# Shultzy's Shed (Workshop Build really - lots of pics)



## Shultzy

Hi all, I thought it was time to start another workshop build thread. I hope it comes up to the standards of this site.  

A little bit of background. I've lived in my house since 1972 and although I wasn't very good at woodwork when I was at school, the thought of trying to kit the house with furniture on my salary was a no-no. Working in a garage I managed to purloin "green shield stamps" (hand up who remembers them  ) to add to my collection and had a B&D drill with circular saw and jigsaw attachments from their catalogue. Those together with a box of Stanley tools (saw, square, marking gauge etc.) were the start of my kit.

My first project was a coffee table and then a set of built in wardrobes. This was the start of my love of woodwork. All my projects were made in the garage which had to be cleaned out and the car put away after work. Most of my project pics are on my web site and it just shows what can be made with a modest amount of tools and a bit of space.

I digress.  

It was not possible to build a workshop in the garden until now (kids, and more kids), so after 35 years one of my dreams is about to come true.

Here is the cad drawing of my proposed workshop. Its 16ft x 8ft (4.88m x 2.44m in new money) with 7'10" (2.36m) headroom. It has three, 2ft wide doors, two hinged together. The floor will be 7/8" x 5in t&g floorboards on 4"x2" @16" ctrs infilled with 4" fibreglass, with a vapour barrier and hardboard underneath. This will sit on dpc on top of block paving bricks. Walls of 4" x 2" covered with a vapour barrier and 3/4" x 5" shiplap. Roof trusses of 4" x 2" covered with a vapour barrier, exterior ply and Wickes "easyseal" covering. All internal coverings of 1/2" mdf over an infill of 4" fibreglass.

BTW the colours are only for my benefit so that I can see each section separately. If you want to know any more details, or any different views, I'll be happy to oblige.








After moving the existing garden shed to the other side of the garden I had to take down a 40ft sycamore tree. After lopping off the branches it left a 10ft trunk. My chainsaw was next to useless when trying to detach the roots from the trunk as the number of stones embedded into the roots meant a re-sharpen after almost every cut. So a 1in chisel and mallet and almost 4 weeks later (on and off), it ended up like this.








This is the trunk trimmed to about 8ft.








Area surrounded by edgings, dug out to a depth of 7 1/2in (4in hardcore, 2in sharp sand, 1 1/2in slabs). All of the hardcore is bricks I collected from around the estate, a nice bit of recycling.









Finished at last, well the base at least. This part has cost about £240, I don't want to bore you all but if anybody wants a breakdown I'll be happy to oblige. I've ordered the wood and I should be able to start on Thursday.






Will post more info and pics as work progresses.


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## greggy

well done shultzy, that looked like back braking work,but now you should start to enjoy it as the build gets under way, and its looking good. =D>


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## gwaithcoed

Looking forward to the rest of the build. Keep the pics coming in.

Alan.


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## DomValente

Schultzy if you remember using Green shield stamps( and I do ) you must be tired, take a break  

Dom


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## Paul Chapman

DomValente":3ouuboro said:


> if you remember using Green shield stamps



Bought my first electric drill with Green Shield Stamps - top of the range, 2-speed Black & Decker, with half-inch chuck for 17 1/2 books  (Funny, I can remember that but can't remember what happened half an hour ago :? :? ) 

Looking good, Shultzy :wink: 

Cheers :wink: 

Paul


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## DomValente

Paul Chapman":179cyvkv said:


> (Funny, I can remember that but can't remember what happened half an hour ago :?
> 
> Paul



Just sit down Paul I'll bring you a nice cuppa.  

My first with green shield too was a grey and orange drill(still got it)

Dom


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## bobscarle

Shultzy

Looking good. Its exciting when things start to arrive, all of a sudden drawings and ideas become real. I know from my own experience that those tree roots are a real "!£$%^&* to get out. I had to dig / hack 2 of them when I built my shed.

Yes, I remember Green Shield Stamps and going to the shop in Birmingham City Centre. Now I think I need a sit down, 1 sugar in mine please Dom  .

Keep it going.

Bob


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## PowerTool

Looks nice,looking forward to the rest of it;glad I didn't have to dig the tree roots out,but could happily have given the trunk a new home :lol: 

Andrew (yes,I remember Green Shield Stamps as well..  )


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## Shultzy

Thanks all for your comments, I didn't think green shield stamp would provoke such nostalgia. I bet the youngsters wonder what we are talking about  . I too still have the blue B&D, I wonder if my new drills will last as long. I think the cordless drill batteries will cease to exist long before the actual drill fails. 

Sorry Andrew the trunk is mine :twisted: , but I do have a few branches of 4/5" dia if anybody close wants to pick up a couple of feet.


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## mrbingley

I'd be very tempted to make it 10' wide if I were you.
Seems like you have enough foundation space to cope.

Mine was 16' X 10', added another 4' in length, but wish it could be 2' wider.

I think the width of a workshop should be as wide as possible, right up to a square building if possible. It gives you so much more layout possibilities & more a "sense" of s p a c e.

Just my 2ps worth.

