yesteryearforge Posted October 25, 2012 Share Posted October 25, 2012 My shop floor is Dirt coverd with ROCK DUST ( about 2 to 3 inches thick ) rock dust is like crusher run without the little pieces of rock Around here its Granite dust. I have had 4 different power hammers on it. I also re-arrange my shop quite often. All of my post vises are mounted on 4 inch square heavy tubing at least 4 ft deep in concrete in the floor. I prefer this floor over any other . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chinobi Posted October 26, 2012 Share Posted October 26, 2012 i found a few more pennies to toss into the well... few assumptions: 900 sf shop is conservatively a 30x30 square (for simplicities sake) from what i can glean from photos of member shop layouts it seems desirable to keep heavy equipment like power hammers near the perimeter of the available space (that makes the most sense to me, i could be totally wrong, you could reverse the entire argument and say heavies to the center as well) pad horizontal depth from that plan is 41" i would round up to 5' for some wiggle room and clearance behind the device you would presumably not place a power hammer in front of the door, or in line from the door to the center of the workspace, could be expanded to also include not blocking windows if there are any that said, it is entirely plausible that you could lay out a network of built in tubing within the center of the workspace, and leave yourself a 5' gap around the perimeter to facilitate placement of future heavy equipment over solid concrete, and not have to worry about punching holes for that monster deepened footing. working off the assumption that you want to keep the door clear, you can then route the in and out pipes through the slab to the front door and out, or to a window, or even just some place where you have it well delineated that there are pipes in conflict and then route as necessary to the heat source. similarly, you could also run a conduit with electricity and give yourself a cluster of outlets in the floor somewhere in the middle for light and medium devices like belt sanders, drill presses etc, i do like the rafter outlet layout for hand tools concept too. also, like David suggested, there is nothing requiring you to install the whole she-bang right off the bat, so if you can make it fit the budget you would be well served to plan ahead and place the tubing as a 'just in case' and fill in the mechanical's later on. my second thought was regarding the actual heat source. these systems typically require a water heater and a circulating pump to operate (unless they are in line with the rest of the plumbing and can rely on the pressure in the system to cycle it on the way to its final destination). given that this is a blacksmith shop it goes without saying that there will be fire and heat generated inside the building, granted not 100% of the time, but its a big part of the process. are there any constraints or considerations that would stop one from modifying an exhaust vent hood/chimney over the forge (ok i dont think it would work on a gas forge, but coke/coal sure) to contain some coiled copper tubing or black iron pipe to absorb the waste heat from the fire? it would be most efficient if the forge was a fixed emplacement with a dedicated chimney, but should also be applicable even for a portable unit if it can be placed underneath the hood. that tubing can then be connected to the pumped system allowing the water heater to be turned off (if the forge generates enough waste heat) or at least turned down and reduce the amount of outside energy that is required to heat the water. ok, enough rambles, good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RGraff Posted October 26, 2012 Author Share Posted October 26, 2012 yesteryearforge...I've seen pictures of other shop floors like what you describe and it presents another option that looks appealing to me. Does the material pack down on it's own with time or did you have to run a tamper of some sort to get it to settle? Was/is dust an issue ever? Chinobi...I'm in contact with our local plumbing supply house today and am gathering more info. regarding the heated floor system. I'll also speak a bit more in depth with my buddy who is actually running that system in his shop. I still think cost may be a deal breaker here but I'm hoping to be pleasantly surprised. I appreciate your input. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r smith Posted October 26, 2012 Share Posted October 26, 2012 Did you look into the link I posted earlier? In it there should be a link to a great supplier of all things radiant heat. I would bet it is way cheaper to get from them than your local place but.... There are multiple types of pex tube some not good for radiant floors. I think 1/2" id is what you want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r smith Posted October 26, 2012 Share Posted October 26, 2012 I fount the invoice for the supplier: pex tubing store, or http://www.pextubingstore.com/ They are in hempstead NY I used the red tube 1/2" oxygen barrier Here is the best place to learn anything you want about radiant heating (same link as before) http://www.radiantdesigninstitute.com/index.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RGraff Posted October 26, 2012 Author Share Posted October 26, 2012 Thanks Mr. Smith...much appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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