Build Thread - bike workshop

I learned a lot from my first one. This space is actually smaller, so I’ll have to be even more creative. Fortunately we have a large storage room down in the basement too, but I need a few days to heal up before I can tackle that. I need to build a workbench & storage shelves. The down side is that I am sharing this space with my mower and garden/yard tools. Before I had a separate tool room for all that. And the new mower is considerably bigger. I’ll keep posting here. It might take a few weeks to clear space before I can get too productive on it though.

To clarify when I say this space, I am referring to the third bay I am claiming for myself. 13’ x 16’. The garage is oversized but will be limited to overflow storage.

Hey! Nice to see you have your move behind you. It’s all down hill from there! Looks like you’ve got a nice space to work with, but that lawn mower has got to go! That’s a motor sickle bay! Lawn mowers go in outdoor sheds, haha! I can’t wait to see how you personalize your space, it’s all in the organization buddy! Good luck and have fun with it!
Bob

willis said:

To clarify when I say this space, I am referring to the third bay I am claiming for myself. 13’ x 16’. The garage is oversized but will be limited to overflow storage.

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Hey Willis,

I’m actually going through the same process myself after clearing out my employers barn/stable last week, he’s letting me use an area for a workspace.



I’m going to be build something along these lines at some point in the next few weeks.



Daniel.

Building a workbench is priority #1 for me. I currently have a 5’x2’ rolling workbench that needs some repairs. My thoughts are to build a stationary bench along the back wall about 8-9’ long that will allow me to roll my current workbench underneath it. That way I can roll it out for woodworking projects and such. Also help keep sawdust out in the driveway and not in the shop. Also have plans to build some overhead tote storage, pegboard above the workbench and some additional lighting. Weather is looking good for this upcoming weekend. I’ll have to pull it all out into the driveway and just go to town with the build.

Mailman said:

that lawn mower has got to go!

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For sure, Willis! Find a nice corner in the back yard, and put up a 12' x 16' garden shed (like mine) for the lawn tractor, and all the other yard work "junk", before they turn your garage space into a landfill! It's a slippery slope. Good luck!

Yeah, not sure a new shed is in the budget right now. We hope to build an outbuilding or pole barn in the future, but that is years away.

Call it a "she shed" and you'll get the green light in a snap! It doesn't have to be elaborate. Pour a slab, pre-fab your roof trusses, a pile of lumber, and some T1-11 later, and it's a shed!

Well I had hoped to spend this beautiful day building my workbench. As with so many great plans in my life, I got sidetracked and ran out of time. I can’t complain at all though. The last couple of days my wife has been talking about barns and potting/gardening sheds. I though it was just that, a lot of talk. So today we planned on going to town to buy a few things. Furniture pieces, new flooring for our basement, and lumber for my workbench. So along the way we stopped by this store that sells pre-fabbed sheds. Not just utility sheds, but some fancy customized she-sheds and what not. Thinking we were just window shopping I humored my wife. Much to my surprise she was very serious. We ended up ordering a nice 14x28’ gardening shed. She was very much into it. I let her design nearly the whole thing, which she absolutely loved. Windows, planter boxes, even a coupela with a weathervane and metal roof. It will only take about 3 weeks to be delivered. BIG SCORE!! Not only did I get my mower out of my bike shop, I scored mega storage too. I just had to let it be her idea. I’m lucky to be married to such an awesome lady! Here is a picture of a similar display unit.



Now we just need to select where to have it placed and do some ground prep. There is no electrical, but maybe in the future. So right now I don’t really mind not getting my workbench built. My wife just got a lot more of her projects bumped to the front of the line! I’ll report back in a few weeks with more progress.

Well done ! You gained just what you needed. She’s happy, you’re happy, winner winner chicken dinner!

Nice she-shed, Willis.
Welcome to the world of turn-key storage buildings.

I'm in the middle of working on mine, and would like to add some items to watch for.

Yes, ground prep is very important. Flat/level is the best. And for those in rainy areas, who actually have genuine soil, strong recommendations for a bed layer of 2-4" gravel.

If you don't want direct ground contact, placing it on 2" thick pewter stepping stones works.

The catch is, getting it leveled. Properly. By the right people. With the right stuff.

I'm completely re-doing the leveling on mine.
I was too hot and tired by the time these guys blocked and leveled mine, and didn't catch their shoddy work until later, after signoff.

Here's some horror pics.


You can see daylight beneath the unsupported skids, or a tiny stick to fill the gap!

