Boat shop/building questions
 

Putting up a 40'x100' pole building at our new property to store our toys and have some questions. What size/dimensions did you guys build yours? I'm planning on buying a 30'-40' tunnel hull in the upcoming future and need to know how big to make the door. Also, what style door do you have? Anyone use a door thats similar to an airplane hangar door?

My toy is 48x105x14. Its a Morton building. I have a 12x12 door in the front on the 48 side. It is fully finish on the inside with 6 inches insulation in the walls and 24" in the ceiling. I have heat in the floor and also a trench drain running 60' in the center, with the pitch of the floor at about 1/4 per foot. The floor with drain completely without any squigging.(Spelling)
It holds my 38 footer, the race car, two show cars the gator and two John deere tractors. I still have plenty of room to hold all my other toys from home. I might suggest that you look at garage journal.com this is a site about building toy boxes such as you want. There is all kind of guys building pole garages and other ones for their toys. I spend as much time there as I as do here on OSO.

spray foam

i just got done building a 60 x 60 steel building. Doors are all 14' high which will allow for any motorhome, boat or race hauler.

On one side I have an 18, a 12 and an 18 wide doors, another 12 wide opposite the front 12 wide for drive through.

I dont have any pics on this machine, will post on monday.

edit, found these two from when I was doing the conduit and lights

I am building a 42x18x12 right now just to hold my 31 sonic... I am using a 14x10 door. It is a short term building. Will build another larger one once we move to our next home in a few years. Would make a great shop for future shopper

Mine is 204 X 36 and I have (2) 12 x 12's in front and (2) 10 X 10's in the back. All my doors are 3" thick with a 25.8 R rating. I heat and A/C the building 24/7.

food for thought- typical RV is close to semi-truck in height, so make the doors atleast 14' tall. and have interior height of 16' min.

next wouldbe door width. if your thinking of buying a big cat then make sure the doors are wide enough. I've got 14' x 14' doors and its perfect for getting a 388 skater in. my problem is that the building is only 40' deep.

my problem was that I owned a 28 skater when i built it and never thought i was going to have a 40' toter or have to work on a 388 skater. And i built the garage lenght wise with the doors on the 60' run. the building is 40 deep x 60 long. even my 32 cat on its trailer sticks out about 2' which means i can't shut the garage door completely.

luckly for me, we put up a 40 x 80 for my neighbor for his Z3 bmw and I can store stuff in there. his doors are on the end and the building is 80' deep. the only draw back with his is the doors are 12' x 14 ' high. which would make it tight for a cat thats 11' wide. lucky its on a tilt trailer.

the only draw back in work space.

I'd go to 100 x 60, next look into SIPS - insulated panels for the skin and roof. I've seen both plywood sips and aluminum pre-painted sips for commercail use. the spray foam works but looks like crap on the inside. roll up commercail doors only. the air plane hanger door does not seal good unless you spend alot on a high-end track setup.

Here is info on my building:

http://www.offshoreonly.com/forums/a...hunder+toy+box

30' x 60' w/ 12' truss inside height
2 - 12' wide x 10' tall doors

http://www.pioneerpolebuildings.com/
Call and talk to Tom before you do anything. Mine was built start to finish in 4 days by 4 guys by hand (not including site work). The price was very reasonable. The current sale/price on their website is (infuriatingly) cheaper than what I paid.

I've spent a lot of my life in and around aircraft hangars, so when it comes to buildings for my own personal use, I tend to lean towards steel with free-span trussing rather than poles.
I put up a 30x40 Miracle Steel building 20 years ago at our property here; that company was purchased by another a couple of years ago, and we are putting up a 40x60 at our property up north. 14' eaves and doors here and up north with insulated CHI doors. The slabs are insulated and heated by solar or wood boiler. I did over a year of research on steel buildings prior to going this route- they are the easiest to put up, the easiest to insulate and add doors/windows to, and have the highest wind loading. The only few private hangars left standing at the Homestead airport after Hurricane Andrew were Miracle hangars. They are worth every single penny.
Jim

http://www.worldwidesteelbuildings.com/

Thanks for all the responses guys :drink: The doors will be on the 40' side of the 40'x100' where it will butt into the driveway. Unfortunately, that's the biggest size that the county will allow me to put up due to the size of the lot (in the city but unincorporated). Thinking 14' walls with a 14'x14' manual door and a single standard garage door with an electric opener. It will have a small bathroom in it with a shower due to the inground pool being on the left side of it so people don't have to run in and outta the house while wet.

