Basement Shop, Pros and Cons Question...

[John Dingman]

Hey All,

I am going to be moving, and I have to make a decision about my shop. I have a full unfinished basement in my new home that is plenty big enough for a wood shop. Do you guys that have your shops in the basement of your homes like them there? Or if you had a choice, would it be somewhere else? What are the pros and cons of a basement wood shop?

Thanks!
John

[Matthew Dworman]

I have a basement shop and it works out OK. It's pretty dry, and the temp is a constant 55 in the winter and 65 in the summer, so my glue and finishing options are limited. Also I only have a few of those little half windows, so there's not much for natural light - a real hinderance in many situations. The space is OK - i'm limited to 7 1/2 foot ceilings and I've got some lally collumns that hinder some movement, but I've got about 700 sq. ft that I can call mine. All in all, I'd say that it's fine, but I would obviously prefer a dedicated shop with big windows, 10' ceilings and no lallycollumns. I'd also prefer some nice pine floors rather than concrete. Softwood floors are easy on the feet and easy on dropped tools.

[Tom Pritchard]

John, my shop is in my basement. If I had my unlimited choice of where the workshop was, it would be in a seperate building that had an insulated overhead door, a regular entrance door, air conditioning, heat, a large sink with hot and cold running water, lots of windows and skylights, and a great alarm system! :D Here are the pros and cons that I've seen in my shop:

Pros:
-Cool in the summer, warm in the winter
-Close to the house living area so family can visit me while I'm working.
-Very secure. I could barely get the equipment down there, I can't ever see anyone stealing it!
-power, water, flooring, walls, all suitable for a shop with no added expense
-no problem getting to it or using it in inclement weather
-controlled humidity and temperature for tools and for wood
-cars can stay in the garage

Cons:
-difficult to move tools in or out
-all raw materials and finished projects have to be carried up/down the stairs
-can't get a longer than 10' board down without removing a window
-part of my shop is under the kitchen, leaks from sink, garbage disposal, dishwasher can ruin equipment. I am in the process of hanging a canopy to prevent this.
-if you live in a wet area that is prone to storms, the basement can flood and ruin your equipment
-Close to the house living area so family can visit me while I'm working. :rolleyes:
-need good dust collection or dust will be throughout house

That's about all I can think of right now. I'll add more if I think of any. Keep us posted on your decision! Here's a quick pic of one half of my shop.

[Carl Eyman]

When we lived in Waukesha County in your state I had a basement shop. The plus was that it was handy, warm in the winter, Good place to dry lumber, economical. The minuses were damp in the summer, rust problems, hard to get materials in and out. On balance compared to what I have now it was a winner.

[John Dingman]

John, my shop is in my basement. If I had my unlimited choice of where the workshop was, it would be in a seperate building that had an insulated overhead door, a regular entrance door, air conditioning, heat, a large sink with hot and cold running water, lots of windows and skylights, and a great alarm system! :D Here are the pros and cons that I've seen in my shop:

Pros:
-Cool in the summer, warm in the winter
-Close to the house living area so family can visit me while I'm working.
-Very secure. I could barely get the equipment down there, I can't ever see anyone stealing it!
-power, water, flooring, walls, all suitable for a shop with no added expense
-no problem getting to it or using it in inclement weather
-controlled humidity and temperature for tools and for wood
-cars can stay in the garage

Cons:
-difficult to move tools in or out
-all raw materials and finished projects have to be carried up/down the stairs
-can't get a longer than 10' board down without removing a window
-part of my shop is under the kitchen, leaks from sink, garbage disposal, dishwasher can ruin equipment. I am in the process of hanging a canopy to prevent this.
-if you live in a wet area that is prone to storms, the basement can flood and ruin your equipment
-Close to the house living area so family can visit me while I'm working. :rolleyes:
-need good dust collection or dust will be throughout house

That's about all I can think of right now. I'll add more if I think of any. Keep us posted on your decision! Here's a quick pic of one half of my shop.Tom, Thanks for posting the picture of your shop. Do you have a picture of the whole shop so I can get some layout ideas?

