Shop tour #1

[lou sansone]

dear fellow ww's
I finally got a digital camera and thought that I would show you all some photos of my shop. Here are a couple of thoughts with regard to these photos.

1. When I began planning to build my shop the internet was just getting going, but what ideas I could find on the the internet I tried to use them in building my shop. I hope that by taking a look at these pictures, that some of you will also be able to take advantage of that research.

2. Although I have a sense of pride in my work, I really do try to temper it with a healthy dose of humility. I hope that I do not come across as "bragging", because that is really not what I want to do.

3. I wanted to present these photos in installments, not to drag the whole thing out, but to focus attention on particular aspects of design or construction.

Ok now for the photos.

The shop design is based upon research on 18th century english style shop/barns ( I live in an 18th century house in a historic district so I wanted it to sort of fit in) . They tended to be characterized by the "side door" style and hay lofts on either side of the door. The side additions are intentional, because as time would go by a "mature barn" would have had those additions. The brick chimeny is a feature from barns or shops that would have had blacksmith type of work going on. The overall size of the shop is 28X38 with a 18X18 second floor on the right side of the main door. There is a clear span the entire 28' length of the shop ( I had to use 1 steel beam that is 6" x 18" x 28 feet )

The walls are 10' high which was traditional and also very functional for a wood shop that has to handle 8' stock. The windows are traditional 12 lite 6x8 fixed windows that are hinged at the top for air flow even in the rain.

The building is built around a traditional post and beam type mortice and tenon construction. For the most part all the timbers are held together by riven oak pegs and a judiciouos use of 12" spikes. The frame is oak and the siding is hemlock and EWP. It is an insulated building built with a wrap and strap technique.

My son and I cut most the trees down and sawed them up on our saw mill which is located on my brothers property 30 miles away ( I did end up buying some timbers in the end- a couple were just too big for the trees we had available - 2 needed to be 12"x6" x 20 feet . I did the design based upon lots of books on timberframing. All the oak beams are hand planed and all the mortices and tenons cut with hand tools and some power tools. As a side note my son ( now 22 ) knows how to work with his hands.

The building has an insullated roof as well as side walls. The roof is traditional western red cedar. This presented a problem with having to vent the underside of the purlins that the cedar is nailed down to. The chimeny is built from reclamed brick that is about 200 years old. The doors are all 4'x8' or 5'x9' and 6" thick ! The doors swing on actual reclamed 18th and 19th century strap hinges on 1" pintels. We needed a car jack to lift the doors into place.

The shop has an underground 3 phase 400 amp capacity feed to it. I only installed a 200 amp 44 circuit load center though; thought that was enough. Having the 3 phase was one of the best things I did.

One the down side, I wish I had made it bigger !! That is why there is another building next to it where I store my lumber.

well enough for now.

Thanks for looking and hope you get some ideas for those of you who are planning on building future shops. Ask questions and if I can help let me know.

enjoy

lou

[Dave Richards]

Very nice. I can hardly wait to see what's inside.

[Matt Meiser]

That is a very cool shop building! I looked at the pictures first and thought it was an old barn, I didn't realize that you had built it. I'd like to see the inside as well.

[Bob Winkler]

Very nice. I can hardly wait to see what's inside.
I've seen the inside- you're in for a treat.:)

Bob

[Dave Anderson NH]

Beautiful building Lou. You're right, it is very traditional and would fit in well in any old established New England village or town. Now how about instalment 2 ???

[Michael Gabbay]

Lou -

From the looks so far this is the shop of my dreams. You are a lucky man to have such a wonderful place to work.

Mike

[Jeff Sudmeier]

Lou,

That really looks great! Sounds like it fits in very nicely and is a HUGE space.

[Rick Haigh]

Lou,
I have been building doors for my shop and would be very interested in the details of your doors. How do you seal them? How do you lock them? Any details would be great.

Thanks,
Rick

[John Bailey]

Great Shop, I love the look. Gotta see the inside.


John

[Jerry Ingraham]

Lou,
That is an awesome shop building and your attention to detail and tradition is great! I'll anxiously look forward to your next post.

[Bob Noles]

Lou,

I only have one word........


MAGNIFICENT!

[Steve Stube]

Lou thanks for sharing. I'm not familiar with "wrap and strap technique" perhaps you will explain this technique. TIA. I know of one other SIP constructed shop but not with the luxury of post and beam.

[Carl Eyman]

Worth waiting for, Lou. Now in the next installment . . .

[Tyler Howell]

Bravo Bravo, Encore Encore!:cool:

[lou sansone]

Lou thanks for sharing. I'm not familiar with "wrap and strap technique" perhaps you will explain this technique. TIA. I know of one other SIP constructed shop but not with the luxury of post and beam.
hi steve

the wrap and strap is basically a build in place SIP. You sheath the entire building frame with a layer of wood. You then cover the entire surface with heavy tar paper ( I think 30# ) , and then build out all the edges, beam locations, and window openings with 1"x4" the thickness of the ridged foam that you are going to be using. In my case I built it out an additional 3 " ( I used foil faced cellotex which has the highest r value of any of the foams).

