# My new building layout plans, with pics



## Investigator (Jun 26, 2019)

I'm planning on building a new building for a shop.  Currently, I am using the 'garage' area of our Barndominium home.  It was always intended to be a shop, but I seem to have outgrown it.  Not to mention my wife needs a garage.

So the plan is to build a new building.  For what it is worth, I live in the country, on 27 acres.  I'm out of the city and there are no problems with codes/zoning or permits.  What I am thinking is a 30x30 metal building, 10' or 12' sides with low pitched roof.  I have been racking my brain over the layout and I think I finally found the key that can make this work for me: Walls.   I think I need interior walls to divide the space, rather than having perimeter walls and lots of open floor space.

This is going to house all the tools, both woodworking and metalworking.  I want and need to keep the lathe and mill and associated projects free from the wood dust from the woodworking. That's another reason for walls, plus walls give me something to put tools against and help define the different spaces.  Below is my current thought about tool/shop layout.  I have a machine shop space, grinding/sanding/welding space and woodworking and general workspace.  The cutting/grinding area is open to the woodworking space to allow more room for longer cut offs as needed.  Most of the woodworking tools now are mounted on mobile bases.

All suggestions and thoughts both good and bad are welcome.


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## Stonebriar (Jun 26, 2019)

Hi there I kind of live in your area of the world.  Nice plan there. I have a  couple of ideas to toss out there.  

1 is side walls.  I had a shop for 20 years with 10' side walls and height was an issue over and over. And if I am not mistaken if you want a 10' tall roll up door it requires a 12' sidewall. As you drew up a 10' tall roll up is a must if you ever need to bring in any large equipment to move something. I rented a sky jack machine to move my equipment in my old shop and guess what. It wouldn't fit under the door.  My new shop has 12' walls and I am a happy camper.

2 is a suggestion for a larger opening to your machine room. You never know when the Bridgeport fairy might drop by. Or a 14x40 lathe deal you cant refuse.

Congratulations on your new building.


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## MikeInOr (Jun 26, 2019)

In my old garage my welding and woodworking equipment were all in the same room.  They didn't work very well together.  Saw dust plastered to every metal working tool with oil on it and welding / grinding grit settling on the wood.  My current shop is split down the center and it is really nice to have the two separate.

I don't know how much woodworking you do but I do a lot and my wood storage is always a pain to get to and get sheets in and out of it.  It looks like your wood storage might also be difficult to get wood in and out of.  It also looks like your wood storage will interfere with cutting long pieces on your RAS.  My 1947 Redstar radial arm saws is the machine I use most for woodworking... but that is just me.  Vertical wood storage is good for sheets.  Overhead horizontal wood storage is really nice for long lumber.  You might consider your wood working layout to follow the work flow.  Unload the lumber into the wood storage.  Pull the lumber out and joint then plane.  Then cut.  Then glue up.  Then finish.  Is there a way you could partition off part of your shop for finishing in a dust free environment when needed?   Just a thought.  I assume the rolling work bench is going to be the same height as your table saw table so you can use it as an outfeed table?

Enclosing the air compressor and RPC is really nice to keep their noise isolated.  What about an eventual dust collector?  That same closet might be nice for a dust collector... or maybe an external closet off the back of the shop might work better... this is where I will go eventually.

It is nice to have a drill press for just woodworking... when you find someone giving away one for ridiculously cheap on craigslist... to keep the oil off your wood and the sawdust off your metal.  A 6" belt / 12" disk sander is another great tool that I don't know how I got along without.

The best thing I ever put in my shop was a sink!  Just another thought.

I haven't figured out a good way to store long pieces of metal tubing and such.... always a pain to deal with.

Are you doing upper cabinets / shelves around the wall for small tool and supply storage?  Tools below and cabinets above?  Even just 12" upper cabinets will store a lot of stuff and not interfere with the machinery much at all.

I like that you put your 4x6 bandsaw next to the door so you can cut tubing down to length as your are unloading.  You might want to consider locating your metal storage closer to the band saw for quicker easier access?

Windows?  Heating / Cooling?  Ventilation... sucking out air born saw dust and welding fumes etc?

