A shop question...

Yet another vote for 10 here. I had height restrictions so poured a 6" wall and built 8' walls on the footing giving me a ceiling height of 8' 6" which is a huge improvement over 8' (ability to swing a 4x8 sheet of plywood end over end). I would not go for 8. Is the space over the room within the barn any consideration? I would hate to cripple all that potential storage.

Brian
 
Ya I forgot to metion that. The space above it is my attic/basement. I don't have either in the house. But there is only Christmas decorations/misc stuff up there. No heavy stuff. So when I raise the ceiling I'm going to go with I joists so it will clear span everything.

Thanks,
Chris
 
Hawkeye said:
I'd go 10'. You're only going to do it once. Light fixtures can be chain-hung initially and raised should the need arise. A couple of ceiling fans will help with the heating - preventing the heat from collecting up high.

We often hear members mentioning a lack of ceiling height. Easiest to deal with it now.

On the topic of lighting, has anyone used the newer T5 fluorescent lights? They cost more, but they do an amazing job. They do work better, however, with a higher ceiling. With any type of fluorescent, I always recommend at least a 4100K colour temperature, preferably 5000K. (I have some 6500K tubes) These are closer to sunlight, which is what your eyes were made to use. The old Warm White tubes are 2700K.
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I use t-8 5000k, t-5 are nice, especially HO verison, but watch the electricity bill go up as well, right now i do not see anything in LED in strip format that's worth it. but i am waiting for them to make them. you are correct that t-12 are going away, finding the replacement magnetic ballast will also soon be a thing of the past, they do have electronic versions, but at that point going to t-8 is cheaper.
 
Tamper84 said:
Heating is up in the air. I have a pellet stove from my old house that I used to heat it. But insurance says no go in the shop, but I can have it in the house
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Chris, what was the reason the insurance gave you? Can you change something to work around their policy condition, (whatever that may be)? Maybe put a cot in the corner and make it "habitable" Then it might become eligible:dunno:

Cheers Phil
 
When I sold my old shop in down town it was going to be torn down so I was advised to take anything I could use out of there. I had a bunch of T12 fixtures in there so I took them down. When my new shop at home was ready for lights I used these in my machine shop area. Bought a bunch of T8 ballasts and converted them all.. Lots of light and easy on the hydro bill.
Nick
 
12bolts said:
Chris, what was the reason the insurance gave you? Can you change something to work around their policy condition, (whatever that may be)? Maybe put a cot in the corner and make it "habitable" Then it might become eligible:dunno:

Cheers Phil
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Idk the reasoning Phil. They were supposed to get back to me but never did. I have been wondering that myself. And I have tried and tried calling them back. I would love o use it out there. Maybe I need to call around and see about another insurance agent.

Thanks,
chris
 
Thanks again Guys,

After some research, man the lumber I need to clear span this is expensive! I got quoted 37 bucks a piece for a 2x10x24!! And I think I can get I-joist for 28 bucks a piece. And if I did my math right, I need 15 of em. I know that isnt much in the grand scheme of things... Any who, how would you guys go about it?

Thanks,
Chris
 
A nit but if it is 21' wide, couldn't you use 22' beams? What would it work out to putting one large laminated beam (or steel I beam from the recycle folks) down the middle and smaller joists either side of it? Since the space above is only storage you could use much smaller joists on the shorter span. Most of the depth in joists are to reduce the spring, not to add strength. If it doesn't have to be to code, and you are really a building inside a building, is there any opportunity to suspend a skyhook to the middle of the span of the main center joist from the roof of the pole barn? That would not break code but I am sure they would want an engineer to sign off on it. Another approach that would definitely not be to code would be to make your own I beams out of 2X4 and plywood. I once lifted up my house using a home made box beam with 2X6 top and bottom and 3/4 inch plywood sides. (and glue, screws, and nails) It worked fine and didn't protest at all but I gather that if it lets go it lets go with a bang instead of lots of creaking first.

If all else fails, my vote would be to bite the bullet and pay the money. It would be a shame to spoil the clear span.

Brian
 
Yes I could use 22 foot beams. But I asked the local lumber yard what stock sizes are and they said it goes from 20' to 24. I have thought about running a beam down the 26' side and using smaller joists to make up the distance to center. Sorry for the dumb questions but I have only messed with metal in my life. Never wood, it's embarrassing actually...

I wish I would have an attic then I wouldn't have to worry about this lol. But if te strength doesn't come from the width of the lumber, could I use 2x6s instead? I know dumb questions.

With that skyhook idea, that does sound intriguing. Heck I haven't been in the loft since I moved in, that was in April. First house.....

Thanks,
Chris

p.s yes this is pretty much a building in a building.
 
Are you planning on using the upper part for storage? If so, you'll want to build it as a floor. If not, you can go much lighter on the framing materials if its basically gonna be just to hold in the heat. It'll probably be cheapest to put one large carrying beam down the center and smaller joists for the half span. A nice steel beam spanned across the 21 ft would be the way I'd do it.

In case your wondering, I'm a builder, I've done hundreds of them. ;)
 
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