Options for walls and ceiling in new shop


estesbubba

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So building my new shop is getting closer to becoming a reality but still some things to iron out. It will be a 30x40 pole barn and I'm going to insulate it myself. Part of the walls I plan to use slatwall as its much better than pegboard for hanging stuff. I'm looking for ideas on what to do for the rest of the walls? 

 

A steel ceiling installed will be around $1500. I don't know if a steel ceiling is a good option for a woodworking shop? I might be a pain for running electrical and lights after installed but I don't know. What about for mounting lights and running dust collection on it? Again, looking for recommendations for ceiling options. 

 

If anyone has any good links or resources for building a woodworking shop I would appreciate it. 

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Drywall is a mixed bag. If you want a great finish, budget $400-700 to pay a finisher. Unless you finish with some regularity, they will save you days if not Weeks of time. If you do not need a great finish, all you need for fire coding is taped joints. You can do this yourself but I find for most people it is tricky to learn on a ceiling. Even if my estimate is off for your region, drywall should be cheaper.

With regard to steel ceilings: A lot depends on ceiling height and insulation. I worked 7 years on a grounds crew in a garage that was all metal skinned pole barn. We had huge heat and humidity fluctuation and the concrete wept. The steel did not. I think weeping steel is mostly a concern when the roof is steel and there is no ceiling. I pulled bats along the steel ceiling after it was hung. Easy peasy. Steel "siding" is not rated to be structural in most locations. This means you will still need to anchor all your fixtures and pipe to framing. The biggest detractor to steel in my opinion is the noise. The steel will absorb almost nothing. The noise will bounce right back.

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Unless your planning on keeping it warm all the time in the winter I would rethink metal ceiling. I have seen what happens and there have several posts on here about condensation. Cold ceiling, warm air = rain in the shop. JMO.

 

YES - It happens in my shop.  Table saw, Jointer and others must be covered with plastic when not in use.  Even worse is when the frost that develops on the inside of the roof and then melts when it warms up. 

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So it sounds like a metal ceiling is a bad idea. Installed it would run me $1.25 sq/ft so I probably have a lot of wood options at $40/sheet! So is OSB a good option for the ceiling? If so 1/2", 5/8", or 3/4"? If I put a vapor barrier between it and the trusses I probably wouldn't have to worry about perfect seams. I will spray insulation in the ceiling. 

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Truss spacing? You clip 1/2" roof sheathing because it carries load. The ceiling might not carry load but your trusses could be on 24". I am not sure I would worry about a moisture sheet because you should plan for enough attic insulation to make this a bit redundant for air penetration.

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Definitely rent a drywall lift to hang any kind of sheets on ceilings! That is some backbreaking work without one. Depending on the height of your ceiling a section of roll around scaffolding to stand on while screwing is a good idea.

If you use OSB think about pre-priming it or just rent a sprayer to do the whole ceiling. My shop used to be a photography studio and having all the walls and ceiling painted white helps a lot with lighting!

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I used an acoustic fiberglass panel, very light weight, sound absorption. (Found at surplus supplier $4 per sheet). attached it to furring strips 15 in center. sheets were 5 x 10 x 1/2" took the echo out of my empty shop. Don't know who supplies it in your area but worth looking into. Also like the size of your shop.

Eddie

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I can't think of any good reason for not using drywall on the ceiling. It is inexpensive, easy to finish and readily available. It is also easy to cut and patch if you need to modify it.

 

I would also recommend hiring a professional to hang it. I've done it myself in the past but I hired a crew to do my 2000 foot basement finishing job. Watching the guys bouncing around on their stilts was worth the price. Also, they finished hanging the drywall (ceiling and walls) in one day. That was over 50 - 4' x 16' sheets. Taping was another day, then a couple of hours a day to finish and sand. In one week the job was ready for paint.

 

I would also recommend using a semi gloss paint. Flat wall paint looks better, but semi is more reflective of light and also releases dust better. You can also wipe it off with a wet cloth if there is any spatters (I turn wet wood on my lathe). 

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CT - glad to hear the metal roof isn't a noise or moisture problem. My walls will be 2x6's with R-19 insulation and probably better insulated than my house. Do you have any more pics of that shop? What did you do for the walls and your floor?

 

The builder stopped out yesterday and said with the ceiling insulated and vented roof there shouldn't be any moisture problems. 

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Start here Estes.

I agree with your builder. We have gable end vents, soffit vents, and two functioning cupolas for ventilation and do not have any moisture problems. Walls are insulated and drywalled, flooring is a t&g wood floor.

I also have several farmer friends who have metal ceilings in their farm shops and they don't have moisture problems either.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I used drywall on the walls of my 24' x 32' garage, which doubles as my shop. I put up all the drywall myself and also finished it myself. I was anal about sanding the joints and screw holes, but you cannot pick out one joint or screw hole even when looking closely. Now I'm laughing at myself for wasting all that time being a perfectionist just for a garage.

For the ceiling I used a product called AgTuff. It is made of some type of PVC and I just love it. It comes in many sizes but I used 3' x 12' sheets. It was kind of a pain to install the 12' because they are flimsy when they get that long. But you have less joints with the longer pieces. I can't remember if they come in colors, but I got white and it really reflects the light in my shop, especially with the walls painted white. They are corrugated just like the metal sheets that you sometimes see. The corrugations are more squared rathar than rounded like you see on metal.

Hope this helps.

Jim

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I'm currently leaning towards OSB over drywall right now. I could probably do OSB myself and would hire out drywall because it would take me forever. I also think OSB would be better for hanging stuff over drywall. A friend used OSB for the ceiling and drywall for the walls in his car shop. He said if he had to do it all again he would do all OSB because it's easier and hides dings must better.

 

So is 7/16" OSB think enough for walls and ceiling or should I go with 1/2"? 

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I'm currently leaning towards OSB over drywall right now. I could probably do OSB myself and would hire out drywall because it would take me forever. I also think OSB would be better for hanging stuff over drywall. A friend used OSB for the ceiling and drywall for the walls in his car shop. He said if he had to do it all again he would do all OSB because it's easier and hides dings must better.

 

So is 7/16" OSB think enough for walls and ceiling or should I go with 1/2"? 

 

Call your insurance company. Mine would not insure with osb or plywood walls. For the big shop the only requirement was that they were hung vertical or if horizontal the joints sealed.

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