The reason for building out the surface is to provide a place to nail the outer sheathing to. You then add the foam sheets to the outside of the building ( wrapping ) and hold it in place with strapping or some other method ( thus the name wrap and strap ). After the building has a layer of ridged foam all over it, you then sheath the whole building again. In my case I used kiln dried T&G EWP.

Why did I go through this painfull process and not just order sips?

I wanted the interior surface to have a hemlock random width look that would have been more traditional of old barns and such. This seemed the easy way to do that. In addition since the roof is cedar you need to build vented SIPs so that the shingles can breath from behind and it is hard to find vented sips. Finally I am just a gluton for punishment

hope this answers your questons
lou

[Steve Inniss]

Lou,
Absolutely beautiful, I too will be waiting for the next post. -Steve

[Corey Hallagan]

Very very cool shop building Lou! Thanks for the pics and can't wait to see inside.

Corey

[Bob Reeve]

WOW,


More now, please!! You are one hard working and lucky guy.

[Mike Holbrook]

Has anyone used incredible yet?

[lou sansone]

Lou,
I have been building doors for my shop and would be very interested in the details of your doors. How do you seal them? How do you lock them? Any details would be great.

Thanks,
Rick
Hello rick

I will post a couple of photos on the doors, but for now let me describe them.
1. they are a full 4'x8' on the small doors and 5'x9' on the big double doors.
2. They are built using 3 layers of wood, each layer is 1.25" thick, each layer alternates between vertical and horizontal orientation.
3. Each layer was glued together using "pressure treated lumber cement"- lots of it and then hundreds of screws holding it together. The final outside layer was nailed on using galvanized screw type nails.
4. Once the door was built the pintle part of the strap hinge was installed in the timber frame where the door would be located.
5. I took carefull measurements of those locations and then mounted the strap hinge on the door with galvanized carrage bolts ( 12 per strap )
6. The door was then hung on the pintle ( the little ones weighed about 250 + lbs each )
7. Once it was all fitted in the door jam I then added another 2" layer of ridged insulation and then a final skin of plywood. The doors are about 6" thick at this point. It is sort of like opening one of those old walk in freezer doors
8. I use a special "twist - turn " latch for opening and closing the door.
9. Only one of the 5 doors has this latch, the rest have a dead bolt type of setup that I can open from the inside if I want to.

hope this helps
lou

[Jim Becker]

Outstanding design, Lou, and I really appreciate how you remained true to the look and feel of a structure that would have been appropriate for your property and home. Wonderful! I too, am looking forward to future installments of your tour.,

[Ernie Kuhn]

Lou,
Excellent job. It would fit right in, in some of the older parts of Meriden, where I grew up. Congratulations.
Ernie

[John Miliunas]

My goodness! Simply superb! As astounding as the building looks from the outside, I too can hardly wait to see the inside. Looks to be truly a labor of love, Lou! Well done, indeed.:) :cool:

[Alan Turner]

Lou,
I am impressed! Wonderful use of materials and design ideas. To build such a tidy structure that fits so well with the rest of the property and is so functional; good think and execution. Looks like it was born there several hundred years ago.

[John Renzetti]

Hi Lou, Shop looks great. You did a great job. Nice design, blends in well with everything. I know that you put in a lot of work to build it.
take care,
John

[Frank Pellow]

Beautiful building Lou! It must give you great satisfaction to have planned and built it. I particularly like the way in which you have combined traditional and modern building techniques,

Like the others, a will be very interested in seeing the interior. But, I am even more interested in seeing a series of pictures of the construction. Is that possible?

[Mark Singer]

Beautiful building! It has a lot of character and really fits the setting. Great design!

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Lou.....great work! I, like the others, look forward to the interior tour!

[lou sansone]

Beautiful building Lou! It must give you great satisfaction to have planned and built it. I particularly like the way in which you have combined traditional and modern building techniques,

Like the others, a will be very interested in seeing the interior. But, I am even more interested in seeing a series of pictures of the construction. Is that possible?
hi frank

I had taken a few old fashoned pictures of when I was building the frame and such. I was thinking of trying to scan some of them in and then share them with all you folks. One of the nice things about post and beam construction is that it is sort of like making a hugh piece of furniture.
lou

[Frank Pellow]

Hello rick

I will post a couple of photos on the doors, but for now let me describe them.
...
8. I use a special "twist - turn " latch for opening and closing the door.
9. Only one of the 5 doors has this latch, the rest have a dead bolt type of setup that I can open from the inside if I want to.

hope this helps
lou
Lou, I am particularly interest in the mechanism's that you use to open/close/lock your doors. I have 4" home made doors on my shop and have neither found not devised anything that I am real happy with.

