Shop in basement

[KevinH]

I am curently working out of a small shop I built, 14x24.  I am in the process of putting a double wide in with a full basement, IM pretty excited about the fact of turning that basement into my "new" shop.  Anyone have any advise for using your basement as a shop.  Anything such as ventalation, or anything.  I will really be looking forward to being able to have a "showroom" seperate from my work area.  Any advise on this would be good. thanks, Kevin

[George Roof]

Kevin, I have advice, but you won't like it.    DON'T!

There are a multitude of reasons that those of us who did that now know but figured we would be the exceptions to the rule.

(1) Ventilation.  Any Bondo or lacquer paint that you use is very likely to  be spread throughout your home contaminating your family.  Being underground, you're subject to radon gas contamination.  Any water leaks or carbon monoxide gas will always settle where you have to work.

(2) Your "showroom" now becomes your home.  Your customers must traipse in and out of your home each time they come to the shop.  Even with an outside entrance, it's often inconvenient, especially if its raining or snowing hard.

(3) It becomes very hard to differentiate between your home and shop for tax purposes.  If you're ever audited for claiming a portion of your home, it's a bite of an apple you'd be better off without.  Many homeowner's insurance won't cover any damages in a set up like this.  You'd be VERY wise to check with your agent first.

If I had it to do all over again, I'd take a 14x24 ANY DAY over my home's basement.

[Matt]

I started in a basement a long time back and one thing you should make sure you have is a de-humidifier. You don't want a moisture problem with drying mounts. As far as venting for the basement, I built a table and built a large hood over the table. In the top of the hood, I installed a small fan and ran dryer vent pipe to the window. I took out the window and replaced it with a piece of plywood and cut a hole in the center to accept the end of the pipe. I sprayed lacquer under the hood and didn't have a basement or a house full of lacquer fumes. Hope this helps and good luck.

[Matt]

J Best, you are correct, and that's what I had when I worked out of my basement. Hey George, good post, and I did have my homeowner's policy cover my shop while it was in the basement. I didn't have the coverage that I have now on my shop, but I was covered well. I still have an "office" in the house. That way, I can still write off a percentage of the morgage, gas, and electric bill.