Chris.


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## Mike Saville

Looking forward to the rest with interest - especially the roof - might give me some food for though for an upcoming 'Garden Office'.

Cheers for now,

Mike.


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## Shultzy

Chris, I would have loved to make it bigger, but it took a lot of convincing before swimbo agreed to this size. 

Just an update - went to order the timber today armed with a list of varying lengths, what a nightmare as the three timber merchants I visited will only supply in random lengths. I already allowed 10% over so I've had to up that to 15% to make sure I have enough.

A question about the doors - they will each be 6' x 2' made out of 4x2, on edge making the door 4" thick, brace and ledged. Would heavy duty "tee" hinges be ok or should I use heavy-duty hook and band cranked field gate hinges.


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## Shultzy

Here is the latest update. The timber arrived on Thursday and according to the delivery note it was two and a half tons. It took me, swimbo and a next door neighbour five hours to carry it around to the back of the house, Phew.

These are the floor boards and internal cladding.






And these are the external cladding, framing timber and roof sheets






For those who are interested the costs so far are :-

Excavate and lay workshop base - £240
Vapour barrier, DPC, and insulation - £201
EasySeal roofing - £250
Screws and nails - £100
4x2 - £625
4x1 - £21
3 x 1 1/2 - £17
4x5/8-t&g - £61
5x3/4-shiplap - £466
5x1-T&G floorboard - £140
8x4 hardboard - £21
MDF-12mm - £170
8x4ply-1/2 - £63
8x4ply-3/4 - £188

which brings the total so far to £2,570

More pics later


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## Escudo

Are those Mrs Shultzys undergarments hanging on that line? :shock:


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## Shultzy

(oops! Escudo, you are awful  ) "dictated" by Swimbo :lol:


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## Escudo

All good fun.  

Hope all goes well with the new workshop. 

Cheers, Esc.


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## DarrenHorston

Hi Steve,
I hear that building an ark would have been more useful than the shed at the moment. There's a guy here in Holland who's built one (half Noah's size) in six months. Jan can take his finger out of the dike now! :lol: 
Melanie guessed correctly what t&g is (all these DIY programs). And Robert (Darren) wants to know why you didn't just burn the tree :twisted: 
Funny how I knocked together a shed for my mother-in-law in a couple of afternoons and it's still standing after 10 years :wink: But there again, I didn't need to remove a forest, build an airstrip underneath and I could carry the wood in one go .... :shock: 
Soon you'll have a nice granny annexe ... :idea: won't that be cosy??
Eddie


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## Shultzy

Here is a bit more of the build. I started by creating a saw station to cut the long lengths of the floor joists and the noggins. It doesn't look pretty but it is at least flat.







The floor joists laid out and dovetailed nailed ready to connect to the noggins.







I set up this jig to create a floor joist and noggin set. I thought that setting up a production line was the best method to get consistency and as I have a tendency to get backache it helps. The joist was marked out into four quarters and then offset to the left by 2". This offset will become clearer later.







All the sets laid out ready for screwing to the end joists. Something doesn't seem quite right.  Perhaps that jig was not such a good idea.







Ah! That’s better  ; I knew that 2" offset would come in useful. 







One half of the floor completed and the second part under construction. I placed two sets on top of each other and then screwed on the end joists. I squared up the frame with my large triangle (seen by the fence on the right of the picture), and then nailed the noggins. Further sets were placed on top of the last and the process repeated. Once again this method helped with my back problem. 







Both parts of the floor completed. They are sat on top of block paving bricks with DPC on top. 






I have since filled the voids with 4" rockwool insulation and nailed on about 8 floorboards. Then the rains came and I've had to abandon work till the weather breaks. The forecast shows rain all this week so I don't hold out much hope till the weekend.


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## Mike Saville

Hi Shultzy,

I see that you have placed your floor structure onto DPC in turn onto bricks. Is there any other fixing here? Did you mortar the bricks onto the paving? Did you fix your frame to the bricks?

My scenario maybe similar in that I have a paved area where I want my workshop/garden office (more likely workshop now  ). There is a picture of the hardcore sub base what did you put over this before your slabs - just sand or did you motar the slabs in place?

Thanks for another interesting update.


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## Shultzy

Hi JimJam,



JimJam":1o8fo6c8 said:


> I see that you have placed your floor structure onto DPC in turn onto bricks. Is there any other fixing here? Did you mortar the bricks onto the paving? Did you fix your frame to the bricks?



There are no fixings or mortar. Each half of the floor take two people to lift, so when the sides and roof are on it won't move.



JimJam":1o8fo6c8 said:


> My scenario maybe similar in that I have a paved area where I want my workshop/garden office (more likely workshop now  ). There is a picture of the hardcore sub base what did you put over this before your slabs - just sand or did you mortar the slabs in place?



There is 2" of sharp sand over the sub-base. Compact with a "Waker-Plate Rammer", screed off with a long length of timber set 38mm below the edgings, rake in a bag of cement and lay slabs on top. The cement goes off and provides a hard stable base. This is much easier than the method of laying "spots" of mortar, but does require more setting out to make sure the slab is level.


