Got a Price for Florida Workshop Building

The sheet I was referring to is a black or dark gray. It is sometimes used by gardeners that put it on top of mulch and then cut holes in it to plant. It supposedly keeps down "weeds" from growing between the sets. I have seen the stuff used under concrete to prevent tree roots getting where they shouldn't. It's expensive, certainly out of my reach. I just used sheet plastic to stop ground moisture and called it good enough. It wasn't, but that's another story.

The sand ground in that part of Florida is highly corrosive. Some of it is the residual salt that has gotten into the sand. The St John's river is still brackish toward Ocala. And some is just the dirt that dislikes metal. Whether acidic or whatever, metal rusts fast. Many old timers used a strip of flashing metal for ground contact, with the "good" siding stopping about 6 inches up. There was an old fellow up around Bostwick. . . but he was in his 80s in '75. Before they built the nuke plant south of Green Cove.

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I'm not going to worry about power outages taking out the air conditioning, because they will also take out the power tools. If the tools aren't running, there is no reason for me to be in the shop.

We don't have salt in the soil here. Maybe it's a problem near rivers.
 
I did a quote on a 30x30 metal building a year back... all in it was around 30K and they took care of everything (permits, concrete, etc.). I decided not to move forward to wait for a friend to quote me the build using cinder blocks... well, a year later and she is still too busy with work and some personal situations with her family... so she recommended I go with a local (Ocala) contractor... She has her office in Kissimmee so it was going to be a bit of a pain for her team to do it...

I do not mind a steel building, it is just that it is going to be hot as heck in there... I sweat just walking, can't imagine inside a metal building... A/C for me, in whatever building ends up being built, is a must. Reading about your challenges in getting it insulated makes me even more reluctant to go that route...

I have termite coverage in the house and the shed we built recently... adding the detached garage is not an issue... I just want this built asap and I know that is not happening with the amount of work/backlog these folks have...

I might ask them if they can do the roof in metal instead of shingles... just to cut back on maintenance for the roof... metal over the panels to make it easier to insulate...
 
I don't want a $700 power bill every month.

fwiw i have a 1125 sq' air conditioned build out inside my metal building with 9' ceilings. that plus the rest of the shop (2 air compressors, rpc, welders, fans, motorhomes with a/c running at times, etc) my electric bill during the summer runs around $240. about half that in the winter. the build out and shop are both insulated
 
I talked to the builder today. Spray foam invalidates the warranty on the metal sheets but not the frame. The warranty comes from the sheet manufacturer, a company called Union Corrugating. They don't like foam.

They say they are concerned about rust. That seems less likely in a foamed building, but what do I know?
 
I talked to the builder today. Spray foam invalidates the warranty on the metal sheets but not the frame. The warranty comes from the sheet manufacturer, a company called Union Corrugating. They don't like foam.

They say they are concerned about rust. That seems less likely in a foamed building, but what do I know?
Guessing that is related to condensation between foam and metal…

What do they expect? That you leave it as is and melt away with our heat?

Do they have a suggested/recommended way to insulate it?
 
The sales guy mentioned fiberglass, which means expensive walls and reduced space. He also mentioned foam boards.

They tell me it's $700 more for 12-foot eaves. I don't think I need them. Keith Fenner seems to get by with 10-foot eaves!
 
I talked to the builder today. Spray foam invalidates the warranty on the metal sheets but not the frame. The warranty comes from the sheet manufacturer, a company called Union Corrugating. They don't like foam.

They say they are concerned about rust. That seems less likely in a foamed building, but what do I know?
i have some experience with the foam and have sprayed a fair amount. if applied correctly (no voids) there is no issue. besides trying to get some kind of warranty 10 years from now will be about as effective as trying to get a warranty on your 10 year old shingle roof. i would go for it if that's what you want
and 700 is chump change for the extra 2 ft. then get a 10' door. bigger IS better
 
The sales guy mentioned fiberglass, which means expensive walls and reduced space. He also mentioned foam boards.

They tell me it's $700 more for 12-foot eaves. I don't think I need them. Keith Fenner seems to get by with 10-foot eaves!
Oh man... go for the two additional feet, and as @deakin mentioned, 10' doors... better to have the extra space to get stuff in and out...
 
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