Thanks,
John

[Bob Johnson2]

I'd opt for an outbuilding like the rest of the guys, but of course the basment costs me nothing to build so that's where I am. I've got 1800 sq' which is nice.

Pros
it's cheap
it's convienient
it's quick to setup

Cons
No natural light (or at least very little)
it's cool and damp (you'll need heating of some sort if your in the north, and dehumidifiers in the summer)
Big tools are a pain to get down the hatchway
Big projects can be a pain to get out
Sheet goods are a pain to get down.
Low ceilings limit some tools

[Alan Turner]

My shop ois in the basement, with all the pluses and minuses mentined, plus the noise issue. I work very early in the a.m., with a typical start time of 4 a.m. For my wife this is not a problem. She just notes that "Alan must be whirring" and goes back to sleep. Not all brides are so understanding.

[Tom Pritchard]

Tom, Thanks for posting the picture of your shop. Do you have a picture of the whole shop so I can get some layout ideas?

Thanks,
John

John, the shop won't all fit in one picture, so here are two pictures, one from each end. Sorry it's kind of a mess, I didn't expect company!!! :p

The planer at the far end is on a mobile base, and I move it to the DC when I use it. I am still trying to "settle in" on where everything goes, and I will need to make room for a new arrival soon, a jointer!! My friend Scott is a whiz at doing layouts on Excel. I still have to use graph paper. Either one would be a good place to start. Keep us posted, and remember, we LOVE pics!

[John Dingman]

Tom,

Very nice shop! Thanks for sharing the pics! And thanks for some ideas.

John

[JayStPeter]

I built a basement shop, finished around a year ago. I was able to get 9' ceilings and a 7' wide entry stairway with 6' french doors.

The good part of the basement shop is that I can just wander downstairs and do a little here and there. That can be a mixed blessing since my wife and kids can wander down just as easily.

My basement stays a nice temperature year round. It is much better than the unheated garage I had. Warmer than some others have mentioned, around 65 usually.

The downside relative to the garage is hauling everything up and down the stairs. Even with my nice entry way, sheet goods are a pain. Especially since I have to carry them around the house from the driveway. Getting machines up and down is real tough also, but relatively rare.

I also soundproofed the shop. If not for that, noise would be a bad thing. I expected dust to be a problem, but so far it hasn't. That could partially be due to my preparation which included buying a sweet cyclone and some Festools.

Jay

[Dan Forman]

I am just in the process of putting a shop together in my basement. I had a table saw in the garage previously, but it was beastly hot in our 90 degree summers, cold in the winter, so I didn't use it much. Inside, it will be the most comfortable place in the house in summer, and not bad at all in winter, so will get a lot more use.

I may need a dehumidifier in winter/ spring, as they are damp here, but summers are very dry. Will have to get something to measure humidityand take it from there.

The ceiling joists are quite low, about 7 feet, down to six feet under the heating ducts. The floor is built to funnel water to a central drain near the jointer/planer, so there is no such thing as a level spot. This will no doubt make it interesting to build outfeed tables and such to suit more than one tool. It will also limit the options for dust collecting, as the Oneida 2 horse Commercial system will not fit, the Gorilla may but will need a fan to move air past the motor which would sit within 2 inches of the actual ceiling (as in between the ceiling joists). The 2 horse component would fit without any extra precautions.

With about 435 sq feet, it will be a bit tight once I get some shop fixtures and a work bench built, but at least I won't get tired from walking from one end to the other. :D My single, detached garage has about 320 sq ft.

There are a couple of posts which get in the way a bit, and some drain pipes to work around as well.

I will deal with sheet goods by sliding them down the stairs on a plank, to which mitered braces will be affixed similar to those pictured below, which was used to lower the jointer/planer down the stairs. Moving the big tools is an adventure, made more or less so by the sort of stair access you have. Mine was not too bad, being a straight shot from the back door. Anything under 500 pounds we did with just an appliance dolly, the j/p was a whole different story, detailed in a recent post. As someone said earlier, security won't be a problem with the big machines at least. The appliance dolly may be needed again to get finished pieces back up the stairs.

