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Majorlarf

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17 Dec 2005
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Bedford
Hi

We are moving to a new house in the new year which has a garage which will be my workshop,so I want to set the layout right so I am looking for ideas at the moment I do my making from a shed so am looking forward to a bigger place.

I need to also consider lighting, heating, power & security as well as safety at the moment the garage only has 1 flouescent strip a timber framed window & an up & over door.

My main tools are bandsaw, Scrollsaw, Pillar drill & I am in the process of making a router table (On hold till after the move)

My main area is wooden toys but I would like to make some large items which would be a coffee table & a garden bench seat to begin with.

ALL Advice Welcome please feel free to let me know anything else I may have missed.
 
I would suggest that at least another 4 stip lights will be required. regarding the power points, think of the number you need and then double it, you can never have enough sockets in the workshop. make sure that you put them on all walls, I would suggest that if you're not an electrician, that you get someone in to run a separate ring main in the workshop.

With security I have mine coming off the house system, you might want to consider something like that.

As to the layout of you're machinery, I would recommend putting everything on wheels so it can be moved around the shop, as you progress there will probably be more machinery purchased.

If the garage is single skinned you might want to consider putting up a false wall with insulation in between and the same for the floor. The simpliest form of heating is the oil filled radiator type, some members have wood burning stoves etc.

Also want to think about cupboard space on the walls for all the hand tools you will eventually buy. You may think that this will not happen, but as a forum member you will be drawn in to buy all sorts of lovely planes and sharpening system etc.

Hope this helps. More advice will be along shortly.
 
:D as waka has said but one thing before you put anything up wait untill tou have had one or two good hevey rain storms ( you wont have to wait long ) and make sure you seal any gaps or damp bits up .

martyn
 
All good advice so far - with regard to sockets,don't bother fitting any single sockets,always fit doubles.
I built my workshop (extended my shed) a year ago,and put a single socket on each of three walls - these have since been changed to doubles,and i have added another three doubles :shock:
All the wiring was done by myself (new SWA supply,new CU,extended light circuit,and new radial for the sockets) but this was started before Part P came into force.

Have fun,be safe and good luck!

Andrew
 
Hi All,
Re. 13 amp sockets;
A friend of mine built a new shed ,18' x12 ' , made a super job of it ,
then went to buy sockets , found that they were cheaper in bulk! and ,
they had an offer on, :idea: so he bough two boxes of doubles (20 to a box)------------- so he put them all in !!!! :roll:
as has been said , you can't have too many sockets!. L.O.L

( 80 choices of were to plug in!)
good luck with move --------Frank---------
 
After a shed it will seem like a mansion :D :D but as others have said with expansion of toys (tools) it will get smaller. Have just extended mine by 12feet to make room for me :roll: :roll: . Don't skimp on the double sockets I have 10 in the new set up 32ft x 9ft better than trailing leads and safer. Have installed a hotspot wood burner for heating on advice from this forum lovely and cosey. If it is a straight forward garage you will need to check the supply to make sure no fuses blow.

Have a good time and enjoy the new space.

Les
 
slightly going in a different direction, but for those of you who have put wood burners in how high have you taken your flues?
cheers
stewart
 
stewart,

My workshop, which is part of an old coach house, has a ceiling of old oak beams boarded above to form an upper storey loft. So I have had to take the flue out through the wall, into an exterior chimney, just below ceiling height, for safety. A considerable amount of heat can be radiated from the flue pipe, in addition to the stove, so the general principle is to have as much of the flue pipe on the inside of your workshop as is safe.

Cheers,

Trev.
 
An unpleasant thought has crossed my mind. If doing any electrical installations such has rewiring work in a GARAGE and many extra points and lights are installed cannot it be construed by the planning authorities that a change pof use is obviously involved. After all you dont need 16amp sockets and around a dozen 13 amp outlets for a garage or do you.
I am thinking that the planning department now require details of any external wirings, is that right?
 
devonwoody":2s5kp5xq said:
I am thinking that the planning department now require details of any external wirings, is that right?

Not true..there is no obligation to inform planning at all as far as I know.

Neither is there any need to inform the Building people IF you have the electrical work signed off and certified by 'competent' person...as far as I am aware.
 
:D what i have done for the 13 amp plugs is went to wicks and they do a plug and trak system you plug it in to the standed plug sockett and you can exten it round the room/garage and each socket is indevedualy swiched and led might be worth a look :D
 
On the subject of wood burning chimneys. My w'shop is a bit like Trev's in that it's an old barn with wood beams. My builder built a chimney out of fire bricks which goes straight up through the roof and about five foot above. There is some warmth given off be the bricks but not much. No pipes or flues involved at all.
 
devonwoody":w6zz6ap9 said:
OK Roger.

But I can still install the wiring myself but then have to inform the council who then do what?

The regulations are here look at the first download, yellow box A. You can add extension sockets and lights for yourself, or do repairs, without any approval unless it's in Kitchen, or Bathroom, or Outside. I guess you have to determine what "outside" means and if it is relevant. Some naughty people have used the old red/black cable (now rare in the shops but often on eBay), and swore blind they did it in 2004, but that would be against the law of course, as would be doing wiring for someone else.
 
Jarviser
Does your last post mean that the conduit wiring i've got (red and black single wires) is now illegal for me to use if I add extra sockets on the ring i've got in my workshop?
 
The cut-off date to stop using Red/Black for new cabling is 31st March 2006 (page 39 in the full regs download)
However in your case, you can add new coloured cable to existing installations in the old colours. But new installations must be all in the same colour regime, not mixed. i.e. a new house/extension or new workshop should be all Blue/Brown, or can be all red/black until March 2006, after which red/black is illegal for new wiring. Obviously that means one should seek further advice if a new project using red/black will not be completed until after March. A major project would need Part P approval anyway.
It also means that any wiring that a surveyor finds in your kitchen or bathroom or outdoors in Blue/Brown cable would need explaining because it must have been done under the new Part P, whereas Red/Black would generally be assumed to be pre-Part P, hence my little joke.
Most suppliers however e.g. B&Q etc, changed to the new colours ready for Jan 1 2005 .
P.S I am not an expert - I just read the regs!
 
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