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The link Brocky posted above is very good and like j hancock said, what I have or what I would like to have. People do work in all kinds of situations. Part of it really depends on what you can do and want to do. The minimum stuff is prabably obvious, a couple good bottle jacks or good floor jacks, jack stands, parts washer, big air compressor, torch, big hammers and duct tape. Ok I started joking. There are many people far better qualified to answer this question than me. I would never buy a lathe or some of the fancy machines that some people have because I don't know how to use them and probably would not use them if I knew how. I would like to learn to weld, but still don't have the time. Good luck. Mike

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My shop space is 1600 ft and it is too small.

My neighbor just built a 2800 ft barn with 16 ft ceilings and he reported that he should have gone bigger.

I have a relative with 5000 ft and it is almost full.

Seems to be a trend....

As far as tools, I don't really have anything trick. It is going to depend on what projects you are going to get into.

Jim

It doesn't cost anything to pay attention.

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I have built two shops over the years My present shop is 40' x 64' with two 20" X 44' I beams. overhead & four chain hoists. I put in a rest room with shower and a floor drain. It s big enough for long term projects and room to do other short term jobs oil changes & emergency repairs. It is not too large to heat and cool. If you need a shop and storage area larger is better. I built a pole barn and a lean to on the back of the shop for storage both are full. As for tools you know what you need and can always get more later as something new is nice.

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The only thing that matters to this old fart is something with fing HEAT.Coming from a family owned costruction company,I spent alot of time in the cold,snow,rain to either fix a truck or equipment.I can tell you this much that my days of laying in the cold mud is over with.So build it big and with alot of heat.

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My volunteer fire dept built a station 18 years ago and installed radiant floor heat at that time, and to this day it's still one of the best decisions made. If I ever build myself a shop you can damn well guarantee I will do the same thing. Spend the extra bucks and put insulation in the walls and ceiling. Even if you dont think you need it, do it anyways- insulation is cheap. You'll hold the heat in the winter and help to keep it cool in the summer.

A good industrial air compressor, a couple'a heavy work benches (with a good sized grinder and a drill press) and a good sized parts washer are absolutely a necessity.

As someone else said, be sure to incorporate some kind of heavy steel into the framing so that you can use chain or grip hoists to do heavy lifting.

A bathroom with a shower and a deep/slop sink would be very nice to have, if you do incorporate plumbing make sure you put a washing machine into the plumbing calculations- then you wont annoy the wife when you wash the shop rags in the clothes washer/dryer in the house. (whistles innocently.....)

An would be an office to do your paperwork, search the interwebs for pictures of Winfall Wimmim errrrr ahhhh I mean needed parts........making phone calls, a place to keep your manuals and books.......If I ever build a shop it's gonna have a second floor which will be for the no-wimmim allowed man-cave.

Good to have: A good sized sandblasting/glass beading cabinet

And, I wouldn't be doing my civic duty as a firefighter if I did not recommend that you install an NFPA-compliant sprinkler system. Protect yourself and your investments from fire!!!

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TWO STROKES ARE FOR GARDEN TOOLS

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Figure how big you need, and double it. I have two detached, 26 X 40 just full of "stuff" ( toys , car, quads, etc.) 36' X 45' to work in. When I built my house in 96, put radiant in the whole house, including the two stall garage. The only way to go as far as heat is. With radiant, you can heat the water with just about anything, oil, coal, gas, waste oil, wood.

Tools? The sky's the limit. A blue wrench and a bfh, lol.

Live every day like it's your last, because one of these days, it will be.

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I have a 30 x 50 semi insulated with a wood stove and a multi fuel 250k torpedo heater for cooler weather and a 4ft fan for the warmer weather. Make sure to put in at least a 12ft door, a 14ft would be better. My shop has two long bays but that is because I did not build it, I would have put the doors on the long sides with at least one drive thru bay. I have a 14ft lean to with extra over hang. I also have a front concrete apron that is good for working out side or washing. I have water but no bath room.

As far as tools depends on what you want to do. I have paint guns to air blow guns. I think a must would be air, impact wrenches, good assortment of hand tools, electric drill 1/2", parts washer, hand held grinder, 6" vise mounted on a solid work bench and a good bottle jack with a couple sets of jack stands. That would be enough to get you started than buy tools as you need them.

My neighbor's shop is 40 x 60 and he has in floor heat but he is always adding insulation because he uses so much propane to keep it at 60 degrees.

One last thing if you are going to have metal pole barn or shop built make sure that they use house wrap on it or you spray foam it, they may look at you funny but pole barns style buildings are not air tight like they build houses. Also if you get the insulation package have them put at least an R 30 + on the roof not that 2" stuff, spend your money on insulation. Another friend had them put up metal on the ceiling white side down with a hatch and created an attic space and he filled it with blown cellulose. His shop is always nice to work in in the winter and he also has radiant floor heat and it takes about 600 gallons of propane a year to heat it. His shop is 40x60 with 16 ft ceilings.

Robert

"I reject your reality and substitute my own."

 

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30x40 heavily insulated. 13' 6" ceiling. Trailer furnace, pellet stove and salmander. It's cold up here! I wish I did the radiant heat. Was talked out of it. 30x40 Barn, 30x 40 house garage. All full! If you build it. They will come! 2 Macks outside.

.Put plenty of electrical outlets in, Thanks Maddog! Ceiling fans are a must for various reasons. Windows and plenty of bench space.

Edited by AdirondakMack
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