My wife and I are in the early stages of looking for a new house. I'll likely claim some unfinished space for a workshop and I'm trying to figure out the minimum size I would need. I'm currently working in about 120 SF, but the next area is likely to be smaller. For space reasons I only use hand tools. At a minimum I'd need space for a bench and roll around toolbox.

In one house we looked at, the only space available for a shop is shown in the picture below. The space between the water heater and wall is roughly 6' x 6'. We're just starting to look so we won't end up with this house, but it raises a few questions.

- Is it a problem to locate a bench directly under the electrical panel? I don't generate a lot of dust, but there is some from sawing, hand sanding, etc.

- The furnace (not quite pictured) is in the same room. I'm not sure if the cold air intake for a furnace is typically at the unit or elsewhere in the house. Would working next to the furnace cause dust to get blown throughout the house?

- The wall with the foil insulation is below grade outside wall. Does that cause any issues?

Thanks for your input

Basement Room.jpg