I agree with stonebriar, the 3' door to the back room sounds kind of small.  How about a 3.5" - 4" sliding pocket door back there to keep from loosing wall space for tools from the door?

Your drawing is a little hard to read which tools are which... is it possible to post a bit bigger picture?


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## JimDawson (Jun 26, 2019)

Looks pretty good .....But (there's always a but  )  Think about moving the air comp and maybe dust collection to the northeast corner.  That way you can access outside air for ventilation and on the northeast corner it won't get so much hot afternoon sun.

I'm another vote for a 12 ft door, sometimes I wish I had 14 feet.


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## fixit (Jun 26, 2019)

My only comment is to provide plenty of ventilation for the compressor. It will generate a lot of heat & it may also be a good idea to draw outside air for the intake.


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## Jubil (Jun 26, 2019)

I like it except for one thing. It ain't mine  .
Chuck


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## tq60 (Jun 26, 2019)

Build up.

Ours is 2 story but due to zoning lower level only 10 ft.

Building is 24 ft tall, 30 x 60.



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## Investigator (Jun 26, 2019)

Thanks for the ideas so far.  The roll up door is 10' wide 8' tall which is what I have now.  Air compressor room will have an exhaust fan like a bathroom, taking hot air out the top of the room, pulling air in from the bottom.  Here in Texas my biggest issue will be keeping it all cool.  Im planning a central air unit with heat.  The pocket door idea sounds good.

I'll post a larger pic tomorrow when I get to the other computer.


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## Boswell (Jun 26, 2019)

a couple of thoughts.
High ceilings so you you can run air and power lines above or some day put in a gantry crane over the machine shop section. 
Also use plywood for the walls instead of sheetrock. MUCH easier to fasten stuff anywhere it is needed.


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## MikeInOr (Jun 27, 2019)

Investigator said:


> Thanks for the ideas so far.  The roll up door is 10' wide 8' tall which is what I have now.  Air compressor room will have an exhaust fan like a bathroom, taking hot air out the top of the room, pulling air in from the bottom.  Here in Texas my biggest issue will be keeping it all cool.  Im planning a central air unit with heat.  The pocket door idea sounds good.
> 
> I'll post a larger pic tomorrow when I get to the other computer.



I really like the mini-split AC I installed in my house.  It cools MUCH better than my central AC but uses a fraction of the electricity.  There are mini split AC systems available that will run multiple inside head units.  My mini-split AC is actually a heat pump so it cools in the summer and heats in the winter.  Heat pump heating is almost always much more efficient (cheaper) than electrical resistance heat.

https://www.acwholesalers.com/cooling/multi-zone-ductless-mini-splits.html


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## Investigator (Jun 27, 2019)




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## Investigator (Jun 27, 2019)

I can tell its hard to see and read, so starting from the 10' roll up door and going clockwise:

4x6 horizontal band saw
12" metal chop saw
welding table with welder (AC/DC stick and TIG)
Storage area/shelving
Sand Blast cabinet
continueing inside this 10x20' space clockwise- 8" bench grinder
Belt sander
moving to 10x20 space in upper left and moving clockwise within:

RF 30 8x28 mill
metal storage- cut offs, short pieces
2x3 metal storage cabinet
workbench in corner
doorway
12" Logan lathe
rolling tool box in center
in center of building is small room for 80 gallon air compressor and RPC

Back to 10' roll up door in front and moving counter clockwise within the space:

12" delta planer
wood storage
12" radial arm saw
12" miter chop saw
12" wood band saw
joiner
Pigeon hole storage (I got this from my grandfathers house after he passed away. It is an unmatched set of wooden drawers and cubby hole storage. I remember anytime something needed repair or a weird part replaced, Grandad always went to these and dug around and made it work.)
shelving and storage
workbench on back wall with shelving and storage above
rolling toolbox
in the largest open space a rolling workbench and 10" cabinet saw.
10" drill press   
Hope that helps understand whats there.