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## Shultzy

Well the rain here still hasn't stopped since last Monday and the forecast for the rest of the week doesn't look promising so I've had to find other work. This layoff has allowed me to compile a few notes that have arisen since I started which will hopefully be helpful to any budding workshop builders. 

1.	Don't order all of the materials in one go to save on the delivery costs. In view of the British weather this could be a bad move. Only order as you need it.
2.	Order plenty of polythene. The pile of timber is quite wide and I had to cover it in two strips which has allowed the wind to drive some of the water underneath.
3.	Make sure you have plenty of bricks or other items to lift the timber off the ground, and to hold the polythene down. Its surprising how little wind is needed to shift it.
4.	Don't underestimate the amount of space required to store all this timber. I have a reasonable amount of room but I still have had to keep moving it around to create space to work in.
5.	Don't underestimate how heavy a section can be. One section of floor consisted of 12no. 4"x2" (including noggins) and it was a struggle for two people to lift it.
6.	For anybody who has a back problem make sure you have adequate support, there is plenty of bending as a lot of work is at ground level.
7.	And finally make sure your tools are not spread around, a few spots of rain can send you scurrying around trying to put them away and cover everything up.

Hope these suggestions are helpful.


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## Escudo

Pleased your getting on well Shultzy, pity about the weather holding progress up.

I notice that your workshop doesn't cover the full slabbed area. It would therefore seem that you could make your new workshop even bigger.

You can never have enough room, and now is the time to decide?

Think of all those extra lovely tools and machines you could put in it.  

Keep up the good work. Esc.


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## DavidE

Hi Shultzy

That is looking good - I hope the weather breaks soon so you can resume construction. Good tips on not getting snowed under with materials too. 

Cheers
David


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## Shultzy

Esc, would have loved to make it bigger but swimbo and a tree in the way put paid to that idea.

David, you can learn a lot from peoples mistakes, that's if they admit them  

PS. no rain today   spent my time cutting timbers to length and sorting out the straighter pieces for the roof trusses.


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## Shultzy

Hi all, this is situation after 5 weeks of rain, frustration , and yet more rain. As you can see it equates to about a weeks worth of work. I've completed the floor and as Thursday was the first day of continuous sunshine for weeks I managed to finish all six frames. I spent 10 hours continuous working and at my age that's too much, and did I pay for it the next day.  







In order to make the roof trusses I made some cams to lock timber in a jig.






These are the cams for the bottom half of the jig.






Jig ready for truss assembly.






Truss assembled awaiting ply gussets (glued and nailed).






One side done, then I'll turn over and complete the other side. I have nine to construct then I'll cut the ply to shape with a bearing guided cutter.






Rain again on Friday, bash Saturday, F1 Sunday, so hopefully I can do some more next week.


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## Shultzy

Hi all, here is the latest update. Due to more unsettled weather and domestic issues (wedding, visits etc.) I haven't been able to do as much as I would have liked. Having said that I feel that I've broken the back of the build and it should be erected in the next few days, weather permitting. I have erected it already to check the fit and drill all the fixing holes. One thing I forgot to do was to mark a pencil line around the floor to make sure the walls were flush with the floor edge when I re-erected the panels.

Here is a roof truss waiting for the excess plywood to be cut off with the circular saw.






Roof truss with the plywood trimmed to size with a bearing guided cutter in a router.






All the roof trusses finished, with the slots for the cross member cut out.






The ultimate in flat packed workshops  . On the left hand side you can see the end panel cladded and painted brown. This is because the wall behind it prevents any nailing to the lower half of the panel. I nailed a piece of cladding to cover the join between the wall and the floor, and to aid positioning when it is upright. I will be able to put one piece under it to cover the floor joist, and slightly below, to aid water run off.

For those of you who are contemplating building the walls on the floor, you might like to know that this panel (8'8" x 7' in 4"x2" with 3/4" cladding) is at the maximum weight limit that I can lift.






Rear wall with a third of the cladding completed. This is for the same reason as above. I would have completed all of the cladding to this wall but the weight would have been too great for two people to lift.






The SIP roofing nailer in the last picture has so far worked flawlessly and holds a 400 nail coil, so reloading is not as frequent as the 56 nail capacity of the framing nailer I had on loan.

The cladding is easy to fix when laid flat, but I suspect this won't be the case when the wall is vertical as the cladding is not the usual t&g and will need two people to hold it in place whilst nailing.

I'll post more later.


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## Maia28

Hi Shultzy,
I've really enjoyed reading this so far. When the extension to my house is finished I have permission to reconstruct my workshop and have saved the old paving slabs and a load of hardcore. Somehow, two extra bulk bags of sand seem to be left over from the extension along with a couple of hundred metres of 4x2 and a whole host of other useful items 8) . I was planning do do the base like yours, thanks for convincing me it's a sensible way forward. 
Look forward to reading/seeing more of your build - its very helpful.
Cheers, Andy


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## Gary

Looking good so far. 

Are my eyes deceiving me or is Mrs Shultzy' Dyson being used as a dust extractor?