One key to a successful basement shop would seem to be a GOOD dust collection system. Lacking this, it could become unpleasant upstairs.

The two main factors for my decison to use the basement were temperature concerns, and electricity. It would have cost a lot more to run 220 out to the garage than in the basement, and for most of the year it would be rather uncomfortalbe to be out there, or would cost a fortune to heat or cool.

I thought some pics might be helpful, even though there is much yet missing, as it might more closely resemble what yours looks like without all of your stuff down there. I am still in the process of making room, so hoping the mess will be excused. You should have seen it last week. :D
The pic's are, in sequence, left, right, and back to the corner where the first two were shot. The last is the support for a plank to slide sheetgoods down the stairs, to keep it in place while in use. Also very handy is one of the plywood carriers, a handle which supports the piece from the bottom, which is canted away from the sheet to leave room for your arm. Mine is from Lee Valley. I plan to make something similar, but with wheels for going from my truck to the back door, which should help to retain symetry of right and left arms.

Unfortunately, none of the machines you see have been so much as turned on yet, due to the lack of 220 power, but hopefully that will be finished this weekend. It will probably be a couple more weeks before the dust collector is installed, and I can start making sawdust in earnest.

Hope some of this is helpful.

The uploader won't do the pic of the plank, as it was used in the following post already:
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=19130

That one delt with getting the 850 lb. jointer/planer into the basement.

Jay, I covet your high ceilings and wide entryway!!!

Dan

[John Hart]

When I first put the shop in the basement, I had most everything I needed and I negotiated all my activities with the furnace, laundry area, closets..that sort of thing. I also worked with the lighting that was available. Then I decided to close the area off so I had control of noise, temperature, humidity, space and light.

Now that it is a dedicated space with locking doors and my own wood storage, separate from all other appliances and stuff...I wouldn't trade it for anything. It's not just the place where I work on projects...It's also my hangout. Weather is never a factor and it's so convenient that I can go down anytime just to putz around. I installed a computer system that isn't affected by dust (sorta) and ran my satelite feed into the computer...so I have TV and CAD at my fingertips...Not to mention the Creek!

Humidity is always the same, temperature is stable, and I threw some insulation in the floor joists before I drywalled the ceiling so even when I'm running the router directly under the TV upstairs, I get no complaints.

I solved the concrete floor problem by laying down those 2'X2' interlocking mats. They are cheap, easy to install and it's real easy on my knees when I work on the floor.

The only thing I'd change is the size....I wish it was bigger.

[Mike Scoggins]

John,

Alan Turner said:


My shop is in the basement...

I think that's all you need to hear. Now we know his secret behind making that beautiful Newport kneehole desk. ;) Guess I better go get started digging. :rolleyes:

The most appealing pro I've heard so far is the relatively constant temperature. Sure would be nice to experience that since I live where the heat index is 90-100 degrees F several months out of the year.

Mike

[Jim Young]

John, without reading all the other responses I will give you my pro's and con's, taking a chance on redundancy.

Pro
- easy anytime access
- constand temp and humidity
- can do something between comercials
- all the tools for home repair are easy to get to
- in the proximity of the wife (she is happy when I am near)

Con
- can't make noise at certain times
- need double tools for the garage, or go up and down the steps alot
- too close to wife
- dust in the house
- can't spray finish
- low ceiling(sp?)

Here is a link to my shop for possible setup ideas.
http://marsh-monster.com/forum/wiki/pmwiki.php/SimolisPage/Shop

[Robert Weber]

I would say that the more neander you work, the easier a basement shop is. As stated, you have all the conveniences without the expense (electrickery (to run the radio), heat, etc.).

Concerning heat, there may be some issues. In our 75-yr-old house, the basement is a balmy 55 degrees in the winter. Again, as stated before, this limits your finishing options. It can also be unpleasent to work in. In the summer, however, it is often the most comfortable room in the house.

