, open span red iron. Insulated. I have a 12x12 door, a 10x10 door, and a man door. My ceiling sits at about 21' - 22' at the peak. In retrospect, I should have gone with a 12x10 door for that added width, because it's fine for vehicles but a bit more challenging for backing in a trailer.

Like you, I wanted space for the 2-post lift. With the open span, I have way more than enough room for the lift. In fact, I have enough space for a mezzanine above my office/bathroom space that I built, providing me with more storage space. (My buddy calls it my DJ Booth.)

The rear door is a good idea for multiple reasons. Airflow, light... plus a way to get outside a take a leak if necessary.

I would pass of the skylights. I had considered the same, but my builder warned me that they leak... and it's just a matter of time before they do. Instead, consider windows along the top of the walls, up high... that way you let in the light, but they are less of a security concern from prying eyes and would-be thieves. Depending on which windows you get, you can also open them for the airflow that you're looking for as well.

I've included some pics from my shop build. The first is of the lift just after I installed it. The 2nd is a picture taken from the mezzanine above my office space so that you can see the clearance for the lift with the 14' side wall. The third is the office space and mezzanine where I took the 2nd picture, and you can see the main 12x12 door there on the left. The 4th is basically where the 2-post lift is, looking back towards the 10x10 door. The lift is centered on the 10x10 opening so that it's a straight shot into the bay and on to the lift.

Mark

 

[CraigStu]

Re; floor flatness. Talk to him but don't get too concerned. I do my own alignments so that is a concern for me. But in all the garages I have had I end up w/ a marker and shims. I use a level set on same length sockets at the location of each tire. I get the left level compared to the right. I generally end up w/ about a 1/4 in shim at one tire or the other. So my floor has 4 rectangles marked on it. One has 1/4 in it an another has 1/8 so I remember where to put my shims. BTW I don't worry about front to rear since none of mine have been far enough off to cause a problem.

 

[Fasthotrod]

One of best pieces of advice I received for my shop build was from a friend that is a commercial electrician. He asked me about the electrical lay out, where I wanted outlets, lighting, the 2-post lift, welders, other machines that require 240 VAC, etc... I had a general idea, but figured I'd run everything surface mount on the walls, or up and across the ceiling.

He mentioned that from a cost perspective, and to keep it clean to the eye, it's better to trench and drop PVC under the slab and stub up the walls. The distance is a straight shot from the electrical panel to any place, rather than up walls, bending corners, or trying to run up and over that tall ceiling area. (I had to rent a lift to run the conduit and wiring and hang the lighting in my shop. You can see it in the previous pictures.)

So I took his advice, and it worked out great. I ran eight 3/4" runs and four 1" runs, and they all stub up and run into a trough that sits below my main electrical box. I built a small template to keep them aligned when I back filled the dirt. My slab is 5.5" thick, and I stubbed the conduits up so that the couplings are just above the surface of the concrete. The 2" and two 3/4" conduits on the side there head over to the house. One is for power, one if for fiber/CAT-6, one is a spare.

Mark

 

[supratreo]

Just a few thoughts, based on my own shop experience.

16' is a bit much. I went 40 x 50 with a 14' sidewall. 4/12 pitch roof, open span red iron. Insulated. I have a 12x12 door, a 10x10 door, and a man door. My ceiling sits at about 21' - 22' at the peak. In retrospect, I should have gone with a 12x10 door for that added width, because it's fine for vehicles but a bit more challenging for backing in a trailer.

Like you, I wanted space for the 2-post lift. With the open span, I have way more than enough room for the lift. In fact, I have enough space for a mezzanine above my office/bathroom space that I built, providing me with more storage space. (My buddy calls it my DJ Booth.)

The rear door is a good idea for multiple reasons. Airflow, light... plus a way to get outside a take a leak if necessary.

I would pass of the skylights. I had considered the same, but my builder warned me that they leak... and it's just a matter of time before they do. Instead, consider windows along the top of the walls, up high... that way you let in the light, but they are less of a security concern from prying eyes and would-be thieves. Depending on which windows you get, you can also open them for the airflow that you're looking for as well.

I've included some pics from my shop build. The first is of the lift just after I installed it. The 2nd is a picture taken from the mezzanine above my office space so that you can see the clearance for the lift with the 14' side wall. The third is the office space and mezzanine where I took the 2nd picture, and you can see the main 12x12 door there on the left. The 4th is basically where the 2-post lift is, looking back towards the 10x10 door. The lift is centered on the 10x10 opening so that it's a straight shot into the bay and on to the lift.

