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[Craig Leerman]

As a guy that has built out 7 commercial spaces and my current shop which is a building on my property, I will add a few things to the already great ideas here.

Plan: draw out your plan before you build out your shop. My first few shops were not very efficient because I just threw stuff in a warehouse. It’s way easier to make changes with an eraser than it is with a hammer.

Insulation: My first shop in Maryland was always cold because it had little insulation and old doors and windows that didn’t seal like modern ones. In my current building I insulated everything and then replaced the roll up door with an insulated unit so everything is stored in a climate controlled warehouse and my office and bench area are always comfortable to be in.  Factor in insulating the building.

HVAC: since I am in Reno where it gets cold I put in a big HVAC system that can keep my shop warm all winter. In Las Vegas where it gets hot I retrofitted an area in my last shop with additional cooling so  electronics and gear like backline would not get too hot.

Fans: my office also has a ceiling fan to help keep the room comfortable. In addition I have a few portable fans I can place to provide circulation without running the big system.

Power: Make sure you have enough power running to your building. As my current building on my property was built and used by the first owner just to house his “toys” like his boats, motorcycles and such, he only had a single circuit running to the building for lights and an outlet. I had an electrician upgrade the power to my property and then run 100 amp service to my building.

Courtesy outlets: put a few outlets either by the door or outside so you can use tools or a vacuum on your truck/trailer easily.

Lighting: I put in LED lights in my shop to save on power and because I had drawn up a plan beforehand I could locate the light fixtures above the aisles between the pallet shelving and not directly over a shelf where the light would be blocked. I also added some outdoor floodlights so I could load/unload after dark.

Office: While I have  had offices at all my commercial warehouses, I have also maintained a desk and computer at home so I could do work at night and on the weekends without driving to the shop. With my shop on my property, I decided to put an office in my building and not have one in my house as my commute is measured in steps and not miles. What would have been a home office in a 4th bedroom is now a TV room and hangout space for my kids.

Commercial phone: Yes, you can still get a commercial business line for a home based business. I do share my home internet but when I moved to Reno I wanted an easy phone number that would get listed in business directories.

Legal: Before buying a property with a big building on it for my shop, I checked with zoning and business licensing to make sure I could operate legally out of here. As I am in Washoe county and my HOA allows home based businesses I had no problems but you may not be able to operate legally in other areas.

Trucks: Again, As we are in the county, my HOA allows trucks and equipment to be parked behind your house in your yard. Most properties are quite large here but as long as stuff is behind your fence you are good.  My neighbor has a big front end loader backhoe on a trailer for his construction business parked in front of his outbuilding. While my big box trucks and trailer are bulky, they are allowed by law. Check your area.

Bench: I put in a nice repair/test/build bench area in my shop so I could do maintenance on  gear and build cables and racks. Make sure you put in enough power for any tools and test gear.  What I forgot was to allow some extra room for the big AC and Speakon cable reels when I would order new wire. It’s gets a bit crowded in that area until the cables are made.

Expansion:  I am getting ready to build a smaller additional building on my property as I am running out of space. I can go up to 200 square feet without a permit, but will need to get a permit for anything larger, and I also would have to get zoning approval as I already have a big building on my property. Plan now for a bigger size than you think you will need. If I had built my shop instead of buying the place already built I would have gone at least 500sq’ bigger if not more.

Insurance: check with your insurance company and make sure your gear is covered in a building on your property.

Security: make sure you install a security system and good locks. While I live in a very safe area, I would rather spends  money on locks and security than on replacing gear.

Shed: currently my lawnmower sits in front of some Renkus Heinz subwoofers. Plan for a shed to store your lawn stuff!

Last, if you can go tall and get a second floor or loft area, do it. My current building was already in place and it’s not high enough for a second floor but my new outbuilding will have an upstairs for storage for seldom used items that I need to keep.

[Steven Cohen]

Make sure all exterior building materials are Dade County Approved as that is the gold standard for hurricane protection. Even if your building codes don't require this, you will sleep better when a Cat5 happens. Another thing to look for is HVHZ, which is another segment of building material ratings. I believe HVHZ stands for high velocity hurricane zone. All of my doors and impact windows must meet this standard in South Florida from the Broward County line south. Metal roofs seem to be the new standard for hurricane protection. Everything gets fastened with ring shank nails. tap cons, and polyurethane construction sealant, again all need to be Dade County approved.

Put a whole panel surge suppressor when installing the load center.

Mini Split A/Cs seem to be the most efficient ones out there.

Closed cell foam seems to be a good insulator and adds considerable strength to a structure but I have read that some people have had bad health reactions to foam so do your research if you are interested in closed foam insulation.   

BLUF:
Building a small shop/warehouse for my hobby/business. Tips/suggestions for making it useful.
See attached image for reference.

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I've run my business (mostly) out of my garage & trailer. I'm now privileged to build a new home and put a good-sized shop on the property to store the equipment.
Got some ideas or 'I woulda done it differently' for me?

