If you were to build - Chuck Shaw

chuck shaw

a new shop, from scratch, 3 bay garage, with office on second floor. What are some of the things you would incoperate. Would you make an area of the shop, like a product show room? Would you leave a section of the concrete open, to show radiant heat? What about storage capicty? Just looking for ideas, any thoughts or photos would be a great help

thanks

Chuck Shaw

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Steamhead

I'd definitely

make part of it a hydronic/radiant showroom, like the Levi brothers Dan wrote about. We keep talking about the superior comfort a hydronic system has to offer, but some customers wont know this unless we provide the experience.

I'd also put in sprinklers, especially if the garage was in the same building as the office. Vehicles have been known to catch fire while in garages and this would minimize damage. If the garage bays were unheated, a dry-pipe sprinkler system could be used to prevent freezing.

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Vern

What I Did

I just moved into a 7500 Sq. foot shop. We incorporated Radiant heat in the slab. Insulating just the perimeter. ( I own just 1/3 of the shop so I couldn't dictate everything I wanted to do. The boiler is on the second floor and I can show my customers the working parts of the system and answer any questions they have. I will try to attach a picture of the infloor but this is the first time I have tried to do that.

Vern

What I did

I just moved into a 7500 Square ft. building. We insulated the perimeter with r-9 and 4' into the slab. The weather in New Mexico is very mild most of the winter with it going below 30 for about 45 days a year. I have the boiler located on the upper floor and am able to show potental customers the workng parts of the system. I have pictures of the underfloor that they can look at but it is to expensive to just have exposed Pex in an area just so someone can see it installed. I will try again to attach a picture to this post

hr

I put a trench drain in the back of my shop for washing my truck. A nice feature. Also a hot and cold hose connection. Definitely some pipe rack space for lengths. I, too, would make the heating system as inter-active as possible. Show all types of hydronic applications if possible. Some panel radiators maybe a towel bar or heated bench/ coat rack. A concrete radiant dog is a nice touch

My system keeps changing as new heaters, controls, and piping ideas come along. It's completly disassembled currently! My radiant test slabs will use a MZ. Not sure what the shop and office will end up with. Sure like to try a modulating condensor of some sort.

I like Steamheads idea of a fire sprinkler. I put a single head over my wood boiler and wood storage area. You could simply run a system with pex and charge it with glycol and use a RPZ backflow at the connection to your water sourse. Even if you don't go with a full blown NFPA designed system, a couple critical located heads on some 3/4" pex could easily save your shop. If you need sprinkler heads let me know. We used to do res sprinkler installs.

Use a good sealer on the concrete slab to allow easy clean up, a nice solid workbench, (gluelams or microlams work great) ample overhead lighting, a few reel extension cords from the celing are a nice thing to have. An exhaust fan if you plan on welding or painting helps. Stereo, central vac getting carried away here!

Build it as breakin proof as possible! Take a video of everything inside when your done.

hot rod

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chuck shaw

was thinking

How about, figuing the heat loss 3 ways, radiant in the slab, and gypcret (for 2nd floor office/bath), panel radiators, around shop, and in office/bath, and also forced hot water baseboard. All working off an oil fired Buderus. And a snow melt system fired off a munchkin or MZ. That would really show the full scope.

I like the trench idea, sort of like a large floor drain? Did you tie that into town sewer with a gas trap, or a tight tank?

Chuck Shaw

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hr

I like all your ideas. Consider transfer plates or "on top" products for your office. I've found it's hard to get gyp companies to pour small square footage. Don't blame them when you see how much equipment and manpower there is in setup and clean up for a small area.

After getting a price on the pre-made trench drains, I decided to build my own. A length of 1/4 X 3X 3 angle ironcut in half and welded together to form a U shape. The steel yard gave me remenent grating which I welded legs on to set into the U channel. Heavy little bugger, nice to slop and screed concrete to as it didn't move! I have a sand trap at the discharge and then into the field behind the shop, which is where the septic leach field is. It's mainly for rinsing off the truck little if any oil or grease. A dose of Bio Clean every now and then for piece of mind.

hot rod

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