Upgrading my Wood/Leather Shop

[BrokenolMarine]

When we first added the mini-split, I found that the huge roll aside metal door tended to moved in and out in the track, exposing a gap of up to 2" on the bottom and sides. This didn't make for an efficient seal around the door. The mini-split was properly sized for the shop but couldn't hold a constant temp with the air coming and going at will. I locked the roll aside steel door, and got about six cans of expanding foam and sealed the edges. This meant I couldn't open and close the door without first cutting the foam seal, then cleaning the track at top and bottom. It hasn't been opened since I sealed it eighteen months or so ago.

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It had always been my intention to remove the big door, and put in a wall with a more sensible door since I wasn't going to be bringing in vehicles. Maybe some wood. About six weeks ago, I ordered double steel security doors.

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We had an ongoing project in Miss Tina's new coop, so the door got secured out of the weather, tied against the outside of the roll aside door under the carport, and we concentrated on the coop. Yesterday, I started prepping the inside of the shop to frame the wall. First clearing the foam and the stuff in the way so I could work. Then after many measurements.... I cut the first three, most critical pieces... the top cross member and both sides. Test fitted them.

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Once those fit, and using the measurements of the door with the spaces for the rough opening (extra half inch in height and three quarter inch in width per the directions,) I laid out and we built the wall, on the floor of the shop.

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This distorted pic doesn't do the wall justice. It's nine feet wide, ninety inches tall, and the opening for the doorway is seventy four and three quarters wide by eighty two and a half tall. For now, the wall will sleep on the floor... we woke up at five thirty this morning to a heavy thunderstorm and it's rained off and on all day. I'll hope for clear skies tomorrow. I don't want to work outside in the rain.... even under the carport. It rains sideways in Oklahoma.

[BrokenolMarine]

Got out early this morning and cut away that spray foam from around that roll away door. That was NOT an easy task. Since the foam expands, it had gotten up in the track at the top where the wheels roll, and the door still didn't want to move. About 40 feet of chain and the pull strap hooked to the Polaris Ranger in 4WD and the door moved sideways, but it didn't like it.

Luckily I will be removing the panels from the door and cutting away the frame. The panels will become a carport for the kayaks. The frame?

We got the wall stood up and fitted into the slot it was supposed to go into. We secured it in place with just a couple screws until a test fit of the door.

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After removing the cardboard, several straps, and after the first try at fitting the door, we removed a 3/4 inch board they had stuck under to protect the threshhold during shipping. I was pleased with the fit as I had "Followed the instructions" and added the recommended spacing to allow shimming to make the door operate smoothly. An additional 3/4" to width and 1/2 inch to height.

I used cabinet makers clamps to hold the door in place while I installed foam insulation around the door in the wall, while waiting for a buddy who installed and adjusts 50 to 100 doors a year. I tried shimming and centering the dang thing and just got madder and madder. Miss Tina wanted to burn the door. My guy showed up a half hour after we called and had the door swinging smoothly in thirty minutes. Experience counts. I paid him for his time on the Sunday afternoon... even though they didn't want to take the money.

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Tomorrow Miss T and I will put up the Barn Siding on the outside and the plywood on the interior of the shop. (yes, we know there is a gap without insulation over the door. We finished that AFTER I took the picture.) Once the wood is up and the trim around the door, just painting is left to be done.

Tina already picked up the wood for her Chicken Tractor... the projects just don't stop.

[clovishound]

Nice job.
I should do something similar to my garage door.

[Hatchdog]

Not only a very clever idea but a great install. My brother told me the other day that he was converting his garage to living space. You folks who can do this work sure have my respect.

[BrokenolMarine]

Someone could certainly live there if we sold the farm. I had a fridge there, but gave it to Miss T for her shop. We could easily insulate the boathouse side, add a kitchen and bathroom, and have a small apartment, if we had to. The daughter and her husband sleep on the daybed in Tina's shop when they visit, about thirty feet behind the house... But private.

