Hello all, we recently moved out to a Mid Missouri farmhouse from a very crowded Northern California city. I’m converting a Barn, 25’x30’ dirt floor steel building with a big side sliding door to a Car Garage Studio. We are pouring concrete adding a drain, and converting to roll up door. Might have a lift down the road. I’m 66 and this is the first time in my life I’ve had more than a tight one car garage to work from. My old ass will finally have some room to work on my old cars. James (Fred was my Dad a great self taught mechanic who taught me about Cars) Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
Howdy Fred, you might want to check out The Garage Journal as well, you will find a bunch of folks that share the same interest in building or remolding barns, shops and garages. https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=7
Best of luck with your shed. Will you have room for a hoist? I always reckon you need a 4 bay shed to build a car- one bay for the body, one for the chassis, one for the parts and one to work in i.e. welder, bench, vice, pedestal drill etc. Then when you start painting you need more room to store your painted bits and the wife won't let you store them in the house LOL
Welcome to Missouri! You mentioned Mid Missouri.....what town? I'm in Southeast Missouri near Cape Girardeau. Perhaps you have roots in MO? Lynn
Also living in the Bay Area all my life, thinking of doing what you have done for a few years now. Unfortunately my parents health keeps me here.... Following this
no such thing as too much insulation. did i mention insulation? buy insulation. spray foam is best, but expensive. instead, i bought used freezer panels, cut them to fit, sealed each joint with spray foam cans as it was put together. even here on the frozen tundra of minnesota my shop is still 60 degrees when i arrive in the morning with just a small wood stove. same benefit in summer, a small window ac unit used on only the hottest days, but mostly it just stays cool if you keep the big door shut. congrats on your new home, life in the country is a good thing
25 x 30 is too small. You need a 15 x 30 lean-to on the side, a 15 by 25 shed at the rear, a 20 x 25 carport in front of the overhead door. Make the carport tall enough for a lift. Then you need a sitting and thinking porch on the other long wall. And what ever you do, do not tell anyone you have a lift.
freezer panels are from industrial freezers like in a food warehouse, grocery store etc. pretty much every big city has a place that deals in used units. often, they take one down that is x number of square feet, and then along comes a customer who has needs for a smaller unit, so they normally have extra panels leftover. they usually are wood framed, 2x4, or 2x6, and come with either smooth tin, or that bumpy stuff like old beer coolers on both sides. they have a lock system so they can hook together any size cooler you want. sections generally 4' wide, and height is anywhere from 8' to 16'. mine were 2x6 (5 1/2") thick and 9 ' high, just like my stud walls. cost me 15 bucks each. they are filled with yellow high density foam. i carefully took the bumpy tin off each side and used it for a steel 4' high wains coat over the sheet rock, so at least the bottom of my walls are safe to bang into or stack steel, etc. if building new in a cold climate, i also put 2" thick foam down 4' around the slab to keep the frost from ever getting under the floor. this also makes a big difference. the room is the same temp anyplace you go, not cold in the opposite end from the wood stove.
Can you please post on garage journal , instead of here. Not that we don't appreciate a cool barn , just not here.
Congrats for getting out of Nor Cal. We did that a year ago and couldn't be happier. We are in Tennessee. What part of MO are you in? Post pics please.
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