Dream Shop - Old Shop Demolition finished. Demo photos added.

Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith

Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith

ilmarinen - MODERATOR
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Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
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I have hesitated to post this thread because there always seemed to be something that delayed the shop build … for the last ten or so years. This shop has been my dream for a long time. In it I will get going on my knife kits for beginners, books and videos, and some long set aside big projects. I also have a big metallurgy study to get going.

Well, this morning I signed the contract for the construction. I have spent over 5 months with the city on getting the lots approved. I had to merge the back one acre lot with the front lot that has the house and current smithy. They wouldn't let me build an accessory building on a lot without a primary building on it. Now that it is all one lot, I am allowed to proceed. The builder estimates starting in 30 days and completion 30 days after that.

The shop is 40X20 Cape Cod style with upstairs storage. Raised slab with block foundation, stick frame, vinyl siding, architectural roofing.

Inside it will be all high tech and packed with equipment. 20X12 clean shop and 20X24 hot shop, plus stairwell. 10X10 grinding booth in the hot shop. Power within 3 feet of any place you stand along the benches, as well as overhead power outlets down the center beam. Lighting to rival a Broadway stage.

I'll use this thread to post updates and photos as the build goes.
 
This should be very interesting.
We are planning on moving in the next year or so. Unless we find a place in the country that already has a shop, I'll be building one, too.
 
I plan on having an open house when the basic build done, and after it is fully configured next year, host a full hammer-in. People will always be welcome to come by when I am home, too. Eventually, I may take on students.

Bill, you will love the clean shop. It will be a jeweler's and hand-worker's dream shop. Jewelry bench, engraving bench, carving bench, craft/drafting table, desk and computer, etc.
It will also display many of my antique tools and gargets … and the best of my extensive phone collection ( I have over 80) … including an antique phone booth.
The hot shop will have stainless steel countertops ( except in the sink area where the countertop will be copper).

Rolling carts will hold a lot of equipment that I don't use every day. The carts will be able to latch to the end of a workbench for stability, and unlatch to be set aside out of the way with the other carts. Tooling and supplies for those tools will store on the cart's lower shelves. HT equipment and quench cart will also be mobile. Same goes for the twin salt pots.

I lucked upon a great estate sale the other day and bought enough steel cabinets to go all the way down the hot shop wall. They are brand new looking heavy gauge steel and have the lift and hide type doors. Inside shelving, and under cabinet light units came with each unit. The whole system hangs on a heavy wall rail-bracket so the cabinets can be installed easily. I paid $400 for the whole shebang.
 
The one feature I am glad I opted to add to my shop was a "Shower" in the bathroom. The separate bathroom was a given no racing to the house.....The shower was a maybe in the beginning, but now at the end of a long hot summer days work I can leave all that hot sweat and grime in the shop not in the house.
 
I wish I had the space and the permission to build a bathroom and plumbing, but code does not allow it. If there is water and a toilet, it is a habitable building .... and the cost would increase by $50K or more. I plan on having a wash down shower head outside in case of acid splash, burns, or catching myself on fire. In the chemical business, we had these everywhere. I can connect it to the well pump.

A camper type chemical toilet will be upstairs for emergencies and when it is raining or freezing cold outside. I can always pee in the dunk tank :D
 
How about heated floors? That's what I'd want in my dream shop. :cool:
 
According to the builder, the shop's floors will be heated in the summer and cooled in the winter. That comes free with the build.

The clean room will have heat and AC. The hot shop will have solar heating and cooling that I have designed. it should heat it well in the winter,and cool it some in the summer.
 
If possible you might consider putting in a roll up door large enough to drive a forklift (or boat on trailer) through. That's at least 8' and preferably 9-10'. People often overlook this. Even if you never use it, it makes a shop easier to sell down the road.
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
I wish I had the space and the permission to build a bathroom and plumbing, but code does not allow it. If there is water and a toilet, it is a habitable building .... and the cost would increase by $50K or more. I plan on having a wash down shower head outside in case of acid splash, burns, or catching myself on fire. In the chemical business, we had these everywhere. I can connect it to the well pump.

A camper type chemical toilet will be upstairs for emergencies and when it is raining or freezing cold outside. I can always pee in the dunk tank :D
Click to expand...
To dodge building codes and save a ton of money, behind my shop I put up 8X8' plastic greenhouse kit. One of those things made of PVC pipe hoops skinned with translucent corrugated plastic sheets.
Its partitioned to contain a composting toilet, shower & dressing area. Shower is heated with EccoTemp L5 propane heater (whats the best thing ever for portable hotwater..) It just drains into the soil.
The toilet chamber is force air vented to the sky with basically a computer fan.
Unless you stick your head in it, or at the top of 14’ pvc vent pipe you smell nothing.
Basically its full after about a year then its mostly dried out contents is dumped into the annual burn pile with all the yard trimmings.
 
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Nathan the Machinist said:
If possible you might consider putting in a roll up door large enough to drive a forklift (or boat on trailer) through. That's at least 8' and preferably 9-10'. People often overlook this. Even if you never use it, it makes a shop easier to sell down the road.
Click to expand...

I have one wall framed in for this under the drywall. I wish we just put the door in from the get go.
 
Are you setting up an exhaust system in the grind room? What type? Air conditioning available?
 
The end of the shop facing the street has a 7X8 foot garage door.

The grinding room has its own exhaust and fresh air system, as well as separate dust collection. The wall between it and the the main shop is half glassed so people can see in and I can see out. The entry side is welding curtains. All welding and grinding will be in the grinding room.

Over the forging area there will be a hood system to take exhaust gasses and hot air upstairs and then out of the shop through a large powered vent.

To make it a knife shop, the end where I go in and out will have a six foot neon sign that says "KNIVES".
 
Stacy- one of the best things I did when I built my current shop is to put in a sink. The sink drains on the ground under the shop.
The sink is "plumbed" from the house with a garden hose. It works 75% of the year. When it's below freezing the water is turned off, and a camping water container with on/off spout is positioned over the edge of the sink for hand washing. No permit required.
 
A nice sink area is in this shop too. It will run from the well pump to start with and later on will likely run from a city water line from the house. Like yours, it will just drain outside in a French drain.

The area around the sink and backsplash will be a copper workbench top that was used by a watchmaker in the early 1900's. His family gave it to me, and I have been keeping it for this project because it would be a shame to just cut it up for craft projects.
 
Sounds badass!!!! So what made you decide to go with stick built instead of a steel building? I may be facing that very question in the next year or so and in my area, steel on slab seems to be the way to go. You may have tougher code requirements as the only issue that I have seen with building shop is that the electrical outlets had to be high up if you were in a flood zine like my back yard is. That would not have been a big problem as they wearer all gong to be above the bench height.
 
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