My 9x12 shop is in the basement, and I move out to the driveway when I need to cut down large sheet goods, bringing them into the shop when they have reached a manageble size.

Good luck, and happy planning,

Rob in Peoria

p.s. - a Neander shop doesn't wake the kids in the morning (or evening) or need a dust collector...

[John Dingman]

Thanks to all for the links, pics, and the advice. I think I will try the basement and see how it works out. I have time to lay it out and insulate it and get the DC all piped in as my shop does not have to be moved anytime soon. (only moving 3 blocks away from my current shop location) It would be nice to keep a detached shop but eventually, the building it is in is going to be torn down for additional parking. I'll keep you posted as to how it is going. And as always, there will be pics, plenty of pics :D Thanks again for the advice!

John, Heading to the basement ;)

[Greg Mann]

John,

All the pros and cons have been covered except one characteristic that you probably don't have or you would have mentioned it. While my shop is in the basement, I have a walkout basement with a sliding door opening. A nice feature if you are lucky enough to find it. I grew up in a house with this feature and always valued it. The one and only home I ever had built had this feature and I loved it again. After several moves, including one with no basement, I am back to the walkout. Happy again. My wife and I are kayakers, so storing long, big things was important when we were house-hunting. Paid off in ways I did not realize at the time.

Greg

[Bob Johnson2]

John,

All the pros and cons have been covered except one characteristic that you probably don't have or you would have mentioned it. While my shop is in the basement, I have a walkout basement with a sliding door opening. A nice feature if you are lucky enough to find it. I grew up in a house with this feature and always valued it. The one and only home I ever had built had this feature and I loved it again. After several moves, including one with no basement, I am back to the walkout. Happy again. My wife and I are kayakers, so storing long, big things was important when we were house-hunting. Paid off in ways I did not realize at the time.

Greg

I carry 3 canoes out the hatchway each spring and back down in the fall as well as storing the 12'er down there year round, it's not a joy to do. What I wouldn't give for a walkout entry.

[John Keeling]

I have my Hand-tool and carving workshop in the basement, which does include grinder and buffer for sharpening. Also includes drill-press [please excuse my bad language]! Limited by 7' ceiling, concrete floor and very fixed space for assembly. 65 degrees winter, 70 degrees summer. No dust collection, so no sanding! Constant nagging to keep it clean [absolutely necessary nagging I might add, otherwise i'd never do it!].

In my 20'x24' garage I have electron eating stuff and my more 'user' oriented hand-tools [ie they get used on epoxy etc], combined metal/wood-working stuff, cheesy workbench and enough space to build a 16' sail-boat or a 18' canoe/kayak. 0 degrees winter, 90 degrees and mosquito ridden summer.

Neither space is mine exclusively.

Not perfect, but seeing some of the small places people in the UK and elsewhere are building, and storing, boats I really am not complaining!

John

[KENNETH WATSON]

I am in the process of building my long over due work shop in my basement as well. Plenty of room and open clear space, no post or support beams in the way. However the overhead joist beams are at an even seven foot. I am 5 foot, 18 inches tall :rolleyes:. As long as I don't jump up and down with joy because I just accomplished a perfect cut, then I am fine :eek:! I will post construction pictures when completed. I am a retired US NAVY Chief Petty Officer and have looked forward to this shop project for years. I monitor this site as much as possible to read opinions and suggestions. This is a great source of information and it's all down to earth language. Thanks for the sharing of information to every one who is involved here. I look forward to many future informative sessions within this community. Very Respectfully, Kenneth R. Watson USN GMC, (SW), (ESWS), (MTS) (RET)

[harry strasil]

I just updated my house with a 95% efficient furnace and for the first time have central air. no return air from basement, but I did tap into 3 ducts with small 4 inch dampered outlets and my basement stays the same as the rest of the house temperature wise. I used to run a dehumidifier in the basement all summer, but did not need to this year. To get heavy and awkward things up and down the narrow basement stairs I use a 4 part small block and tackle with a pad eye above the basement door. Most material comes thru a normal basement window and plywood sheets down the steps.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v81/irnsrgn/odd/blockandtacklejob.jpg

pics of my 12 by 20 basement shop here ; http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=72844&highlight=basement+shop

[Prashun Patel]

I have a basement shop. Nothing as nice as the ones that have been posted here.

