Temporary(?) basement workshop setup

[Andy Fox]

I decided to put the crawlspace to workshop conversion project on the back burner for now. It might be replaced altogether with an addition with a full basement.

I'm now working on getting my 2 car garage workshop down into the existing partial basement before I freeze or all the cast iron on my tools is replaced by rust. I worked on getting the space ready this weekend. Next weekend is probably going to be the big tool move.

Here are the main challenges and how I'm addressing them. More permanent solutions will probably come after the addition or crawlspace digout is complete. I'll try to post a machine layout tonight. Suggestions welcome!

Dust
I'm going to try some temporary plastic on the ceiling and as a "wall" to separate the shop from the furnace, crawlspace storage area, and stairs. Laundry machines will be covered with a drop cloth. My shop is still in the shop-vac stage of dust collection technology. Many chips escape, but it seems to control the fine dust pretty well with a HEPA filter. I also use one of those round shop-vac-sized room air cleaners with a HEPA filter. I'll do most sanding out in the garage, but I'm starting to learn how to scrape instead.

Noise
Will probably be a problem. Family room is upstairs with only flooring and carpeting to absorb noise.

Lighting
The basement already has 3 bare bulbs and 1 electronic ballast shoplight with 86 CRI/3000 K ("kitchen & bath") tubes. I have some 5000 K ("daylight") bulbs out in the garage, but prefer the warmer color temp., which is also closer to the existing incandescent bulbs. I added another shoplight this weekend, and the lighting seems to be acceptable and almost what I had in the garage.

Power
There's even a few 120/20 amp laundry circuits and one 240/30 amp dryer circuit that I can borrow until I decide if I want to stay down there. Much better than the single 15 amp outlet in the garage and leaving the door partially open to run an extension cord into the kitchen! (Geez, can't believe my wife and I both put up with that!) A 20 amp outlet in the garage should be required by code!

Access
Power tools will be disassembled and brought down this weekend using an appliance hand truck and some ratcheting tie-downs. ....wondering if my back, stairs, and tools survive. I don't have anything too big: contractor's saw, 6" jointer, 16" drill press, etc. I think I just might have to de-vise my workbench to get the 24" x 6' top down there though. I'll cut down long lumber and sheet goods with a circular saw in the garage. Most lumber will still be stored in the garage.

[Art Mulder]

Andy, two thoughts occur to me...

1- how hard would it be to move the laundry units over by the HWH? Then you could easily put up a partition wall and isolate the furnace, HWH, and Laundry from the shop.

2- dust... you're going to pass the $1000 mark very quickly on any home project. Yet a proper dust collection system can be had for around a grand, which will take care of the mess aspect of a basement shop very handily.

...art
(also using a basement shop + shop vac, but is shopping for a DC. I keep the planer in the garage, as it is the messiest.)

[Andy Fox]

Art,

Thanks--good ideas! I'll have to investigate moving the laundry over near the furnace. Placement is going to be tricky as far as allowing for furnace maintenance, and I don't want the dryer to blow lint around the furnace. I know that I could move all utilities over with minimal effort and cost, except maybe the washer drain. Now, there is an unvented floor drain over there, so I might be able to modify it into a washer drain if it goes to the sewer rather than the sump pit. Hmmm....

I suspect that once I make a few plywood cuts on the tablesaw down there, I'll run out and buy a dust collector. I did enclose the open base, but fine dust still gets everywhere in the garage. My jointer is just as bad as my planer. The shop-vac seems like an ornamental noise-maker when attached to these! :(

[Michael Gabbay]

Andy -

I have a shop basement and the one thing that is a must is good dust collection. Assuming you want to stay married! :D

If you do not want to deal with moving things around too much then you could partition around the washer and dryer and the furnace area. Later on you could use the w/d area as a place to put a cyclone or other storage.

Also consider adding a subpanel for the shop with a breaker off the main box. That way you can add circuits when you need them without shutting off the whole house.

my 2 cents...

Mike

[John D Watson]

I'm probably off track and out to lunch Andy, but would'nt it be easier to heat the garage.

[Andy Fox]

I'm probably off track and out to lunch Andy, but would'nt it be easier to heat the garage.

John, that's too easy, and no fun at all!:D

I'm tired of being out in the garage.... it was a step up from the doghouse though!

[John Dingman]

Andy,

Another vote for the Basement Shop! I moved from a detached shop to a shop in the basement of my home and I don't think I'd ever go back to detached unless of course someone built it for me :) I have a HF DC unit and it does the job for me. I insullated and put up OSB on the ceiling and walls to kill the noise a little and it seems to work fine as no one has complained yet about noise.

I did set up a sub panel for the shops power. It's not that hard to do and it's not that expensive. When you hit the power switch on the table saw you won't dim the lights in the house ;) The convienience of the basement shop is what I like so much. There will be some that disagree with me, and you may find that something else works better for you. But I think once you try the basement shop, you are going to be hooked.

Best of wishes to you in whatever you decide to do,
John

[Andy Fox]

Michael and John, Thanks.... I agree, I'll put DC and a subpanel at the top of the priority list. Probably a subpanel before DC, but I could probably deal with unplugging the electric dryer and using that receptacle for a little while if I can't do both. The electric service panel is right in the shop(yipeee!), but it's pretty full, so a subpanel will be necessary.

Andy