Garage/Shop Design - Any Input?

[dfkrug]

Note to self: Do not smoke while standing in pit removing leaky gas tank from vehicle.

Hey, where did all this pit paranoia come from? I've never heard of a pit exploding. I can imagine its possible... but it sounds like nanny state bureaucrap to me. But I HAVE heard stories about cars falling off hoists.

I have not either. There is a lot of "conventional wisdom" that is
hardly correct. Like using a lit cigarette to ignite gasoline. Unless you
suck on the cigarette in a face full of vapors, the embers don't achieve
flash point temperature. So flicking a lit butt into a puddle of gas won't
do it. Urinating on an electric fence won't shock you and sugar in your
car's gas won't hurt it. We can thank Mythbusters for actually trying these
acts out.

BTW, my pit was built with permits and inspected by my county's bldg dept.

 

[atgreene]

Note to self: Do not smoke while standing in pit removing leaky gas tank from vehicle.

Hey, where did all this pit paranoia come from? I've never heard of a pit exploding. I can imagine its possible... but it sounds like nanny state bureaucrap to me. But I HAVE heard stories about cars falling off hoists.

I've seen plenty of fires/explosions caused by gas vapors pooling in a low spot. It happens every day, and is fairly common. To each his own, build it if you want. I would however check on insurance before doing it. It would be a shame to build a first class garage with a pit and find that it is uninsurable.

Fall hazards into the pit are a common injury as well, been to a few of them as well.

As far as I'm concerned he can build anything he wants, but don't blame us if it doesn't work out. Sometimes erring on the side of safety is a good idea.

BTW, peeing on a fence can hurt.

And a cigerette ember is most definitely hot enough to ignite vapors. It is the concentration of the vapors that will determine whether they ignite. Ever put gas on a camp/brush pile embers and had it ignite?

 

[alchemysa]

I've seen plenty of fires/explosions caused by gas vapors pooling in a low spot. It happens every day, and is fairly common. To each his own, build it if you want. I would however check on insurance before doing it. It would be a shame to build a first class garage with a pit and find that it is uninsurable.

I know petrol explosions in boats are reasonably common. And I know of horrendous cases of cellars filling with heating gas and exploding when someone lights a candle. But lets not generalise too much here. Cellars and boats are enclosed spaces with very little opportunity for fumes to escape. But pits are very open structures. Have you ever actually heard of, or attended an inury caused by a garage pit filling with petrol vapors?

 

[GeneD14]

The biggest danger of pits in industrial buildings is: they are considered confied spaces. Even with an open top, fumes accumulate in them. A person then goes into the pit to work and can be easily overcome by the fumes. At a plant in MI a few years back we had a maintenance man in a confined space using silicone sealant and the fumes were enough to over come him and he was found dead hours later. When OSHA sites a business for having a confined space the main intent to to protect people from possible fumes ie: sewer gas, gasoline, solvents, etc...

 

[atgreene]

I know petrol explosions in boats are reasonably common. And I know of horrendous cases of cellars filling with heating gas and exploding when someone lights a candle. But lets not generalise too much here. Cellars and boats are enclosed spaces with very little opportunity for fumes to escape. But pits are very open structures. Have you ever actually heard of, or attended an inury caused by a garage pit filling with petrol vapors?

Yes, it is the same as a basement. The fumes seek the lowest point and collect until ignition is reached. IF I were doing a pit, I'd be sure to do either a drain with a direct line out to a lower point beyond the building, or an explosion proof fan and vent system.

And yes, I've known of several fires caused locally due to this, and had an elderly man here in town that had it happen to him (I think his was due to propane, not gasoline). He recovered, but was never right. With the amount of flammable liquids and gasses in a shop you really need to use caution with furnaces near the floor or other ignition sources. Garage fires from vapors in the garage are a routine thing. Luckily, most people escape with minor burns.

As I said, feel free to build whatever you want on your own property, but it doesn't mean it is insurable or that it is safe. I'm a firm believer in the freedom to do what you want on your own property as long as it doesn't affect others, just be aware of the dangers.

 

[Gary Fowler]

When considering adding hot water to your shop, think about the on demand tankless hot water heaters. They are more expensive than a tank type, but you will always have hot water when you want it and dont have to heat up 5 gallon or more each time you want hot water to wash your hands. Small tankless water heaters can be had for about $400 as compared to $200 for a small tank type, but the energy saving will pay the difference quickly especially if you leave the tank type energised all the time.

 

[dfkrug]

BTW, peeing on a fence can hurt.

And a cigerette ember is most definitely hot enough to ignite vapors.

Well, you have not tried either one. Good thing we have experiments to
confirm or deny these myths.

 

[WilliamBos]

****, I love threads like this one. Keep the ideas and pics coming.

Will

 

[atgreene]

Well, you have not tried either one. Good thing we have experiments to
confirm or deny these myths.

Actually, as a kid growing up on a farm, I tried about everything you could imagine to get into trouble.

 

[excelagator]

This kind of a after thought....

I need a garage in the future so we are going to semi finish off the pole barn we have. The garage ceiling will be engineered wood I-beams. This way we used the space above the garage in the barn. We are going to do the same above the stalls too.