EdgewaterWW Posted April 18, 2014 Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 I have this idea in my head and I can't get it out. So to try to get out of my head I'm posting it here. Looking for other Geeks/woodworkers to say very cool idea but it's crazy. I'm a Sr. Sys Engineer with 25+ years in IT and I can't tell you how many hours I have spent in Data Center/Server rooms, 100's more like 1000's of hours. So here is the idea "Woodworking Shop on a Raised Floor", every time I walk into a server room I think only if my workshop could look this clean. Think about it, it would be great no power cords, no 4" hoses to trip over, because all the power and DC is under the floor, not hanging from the ceiling. Just nice and clean room with only Woodworking Power Tools. But then the the cost $$$$ and the dream is over. BTW typing this posting from a NOC looking out the window over the server room waiting for a OS to install, after hours like normal. For the non-geeks (users) a Raised Floor provides an elevated (2' to 4') structural floor above a solid substrate (often a concrete slab) to create a hidden void for the passage of mechanical and electrical services. http://rgcspecialties.com/img/products/tate/dc2.jpg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted April 18, 2014 Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 It's an awesome idea if you have the funds to set it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted April 18, 2014 Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 I would look for a facility that is being torn down. Buy the raised floor as scrap. By taking it apart you can learn how to put it back together in your shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdgewaterWW Posted April 18, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 Yeah but don't try this in a normal shop/garage because it lowers the ceiling 2 feet!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan S Posted April 18, 2014 Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 If you have a fine woodworking online subscription check out this old article. It's a custom built shop with a craw space that has all the Duct work and wring in it.http://www.finewoodworking.com/workshop/article/ultimate-one-man-shop.aspx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beechwood Chip Posted April 18, 2014 Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 We're converting all of our raised floor data centers into overhead raceways. And our new data centers are all being built with overhead raceways. You can often trace a cable by eye without needing to pull up floor tiles, it's less expensive, and there's more room for cables. Also, the floor can handle more weight/vibration, etc. But, for a machine shop a raised floor would be great. You don't want power or dust collection hanging down from the ceiling when you are cutting a sheet of plywood on your table saw. In a server room, you don't need to maneuver boards over the racks, but you need to maneuver boards over the wood shop tools all the time. If I was building a shop from scratch, I'd definitely put in a crawlspace for dust collection and power. I've heard of people pouring a slab with pathways or channels to get hoses and cables to the middle of the shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CT Proctor Posted April 18, 2014 Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 This is how we set up the floor in our shop. Shop is in a 42x72 pole barn with half being shop and the other half barn. Shop floor is raised about 4' and all electric, hvac, and air lines run under the floor. It also gives a lot of storage underneath. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted April 18, 2014 Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 If your work space already has a slab floor, have you considered simply framing a false floor with 1 x 8s and plywood? Even if your shop ceiling is 8' high, giving up 8.25" wouldn't be unbearable.PS - I sympathize, having spent many evenings whatching an hourglass twirl, or even worse, waiting for a row of green dots to trace its way across the plain black screen. Remeber the days when 80 MB of disk was a stack of five 12" platters, and sounded like an Apache helicopter spinning up? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Crawford Posted April 18, 2014 Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 I too have thought about this - when I started with computers all input was via punch cards, so I know raised floors well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave H Posted April 18, 2014 Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 Just build your floor up on sleepers(2x? joists that set on existing floor) each sleeper bay would be a chase for electrical ect. 3/4 T&G sheeting you have an elevated floor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdgewaterWW Posted April 18, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 If your work space already has a slab floor, have you considered simply framing a false floor with 1 x 8s and plywood? Even if your shop ceiling is 8' high, giving up 8.25" wouldn't be unbearable. PS - I sympathize, having spent many evenings whatching an hourglass twirl, or even worse, waiting for a row of green dots to trace its way across the plain black screen. Remeber the days when 80 MB of disk was a stack of five 12" platters, and sounded like an Apache helicopter spinning up? You got me on the green dots. Can't remember what that was? The drive (12" platters) I have seen one, not working any more sitting on top of a old mainframe. I got my start with a Teletype with a Acoustic coupler modem at school and a AT&T 6300 8086 at home with a dual floppys then upgraded to 20mb MFM HD. Also remember installing windows with floppys? Like NT 3.1 with 22 floppys. So back to my topic. So I'm not so crazy think about a Raised Floor workshop. It would be so clean and a bit quieter sound with the duct work under the floor and the DC in a room or outside. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted April 18, 2014 Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 If you have the room, it sounds like a good feal to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdgewaterWW Posted April 18, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 Yes nice idea a made from wood Raised Floor. But wood can't (shouldn't) touch a concrete slab, right? A underlayment should be used? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave H Posted April 18, 2014 Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 Treated wooden joists, treated wood can make contact with concrete. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted April 18, 2014 Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 Yes nice idea a made from wood Raised Floor. But wood can't (shouldn't) touch a concrete slab, right? A underlayment should be used? Could use treated joists/sleepers, maybe? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted April 18, 2014 Report Share Posted April 18, 2014 Yes nice idea a made from wood Raised Floor. But wood can't (shouldn't) touch a concrete slab, right? A underlayment should be used? Yes.. Some 15 or 30 pound paper would do.. When I built my studio, I used conveyor belt material to cut down on vibration for sound proofing. Roofing felt would work fine tho. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krtwood Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 Just think about that whole day you'd spend looking for a tape measure only to realize they were all under the floor from when you were relocating that DC line the day before. DC in the floor would be good for some tools, like the table saw, but not so good for things like the planer and drum sander where the port is already pointed at the ceiling. You'd want a flex connection in there so you could move the tool but you'd have to make a 180 degree turn at the tool too. I know some people have installed DC lines right into the concrete slab of the shops they built. It can be done. I've thought about putting down 1-1/2" rigid foam and floating a plywood floor on it. Could at least get a couple electrical outlets into the middle of the floor that way. I don't want to do anything permanent as I'll be moving in a couple years (I hope) but I'm getting real tired of freezing my feet for four months every year. I'm not sure if the foam can really handle the point loads from the heavier tools and the workbench though. Plus the hassle of, you know, actually doing it instead of just complaining about being cold every year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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