[BrokenolMarine]

Had to run an errand in town anyway, so I was at Home Depot again this morning. They are getting to know me. One of the young kids there is always very helpful and while they were mixing my paint colors, he was helping me find what I needed. Or trying to. I needed the right power blanks for my RamShot, out. I needed the RamShot nails for steel. Out. Due in this week, perhaps. But, I got some bits that will zip thru the steel like butter and I can use the screws I have to set the top of the wall better in case the high winds come up. The bottom has been "Ram Shotted" into the concrete, and the sides each have a screw into the steel angle iron.

He asked if I needed anything, the Father's Day Sale was going on in tools. I said I didn't know, but if he had something good... maybe blades for the Multi-tool. His eyes lit up. They had a special buy pack with a half dozen blades for the price of two. I picked it up. Turned out I needed one this afternoon when we enclosed the wall outside. The T1-11 is up outside and ready for paint. Thunderstorms all day, good thing we were working under the carport.

Tomorrow we might paint and trim this out. Then do the inside.

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[JVogler]

Good job everything looks good so far.

[fortyshooter]

Great job on the door install BM! The double doors come in real handy for moving larger stuff in and out.

[BrokenolMarine]

Thanks for the comments guys, keep them coming. Today we bought the handles for inside and out. When we got home, we cut the panels for the inside wall. Too humid to paint, probably tomorrow. After the painting is done, we'll trim and install handles. Then I'll form up and pour the ramp outside. About a 2" drop.

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[BrokenolMarine]

Note: The side panels were shot up with the finish nailer. The center panel over the doors was installed with screws and can be quickly removed as needed. The wiring for the alarm sensors is located behind that panel. Wanted to make that easy for the tech and for myself if I needed access.

Planning ahead.

[BrokenolMarine]

Next steps in the project? I added the interior door handle... so you can open the door once it's closed. Flush, you can't if you don't have the key in the lock. I put double keyed dead bolts, so if someone comes in the other door they can't open the double doors without forcing them. Just another layer of security. So no door knobs.

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On the outside, I needed to add the ramp down to the carport level. On nice days, in the spring and fall, we have been known to roll the table saw, or the bandsaw out onto the carport to make large format cuts like panels of wood to give us more working room and to let the oklahoma winds blow the sawdust away. Reduces the cleanup.

The ramp goes out level for a foot, then drops from 2" to 3/4 inches over the next two feet nine inches. A gentle drop. Once the concrete sets some I'll do some cleanup. LOL.

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We are NOT concrete contractors, so the slab isn't perfect, but it didn't cost $500 for the pour either. It cost less than $30. If it isn't pretty later, I'm not going to fret, it's the ramp to walk into the woodshop, or to roll equipment up and down or carry supplies in the double doors. I can buy a lot of stuff with the money I saved.

[BrokenolMarine]

Waited a few hours then went out and did a bit of cleanup, then broomed the surface. Still not perfect, but we'll check it out tomorrow and I'll add pics. I have to go to OKC to the VA Hospital for a couple of appointments. The ADT Tech comes to install the new alarm contacts on the new doors. I'll likely paint on Friday, the concrete should be set up by then. Pics to follow.

[Hatchdog]

Looking good, keep us in the loop, fun to see your progress.

[BrokenolMarine]

The trip to OKC to the audiologist was a bust. Just as I was about to arrive at the VA, they called and said my new hearing aides had not arrived yet and they hoped to catch me before I left my house. I told them they were several hours too late, as I have to get up at 530 to get ready and leave by 730 to insure I don't get caught behind bridge construction or road repair and end up late. They said they would call and reschedule. A few hours after I arrived home they doc called and said that UPS had "lost" the package but the manufacturer was putting a rush on the replacement and priority shipping, I should get the new order in less than a week, rather than SIX weeks. Plus, they are sending the roving Audiologist (doc) to fit and adjust them at the local VA clinic. Won't have to blow a full day driving to the OKC hospital this time.

Once I got home, I worked on the ramp a bit more, it seems to have cured nicely. I nipped the exposed wire we used on this thin pour and got that taken care of and swept more of the loose dried concrete away. We'll stay off another 24 hours but I think we are good to go. Tomorrow I'll clean up the wood edges and leading edge. THEY will stay in place. (I designed it this way to prevent concrete crumble with the thin pour.)