And does she know?

Gary


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## Paul Chapman

Gary":2oosmyun said:


> Are my eyes deceiving me or is Mrs Shultzy' Dyson being used as a dust extractor?
> 
> And does she know?



:-$ :-$ :lol:


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## Shultzy

Maia28, glad the post has been useful to you. If you want specific info on the base pm me and I'll be glad to assist.

Gary and Paul you are right it is swimbo's Dyson, and as I'm the one that has had to repair it twice she can't moan  And anyway she can always borrow my chop saw :lol: :lol:


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## Shultzy

Hi,all. Well the Eagle has landed (copyright N. Armstrong, B. Aldrin)  . This is a day's work from the "flat-pack". It doesn't seem much but there was a lot of "plumbing and squaring and fixing" work to do. 







This is the inside ……..







…… and this is down the side. It is pretty tight and I had to prune the neighbour's conifers to fix the roof.







All the trusses up and the overhangs and outer perimeter boards fixed. I used a 4" strip of hardboard to set the first and fifth trusses at 8' centres as well as the third and seventh, ready for the plywood roofing. I used a flooring cramp the hold the sides in while I secured the trusses.







More inside views.














"King of the Castle" - Swimbo catches me relaxing.







All trussed up and waterproof. I made a mistake with the polythene covering; I put it on and secured it with staples – when it was hot!! – consequentially when it cooled down in the evening the polythene became as tight as a drum and tore at the staples. Remedied with patches of duck tape






I think this is a major milestone and something to show for my efforts, and it will allow me to work when its raining  .
A few observations – don't underestimate the amount of time it takes to carry out a task when working on your own, even the simplest of tasks can involve a lot of extra work. I found that with the restricted area I had to work in, it meant that there has been a lot of "double and triple handling" of materials. 
So far the only additional costs have been an extra £31 for glue and more screws.


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## DaveL

Steve,

Great progress, hard work by the look of it but well rewarded with a dry space for things. 

I look forward to seeing the rest of the build completed, you will enjoy the shop once its finished. \/


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## Paul Chapman

That's looking great, Shultzy.

Cheers :wink: 

Paul


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## Johnboy

Looking Good. If that green plastic is not temporary weather proofing then it is on the wrong side. it should be on the warm side of the insulation. sorry if this as granny/egg thing.

John


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## PowerTool

Looks good - a lot easier to visualise the finished article now  

Andrew


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## Shultzy

Hi Johnboy. the green plastic isn't temporary, but I will be putting some more on the other side of the insulation.


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## Escudo

Looking great Shultzy, excellent work  . When can I move in?


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## Shultzy

Hi Escudo, you are not the first to make that suggestion. My daughter even had the temerity to suggest that it could be used to house a sauna and jacussi. :evil:


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## DaveL

Shultzy":3vd25m89 said:


> suggest that it could be used to house a sauna and jacussi. :evil:


Just what you need to relax in after building an even bigger workshop, next to the spa sauna room. :shock: :roll: :wink:


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## OLD

When i look at the pictures the word precision comes to mind every thing is spot on even the fixings are all positioned the same, nice job.
Regarding the lack of breather membrane i do not think any harm to the structure will occur if you let it dry out after fully waterproofing and before applying the inner vapour barrier and sealing it well.


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## Shultzy

Hi all, thanks for your comments OLD, I think its due to my engineering background, I did try to make it on a "production-line" basis so perhaps that's why it looks so neat.

After such lousy weather this summer the sun came back with a vengeance just as I started work on the roof. It took me four days of sweat to complete :evil: . The roof is covered with ¾" ply and Wickes's "Easyseal". My neighbour helped me to get five of the 8x4 sheets up onto the trusses, where I had to cut two lengthways (not so easy freehand) and the others were cut on the ground and hauled up (ten cuts in all). 

As the joists are covered I used masking tape to mark the centre lines of the trusses to position the ply, I also used a string line along the length of the roof to take out any inaccuracies in the "squareness" of the roof. before nailing. After all the ply was in position I ran the router around the edge using a bearing guided trim cutter. 

After painting with primer I again used a string line and masking tape to provide a visual reference for the first layer of "Easyseal" underlay. After cutting to length the backing sheet is removed while rolling out the underlay and smoothing down with a paint roller. The "Easyseal" capsheet is put on in the same way. All of the sheets went down without any problems, except I had to use three tubes of mastic to glue down the edges and underneath as the start of the rolls seemed to have lost their "stickyness". I allowed 3" to fold underneath and then nailed with clout nails to make sure it remained in position.







I though you might like to see how I managed to put the long under roof planks on my own. I screwed four battens loosely to the trusses and twisted them into position to allow me to mark the saw cut line without having to hold the planks in place.







Another tip is to use 1" square pieces of cardboard to staple the sheeting on. This stops it from tearing in strong wind.


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## DaveL

That roof looks very neatly done.  

I hope you can see the end of the construction work getting closer. 8)


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## Escudo

It's all coming together very nicely, but sounds like jolly hard work!. Well done shultzy. 

Cheers, Esc.