Uses:
storing AVL equipment for production
storing install parts (xlr's, cable boxes, connectors, etc)
small workbench area for repairing equipment
storing tools

Not mine, but I use the same shelves and layout (cases roll under shelves and shelves store peli/boxes)


I'd like to be able to have 'areas' for storing different types of equipment (sound, video, lighting, cables, power, truss, lifts), as well as having the trailer more empty than full so we can only grab what we need.


Additionally some shelf space for storing the install equipment that I use regularly (connectors


---

Note, this will be on our property and in the back yard so it needs to look decent & fit in.

Budget: $10-$15k, $20k absolute max. But property size & home size are going to dictate the dimensions mostly which determines cost.

Currently using:
Garage: 23' x 19' = 437 sq-ft
Trailer: 12' x 7' = 84 sq-ft [much to small, planning on moving to 8.5' x 18' soon-ish]

Options:
24' x 24' = 576 sq-ft
20' x 32' = 640 sq-ft

Current plan:
-$8.5k
-20 x 24 (10ft walls, 13ft in center)
-open pole barn
-26 gauge metal walls & roof
-7x8 wide rollup
- 36" ext door
-140mph
-Wood poles, with metal siding.
-no windows
-Seal floor to keep the dust down
-small AC (summer is hot here, and I do like to work on equipment) + good to keep humidity down
-add led lighting
-run power to sub panel (probably 100A, 2P)
-run sm fiber (4 strand)


Thoughts/Questions:
-Is fiber reinforced concrete good enough?
-What size pad in front of garage door?
-Is 7x8ft rollup large enough? [I think I'd prefer a 10w x 8h]
-Is 10ft walls with 13ft peak tall enough (I do have 4M truss that I'd like to store inside) [can't go too tall, would look weird in back yard]

Thanks!


Previous threads:
https://forums.prosoundweb.com/index.php/topic,107259.msg1000851.html#msg1000851

[Ned Ward]

Another thought - not sure if you have an air compressor, but if so consider building a machine room to isolate the noise, and run piping through the building to several key points so that you can use air tools wherever vs. having a giant hose... similar to courtesy outlets on the outside, having one for air could make getting debris, water, etc. off your car, truck a lot easier.

I like the idea of shelves on casters - if you need to store a truck/car in there, you've got extra room...

[Jonathan Johnson]

Regarding exterior lighting, having floodlights only on the front of your shop/warehouse is less than ideal. I suggest also installing lighting from another direction covering the same area to minimize shadows and contrast. It could be another building (e.g., the house) or on a pole. If you put lighting on a pole, also put a courtesy/convenience outlet on the pole. It'll be handy.

A hose faucet out front could be useful for washing your tow vehicle and trailer. Consider how you'll manage runoff.

As for water hoses, follow the same advice you'd give for your power cords: go rubber. Vinyl hoses, even the "kinkproof" and "flexible" ones will eventually get hard and stiff and crack. If they kink, that makes a weak spot that will fail. Natural rubber hoses will last decades, if they kink they won't be permanently damaged, and the black rubber is UV resistant. Avoid hoses with aluminum fittings, the aluminum will corrode anything brass (like your faucets) you connect it to. The big orange home center sells a "Continental" black rubber hose with solid brass fittings for $30 -- cheaper than many "premium" hoses. It will be the last hose you buy. Not sure how long the new EPDM synthetic rubber hoses (Flexzilla) will last, probably better than vinyl, but I think many of those have aluminum ends so watch out.

[Dave Garoutte]

As mentioned here before, go for the tallest roll up door practical; 10' is definitely better than 8'.

[Ron Bolte]

Of course there is an entire forum dedicated to this topic.

Enter at your own risk... these guys have ways to spend your budget at least 10x...

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/

[Jonathan Johnson]

Of course there is an entire forum dedicated to this topic.

Enter at your own risk... these guys have ways to spend your budget at least 10x...

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/

What's a garage? It's a $20,000 building holding $500 worth of junk while $100,000 of vehicles sit in the rain.

[Ron Bolte]

What's a garage? It's a $20,000 building holding $500 worth of junk while $100,000 of vehicles sit in the rain.

Or if you do it right, a $30k building, in which you use $12k worth of tools and $500 worth of materials to make something you could buy for $50.

...but hey, it keeps me out of the bar...

[Ned Ward]

Of course there is an entire forum dedicated to this topic.

Enter at your own risk... these guys have ways to spend your budget at least 10x...

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/

that is a dangerous site. don't know whether to thank you or be angry... lost 2 hours yesterday!

[Tim McCulloch]

that is a dangerous site. don't know whether to thank you or be angry... lost 2 hours yesterday!

I bailed at 30 minutes.  There wasn't a single mention of moving lights in the Lighting and Electrical forum!  The nerve! 

[ProSoundWeb Community]