So... Just how much shop time do you get???

[Michael Dunn]

Hey guys!!!

I have been meaning to ask this for a while... How much shop time do you have, per day and per week on average.

I mean this mostly for the guys like me who make there living not by woodworking.

I work for AT$T on 2nd shift, 4-12 am. Which actually gives me quite a bit of freedom. I get home at 12:30am and work in the shop until 2:30-3:00am. Believe or not my shop is in my attached garage!!!

Sometimes I get an hour or so throughout the day. I have three small childeren (4, 2, 8mo) so that makes it pretty tough.

I'd say I'm pretty lucky. There have only been a few times that I woke up my wife. List of "wakes up the wife" tasks:

1. Circular saw
2. Router
3. Table saw-dust collector (sometimes)


Please answer in detail to satisfy my curiosity.

Thanx,

shotgunn

[Eiji Fuller]

Do yourself and your lovely wife a favor and soundproof your shop. Your neighbors will thank you too.

[Michael Dunn]

For starters, I did just drop $1250 (installed & hauled away the old clunker) on a 2" thick, triple insulated, galvanized steel polyurethane garage door.

So far a HUGE difference from my perspective inside as far as street noise, etc... Also a HUGE difference in temp.

I can't believe I am about to say this, but, I can't wait for winter...


Do yourself and your lovely wife a favor and soundproof your shop. Your neighbors will thank you too.

[Troy Turner]

I get out there when I can too. If I'm working on a project, I'll try and put in 3-4 hrs a day during the week till it's finished. The weekends will occupy 8-10 hrs. I do have a dedicated shop so no worries about the kids or the wife :)

[John Shuk]

None these days. Three kids, Noon to 8 shift at Verizon, OT when available and two college classes per semester. Time is not there for me. I'm glad the Creek keeps me connected.

[Mark Ball]

I'm with you, two kids, one more coming in a few weeks, so I get out there when I can. I also installed an insulated garage door(attached garage also) and had a Hot Dawg natural gas garage heater installed(I am in N. MN). Due to my job (CPA) I have the most time available in the late fall, and it can get way too cold to do anything in the shop, so that is the reason for the heater. I just had it intalled, so as crazy as it sounds, can't wait for next fall to give'er a try. I love to fish also, so this time of year usually finds me on a lake, towards late summer fishing winds down and I start thinking WW projects:). On tap this year is a dresser for my daughter, and the wife is talking new kitchen table, so no lack of ideas from the peanut gallery.

[Russell Johnson]

I usually get several hours (3-5) most weekends. Currently I'm working on a large project (11 ft long pirate bed) that takes up most of my space. So working on it is hassle as I need time to move stuff out to the drive way. I would probably get more done during the weeknights if I didn't have to do all this rearranging.

[Mick David]

Almost none. 3 kids, 50-60 hrs per week at the office + 2-3 hrs per week to work out. I could do the 12:00 - 2:30 AM thing but I don't want to work tired and risk injury.

PS -- that pirate bed sounds interesting. Can't wait for the pics.

[Michael Dunn]

Yeah, I did the 12pm-8pm shift for a little while. I actually liked it. However, at that time I was not doing any woodworking.

So what do you do for Verizon? I am a Central Office Technician for AT$T here in Chicago... Do they give you an extra 10% for the 'off hours' shift. THat was the main reason why I liked it.

shotgunn


None these days. Three kids, Noon to 8 shift at Verizon, OT when available and two college classes per semester. Time is not there for me. I'm glad the Creek keeps me connected.

[Michael Dunn]

Cool, I am looking at getting one of these, probably one of the 9,000 btu units.

http://ac-world.com/MiniSplitAir.php


I'm with you, two kids, one more coming in a few weeks, so I get out there when I can. I also installed an insulated garage door(attached garage also) and had a Hot Dawg natural gas garage heater installed(I am in N. MN). Due to my job (CPA) I have the most time available in the late fall, and it can get way too cold to do anything in the shop, so that is the reason for the heater. I just had it intalled, so as crazy as it sounds, can't wait for next fall to give'er a try. I love to fish also, so this time of year usually finds me on a lake, towards late summer fishing winds down and I start thinking WW projects:). On tap this year is a dresser for my daughter, and the wife is talking new kitchen table, so no lack of ideas from the peanut gallery.

[Jim Rimmer]

Mixed emotions here - my "kids" are 36 and 40 (years, not months) so that doesn't keep me out of the shop. But spend all the time you can with them now. I know it's cliche but they grow up fast. Mine have now been gone from home longer than they were here.

I usually get 3-4 hours on Saturday and about the same on Sunday afternnon. Very little during the week because despite the age, I'm still working.