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This sign was a gift from one of the kids, it's on the sliding door, and will be moved to the wall beside the door once the painting has been completed. Want to guess what all the kids and grandkids call me instead of Grandpa or Paw Paw?

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We also worked on rearranging the interior today, for more efficient working spaces. We are not finished yet so it's a cluster... pics when we are done.

[Hatchdog]

Looking good Grumpy!

[BrokenolMarine]

I remember now why I hate to paint. I am NOT supposed to set foot on a ladder, nor squat or bend over. Painting requires much of all that. This was a small area, but painting the grooved barn siding is a PITA.

Miss T was cutting the fence line in preparation for the guy to come cut hay either Friday or Saturday. Those guys don't like to take the hay equipment close to fences, and if you prep for them, they will cut MORE of the hay. She trims the fence lines and around the trees in the orchard so they know WHERE to cut and where not to. We have a hillside LOADED with large rocks, she bushhogs that so they don't try and cut it. They always appreciate that. Since she does the prep work we get a 50/50 split rather than 60/40.
(We also let him bow hunt the property.)

So, I painted the doors and the siding the bone color of the existing building. Then, after lunch, I went back out and cut the trim, then painted that the dark brown of the existing trim ON the building. It's drying on the workbench in the shop and once dry I'll put that up. I also painted the edge of the metal siding on the building to mimic trim where it joins the new wall. I was able to do a good job on the right hand piece. The left hand side I could only start until the roll away door is removed, it's blocking me. (The brown trim painting isn't shown in this pic. Maybe tomorrow....) The trim will hide the gaps. I will caulk before adding the trim for improved weather seal.

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[BrokenolMarine]

Well, the trim is up after having been painted yesterday and dried overnight. It looks pretty good. I have one area at the right edge that has that dribble that needs touched up where I painted the two edges of the existing metal siding to mock the trim. The project is basically complete. I went thru the shop and cleaned off the three workbenches and put away all the tools.

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Nice to be done and I'll take a few days off.
Now I can look at getting in some range time. Finally.

[BrokenolMarine]

That nasty foam covered thing to the left of the new door is the rollaway door. It's coming down when the temperature drops some and we get a few cooler days. Then we will wash the metal walls, and perhaps paint them as well.

[BrokenolMarine]

I got back after the shop project over the last couple days. First, I moved the Grumpy sign from the roll aside door to the wall beside the static door. I'm liking it there.

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Next, I hung my dry erase board over the static door, but not ON the static door. I hung it from cup hooks vertically, so I can use it, but it can easily be moved on those rare times when I might open BOTH doors.

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As I said in an earlier post, I have begun rearranging the shop, and part of that was to move all the rolling tool boxes to the wall beside the door since I moved the woodworking bench to the area near that door. They fit almost perfectly once I moved the stacked wood that used to be in the corner.

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[BrokenolMarine]

The real "Yawn" work over the last few days has been to sort and clean up the storage in the shop. From buckets of miscellaneous mixed screws and nails, bolts, and hardware to sorting the tool drawers to thin out the collections of wrenches, screwdrivers, pliers, etc. The duplicates were thinned and top quality tools were organized in the shop drawers. Extras were put in a tool bag I'll put down in the barn area so we'll have tools there.

The wrench drawers look better, wrenches in order by size and sorted into two drawers, SAE and Metric.

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I went thru the sorted hardware and put that in it's place, then clearly labeled the drawers they are stored in.

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Same with the leatherwork shelves, including building a new shelf to accomodate more storage bins.

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The original storage shelves were sorted, and bins remarked. Screw and hardware bins cleaned and sorted.

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I paid particular attention to rusted, twisted, or outdated items that had been held on to, but I felt I would use Someday. Space is often at a premium and like many, I had given up a lot of space to "maybe someday." We have all tossed an item here or there that later (often years later) we found a use for. I think I'd rather have the space and if necessary, buy something later. Cheaper than an addition due to junk.