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## Shultzy

Hi all, after enjoying a week in sunny Cornwall its back to the grindstone of building the workshop  .

I've completed the cladding and the guttering and its now time to make the doors.






Here is a drawing of the end wall and doors looking from the inside. Each door is 6' x 2' and is to be made from 4x2, cladded with shiplap and mdf on the inside to give a total thickness of 5 1/8"






A few questions:-

1) How much space allowance around the doors, 1/8", 1/4" or more?

2) Tee hinges or gate hinges, bearing in mind the weight of the rh pair. 2 or 3 hinges per door?

3) Should the centreline or the edge of the bracing be on the diagonal of the rectangular box.


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## Fecn

Looking real nice now Shultzy - Won't be long now before you'll be working inside it.


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## Alex

Looking good Shultzy. 8) 
Yeh Your bracing is exactly how i would do it. 
I'd use T hinge for the door to frame and a steel strap hinge between bifold doors. Like these www.e-hardware.co.uk/acatalog/Shed_and_ ... MAodNzLByg
I'd say 1/4" spacing around the door with the doors opening outward and closing against a rebate/clapping strip. Your going to have put double barrel bolts on the bi-fold doors and then some sort of haspen staple to lock the doors together.
Keep the pics coming they're inspiration to us all. Alex


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## Inspector

I keep looking at your sketch of the proposed doors and think you would be better off going with a pair of asymmetric ones. The reason being that going through a 24" wide door is going to be annoying at best (unless you're real skinny) and having to open two each time won't be any better especially with an armload of new tools.

If you make the "man door" about 30" wide to go in and out of most of the time, then the other door will only be 42" wide and can be opened when the weather is nice or when big stuff is passing through. I would be tempted to look for a new "damaged or seconds" door (insulated steel preferred) or a salvaged one for the "man door" and build the second bigger one as planed. Easier to make and to weatherstrip, and less hardware to buy. Install them to open out rather than in to avoid having to keep that end of the shop clear for access.


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## Shultzy

Alex, thanks for the info, I hadn't known about the strap hinge. Still not sure if the "T" hinges will be strong enough to support two doors. Gate hinges would allow me to remove the doors completely but I wonder if that's really necessary.

Inspector, I had originally considered a pair of doors each 3' wide, but as you can see in the last picture there is a tree in the way. Making the entry door 2' wide means I don't have to chop another large branch off the tree.


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## mailee

If it was me Shultzy I would use the fire door hinges as they will take a large load and they have bearings too. I have hung many a garage door using these since Mel recommended them and they are great. They are about £8 a pair but are stainless and will last a long time. I fit three to each door by the way. :wink:


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## Alex

I second what Mailee said, fire door hinges are very good. But your doors are going to have to be very well made/strong as all the weight/leverage will all be on the style of the door. Where as heavy duty T hinge normally spread across the three rails of the door. Just a thought :wink:

edit:I've found a lot the gate hinges either need large space between door and frame or are offset. so just check if you go this way.

Alex


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## Shultzy

Mailee I have weighed a door :!: and it's 37kg, so the two doors together would be 74kg. I assume that three fire door hinges will be sufficient to hold that weight. I wonder whether the "T or gate hinges would be easier to fit.


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## mel

shultzy 
go for the stainless steel 4" fire door hinges 
1 and a half pairs will suffice 
three hinges will take a 250 kgs door that is in constant use 

have you lent any thought to how you will stop cold winter draught blowing through the bi-fold door ?? 

mel


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## Shultzy

Hi Mel, fire door hinges seem to be the way to go. I went to my local wood yard today and had a word with one of the old-timers and he suggested using hook and band for the two outside doors and fire door hinges for the bi-fold. His reasoning for using hook and band was that any discrepancies in the door and the frame being out of square would be easier to compensate for in the fitting.

The cladding for the doors protrude above and below the door frame by one inch. The internal mdf covering will overlap the internal vertical joints by one inch as well. This will hopefully stop any draughts. Another possibility would be to route a groove and put a rubber or neoprene seal in.


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## mel

hook and band will be fine , {if not a bit expensive} in particular , if you are looking for that rugged , industrial look . 
myself and mailee were disgusing this topic earlier 
the downfall of these hinges are 
1 the entire hinge is showing 
2 the screws are exposed on the hook , pin plate 
3 they are mosty of poor manufacture and you will need to offset the hook to compensate for the slack fit to the band 
4 the cost of them 
the last time i bought 2 sets of 600mm they were in excess of £48 

hth 
all the best 
mel


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## Shultzy

Mel, I hear what you are saying and I'm still pondering which way to go. I'm concerned that because the cladding is 5/8" some of the hinge screws might be into end grain.

The local yard have some 18" hinge and bands at £15 and a three pack of fire proof hinges at £11.30. If I go this way I'll put some security screws in when I've finished.


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## Shultzy

Hi all, here is the latest wip pics. After much deliberation I've used hook and band for the outer door and fire door hinges (as Mailee suggested) for the other two doors. 

These are the door frames packed and clamped and half cladded. The gap for the left hand door has to be wider than normal, to allow for the swing, as the door is 5" thick.