I'm tearing down an all brick three car detached garage to put this up and will be saving the brick to veneer the front of the building to match the house.

Don't know whether to go 4" or 6" on the floor though. Don't really plan to have anything real heavy inside of it. Thoughts?

My lot is not big enough for a toy box, but I'm working on it. But since I own my pre-engineered building franchise.... I have it made as far as what I will build. plus I 'm a GC.. All I need is a half of county. :)

won't matter on thickness. go with 4" with wire mesh and and fiber mesh into the concrete. put in as many saw cuts as possible.

also make sure you fill is properly compacted

Here are some outside pics

Sweet! What Manufacturer?..............................Rjr.... .............................

Mid-west, one of a couple of brands manufactured here in Houston. The building and doors are windstorm rated.

The back door lines up with the center front door, lets me back the boat through and out far enough to flush.

Definitely go big on the doors. I would go 14' high and at least 14' wide. I am fighting that now in my shop. I have (4) 12'W x 14' H and I have trouble with a few boats. You have to hit it straight with a wide cat. I am going to change one of them out to a 16' wide. I have a customer that just built a 35' x 100' with a 16' wide door and boy is it nice backing in. You can put anything in and a blind man could back it in.
It's not much more on the front end to do it right and plan for anything. You never know what the future may hold and it isn't cheap to change it later.
Eddie

+1 on big doors. I had BCI out of Oklahoma build a 40 X60 for me last winter. I put a 20' on the one end and it is nice and easy to back the boat in. Don't need a spotter anymore.

I have found that no matter how bright the lights it's very hard to back in on a bright day. Having a door opposite the one you back in really makes it easy to see.

Don't forget door openers and remotes.

Dont be foolish do the 6" with Fibre mesh 6 bag mix

I would go 6" minimum. Both of my Miracle buildings are 8" heated and insulated slabs- 5/8" rebar on 12" centers (no mesh). The one here at home is now 15 years old without a single hairline crack anywhere. The same guy (45 years in the concrete biz) did our pool deck with rebar 21 years ago, right after we bought the house- not a single crack anywhere. That's pretty damnn good for our climate.

Only bad thing of doing it this method would be for the poor baastard that has to take those slabs out- he'd better bring a lot of acetylene.....

you guys are confusing yourselves. the rebar is the main factor for the guy above plus he's 8" thick. 5/8" bar would be close to what most contractors use for a concrete footer for a house. something like 3-5 pices of 5/8" bar running lenght wise in a 2' wide by 1' deep footer. 5/8" rebar (#10) is way over kill for a garage slab. don't get me wrong, i think its the way to go for strenght and if you have the extra $$$$ but you still might get cracks. cracks happen in most cases either with or with out rebar or some kind of reinforcement. what ever you use for reinforcement just helps hold the slab together. I've seen hairline cracks in post tension slab and deck which were merely cosmetic. sometimes the cracking is due to cure time, mix, temperture and the finisher. plus prices for steel (rebar) and concrete have gone way up from 20 yrs ago.

plus it depends on how you prepped the soil (base). when you doug footer and back filled was it compacted? or did you just rent a bobcat and grade things level? Is there base rock or stone over the dirt? theres alot more to it than just making the slab thicker and throwing rebar at it.

I built and compacted the pad over a year before I was ready to start my shop as I had access to a 330 trackhoe, a dump truck and a D5H at the time which we used for Hurricane IKE cleanup in the neighbourhood.

My concrete was designed to support a 48,000 lb bus, 5.5 to 6" with beams around the perimeter and across the middle with a lot of engineered rebar sections.

I have no doubt that it will be there long after I'm gone.

as with every other thread on here, this has turned into a "look at me" stroke fest. with little info as to the orginal questions.

What are those colors on the sides, trim? They are nice neutral and blend in to the surrondings well. ..........................................Rjr..... ......................