Pros: Free; not an eyesore to neighbors; doesn't take up space in the yard.

Cons:
Dust collection is critical
Noise. I have little kids and a wife that doesn't like noise > 9p.
Getting tools in and out is dangerous and you need helpers.
Getting stock in and out is a pain because my stairwell is turned, and my door is only 36" wide. If I had a nickel for every time I've gouged the walls getting stuff up and down...

If you have the funds, I'd definitely put in a BILCO or walkout door.

[Hank Knight]

My shop is in my basement. I agree pretty much with the pros and cons others have described. In my view, they balance out. Basement is not ideal, but not bad. If I could do one thing over, I would put in a wood floor. The concrete is killing me - even with padded floor mats. I may yet put one in, but it would be a major project to move all the machinery, lumber, supplies and other stuff out, and find a place to put it while the floor is being installed. Much easier to do it on the front end.

My $.02.

Hank

[Gary McKown]

or are building one, look for a house with walkout, higher basement ceilings, and windows. We had the house built with all that in mind, and came close to the ideal. Half of our basement is a large 2½-car garage (where lumber and two cars get stored) with walkthrough to the shop in the back. Extra rows of blocks make the ceilings a little over 9 feet, and even 7' under the HVAC duct running along one side. I completely walled off the furnace area, a walkin "closet" in the rear where the utilities come in (and more lumber is stored), and half of the remaining space - lally columns are embedded in that center wall. One part is a combination rec and finishing room, the other half is the shop. I took the time to insulate and sheetrock the ceiling, so with the three doors closed it is relatively dust-tight. We're on a slope so the basement is about half underground on the North side, with a nice big triple window just above ground level where the workbench is located. HVAC ducts keep it even more temperate year-round. It is dry as a bone, but I do run a dehumidifier in the dead of summer to help control humidity. Laundry tub at one end is nice for cleanups.

The only drawback to this grand plan is a bit of a noise problem. As it turned out, the shop is directly beneath the master bedroom but pretty well isolated from everything else, so I am restricted somewhat only in the wee hours.

If I had it to do over, about the only change would be to make the shop part larger and the rec room smaller.

[Curt Harms]

Others have mentioned these points at some point. One real benefit-no significant heat/air conditioning costs. Offsetting the environmental savings is the need for more lighting. There are good sources for lighting information re # of fixtures, what type of lamp etc. available online. It'd be worth considering a ceiling of some sort painted white which would help with the lighting. Light/White walls would help as well. If you do ceiling/walls, you have to think about access to plumbing, electrical etc. You want good dust collection regardless of where your shop is located but having the chance of dust spreading throughout the house adds importance.

Re noise, I just have fiberglass insulation and SWMBO doesn't complain about noise, but then I don't do that much jointing or planing which are my noisy operations. Fiberglass is cheap and there are fiberboard-type materials available that are supposed to help with noise damping Either a walk-out basement or Bilco type stairs is very helpful. Moving sheet goods and heavy machinery down interior stairways is pretty undesirable.

HTH

Curt

[Rod Sheridan]

I also have a basement shop, however the originator of this thread made his decision over 3 years ago!

Regards, Rod.

[John Dingman]

I also have a basement shop, however the originator of this thread made his decision over 3 years ago!

Regards, Rod.Yep, sure did. So I guess I should post some pics of the shop. How I built it can be found here: http://www.johnswoodshop.info/Making%20a%20Shop.htm

http://www.johnswoodshop.info/Current%20Shop%20Images/Current%20Shop%20022.jpg

http://www.johnswoodshop.info/Current%20Shop%20Images/Current%20Shop%20004.jpg

More images can be seen here: http://www.johnswoodshop.info/Current%20Shop.htm

John

[Rod Sheridan]

John, thank you for posting the photographs and links, you've don a beautiful job on your shop.

Regards, Rod.