Mark

Shop looks great. if you dont mind me asking, what would be the ballpark cost on that building with insulation and install? i'm guess the company you buy from also designs and installs? do they have any special requirements for floor/foundation?
obviously you had to know where all your equipment would be before you did the electrical, did you move from another shop and just copy the layout?

 

[Fasthotrod]

Shop looks great. if you dont mind me asking, what would be the ballpark cost on that building with insulation and install? i'm guess the company you buy from also designs and installs? do they have any special requirements for floor/foundation?
obviously you had to know where all your equipment would be before you did the electrical, did you move from another shop and just copy the layout?

Thanks! I am in central Oklahoma, so construction costs will be lower than pretty much anywhere in the country. The shop was built in August, 2018. I did all of the dirt and electrical work, so it was just material costs and renting the lift to hang the lights.

The contractor subcontracted the concrete work to a local business, and they set the forms and called in the four concrete trucks to do the pour. I went with 4,000 psi concrete with a fiber mesh reinforcement. They had it done by mid-afternoon, then came back later in the week to saw cut the concrete for me. (I paid extra for that, it wasn't in my original contract.) They used a skid steer with a post hole digger attachment to drill down for concrete piers where every 4x4 steel post is located. This guy and his crew were damn good... at the very end of the pour, I thought that they had run out of concrete... but they scraped the chute and filled that last hole, and it finished out perfectly.

All in, with concrete, insulation, two insulated garage doors, a garage door opener on the 12x12 door, and the man door was about $36,800 if memory serves? I'm sure it would be closer to $50k today, given inflation and everything that is going on in the world right now.

The company that I worked with to build it works with another building supply company south of me. They do the designs in-house based on the customer's needs, then sell it as a package to the company that erected it for me.

This is my first shop build. I designed this shop using SketchUp, and had it plotted on my property along with my house to see how it would lay out. I had a general idea where I wanted everything inside the shop, but in retrospect I made a few errors that I wish I could go back and fix. I got some great feedback and ideas from people here on the Garage Forum, so it kinda feels like I cheated a bit... but overall I'm happy with the shop so far.

Mark

 

[supratreo]

thanks a lot @Fasthotrod
i'm sure being in CA would automatically add a couple thousand to that.
how would i go about finding a local company that builds these? what is it called exactly?
i would have to sub out the concrete but was thinking i might tackle the excavation and base myself but well see. the electrical i will be doing myself for sure.

 

[Fasthotrod]

thanks a lot @Fasthotrod

how would i go about finding a local company that builds these? what is it called exactly?

I did a quick Google search for, "metal building" in your area, and got quite a few hits.

Fabri-Steel West Inc. | Steel Building Construction

Fabri Steel West Inc. is a CSLB and DIR licensed building contractor erecting multi-service metal buildings in the Northern California region for over 23 years.

www.fswest.com

Contact

Don’t hesitate to reach out with the contact information below, or send a message using the form. Get in Touch 3443 Ramona Avenue, Suite 21 3443 Ramona AveSuite #21Sacramento, Ca 95826USA ame…

americanbuildingsjs.com

California Metal Buildings

We offer three custom build styles of metal buildings to your preference. We have Classical style, A-Frame Vertical and A-Frame Horizontal laso known as Boxed Eave.

www.californiametalbuildings.net

I have no idea if any of these companies are worth a damn or not, but they should be able to provide you with pictures of previous projects that they have completed, or even provide you with local examples that you can drive by and see for yourself. (Mine did both.)

I used a tractor with a box blade to do my dirt work. They said it had to be within 1" across the entire pad. I have a laser level, so I shot the grade and marked it off, then started taking down the high spots. I got it about as good as I was going to get it, then I had a big sheep's foot vibratory roller delivered to make sure that the ground was well compacted. That big ******* left permanent dimples in my blacktop driveway. Oops! (I need to tear it out and replace it with concrete anyway, so no big loss.)

The Oklahoma clay can be 'fun' to work with. In the summer heat, it's like concrete... but get it wet, and it becomes some slippery slime and mushy as hell. I took my time with getting the dirt right... and every time it rained I could easily see where I needed some additional work.

Good luck with your contractor search.

Mark