[lou sansone]

Lou, I am particularly interest in the mechanism's that you use to open/close/lock your doors. I have 4" home made doors on my shop and have neither found not devised anything that I am real happy with.
frank and others

go to the "national hardware" site and look under the gate section and then look at the latch section. They make these very nice twisty turney latches for thick doors. They say that this one can handle a 3" thick door, but you can extend the "turner bar" for thicker doors. That is what I did. Most of the "true value" hardware stores carry the "national" line

here is some of the catalogue info



<TABLE class=leveltables><TBODY><TR><TD align=left>CATEGORY </TD><TD> GATE (http://www.natman.com/prodinfo_subcat.asp?cat=7&sub=76)</TD></TR><TR><TD align=left> SUBCATEGORY </TD><TD> LATCHES (http://www.natman.com/prodinfo_prod.asp?cat=7&sub=76&prod=138)</TD></TR><TR><TD align=left> PRODUCT TYPE </TD><TD> DOOR/GATE LATCHES (http://www.natman.com/prodinfo_catalog.asp?cat=7&sub=76&prod=138)</TD></TR><TR><TD align=left> CATALOG </TD><TD> 25 (http://www.natman.com/prodinfo_item.asp?cat=7&sub=76&prod=138&catalog=728)</TD></TR><TR><TD align=left> ITEM </TD><TD> N101-659</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

<CENTER><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=3 width=500 border=1><TBODY><TR><TD align=middle width=200 colSpan=2 rowSpan=10>http://www.natman.com/images/colorart/'25'3''J.jpg </TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom width=200 colSpan=2>Description</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detaildesc width=200 colSpan=2> Swinging Door Latches For 3" Doors</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Stock Number</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Part Number</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detaildesc width=100> N101-659</TD><TD class=detaildesc width=100> .25.3..J3</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Finish</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Package Type</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detaildesc width=100>Zinc plated</TD><TD class=detaildesc width=100> 6045 </TD></TR><TR><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Size</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Size 2</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detaildesc width=100> </TD><TD class=detaildesc width=100> </TD></TR><TR><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Material</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>UPC</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detaildesc width=100> Steel</TD><TD class=detaildesc width=100> 038613101654</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom align=middle colSpan=4> </TD></TR><TR><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Qty Per Package</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Qty Per Box</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Qty Per Case</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Package Type Price Book</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detaildesc> 1</TD><TD class=detaildesc> 1</TD><TD class=detaildesc> </TD><TD class=detaildesc> Boxed</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Package (WxHxD)</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Box (WxHxL)</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Case (WxHxL)</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>UM</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detaildesc> x x </TD><TD class=detaildesc> 4.88 x 3.00 x 5.63</TD><TD class=detaildesc> 0.00 x 0.00 x 0.00</TD><TD class=detaildesc> EA</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>BCStkNo</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Box I25</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Case I25</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Bar Coded 2</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detaildesc> N101-659</TD><TD class=detaildesc> 10038613101651</TD><TD class=detaildesc> 20038613101658</TD><TD class=detaildesc> Box BC</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Box SWL (each)</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>SWL Lbs (each)</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Unit Weight</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Box Weight</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detaildesc> </TD><TD class=detaildesc> </TD><TD class=detaildesc> 1.784</TD><TD class=detaildesc> 1.784</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Harmonizing Code Universal</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Harmonizing Code U.S.</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Harmonizing Code Canada</TD><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom>Harmonizing Code Mexico</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detaildesc> 830241</TD><TD class=detaildesc> 6045 </TD><TD class=detaildesc> 9090</TD><TD class=detaildesc> 0 </TD></TR><TR><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom colSpan=4>Disclaimers</TD></TR><TR><TD class=detaildesc colSpan=4> </TD></TR><TR><TD class=detailhead vAlign=bottom align=middle colSpan=4>Made in China </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></CENTER>

[Frank Pellow]

frank and others

go to the "national hardware" site and look under the gate section and then look at the latch section. They make these very nice twisty turney latches for thick doors. They say that this one can handle a 3" thick door, but you can extend the "turner bar" for thicker doors. That is what I did. Most of the "true value" hardware stores carry the "national" line

Thanks Lou, I will see if I can find this anywhere in Canada. Failing that, I will be in the USA next month,

How did you extend the "turner bar"?

[Rob Russell]

28'x38', 10' ceilings, wide and grade level shop access, windows for natural light, 3-phase utility-supplied power - there is only one thing I can say.

DROOL, DROOL, DROOL!!!

Rob

[John Shuk]

Lou,
I was bummed that I missed out on the wood you had for sale. Now I'm really bummed that I can't go pick it up from that awesome shop. Great execution of the design.

[Jason Tuinstra]

Lou, great lookn' hangout. Can't wait to see the innards.

[Dave Avery]

Lou,

I started to reply at work the other day as soon as I saw the shop, but work got in the way......

Anyway, your shop is just amazing, particularly to those of us whose shops are in our basements. I'd love to see it someday..... perhaps at the first annual Connecticut/Northeast SMC get-together :)

[Bob Winkler]

Hey, count me in on the CT/Northeast SMC get together. There's a growing contingent of us New Englanders on SMC

Bob

[Tom Stovell]

Beautiful shop building you've made for yourself there. I'm looking forward to round #2 as well. Thanks for sharing.

Tom

[David Fried]

I have been really surprised (pleasantly) at the size of the SMC Connecticut contingent. A get together sounds like a blast. Soon as the snow melts ...

[Kelly C. Hanna]

I must have missed this post when it originated...very nice looking shop Lou! Sure does fit in alright.