My Porsche Play House has begun

cary · 10-22-2002, 06:51 AM

Getting started on my car shop. No where near as nice as "carnuts". But it will work. Finally decided on 32*40.

One bay 14 feet wide for the lift. Fifteen foot ceiling in that bay.
The remaining 26 feet. 10 foot ceiling. Floor heat.

Here's where we're at. Off to get the trencher to run the power line.

makaio · 10-22-2002, 06:57 AM

So cool!

Someday, I want a big shop too.

Moses · 10-22-2002, 06:58 AM

This just isn't fair! You have a nearly perfect car, live within spitting distance of the Bitterroot, and now you get a garage with a lift?

Looks like a fun project. What kind of lift will you get?

Chuck Moreland · 10-22-2002, 07:21 AM

Cary, I have serious garage envy. In California 32*40 is a good size house

Well, at least we have no need for heated floors.

MotoSook · 10-22-2002, 09:15 AM

Has Montana been annexed by Canada? That would be the only way I could afford such a temple (exchange rate)

. Wow! Here I thought my 8X10 hide out was nice. Keep us posted on the project.

cary · 10-22-2002, 08:36 PM

Got the trench for the power dug. ( Ditch Witch )

Then stopped and got my materials and instructions for the floor heat. Pretty simple. One set back though, can't use an electric hot heater. Can't keep up.

Moses, I'm going to get a BendPak. NAPA across the street sells them. The owner and his family are good customers. Wide, Clear Floor, Assemetrical.

cary · 10-26-2002, 08:30 AM

8 degrees this AM.

Installing the floor heat pex pipe this weekend. My toes will be toasty after the snow falls.

Just thought I'd give you an update.

Slab to be poured on Monday.

dickster · 10-26-2002, 08:39 AM

you lucky B******D - i'm jealous.

that looks like a great piece of country there, from the little bit i can see

and i am very jealous, i get about 18 - 24 inches clearance around my car

Wayne 962 · Wayne 962's Garage

So what is that, hot water is run through the pipes? Does that crack the concrete? I have never heard of heated floors - cool!

-Wayne

bell · bell's Garage

wayne.....heated floors are a very slick and efficiant way to heat.
the piping is made to allow some flexability for the concrete, and then you have a controller and a hot water tank, it simply plumbs the floor with hot water, some setups allow different temps at different spots depending on the control system/plumbing. all of us with cold winters have known of this for years

ZAMIRZ · ZAMIRZ's Garage

I saw an awesome demonstration on TLC of a heated concrete driveway. At first they showed the installation and explained how it worked (it was hosted by Bob Villa) and then a demonstration after a night of snowfall. Of course it was sped up, but it took about 15 minutes from the time they flipped the switch to start running the hot water through the system for the snow to clear off the driveway. Very cool stuff, because on either side of the driveway there was a short wall of snow but the actually driveway was completely clean all the way up to the garage door........You could turn it on when you woke up in the morning and have the driveway cleared by the time you needed to leave for work.

later,

amir

marcesq · marcesq's Garage

If I put something like that on our side yard, I'd be sleeping in it . . . what the hell am I waiting for

Thanks for making us all want to move to Montana!

slakjaw · 10-26-2002, 03:49 PM

hi

did you buy a heater/pump assembly or will you making your own? i was wondering about the details of this as i would like to install floor heat in my shop someday.

i used to work at a shop here in town and the owner had a similar set up he told me he just ran pvc pipe then poured the concrete on top of it. but i never asked him about the pump/heater also he said to only use antifreeze in it

K

stew · 10-26-2002, 04:01 PM

heated floors have been around for quite a while wayne. they can be used in slabs or under a wood floor system. they actually run a mix of an antifreeze in the lines. up here in oregon we use it quite often. i'm just getting ready to install one in a house i'm building.

cary · 04:30 PM

I was going to add what stew just said. I have to add 50 gals. of anti freeze mix to the hot water tank.

Really pretty simple. On the cold inlet on top of the hot water heater will be a hose bib to fill with. Then a pressure tank to take up the differential as the water heats. No water supply. Just filling it with a hose after the anti freeze mix is pumped into the pipes.

On the bottom where the drain is. The returning warm fluid from the lines in the floor.

On the hot out will be the pump. Which is operated by the wall thermostat calling for heat. Only one other little gadget. Is a air vent on a T before the pump.

All finished.

Here's the manifold. 4 different loops of 300 feet. 1 foot of pipe for every square foot. I'm running only one zone/thermostat. In a house you might 4-6 zones for different levels of comfort.
Left will be the output. Right will be the return. Testing with air to make sure it holds pressure.

feelyx · 10-26-2002, 06:43 PM

Here's an electric water heater that might work for you
http://www.controlledenergy.info/html/powerstar/index.html
They also have it in propane and nat gas.

Tim in Sac

Zendalar · 10-27-2002, 07:03 AM

Hmmm, why not heat with thermal cable instead?

Joeaksa · 10-27-2002, 07:13 AM

Wayne,

I grew up in a house with radiant heat in the floors. It was so nice to get out of bed on a cold morning and put your feet on the warm floors! Its very efficient as well when compared to forced air.

To do things right a house really should have two sets of ducts, one for heating and another for cooling. Cool air falls and should be ducted higher in the room, while heated air raises and it should be ducted lower in the room. Using radiant heat in the floors and your A/C ducts up high really makes the systems work better and saves money at the same time.

Cary,

That is a really nice project and you may have half the forum driving your way to drool at your shop! Assume that you are plumbing it for shop air and electric outlets everywhere? Am jealous... in the summer!

Really hope you can make some headway before the bad weather hits. When I lived in Helena it snowed on 31 May, then two months "summer" and back to flurries. Love Montana but jeez its cold up there!

Joe

Tim Walsh · Tim Walsh's Garage

that's soo cool.. right now all I've got is the porsche on 2x6's out in the open since there's no room in the (unheated garage). I'm soo envious

.. keep us updated

cary · 10-27-2002, 05:16 PM

Zendalar, I don't know. Probably cost. This deal is really pretty cheap. $130 wire mesh for pipeing. $300 hot water heater. Pex pipeing $150. Pump $100. Misc. plumbing. $50. Throw in $200 for Anti-freeze mix $930. Est. So say $1000. 3 days work.

Joe, I'm playing with the electrical plan right now. 30 outlets. One every 4 feet. Every other one a duplex.

As for lighting I'm going to light it like a grocery store.
F96T12 HO fixtures. 10 of them. No shadows.

As for compressor. I'm buying a new CH 60 gal. upright. But does anyone know what that blue poly pipe they use for air lines is called ?

Would love to have a gathering here next summer. I have 10 acres so we could park a few cars. LOL. But its a long ways from everywhere. But I could set up a great week. Glacier, Yellowstone and some great flyfishing. With and A-X on each weekend.