So I got a good deal on some trusses...

[johnday]

Looks like your getting a quality job. What are you using to anchor your bottom plates. I've used 5/8"X8 hiltis before. Just need a good hammerdrill. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[ejtaylor822]

Really enjoying your thread and getting some good ideas. I need to build a place for my new ride, but, a little lite in the wallet right now.

Just another follow up to the "circuit" design. I had a sub-panel put in our new house that is fed by a generator - we are in "hurricane alley" and after living without Power for a few days after hurricane Fran and a week following an ice storm I thought this was a necessity. The electrician said I had three options to prevent backfeed: $200 for a totally automated switch - very slick and hi-tech, $75 for a manual switch - looks cool and is robust or $2 for a little bracket that slides of the breaker creating an either/or for the adjacent breaker. I opted for the $2 bracket.

Picture attached. You can see it on the second breaker with the arm preventing the adjacent breaker, 3 (and subsequently 5), from being in the same position. Works very well and I saved some $$$.

If you know this already, please forgive me, just want to throw this out. Make sure to keep your power lines, especially your big feed lines, away from your video and CAT-5 cables. If they have to be together make sure they run perpendicular to each other.

Also, you might want to consider running a "draw string" through your conduit. I wired our house for all data, voice, audio and video and created raceways between floors, attic, crawl space and each side of the house. If I need to pull cable to another location I tie it to the draw string, while attaching another string to replace the one I am about to pull out, go to the other end and pull it through. 50x easier than pushing through - thought of this AFTER I wired our first house and tried to run more cable. No matter how much room you have in the conduit it will snag on something when pushing.

Good luck and keep the updates coming. You are going to have a great setup when complete.

 

[Dargo]

As Eddie said, it's interesting to see how different areas do the jobs. In my barn, since I owned a backhoe and a small dozer at one time, I went pretty thick with the concrete. For a 60' X 60' barn, I used 111 yards of 5000 psi concrete. That comes out to be about 10" average thickness. Also, the "wire" they used came in mats that were laid on supports to keep them in the middle of the pour. The "wire" was thick enough that it held the weight of someone walking on it. I think there was also 2 runs of 1/2" rebar all the way around the edges, except in the main and rear drive in door ways, where the rebar was doubled.

Being that I was one of the guys doing the pour, I can tell you for sure that 111 yards in one day is more than I'll ever do again!!! I sort of envy the way that you only had to deal with the really thick concrete around the edges. It figures too, I sold the backhoe and dozer not long after I built my barn. I have a strong floor anyway. I sure hope I don't ever have to dig out either of the floor drains or get to the water line under the floor. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

Nice looking concrete pad there. From doing them, I know how hard the work is. But, it's always easier to do it right the first time rather than spending days jackhammering out a slab to re-pour it because of a screw up. And, you wonder how I may figure that... /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[dholly]

Will place the pre-framed wall sections and temporarily secure with powder actuated concrete nailer... then drill thru double sill plate into concrete slab and blow out holes with compressed air... then insert and set expansion bolts like these from www.confast.com

Concrete Wedge Anchor ~ Thunderstud®

Concrete Strike Anchor

pretty much the same thing as

Hilti Kwik expansion bolts.

I prefer the expansion bolt type vs. chemical epoxy.

 

[dholly]

ej - thank you for posting your panel ideas, I will be showing all to the electrician to hear his solution/recommendation. I hope running all the comm lines in the same trench as the elec service won't cause a problem, however, I am glad I went back and added the (2) shielded twisted 3-pair wires for the tele and computer just in case. I would have thrown in a pull string too but the conduits are so full already I don't think I could get another wire thru!

 

[johnday]

The Hiltis at the bottom of your photo are my choice, all of them are good though. Helpful Hint #2; predrill your plate before you nail on the studs. Then use a little spray adhesive on the concrete and sill sealer. Lay the sealer down on the adhesive and it won't move around on you. Then you can use the predrilled holes as guides when you drill out the holes for the Hiltis. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[dullpain]

Nice floor & pour. Just curious what did the Concrete finishers charge you per aquare foot? I will be pouring a barn floor soon and wish they were in my area. I like the door opening apron, I'll steal that idea if you don't mind. thanks & good luck building.

 

[dholly]

Sorry dullpain, I negotiated a total price for excavation thru concrete finishing so it would be hard to say exactly what the finishing only cost. I found it was much easier to coordinate one rather than different contractors for each step.

Have been making slow progress - record heat and humidity for the past week again. Now I know why you guys love your canopys. Pic: Decided to cut back the hillside a bit more before laying the drainage tile.

 

[dholly]

Last pic didn't show the fabric sleeve on the perforated drain pipe. That is a real PITA to slip onto a 100' length of pipe, but keeps the dirt from filling up the pipe and eliminates the need for surronding the pipe with pea gravel. Pic: the perforated drain pipe follows the hill contour behind the garage out to daylight past the plum trees. The solid gutter drain pipes '"T" right into it behind the garage.

 

[dholly]

I was concerned that if the slab ever did get to moving a bit, the electric service and data conduits might pull away from the garage wall or break, or stress the wire inside. So I decided to run the last 15' of the conduits in their own 4" corrugated drain pipe. The conduit elbows fit right inside the drain line elbows and this gave about 1-1/2' of up and down movement to the conduits inside the plastic drain lines. Problem solved I hope.