Post & Beam garden motorcycle workshop

[CaptainCaveman289]

Hello all!
New here, hopefully I'm posting to the right section.

Basic plan is concrete slab, brick dwarf walls, post & beam frame with t&g clad timber stud infills.
Don't get too excited with the mention of post & beam (4"x4"), I don't have the time and patience to do proper morticed joints, so it's half joints and screws, and with softwood(!)
Should still look pukka though I hope.

Basically it's a small space and I've got to fit 3 motorcycles in there and still have room to work, tricky.
Anyway, here's some pictures of the story so far...

Initial googlesketchup of feasability, size versus motorcycles, just about big enough, ish:

Actual space, photo from when I was knocking through the coal shed and outhouse into one to make a study:

The initial plan looked something like this:

But had to be scaled down when I hacked back some ivy to reveal the profile of the wall:

 

[CaptainCaveman289]

The downsizing isn't all bad though, it does mean there is space for a wood store as I'm doing alot to the house and will be burning alot of wood through winter (gas is pricey, wood is free!).

First I had to clear the site, this little bugger was in the way:

Over the last hundred odd years, alot of rubbish ended up in or under the garden:

Levelled off, raked the soil, left to settle, compacted, rinse and repeat as desired:

Slab poured, about 4 inches worth:

Took 16 bags of cement, 2 3/4 tons of ballast and half a day.

 

[CaptainCaveman289]

Had some good weather so treated the back wall quick as this will be forming the back of the workshop in a none load-bearing capacity:

Playing with some brick layups before committing with mortor:

Quit when the light gave up:

Some dwarf walls, these should stop any damp getting up into the wood frame and prolong the life:

Bit of perspective in the garden:

 

[big-all]

on appearance you will need planning permission for your workshop if
you are covering more than half the the original garden area as off 1948 or or as built when new if newer

 

[CaptainCaveman289]

on appearance you will need planning permission for your workshop if you are covering more than half the the original garden area as off 1948 or or as built when new if newer

Nope, nowhere near 50%, see second picture in,
the patch not occupied by shed directly adjacent is the same size, plus an area down the side which is the same again, plus the alleyway up the side, plus the front.
I actually knocked down a pre 1948 workshop that was in the garden, half the size of the new workshop anyway (on appearance it was quite manky and rotten, but it took some demolishing!).

Infact this image from early on in my planning gives a better idea:

(Shed design has changed a little since, now against back wall and with different roof to make it a little better looking / less offensive in appearance)

< 2.5m high, < 50%, no planning permission required.
<15sq m, no building regs required.
<2.5m height also means it's OK not being built from substantially non-combustable materials (ref proximity to boundary).

Neighbours already fully bought in to the idea too, their glad somethings being done with the place, it's been empty for years and was neglected before that so it's been a old project indoors so far. The garden was 7' miscellaneous spikey weeds when we got the keys!

So no concerns with relevance permissions etc.

Cheers for the headsup though, I bet there's a few people who steamroller on to this forum with gigantic illegal monstrocities(!)

 

[mattylad]

Drainage? have you made provision for that?

And make the doors damn strong and well lockable if your keeping 3 bikes in there.
Consider phone, ethernet, alarm and intercom to it along with the electrics.

 

[CaptainCaveman289]

Drainage? have you made provision for that?
And make the doors damn strong and well lockable if your keeping 3 bikes in there.
Consider phone, ethernet, alarm and intercom to it along with the electrics.

Theres a channel front to back either side of the slab and there will be guttering on either side of the shed, I'm thinking into the existing drains.

As for security I'll need to do something pretty special,
The doors will be standard softwood but reinforced with 2" wood behind bolted through, all hung on ridiculously heavy duty gate hinges (3x per door).
The lock will be a heavy duty shrouded van hasp.
May also put in some combination latches (don't want too many keys!)
There's a nice heavy wooden gate into the garden (which is brick walls all round) which is locked and barracaded nightly with the wheelie bins. It'd be alot of effort and noise at 3am.

When I put an alarm on the house it'll be one that calls you when it's set off, there will be a wireless contact sensor on each door which will be set at night / when out.