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## Winegrower (Jun 27, 2019)

These are always very personal choices of course.  For me, in Northern California, heat and AC are not big issues (maybe i’ll put on a sweater).   My shop is about 25’x30’, wood and metal, with 3 10’ sliding doors along the long side, so I can move outside for messy stuff.    Everything is on wheels except lathe and mill...I prefer moving the equipment around to match the project work flow better.  So I would not put in many interior walls.   And with a dust collector, I have been surprised how little dust gets to the metal equipment.   But, I have two low beams that prevent having a forklift...that is sometimes an issue.   Thumbs up on the sink idea...wish I had that.


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## mickri (Jun 27, 2019)

I envy you guys that can have a separate shop.  Here is my garage shop.




Everything is on wheels except for the lathe and the radial arm saw.  Not shown is my welder, 3x6 band saw and two rolling tool chests.  All of this stuff has to dance around my 1966 MG Midget which is under going restoration.  Wood storage is behind the radial arm saw and metal storage is behind the lathe.  Not wanting to take over this thread.  My purpose in showing my shop was to show how modeling in Google Sketchup makes it easy to visualize your layout.


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## Investigator (Jun 27, 2019)

mickri said:


> I envy you guys that can have a separate shop.  Here is my garage shop.
> 
> View attachment 297318
> 
> ...



Love to know more about using the sketchup software you are using


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## mickri (Jun 27, 2019)

I find Sketchup to be a lot like drawing with paper and pencil.  And you end up with a 3d model that you can spin and rotate to view it from any angle.  The book "Sketchup for Dummies" will quickly get you up to speed.  It is available to read online.  The program is free to download.  Like any program there are some quirks.  I use it whenever I think about making anything.   For example this week I thought about making another tool holder for my Norman style QCTP and did a Sketchup drawing of the tool holder.


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## samstu (Jun 30, 2019)

Of my last three shops, two have included separate office spaces.  My current shop has a modest office of perhaps 7x8.  I have separate heating and cooling (electric heater and portable AC unit) for the office to allow a space to either get extra warmth or cooling. I don't find that the bulk of the shop needs to be perfect temperature.   The office allows space for computer, 3d printer, manuals, gun cabinet and other items that don't like dust, etc.  I probably use the computer more often than anything other than my wrenches.  

Additionally, I thought that code requires circuit panel to be on or near outside wall, so I would consider the electric panel location when locating RPC, Air compressor and high amp tools since conduit and thick wire gets expensive.

Consider running plumbing, sewer and empty conduit thru concrete floor, even if you have no plans for restroom, sink etc as plans always seem to change over time.  I did this once and It made bringing in additional electric a simple process.

Lastly, since windows aren't shown on your drawing,  ensure that you have fire escapes for each room.


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## matthewsx (Jun 30, 2019)

Ok, I've only built one shop, a 40'x60' commercial building. I've had others and currently work out of our garage, here are my thoughts.

1. Make it bigger - incremental cost of a larger building is small compared to expanding later. If cost is an issue now go higher and make one of the walls strong enough to attach a lean-to later. Go as high as you can since wall space up high can be great for storage with pallet racking and a possible loft, as others have said an 8' roll-up door is going to be a serious limitation. If you know you're never going to work on bigger projects you can go with something that will fit the tools you have now but what if your wife wants you to restore a vintage travel trailer? With no zoning limitations I'd go for something like a 40x60 and leave half of it unfinished if needed.

2. Separate areas are a great idea, put a roll up door on the metal shop so you can get equipment in/out and can work with it open on nice days. Also this will allow you to run multiple mini-split AC units so you can only cool the area you're working in at the time.

3. Compressor, RPC, dust collector should all live outside. A small lean-to will keep them out of the elements and the heat really shouldn't bother them.  Definitely consider electrical runs while building to ensure the shortest distance for high current tools. You may also want to run some conduit through the floor before you pour the slab, it's awfully nice to be able to power equipment that's in the middle of a space from an outlet right there rather than having to drop down from the ceiling or have extension cords on the floor.

4. Absolutely stub in plumbing for a bathroom with a shower, you will be glad you did. 

5. An office isn't a bad idea either. It will give you an area to plan and keep books, computers, drawings, etc. out of the way of your tools. 

If this is your "forever home" then do it once and do it right. It's fairly easy to modify a steel building or pole barn after it's built but making it bigger is more difficult. You probably already know that your wife will have stuff she wants to store and maybe even a hobby area of her own, I'e never heard someone say they wish their shop was smaller....