OK, just to entertain this post, briefly; although I don't agree:

Looking at the OP's location, and knowing he won't have to stop in the driveway to wash salt off the boat and/or flush the engines too often...

I recommend roll up or conventional overhead doors vs, overhead airplane hanger doors or sliding barn style doors. Reason: It's really nice to back up to the building hit the button, and back the boat right inside; especially if it's raining.

As for backing up in the dark or shadow of the building...

I put back up lights on my trailer; and also have two pieces of 4"x4" about 12" long as my 'stops' in the barn. They blocks are painted with reflective florescent yellow paint. As long as they start to disappear when I am backing in (by being covered up by the tires) I know I am on my mark. Also make note of the truck's position when backing in. Put a mark on the ground or wall or tree to know that when your driver's door handle or steering wheel reaches X spot, you're in. Another member here put a long stripe down his floor and apron that he backs his driver side tires down directly beside so he does not have to watch both sides of the boat when backing his big cat in his tight barn.

You could also go real fancy and wire your lights to come on with the garage door opener, and/or with a separate remote.

I really do like the idea of a door opposite the same door you back into for flushing the boat and even adding light to the transom area when you want to work back there. Very smart. You could get trick and put a slope/pan in the concrete floor and never even have to move to the boat to do this, as the water would just drain out.

My one biggest bit of advice that I was given and I didn't take, regretfully...

Make the building long enough to back the boat AND truck in together; hitched up.

WHY:

1) It's much easier and cheaper to go with length vs. width. Look at the prices on the Pioneer web site and see how much cheaper a 30' wide building is vs. a 40' wide building. (30' wide is plenty for a standard 8'6" V-bottom and a second 'bay'. Cat/Tunnel/Wider boat; I can't speak for that, but might want to go 35' or 40'.)

2) It would be really nice when I get home late and don't want to do anything with the boat to just back it in and close the door, however, I have to unhitch, pull the truck out, and stick it in the other bay. The next day when I want to wash or whatever with the boat, I have to re-hitch, pull the boat out, etc. It's a time waster. (Eventually I will pick up a tractor with a three-point-hitch, but that's down the road.)

3) It really frees up a lot of space just keeping the truck in front of the boat. In my case, my truck takes up about 2/5s of the other bay in my building. If I had gone just 10' longer, I could keep the boat/truck together on one bay, and had a LOT more room to play with on the other side. If your truck is just used for hauling like I do with mine most of the time, the less you have to start it and move it, the longer it will last.

Wainscoting is the term when you have two colors on the side of the building, often darker on the bottom. It really can help to blend into the rest of the buildings on a property and make the building less industrial looking.

I suppose it is, but then that's what much of this site is about. If you dont care for the content you know what you can do.


Back to the original subject.

I was encouraged to post some pics by a friend and rather than start my own thread I thought this would be a good place to contribute some of my thoughts, I have been planning my shop for 5 years and would have had it done long ago if it had not been for the losses I incurred during the Katrina and Rita hurricanes.

There are a lot of things that should be considered before the slab is poured.

Plumbing, electrical, alarm wiring and even Internet can all be routed through conduit in the slab leaving the sides of the building clean.

I also added a 1" cvpc line so that I could move my air compressor outside but forgot the conduit to supply power for same. DOH!

I am moving the tank for my water well inside and put cvpc pipe in the slab for in and out.

I also went and got the correct pipe to run propane through the slab for a future heater.

I did remember to put basic plumbing in for a bathroom should I decide to build one, but totally forgot to allow for power or venting a sewar lift station to transfer to the main septic system for the house.

actually wobble thats about 90% of this site. and yes i know waht i can do. I can call BS lame azz posts the offer no constructive points.

now look at at your last post. there's good informative info there that actually would help make decisions for putting up a building.

You are going to have to learn to sift through the posts here, after all it is an open forum and everyone is equally entitled to offer their input.

I have studied every thread regarding buildings since I was unable to go forward. Regardless the source there are always things worth noting.

Some examples:

It's better to add some extra cement to the mix and pay for extra polishing time than to try and paint the floor after the fact.

In my case there were twelve guys on the finishing crew. An extra $300 + a fried chicken dinner and plenty of cold beer got me a finish that looks polished when its clean.

