10' or 12' Walls

["Jacob Robinson"]

For my shop that I hope to start later this fall I am in the dilemma of 10 or 12' walls.

To me it seems I would be wasting a lot of space with 12' walls but then again 12' walls allow you to stor almost all lumber vertically (which I like the idea of) also 12' give a "roomier appearnce" if that is worth anything

What would you do?

Pros and cons would help me out?

[Travis Teichmann]

if you can afford the extra price for 2' in height, by all means go for it. You won't be disappointed! You'll get better light distribution with a taller ceiling and you can store taller pieces of lumber without worryingy about hitting the ceiling. It will also make a smaller shop feel more open.

[Rollie Meyers]

My shop was built w/ 10' walls but the taller the better IMO, in the center of the room only thing one can hit is lighting fixtures.

[Bill Houghton]

This may not be as necessary in a large shop, but in my small shop, I sometimes use the vertical space to flip lumber end for end. My ceiling is only nine feet, and I store a lot of dangly stuff from the joists, so anything more than about seven feet requires me to take the lumber outside, to turn it and orient it properly.

Keep in mind, though, if you live in a heating climate, that every foot of height you create puts the warm air that much higher than you are.

[David G Baker]

What Bill said about heat. My shop has 10' walls, once in a while I wish I had 12' or 14' walls. I park my tractor in my shop and I think about getting a larger tractor but it won't fit in my building so I will wait until I can build a larger building.

[Matt Ocel]

IMHO - If its only going to be used for woodworking, I would go with 10'.
To much cost at 12', with heating, material and labor(if someoneelse is to build) One other thing to possibly look at with 12' sidewalls is, will it be compliant with local building codes for total height restrictions.

If your looking for volume, a less expensive way would be to use siscor trusses or what some might call (vaulted)

[Joe Mioux]

in one of my stores, the sales area has 14' tall ceiling height.

I hate it. It is a real pain to change out light bulbs.

I have 6 fluorescents, and 6 or 7 track lights with both line and low voltage lamps (total fixtures around 20-22) and 8 or 9 recessed light fixtures.

If I had to build it again I would take the ceiling height down to 10 ft.

Heating that space isn't a problem, I have infloor hot water radiant heat.

I love that!

joe

[Jim Becker]

I think I would stay with 10' walls unless there was a good reason to raise it further, such as a need for a storage loft at one end. I know I very rarely get boards that are longer than 10', so vertical storage is still possible--very long boards can be carefully evaluated and separated into two boards to work within the actual height available.

[Greg Cole]

Coming from someone who hits his head on the HVAC chase in the garage shop , I'd give a left something for 10'. After 6 years of having a garage shop, I still hit that darned thing at least once a week... just the wrong height when I have a hat on to not see it til I feel it.
Pretty much what Matt & Jim said.

Greg

[Rob Cunningham]

I have 10' ceilings in my shop and it seems to be high enough. If you do go with 12', you might want to consider a few ceiling fans to help push down the warm air in the winter.

[Alex Carrera]

I second the HVAC head bump, and even worse the occasional joist. My basement shop has 6'3" clearance to the joists in most places, and I'm 6'2". Talk about a nightmare, I'm just dreaming about not hitting my head for now...

[Greg Cole]

I'm 6'2". Talk about a nightmare, I'm just dreaming about not hitting my head for now...

6'2" as well.. just bought new Red Wing Logger boots too, making me a least 6"4".... my head didn't appreciate the lift kit this weekend.
Where's that darned "ceiling stretcher"?

[Tony Bilello]

In a wood shop, 12 foot ceiling ain't all that high. In addition to the items mentioned, such as a vertical wood storage rack, the higher walls are also used to store/hang jigs and templates that are not used all that often, but still get used.
Also, somewhere in the rear (depending on the length of your shop) you can drop the ceiling down to 8' by creating a small loft area 4 ' high for long and unusual pieces.
I have had several different shops including a spare bedroom, a 45'X100' warehouse and everything inbetween from 8 ' ceilings to 25' ceilings. All I can say is "the bigger the better". Once you have built the structure, it's too late to change your mind.

[Doug Jones from Oregon]

I have not read the rest of the message beyond the first, but here is my simple take on the 12' high walls...if you can afford it do...if for no other reason than..... sheet rock or hard side the walls....less cutting of the sheets!

I had both 10' and 12' ceilings in my shop and although I had a forklift that made life easier....the 10' ceilings made it difficult to use the 8' racks.

Doug

[Matt Meiser]

I've said it many times before, but I have 12' (12' 4" actually) ceilings and if I had to do it again I'd do 10'. The extra height is nice, but working up there is a pain. I had to buy a taller, more expensive ladder for normal maintenance like bulb changes and ended up renting scaffolding for putting up the ceiling and electrical. Plus there's an extra 20% volume to heat. The extra height is nice at times, but overall I don't think its worth it.

The vertical storage discussion came up during my club's board meeting last week because one of the guys was thinking about doing it. It can be problematic with respect to keeping your lumber from bowing. And its really no easier to dig through than horizontal storage.