[David Hostetler]

No children yet, but a wife that I actually enjoy being with tends to occupy most of my non earning hours. I typically get about 4-6 hours / week shop time, and it is not uninterrupted. To be blunt, I could use more, not that I want to be away from my wife, but it helps me get my head oriented right... Working, doing something physically productive instead of working on computers is genuinely therapeutic to me... And the time I am able to spend with LOML is better if I get some shop time in between work, and sitting down to talk with her...

[Robby Tacheny]

I work in the IT field too and commute 40 miles each way. I can really only find time on the weekend to do woodworking unless I am doing something quick and uninvolved like putting on a coat of polyurethane or a quick glue-up.

I have a lot of projects getting backlogged. Between trying to sleep in a bit, watch the 10am woodworking shows, mowing the lawn, prepping the garden, spending time with significant other and relax a little bit, I don't find a more than 4 -8 hours a weekend for the shop.

The last significant amount of time I had in the shop was cleaning it up. However, it is really nice to have a clean shop. The next order of business is to get a half decent heat source so that I can work in the shop (its an externally accessed basement shop) in the winter.

-R

[Michael Dunn]

Yup, I can see that already. It seems like just yesterday they were newborns. Time flies!!! During the day I do try to spend all of my time with the three of them. Bike rides, walks, playing house, playing tag, teaching them shop safety, etc...

My 4yr old son can tell you EVERY tool in my shop. Table saw, jointer, dust collector, planer, belt sander, CNC milling machine, drill press, chisel mortiser, etc... It's AWESOME!!!!!! My 2 yr old daughter knows quite a bit of them as well.


Mixed emotions here - my "kids" are 36 and 40 (years, not months) so that doesn't keep me out of the shop. But spend all the time you can with them now. I know it's cliche but they grow up fast. Mine have now been gone from home longer than they were here.

I usually get 3-4 hours on Saturday and about the same on Sunday afternnon. Very little during the week because despite the age, I'm still working.

[Michael Dunn]

It is definitely nice having a clean shop. I do hate taking all available on a given day dedicated to cleaning. I am still trying to find a 'home' for each tool of mine. This results in some misc stuff laying around for longer than it should.

My dust collection still isn't 100% implented yet either. That makes for far too much sweeping and vacuuming.

However, I have been a bit more diligent about cleaning as I go.

shotgunn


I work in the IT field too and commute 40 miles each way. I can really only find time on the weekend to do woodworking unless I am doing something quick and uninvolved like putting on a coat of polyurethane or a quick glue-up.

I have a lot of projects getting backlogged. Between trying to sleep in a bit, watch the 10am woodworking shows, mowing the lawn, prepping the garden, spending time with significant other and relax a little bit, I don't find a more than 4 -8 hours a weekend for the shop.

The last significant amount of time I had in the shop was cleaning it up. However, it is really nice to have a clean shop. The next order of business is to get a half decent heat source so that I can work in the shop (its an externally accessed basement shop) in the winter.

-R

[Mike Thomas]

As much as I can. I travel a lot so not at all when out of town. I am an early bird so usually up at 5 on the weekends and the wife has to call me for lunch and then I usually knock off at 5 pm. If my social director hasn't made plans for me it will be like that Saturday and Sunday most weekends more in the spring and summer when the weather is better.

My buddy who is retired spends most of every day in his garage (he's a car guy).

Mike

[john davey]

I'm IT as well but don't let work get in the way if I can help it :). Normally I spend winters down in the basement shop and summers on the golf course or my Harley. Managed to smack the Harley up the other day and have a broken ankle to show for it. So once I can get moving around I'll be in the basement allot this summer. No kids for me so I can get a good 12 hours a week in there if I put my mind to it. More if I have a pressing need.

[Joe Shinall]

I'm pretty flexible with my schedule. I am an IT pro for small businesses around my area that don't have IT departments. So if I don't have anything pressing, I get to work from home. I set my computer up on loud volume so I can hear if I get an email and I keep the garage door open. I can get a full 6-8 hours in the garage in a day if I can wing it.

Of course, 6-8 hours can burn ya out, so I try to keep it down to 3-4 unless I have a big project or a lot of little ones. Then I burn myself out with the 6-8. I don't get to do a lot on the weekends. I play baseball on Sundays and spend time with the wife on Saturdays. No kids so I get to work at my leisurely pace.

But other days, like today, I was at work at 5am and got off at 7 pm. Ya win some, ya lose some.

[Randal Stevenson]

Two words:


NOT ENOUGH.