Cheers,

John


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## stioc (Jun 30, 2019)

I'm in the process of reorging my shop (attached 2 car garage). I can no longer function efficiently in my 22x22 garage anymore with a car lift, machine tools and woodworking stuff. If I have to unfold, drag out the stuff then put it back basically I'm spending not only time but also my energy on setup. Sometimes more time is spent on setting up for a job than the actual work if I just have to run a couple of quick weld beads or cut up a part or turn something.

So my plan is now to dedicate one half of the garage to the automotive work, the other half to the machining/fabrication/welding etc and move all the woodworking to a 10x12 shed in the backyard since I don't do a lot of woodworking but still have the basic tooling (table saw, miter saw, drill press, jigs, scrap wood etc).

This is the first draft I did but have since made some minor changes


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## astjp2 (Jun 30, 2019)

matthewsx said:


> Ok, I've only built one shop, a 40'x60' commercial building. I've had others and currently work out of our garage, here are my thoughts.
> 
> 1. Make it bigger - incremental cost of a larger building is small compared to expanding later. If cost is an issue now go higher and make one of the walls strong enough to attach a lean-to later. Go as high as you can since wall space up high can be great for storage with pallet racking and a possible loft, as others have said an 8' roll-up door is going to be a serious limitation. If you know you're never going to work on bigger projects you can go with something that will fit the tools you have now but what if your wife wants you to restore a vintage travel trailer? With no zoning limitations I'd go for something like a 40x60 and leave half of it unfinished if needed.
> 
> ...


I agree with what you are saying.  I would go as big as you absolutely can afford now.  I am looking at a 50x80 steel building, 16 foot walls, which will keep everything out of the weather.  I would also add in-floor heat that runs off the hot water heater and a circulation pump and a few zones.   you want 4" of insulation under the concrete and 8" in the walls if you have the room and 18" in the ceiling.  Ceiling fans in each area.

Concrete needs to be thick and lots of rebar, 6" minimum if you dont want it to move with your machines on it, 12" directly under the machines if possible.  Air conditioning also keeps the moisture down.  I would also add an area for pallet racking, I have a horizontal compressor that I put on top of it then I can still put stuff underneath it.  Allow room for an air dryer, it will help with the plumbing for air lines later on. 

Power needs to be adequate for multiple machines in multiple locations, if you can find some, run a wire way that is enclosed, then you just drop the 120/220/3ph where you need it with a down drop.  I have 6 different 220 outlets in a 20/40 shop along just one wall, I am planning on adding a few along the opposite wall. 

LED lighting, 8' T12's are no coming down in price, enough to be cost effective and provide a lot of light.  I would also paint the floor white, and use steel for the lower portion of the walls, if you ever weld, it  can be a building saver.  Just use the same type of material that the outside of the building but use white.  The white walls and floor will help with light, especially at lower levels. 

If you want a car lift, you want to put sonotubes down to support the lift, I guy I worked with had his fall over with a Ford 3/4 ton on the lift, anchors pulled out of the floor.  No rebar on the anchors either...

This part of the criteria for my ultimate shop, I will also add a second floor with my library and storage with a small gantry crane to load and unload the upper level for about 8-12 feet across one end.


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## Flyinfool (Jun 30, 2019)

Bigger is better, Every single person that I personally know that built a shop ended up wishing it was bigger except for one person. He has 2 shops, the "little shop is 40 x 60 with a 12 foot high door. The "big" shop is 100 feet x 264 feet with a full 9" thick slab floor and 14 foot high doores at each end. He has not run out of space yet. Yes I am jealous and envious.......


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## Carasad (Dec 16, 2021)

The construction cost of any building in Mumbai is 2,500 pounds per square foot. However, it should be noted that depending on the area, and the price will change. Different materials used in the construction of houses are also taken into account. Buildings in Mumbai should be built by agreement with the authorities and the entire amount at once (I do not know what this is due to, perhaps because there are many unfinished objects in the country). You can try to build buildings using fewer materials (so you can save money). Take a look here https://www.boutiquehomeplans.com/ various house plans and designs, and maybe you can choose something suitable and less expensive, good luck!


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