My new shop away from home

erikmannie

erikmannie

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I just bought a 1/4 acre lot in a city in Ohio where I go to welding school two months a year.

There was a house on the lot, but maybe a tornado took it away. The lot is clear now. The lot is in town in the suburbs.

I am thinking that I will build a 2 car garage so that I can have enough room to do welding & machining on the evenings & weekends because school is only 36 hours/week. I only have enough money to build a 2 car garage with power and a bathroom in the garage.

So hopefully the city will just let me build a 2 car garage with a bathroom in it on this bare lot.

I need at least two 220V outlets. One welder I have calls for a 100A breaker, so that is something to tell the architect.

I will be doing this with proper permits. I would like to have it ready to go in Spring 2021, but I think there might be an issue with having to pour the concrete foundation in the warmer months.
 
I will only be there 2 months/year, so I will probably load up my van & haul some welders and equipment out there.

As for a lathe (because there must me a lathe!), I will get a heavy, old (unattractive to thieves) domestic lathe off of craigslist. I wonder if a HF lathe is good enough. I don’t want to leave anything valuable in a garage for 10 months/year.
 
For a couple of months a year, can you live in a corner if the bathroom has a shower? Also, if there’s water, can you drain it down enough that you don’t have to heat it in the winter? 10 months gone is a long time, hope the neighbors can watch for you. I’m away from my shop a week or so at a time and it still bugs me I can’t keep an eye on things. And I’m only a half hour away - but great neighbors.
 
Hi Erik,

So first,


You will be getting familiar with Menards, they have everything you need for any kind of building or home project.

Their affiliated supplier has a building estimator on their website so you can get an idea of what you're in for cost wise.


The costs are pretty much materials only but there are lots of folks around the midwest who can put up a pole building in a few days. If at all possible you will want to go with a pre-engineered package so you don't have to spend a lot of time going back and forth with architects. Also call the local hardware store and see if they supply pole building packages, ask if there is a builder who is known for doing them well. I know our local Gil-Roys store in Elk Rapids can do a package that's almost competitive with Menards.

You should call the local building department and speak with a planner about what you want to do, they are the only ones who can say if it's legit or not. Rural and semi-rural places in the midwest are usually pretty cool about pole barns but if you need to have a dwelling check to see if the local manufactured home dealer has any repo units you can get cheap. You may want to do this anyway so you have a place to sleep.

As for keeping your stuff safe I would be tempted to get a 20' shipping container and possibly put that inside or right next to the garage, they lock up pretty tight and it shouldn't be hard to find someone with a front end loader to help with any heavy stuff. You also have a good idea with buying a lathe that's so old and heavy nobody would think of stealing it. There's lots of them in and around Ohio that you should be able to get cheap.

Check with the power company and find out how much 3 phase is if you can get it too. I don't think there's a problem with pouring concrete in the summer but if you get going now you might be able to get it done over this coming winter. Lots of times pole barns are built with just a gravel floor and then concrete is added later.

Talk with the minister of the church across the street, you might be able to make a deal where they will keep an eye on your stuff in exchange for some winter storage....

That's all I've got now, let us know when you talk with the planning administrator and know what you can build.


John
 
Wouldn't it be cheaper to join a maker space?
 
Another thought that might be helpful.

When you talk with people don't tell them you only bought the place so you can be there for 2 months in the summer. Tell them you, and your wife, and maybe your youngest daughter and her baby, are thinking of moving there when you retire.

We're dealing with our village in Michigan putting a moratorium on weekly rentals because someone wants more "full time residents". I'll bet things will go a lot smoother if folks think they're about to get a retired UPS driver as a neighbor.

John
 
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