This should hopefully cover all bases and will be necessary when I start my ducati project as that one will actually be worth something, unlike the current grotty fleet(!)
(of course nothings 100%, they could still break into my house and ask me for the keys at knifepoint).

 

[big-all]

wasn't trying to be alarmist just helpful
often we add comments that seem pointless but they are for the benefit off anyone reading the thread as they often dont know the questions need asking

but glad you have the space
and it looks like a fantastic workshop

 

[mattylad]

Brill, sounding good by the way.

The reason I mention the ethernet is so that when out there working on a bike you can lookup a part online etc.

As its only a wire then its not hard, dug down well and protected, I used steam pipe when I was younger - that was fun lol.

 

[CaptainCaveman289]

wasn't trying to be alarmist just helpful
often we add comments that seem pointless but they are for the benefit off anyone reading the thread as they often dont know the questions need asking

but glad you have the space
and it looks like a fantastic workshop

Yes thankyou,
The reason I wrote such a detailed reply was just incase anybody else was pondering a similar build,
the last thing anyone wants is their hard work ripped down.

Brill, sounding good by the way.

The reason I mention the ethernet is so that when out there working on a bike you can lookup a part online etc.

Thats a good plan, I'll only be 2.5m from the study so I'll probably put a wireless hub in there, as well as telephone intercom so that her inside can let m know when tea is ready


I'm hoping it'll be a fantastic workshop anyway, looking the part is only half of it(!)

 

[CaptainCaveman289]

Did alot of cutting today,
Most of everything is to length, most halfjoints are cut,
Got a few more to do tomorrow after work and might get the side frames up.

Need to get the rest of the frame done and some rafters up so that I can sheet it dry before the summer's death throws are over.

Almost making up as I went along, at least I'd sketched it out.

Probably could have made some cleaner joins and hidden screws more, but the frame is being pained on the exterior so will hide a multitude of sins.

Here's how today finished:

Not much to see, except my commuter anyway

 

[mattylad]

Will you be including an extraction system for fumes?

 

[CaptainCaveman289]

Will you be including an extraction system for fumes?

Not sure what I'm going to do just yet, there will definately be some sort of venting, maybe an extractor fan like in bathrooms and an inlet the other side of the room, this is mainly to reduce damp and condensation.

I'm thinking it must be worth a dedicated fume extraction pipe for running a bike in the workshop area.
Although there will be double doors, these will not only make it quite cold in there, but also mean the neighbours get the full undeadned brunt of an open race exhaust up to 110db! At least if it's exhaust noise via fume extraction it's lessened somewhat.

Thats the trouble with a race bike, it will generally be ran in the shed or on track, I can't really take it for a run round the block! (i could, but it would be highly illegal...)
The roadbikes are nice and sub 95db though, but still not nice to rev them up in the back garden.

I'm still yet to solve the problem of fume extraction for welding, so an ideal solution would be something that covered both or that at least uses the same egress point.

Have you done / seen anything similar?
I don't really want the cost outlay of a professional system,
so the more DIY friendly the better!

(I think I'll also be investing in a carbon monoxide alarm....)

 

[mattylad]

NO, not done anything like that myself.

Perhaps and old cooker hood, some flexible flue piping and plenty of gaffa tape.

At a pinch forget the hood and the pipe but use more gaffa tape

 

[CaptainCaveman289]

NO, not done anything like that myself.

Perhaps and old cooker hood, some flexible flue piping and plenty of gaffa tape.

At a pinch forget the hood and the pipe but use more gaffa tape

You'd be shocked at some of the stuff I've ridden/driven held together with gaffa tape and zip ties

Yes I was thinking a cooker hood for the welding bay,
flexible flue piping was also the idea for the exhaust extractor. seen a slightly fancier equivilant of flexy flue liner used in pro workshops before, suppose I need to look at tumble drier type pipe / wall exits.
It'd be handy to clip on the exhaust extractor as and when I need it, this would also mean I can use the general workshop extractor.
If I'm clever I could also use the same thing for the welding area, hmmm...