Keeping Up Appearances

[crokett]

So I've decided that while I am putting sheathing inside over the gable ends, I will just insulate the shop ceiling and not bother to close it in, at least for a good long while. Also, I am thinking I will just paint the walls and leave all the kerfs from where the sheathing was cut back to run wiring, reconstruct, etc. A lot of it wil be covered by cabinets and/or lumber rack, etc and besides which, it is a shop. It should look shopish. Heck, my current basement shop is missing a wall and another is just the studs.

So, just curious what do you think? Does a shop need to look pretty? I am going to try to keep it cleaner than I did the basement, though don't know how successful I will be.

[cabinetman]

It all depends on who you want to impress, if anyone.
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[dbhost]

Does a shop need to be pretty? Nope. Does it need to be safe and functional? Yep...

Would making the shop "pretty" improve its resale value in the long run...? Not exactly positive, but common sense says yes...

And what of the SWMBO factor? Does she care?

[Ed62]

If "pretty" makes it easier, safer, and quicker, more accurate, the answer is yes. If not, the answer is no.

Ed

[crokett]

I don't need to impress anyone. I am not too concerned with resale value. I don't plan to sell my house any time soon. My wife cares much more about what the outside looks like than the inside. Part of the attraction for the shop for her is the mess gets moved out of her house. The one thing I think I will do is put whatever I eventually plan to put on the ceiling on the spots where I am hanging some of the lights. I have two 8' long fixtures that are very heavy and don't want to have to take them down later.

[cabinetman]

That sounds like planning ahead.
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[capncarl]

A pretty shop is not necessary, but a nice looking shop that you can be proud of is fun to work in. The best way to have a nice looking shop is doing like you are now, starting from scratch. It will be a lot easier to clean up if it is well planned, the walls actually have wallboards, not just shelves in-betwen the studs, and there is actually a ceiling.
In my shop we coated the floors, painted the walls and ceilings and installed crown molding before a single tool was moved in.

If it looks like a dump it probably is.

capncarl

[Mr__Bill]

I sounds like you want to avoid the extra work but think that it should be done. If this is the case then do it, as you will never be really happy with the job and it will be a lot of work to take care of it in the future. The saw curfs in the sheeting can be filled with a painters caulk, that is fast and easy. Remember, the shop is going to reflect who you are and what kind of a craftsman you are.

An insulated ceiling that is not covered will rain dust on everything you try to finish in there, and it will soak up a lot of light. If I left the walls rustic I would still sheetrock the ceiling and tape the joints and paint it semigloss white. I would also add the anti-mildew stuff to the paint as ceilings in unheated places seem to mildew. Don't forget to allow some kind of access to the attic space.

Don't forget that you want to seal out the spiders, nothing like a nice fresh perfect finish with a great hairy spider stuck to the middle of it.

I envy you as your shop comes together, not only are you having fun and learning new skills but when your done, it's yours!

Bill, on the Sunny Oregon Coast where we have many names for fog, most of which contain a colorful adjective.

[crokett]

Bill,

I hadn't thought about the dust from the insluation. Guess I will go ahead and do the ceiling now too. That is a practical functional reason to do so. I'm not much of a believer in appearance being indicative of the quality of work. I've seen way too many of the most talented guys at work aren't much to look at and/or have work spaces that look like a tornado hit them.

[cabinetman]

Even a flat sheetrocked ceiling will gather dust. It will be easier to clean than a raftered exposed deck type ceiling, or especially one with exposed insulation. Keeping the nooks and crannies to a minimum helps. Flourescents with hoods, or explosion proof lights will be easier to clean. You can't imagine what can gather.
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[sweensdv]

I'm disappointed, here I thought this thread was going to be about that hilarious British comedy thats on PBS.

Anyways, I prefer to give my shop a good cleaning after I complete each project. I just like starting out with a clean slate when I start a new project. If the NASCAR guys can keep their shops squeaky clean there's no reason why I can't. How's that for an analogy?

[TB Roye]

Ask Rod.


Tom

[crokett]

Ask Rod.


Tom

I know what Rod would say. But Rod also has OCD. So he is kind of on the extreme.

[cabinetman]

There has to be someone at one end to set an example.
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[crokett]

This is true. However I'd wager that most of us are setting an example at the other end.