First door fixed with hook and band hinge.






Half open view.






Second door fixed with fire door hinges.






Second door folded back.






Both doors folded to give full opening.






I'm quite pleased with the results so far as the cladding matches up quite nicely.


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## Paul Chapman

You've made a great job of those doors, Shultzy.

Cheers :wink: 

Paul


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## PowerTool

They look good,and blend in very well with the rest of the build.

Andrew


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## mailee

Looking very good Shultzy. :wink:


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## Shultzy

I've finally completed the workshop doors. I only allowed 1/4" gap under the double doors and in hindsight I think this should have been 3/8". The doors are 5" finished thickness and I had problems with the positioning of the 2 mortice locks due to the swing of the inside edge of the main door. You can see from this photo I put a wedged shaped piece on to bring the lock out.






Here are the doors fully closed, and I'm pleased that all the cladding lines up.






This shows the main door fitted with 2 mortice locks. Also in the picture is the one of the partly finished shutters, bathed in sunlight. I took some interesting shots of this sunlight from the inside as it filtered through the timber and will post them in general chat.


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## mel

looking good shultzy 
what you have effectivley formed is a "leading edge" with your solution to mounting the two mortice locks


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## Escudo

Impressive progress since my last visit to this excellent thread. 

Well done Shultzy, top workmanship.

Cheers, Esc.


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## Shultzy

Thank you for your comments Escudo (might see you at Harrogate).

This picture shows the two shutters which are the final parts of the outside construction. 








I'm leaving the windows construction until I've bought some new machinery . The shutters are held by two stormproof hinges and two 9" coach bolts and wing nuts when closed.

This has been a very enjoyable build (excluding our marvellous summer  ) but not without its problems. The biggest being ordering too many materials in one go. The inside is full of timber offcuts, timber for benches etc, which I don't need at the moment and of course tools. I also have 12No. 1/2" 8x4 MDF sheets for the lining, which with all the materials around are difficult to manoeuvre and cut. Not to mention 4 rolls of insulation, cable reels, sockets and lighting :x !!! I also have a 6 gang extension and a host of trailing cables for tools and lighting.

I must admit there have been one or two "incidents"  .

So this is really a wakeup call to those thinking of building a workshop, to plan for storage of tools and materials outside the build area, or at least keep the area as free as possible.


This completes the outside construction, so now for the inside story.................


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## ByronBlack

Thats looking very good. I like what you've done with the window protection, this might something I'll be considering as and when I get round to adding windows to my workshop.

It's funny about the storing of materials. I took the opposite approach of only ordering the materials as I needed them, and found this a real pain due to ordering the wrong stuff or finding out the materials I needed weren't available thereby enforcing a design oppurtunity. I think it does really come down to planning!

What angle is the slope of your roof?


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## Maia28

I understand about the materials and I seem to be somewhat between you and ByronBlack. I'm either tripping over stuff or having to go and get things before I can do a job. I also have around 90m of 4x2 left over which I seem to be continually moving around. 

Your workshop is looking great. I wish I had the patience and skill to do such a good job as that. I'm really looking forward to seeing how you fit the inside out.

Andy


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## Escudo

Hello Shultzy,

Hope to catch you at the show - I will be there on Saturday enjoying myself. Hope I don't have too bad a hangover from Friday nights excesses :wink: 

Cheers, Esc. (Tony)


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## Shultzy

Byron, I only ordered all of the materials together to get the discounts and save on delivery costs. Unless a covered area is available it might be better to plan to order perhaps 2 or 3 days in advance. Even with this approach there are is always the problem of offcuts cluttering the floor.

The shutters will provide security as well as protection from the cold in winter and direct sunlight in summer (the shutter side is south facing).

The roof slopes at 1 in 8, that's just over 7degs (7.19)

Andy, I will be posting about the inside as soon as I've taken some pics  

Tony, I'll look out for someone leaning a lot then. :lol:


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## Escudo

With a slight curry smell and beerie breath.


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## Shultzy

I've started on the insulation, electrics and mdf panelling. 
This picture shows the lower ring main as it passes through each section of the 'shop. I've left a loop in the wiring for a socket, some will be connected and some left for future use. I've put a piece of plastic sheet behind the wiring to stop the insulation "invading" the socket box. Vapour barrier will cover this area before the mdf goes on.






This is the rear end of workshop showing half panelling and socket cutouts. The jig for cutting these cutouts is on the rhs of the picture leaning against the wall. This lower ring circuit will be for the static machinery.







I intend to put more sockets on the roof trusses for hand power tools. Although its difficult to see in the picture I've routed a "V" groove, on the mdf, in the middle of the verticals. This is to make sure I only screw into the verticals when fixing anything to the walls, even if I paint them.

This is the first time I've ever used mdf having only used "real" wood. What horrible stuff to work with, any cutting, routing just produces tons of dust. Thank heavens I invested in an Airace before I started.