They only blocked the outer periphery. Looking under, you can see absolutely NO blocking, NO support, at all in the center section.


I wanted this to be as low as possible, opting for direct ground contact. In re-doing this placement, you need to jack the thing up at one end, get in there somehow, and fit or remove blocks/shims. The finished building is actually a very rigid box, no worries about twisting. But, to jack up an end takes some doing. Low clearance, and needs more than your simple auto hydraulic jack. My 2.5 ton jacks won't lift it, had to use a 6-ton bottle jack. Best would be to rent a toe-jack, but need to enlarge and reinforce the lift points.

You don't want to get involved in doing ANY of this nightmare. So, good ground prep, and watch them closely.

My building was well built, to better specs. (4) 4x6 treated skids on 5' centers, 2x6 floor joists on 12" centers, 3/4" flooring, studs on 16" centers, roof trusses on 24" centers, 7/16" roofing sheathing with 29ga metal atop that, 6" eave overhangs.

The substandard stuff out there will have thinner flooring, wall, and roof sheathing. Joists and studs spaced out to 19" and 24". Sometimes even using 2x3 instead of 2x4. No eave overhangs. Just things to watch for.

I just noticed that my window is missing the screen. Not easily found, need to either custom order one, or make it myself. *groan*

TwoManyXS1Bs said:

You can see daylight beneath the unsupported skids, or a tiny stick to fill the gap!

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Jeeze! That’s terrible. No pride of workmanship.

Thanks for the tips Steve. Ground prep is the next thing on my list. We live near a quarry so are planning on using crushed limestone. I plan on paying someone to prep it for me though. I just don’t have time to do all that myself.

We did upgrade to use pressure treated runners and flooring. Also paid extra to build the floor “trusses” 12” on center since I plan on parking some heavy equipment in there. We paid extra on a lot to make sure it was beefed up. Our area is known for quality Amish craftsmanship, which i believe is where this is being built.

I think we finally decided on a location too. We have a geothermal system and septic tank/bed that we need to be careful not to drive over too, so that limited our placement options. I’m very excited to get this. Our neighbor informed us that it’s not a she-shed though. It’s a bitch barn! Lol. She’s got a great sense of humor.

Yup she kept bitch'n til she got the barn.
Many moons ago When I met Allison, she had this property. I made a list of improvements and asked her to set priorities. It was a long list.
Horse barn was #1, Guess that should have been a warning, LOL.
to get the location I built the new barn OVER the old one

The inspectors

then tore down the old one and finished the new one.


It was 10? years later that I finally got a motorcycle garage, AFTER the house remodel was done.

Nice barn Gary! That would probably cover my entire property!

willis,
When you have the guy over to prep the site for your (her?) shed, ask him if he's going to compact the crushed stone you're using. This is done with a "hopper" (looks like a gas-powered pogo stick), a vibratory plate compactor, or a vibratory roller (like a mini steam roller). These are frequently used by paving contractors prior to putting down asphalt, but it'll insure your shed won't settle funny...

2many I sympathize, looks like you had a typical sit n git delivery crew.
Hate paying to get professional work and receiving a kludge job.

gggGary said:

...typical sit n git delivery crew...

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Millennials.

I got all wound up wanting to design and build a toe jack adapter for my bottle jack.


But decided to dig a "jack pit" instead...

Man, this "releveling" job was a killer.

Check level all over the floor, calculate adjustments.
Jack it up.
Grab a 20lb stone, stoop, crawl, drag, shove, shim, jam, cram, sweat.
Crawl out, brush off the dirt, fall down, get back up.
Let it down, take a nap.
Repeat. Until you can't stand it anymore.

Finally got level less than 1/3° off, support blocks every 4 feet.


No, you don't want to do this...

We got our site all prepped last week and are ready for the shed delivery. Our soil is a very hard clay pack, so we excavated down and put 6" of crushed gravel for drainage and 4" blocks that are laser leveled. There is a small chance it gets delivered tomorrow afternoon, otherwise I will likely have to wait until next week. I cannot wait!!!! I am so tired of tripping over things to get my tools out now, it is an accident waiting to happen. Once we get this shed delivered, all the lawn/gardening tools will go in there as well as anything else I can conveniently store in totes out there. We also made huge progress in finishing the basement this weekend. That means the additional storage room in there can be soon utilized. We might even be able to park a car in the garage soon !!! Then, I can actually start my 2.0 workshop. So many hurtles to clear, but I am certain it will all be worth the wait.