Dont let them form a small step behind the doors as many will, it's just as easy to form a slight ramp which is much easier to deal with when you are rolling an engine stand with motor in or out.

Planning is everything when concrete is involved.

okay wobble, apperaently your not to keen on concrete work. no offense, not everyone has had the pleasure of wheel-barreling concrete. its called a steel trowel finish. anything indoors should have that type of finish. i will agree with the recess for the door, but then you gotta make sure the slab is slopped proper or else rain will puddle in.

next, 12 guys, i thought i read yours was 60x 60? did they have to wheel barrel from the street or something? they have things called power trowels, i'm sure they used these. looks like 2 big fans that smooth out the concrete?

it cost me $300,the bucket chicken and a case of beer for 3 mexicans for a 40x60 and they were done by lunch. plus it helps when you buddy owns a 80 meter boom pump truck

for you furture shop builders, try to find guys are experieced in production "new work" concrete and specailize in large flat concrete pours.

i might disagree with your above statement ? it seems some in power here are beyond reproach

9000 sq feet of concrete including the shop, the concrete was poured by 7.30 pm finishing crew left at 4am. They used 3 motorized finishing machines + all the trowel work around the bolts doors etc.

When I say planning is everything, I am referring to utilities, drainage etc.

You are apparently in the concrete business so there is nothing I can tell you. However there is plenty a potential shop builder can learn from these threads.

While spray foam is amazing stuff, I would not use it unless you plan to put sheet rock up over it. That stuff catches fire easy and when it burns it is toxic nasty stuff and it goes up FAST! We test burned some of the leftovers we had at my place. All I could think was man I hope my house never catches on fire!

I for one appreciate all the info and experiences with these type builds. I may be a ways off from starting my project, but i'm taking it all in! there is no replacement for knowledge......................................... Rjr................................

By the way, whats an average price per sq ft for six in thick finished concrete. I'm sure it varies state to state, but I need an idea.............................Rjr.............. ................

r84 is flame retardant. For insulation, it works great . I would use hardy board for the inside walls.

wobble, from what i read earlier your shop was 60x60 = 3600 sq ft. my was 40 x 60 = 2400 sq ft.

9000 is a big difference. more than 3 x everything. actually i was in the framing/construction which i delt with alot of concrete guys. i can always learn more, just trying to keep thing simple and understandable so other can also learn.

concrete itself is around $120 to 150 a yard atleast around and depends on how much you buy. there's minumum delivery charges along with some small truck fees, usaully.

1 yard will cover 54 sq ft at 6" deep, 1 yard is 27 cubic ft so you can do the math from there.

in wobble's case 9000 sq ft at 6" = 167 yrds x $120 = $20000

you can see how things add up quickly.

A couple thoughts....A steel building is less flammable than wood.....Bat roll insulation is available ranging from fragile to most durable (lining for the basket ball court insulation may be over engineered but will with stand impact from basket balls) One product to consider may be "wmp 50" which has micro perforations, tough and affordable....Columns can be on center 20' + centers, allowing for one continuous bi-fold wall with wheels that roll up the columns. Further, the wall in up position serves as an awning, eliminates all or some roll up panel doors costing 12 to $1,600 each plus openers and maintainance....Be it a steel building... "Expandable" end walls are worth considering....A trolley beam capable of 5,000# will cost approx. $4,500....18 or 20' eves provide 2nd floor head room for stuff....110 mph wind load, live load and snow load are important....mesh concrete is strong...harder to finish....5 sack cement with complimenting quality sand, aggregate and add mix in a 6" floor poured over good compaction and cushion sand should work....Of course, plenty of rebar, beams and piers.....Or perhaps, an engineer may recommend post tension ( cable tension slab) Concrete should be around $70 a yard as described, plus rebar....finisher, around $1.35/Sq. Ft....pad and cushion sand extra.

Now is a good time to be shopping...Metal building/steel companies are swapping dollars to keep their doors open.

Concrete prices
 

Are the concrete prices you guys are giving just for the aggregate? I am currently working with Morton Buildings on a project and they are telling me $4.50 a sq. ft. for concrete work start to finish.

Thanks.