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## exigetastic

Looking good 8) 

Hope mine comes out half as well (and wish I'd taken as many pics  )

Oh well, only 1 more work day to go before I can get cracking. Felting on my own on Saturday.... hope design holds my weight  

Like the v groove idea, I was toying with surface mount conduilt for the cabling, but that is a neat idea! (Any one know where I can get a jig to cut spark symbols :idea: )

Si


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## Shultzy

Finally finished laying the electric cables and fixing the internal cladding.
This picture shows the corner by the side of the entrance doors where the consumer unit and main light sockets will be positioned. I'm going to screw these final boards on so any extra wiring (hopefully not) will be easier to fit. The hole at the bottom is for the 16amp socket, with a second one on the other side of the doors. This is a better view of the "V" grooves I've made over the verticals so I don't miss screwing into the studding. I've also routed a "electricity warning sign" on to the panels where the main cable comes into the 'shop (I didn't use a jig, Si, just freehand).






I'm hoping to have a good clear out and vacuuming before I paint the MDF. Should I seal the MDF before I paint it, and if so can the next coat be just emulsion?


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## richburrow

This looks great  
Congratulations on a fantastic job, the window shutters are a great idea!!
Rich


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## Shultzy

Can't believe it's 3 months since I last posted on my build. Well I have been busy but it's on those interesting things :? like wiring up, putting the insulation up (what a horrible job :twisted: , don't use rockwool) and putting the ceiling up.

Having said that I did manage to make eight windows which I have never made before. They are dg fitted from inside.






Here's a closer picture.






Here's a view from the inside. The moulding is "L" shaped to take up the difference between the window and seals thickness and the window rebate.





I've put nine double sockets up on the trusses as well as thirteen at floor level.






I'm making the large windows which sit behind the shutters and will post when I've finished them.

Just to update the costs I've spent about £550 on the electrics materials which brings the total to about £3,200


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## StarGazer

Thanks for the update, any pictures showing a more general view of the inside?

Also, a quick question, what thickness of mdf did you use to line the walls?

Thanks

StarGazer


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## Shultzy

StarGazer, I have some photos of the inside but there's not much to see as there's timber every where with not much room to move. I'll post some when I've made it look respectable  .

I've used 12mm mdf on the walls fixed with 35mm nails.


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## skipdiver

Really enjoyed going through that.Looks really good but one thing i have learned is that mine is going to cost a lot more than i imagined.Was £3200 the final cost of everything?


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## Shultzy

Hi skipdiver, the only costs I have to add to the £3200 is the cost of the main window's DG, an outside light and an alarm. Bear in mind that this cost does not include the electrician's cost (I did a deal  ) nor the cost of any internal benches, cupboards etc. I also made the windows which would be an additional cost if you had to buy them.


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## skipdiver

Thanks for that.The only stuff i will be buying is the raw materials.Everthing else will be made or has already been made.I have a fully kitted out workshop at my old address.Sold the house to my mate and will get all my machinery,benches etc when i have a new home for them.Going to go in the garden this afternoon and finalise sizes and positioning ready to make a start.Will post pictures if i can figure out how to do it.I'm a bit of a technophobe but her indoors will sort it for me.


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## Shultzy

For posting pictures try here

https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/view ... 890#216890


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## skipdiver

Thanks,i'll try that.


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## Benchwayze

Shultzy and Steve, 

My brother-in-law has been a qualified, Chartered Surveyor for well over 35 years. Then other day he revealed a 'trade-secret' to me. 

The DuPont 'breathable' vapour barrier has been tried on three occasions since the 1970's and on the two previous occasions DuPont managed to steamroller their product, despite problems with damp. 

Apparently, damp gets into insulation from outside, causing problems between layers of so-called damp proofing. This was causing studding to rot and it was concluded that the breathability worked both ways! 

As far as he is aware, the design of the product hasn't changed so the problem might still be there. Maybe a case of financial muscle forcing the product into the market again. 

I don't know how true this is, but I can't see any reason that my bro-in-law would make up a story like that. 


So I am going to use building paper if I can get it! 

Regards 
John


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## skipdiver

Thanks for the heads up.I subby to a roofing contractor and he can get me breathable roofing sheet quite cheap.Was going to go with that.


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## Benchwayze

Hi Steve, 
Well, no problem.. 
I thought it might help to pass that nugget on, but of course things might have changed. I think I'll go with solid 9" wall then...  

Regards 
John


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## skipdiver

I had a blockwork shop last time.Thought i would go with a timber one this time and save myself some labour costs.And i think a timber shop would be a nicer working environment.


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## Benchwayze

I suppose I could use leggo..

Remember from way back, 'Tomorrow's World' featured somone who invented a full size, plastic-brick building system. I never saw it used so maybe it never caught on! 

I remember thinking at the time... 'One good gale!'


 

John


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## Shultzy

These are just the job for you then John .


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## Benchwayze

(hammer) (hammer) (hammer) 
](*,) ](*,) ](*,) 
   

Yeah! Specially desiged and coming to a Cathedral near you! 

Actually, had I the space, they definitely would suit me! I could live in the place.