My projects have piled up, and it has been a year and a half since I really got to use the shop. (family medical issue, work, work, MORE WORK). I feel like (and probably could) like I have been working 6 to 7 days a week (did 7/362 for three years).
Now I have been trying (and just starting to find time), yet having problems knowing where to begin and trying to clean out/up the shop. (let alone odd hours so not trying to work tired).

[John Shuk]

Yeah I like 12 to 8 for the most part. The 10% is there plus if we have an N-day it goes up a bit more. Anything to pay the taxes around here. I left construction splicing and am now a FIOS installer/repairman.

[Mike Olson]

i'm lucky if I get 2 hours a week. I have a 6 and a 2 year old and they occupy most of my time.

I actually went Neander so I could work while they were playing around me. only downside to that is they want to HELP all the time now which means I work with them to drill a hole or saw a board that is not part of a project. slows me down a whole lot but it's nice to have them doing something I like instead of the other way around. There is only so much Tag, hide & seek, coloring and spongebob and dora I can take.

[Joe A Faulkner]

My shop time is devoted to remodeling the shop. With spring in full swing(yard work, gardening, etc.) and few other higher priority projects around the house, I'm averaging around 6 hours (4-6 on Saturday and 0-2 on Sundays). Recently we agreed to board some horses on a small pasture we own. I looked at the horses and said to myself, they may look like horses to you, but in 12 months, they look like a ClearVue dust collector to me. Then I just read that ClearVue is calling it quits. So now I'm thinking that a DIY Bill Pentz cyclone build may be in my future. At six hours per week - that could be a several month project for me. Though I am also intrigued by the Phil Thien separator approach. I've got lot's of time to decide.

[Michael Dunn]

Yup, same here... I have been remodeling my shop since October!!! It's coming along quite well. Obviously also taking a while. Although technically I shouldn't say I am 'remodeling' when it is actually a first real shop for me.


My shop time is devoted to remodeling the shop. With spring in full swing(yard work, gardening, etc.) and few other higher priority projects around the house, I'm averaging around 6 hours (4-6 on Saturday and 0-2 on Sundays). Recently we agreed to board some horses on a small pasture we own. I looked at the horses and said to myself, they may look like horses to you, but in 12 months, they look like a ClearVue dust collector to me. Then I just read that ClearVue is calling it quits. So now I'm thinking that a DIY Bill Pentz cyclone build may be in my future. At six hours per week - that could be a several month project for me. Though I am also intrigued by the Phil Thien separator approach. I've got lot's of time to decide.

[John Thompson]

Up until I retired in Oct. of 2007 I got 2-3 hours an evening and 6-8 on weej-ends. Since.. 10-12 hours a day until last October but.. have scaled back to noon to 6 PM on week-days as the first 12 carcass pieces on my wife's requisition list are done. Still four more pieces requested but 6 hours a day is enough as I have other things of priority...

[Jim Becker]

When I'm "in" a project, I'll get anywhere from and hour to four hours at a shot in the shop. Everything has to be balanced with work (technical sales in the telecom business), family obligations such as cooking, laundry, cleaning, lawn care, landscaping, etc., and my other avocation in the equestrian world. So when I do get in the shop, I try to keep it pretty focused.

[Leo Graywacz]

The question is how much home time do I get.

I make my living in the shop. So I get 50-70 hours a week.

[Donny Lawson]

I try to get about an hour or so a day most of the time but on weekends my wife knows where to find me.I just wish my shop was a little closer to the house.It's about 200ft away.The only good thing about being that far away is that it doesn't bother anyone else with the noise issue.,but I hate the walk.My old shop was about 30ft away and I lived in there alot more.
Donny

[mark kosse]

But the question was "for those who don't".

I do, as a teacher. I usually come in early and put in an hour for me. In the winter I put in 1-3 at home per day. In the summer in Houston, I just wish for cooler weather. No, really, about 5 hrs a week in the summer, more if I actually have something to get out.

[David Peters]

I usually get several hours (3-5) most weekends. Currently I'm working on a large project (11 ft long pirate bed) that takes up most of my space. So working on it is hassle as I need time to move stuff out to the drive way. I would probably get more done during the weeknights if I didn't have to do all this rearranging.

I built this for my son a few years ago. Now I've got to work on a castle bed for my daughter.

[Ray McCullie]

Two words:


NOT ENOUGH.




That was my answer too! Like most of you, if I'm working on something I try to spend as much time as possible. Mainly weekends. But I work 4pm-12:30am and my shop is in the garage. I can't wake up my better half to run the big tools, I mainly try to do as much hand, layout and prep work as possible so I can go to it first thing the next day. I always think of Norm saying "Well, good morning!" the next day.