Cheers
John


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## Shultzy

A bit more work completed. The large windows were made to two halves as this was easier to machine and glue up, as I don't have any clamps big enough. The DG units are inserted from the inside and the moulding is "L" shaped to take up the difference between the window and seals thickness, and the window rebate. I should have made the frames thicker; for two reasons the beading would have been easier to make (having no rebate) and there would have been enough timber to put the window stays on to. The DG units were £50, bring the grand total for the build to £3250.






Now for the inside and the more interesting bits to make  .

This is the bench to hold my lathe. I had to order more timber and although the last load was sawn square edged this delivery was CLS :? . It wasn't worth sending back so I just used loose biscuits to line them up and glued them together.






The central support is a bit naff as I didn't want to plane it square and loose thickness, and it twisted out of square. The other two are perfect as I had prepared the timber properly. They are a nominal 4x4 made from 4x2 glued together. The half-lap joints were made by glueing rather than cutting.

The drawers sides and bottom are 12mm mdf with the grooves cut on the TS. I'm making the drawer fronts today and will post later.


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## mikec

Have just found this thread, thanks Shultzy, a real step by step guide.


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## dennis

Shultzy

Regarding the stainless hinges, it is recommended to lightly oil them regularly,some makes tell you this in the instructions.Where I work there are several thousand doors with allsorts of hinges on but as we fit new doors or do maintainence we use the stainless ones.But as I am a contractor it is not up to me to go round oiling these hinges and after a period of time a black grease starts to come out of the hinges, and they stiffen up especially the the external doors which are nearly all outward opening.You may allready know this I just thought that I would point it out in case you didnt.The workshop is looking good Ibet you cant wait to get in it.

Dennis


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## Shultzy

Thanks for the info Dennis, how regular, will once a month do? I've been working in the shed since last December when I finished the doors and shutters. Bit of a pain really as I have a combi, bandsaw and a load of wood in there as well. There's was a lot of double handling till recently, but now I have the bench completed I have more room to work.


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## dennis

I think it suggested on first fitting and every six months, I have only used a couple of packs with this information in so I will have to look if we get that particular make again.It would be interesting to know if anyone has had any problems with these hinges not being oiled and black grease coming out.Where I work the factory have a maintainence joiner of their own so it is really up to him to look after them,but as their are so many doors one man cannot keep on top of them and he passes a lot of work to the firm that I work for.

Dennis


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## Shultzy

Well I've finished the outside at last. I completed and fitted the end capping pieces yesterday. I've still to finish the painting inside so with paint and a few odds and sods the final bill comes to £3300, which I think is not bad considering how well its constructed. I bet the kit inside comes to more than that  .






I also completed the drawer fronts over the weekend. They are made from offcuts of 18mm ply from the roof with pine lipping, and 3 coats of satin polyurethane varnish. The handles were £1.50 each from the odds and ends bin in the local wood yard. Its actually the first proper set of drawers I've made, I used to make them out of plastic moulded sides with a screw on front  , so I'm quite pleased with the results.


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## shim20

awsome build done a good job, very nice workshop you have now  , and wasent to expensive 3300 is cheap.


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## joiner_sim

Firstly, my apoligies for bringing this post back out from the dark ages! But the link was in Shultzy's signature, so had to have a look!

I'd seen this post before, but never replied to it...... :? Well, now I've read the whole lot. And it looks like it took a hell of a lot of hard work, but got there in the end. A very much deserved well done must be given!

But..... can you post some pictures up now of how the shop looks inside now its finished!

Thankyou  
Simon


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## Shultzy

Simon, I would if it were finished inside. Apart from the bench in the last picture and a few open cupboards to get the tools off the floor I haven't done much. I'm working on the workbench thread at the moment but don't worry I'm contracted to show all WIP pics or the rest of you lot will send the round the heavys'. :lol:


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## BigShot

A bit of thread-necromancy here...
I've just checked your workbench thread after following the links in your signature and would now like to hold you to your promise of showing the rest of the workshop.

I'm designing my own shop and bench at the moment so the more I can see the merrier.

Is it all done now?


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## Shultzy

For those of you who expressed a desire to see the inside of my shop, here are the pics. Remember as with all 'shops this is "work in progress" :lol: 






Looking in through door in the centre is the combo, left rear the bandsaw, and the router table on the rear right. The pillar drill is due to be mounted on a separate table and the chop saw will be replaced by my lathe. Long clamps by the side of the window.






Looking from front to back the bench at rear, short clamps on left


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## Joe Shmoe

HI all, thanks for your tips and awesome pics.

Well, I am still trying to work out what to do, only now I have the added problem in that I managed to pick up 50 x 3.6m 4x2s for half price, so have to try and work my complete design around those lengths in order to not have to buy more timber. Currently, it looks like I will only be having 1.8m high walls so I can get two uprights from each piece of timber. No worries though, cos the single course of bricks, plus double top-plates will bring the walls to around 2m.

Anway still trying to work out weather to build a flat roof or not. Shultzy, how did you cut the long angle on the bottom chord ? My Mitre saw doesn't slide, so I have no chance of doing it with that?

Anyway - this is progress so far...


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## Shultzy

I've replied in your other post.


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