After some delays and a lot of paper work my shop building finally began a bit over week ago (it was ment to begin already in July). Below are some pics. I'll try to add a photo every now and then.

It is going to be fairly small (see http://www.iforgeiron.com/forum/f11/small-shop-layout-7155/). The last photo shows the footing moulds. There will be a car shelter next to the shop.

It looks like a very pleasant spot. How do you and your smithy get along with your Neighbors? Good Luck -grant

Congratulations on beginning construction!

Sometimes I forget how lucky I am living where permitting is (or was) nonexistent when I started.

Of course all you have to do is take a drive around here to see why permitting isn't such a bad idea, lots of old campers covered in blue tarps serving as homes.

Frosty

How do you and your smithy get along with your Neighbors?

I don't know yet, I hope well . I had to collect signatures from all the closest neighbours, so at least they know I'm building a workshop. I'm trying to minimize the noise pollution as much as possible. I guess I'll need to build a gas forge at some point too...

Just make them something, and they likely will never have an issue, quite the contrary, if they are like mine, they will start bringing you rr spikes etc and want to watch, have beer ready!!

Im sure you can get some sound-proof or similar insulation, and some of those windows, probably expensive, but it might be worth it?

Just an idea.

Minotaur,
Please keep us up-dated with the progress of your shop.
I think you would be surprised about how many people here really enjoy watching another blacksmith progress in the craft.
I am one of them. The photos you take will not only entertain us at IFI, but you will be glad you took them years later.
If I lived near you I would help you.
I wish you the very best, thanks for the photos.
Ted Throckmorton

That's looking good, can't wait to see the finished workshop - you are very lucky. I don't know about it being small, I seems to me to be an ideal size. I'm not sure about putting the windows opposite the forge though? Lots of natural light is good for most purposes but maybe the forge should not have too much of it!?

keep the pictures coming, this is interesting stuff!

Vic.

How deep is the frost line there? At least once the forge is lite you can keep warm. Are you going to need a retaining wall around the excavation? Even if you are a few months behind schedule you did get a permit.:cool:

Minotaur, Looks like you're off to a good start. Did you hire the excavation work out or rent the machine and do it yourself?

I'm about 90% done with my shop and it's been 2 years since I cut the trees down to clear the site - hopefully your progress will go more quickly than mine! A word of advice is to think everything through, as thoroughly and as many times as you can. A few items that I eventually thought of include anchor spots in the floor (to pull a machine off a trailer, for example), a built in pipe through the wall to vent a wood stove, and an extra thick section of concrete slab for a power hammer. These things were easy enough to install intially, but would be more difficult later on.

Please keep us posted on the progress and we always like to see pics! David

A short update. It has been raining quite heavily here so not much has been done. Today, however, was a nice sunny day and I had to workers laying rebar to the footing moulds. I'll have a cement truck coming tomorrow.

Thanks for all the comments!

Ethersin:
For sound proofing, I will cover the inside and outside from top to toe with double gyproc plasterboard. I will also use thicker than normal window glazing.

Arbalist:
Yeah, the windows opposite to the forge might be a problem. However, the only viable place for some sort of a bench/table is on that wall and that's where I want to get natural light to...

Bentiron1946:
In theory frost can go down to about 2 meters (8 feet). The footing will be only 30cm (1 foot) below the ground at the shallowest point, and thus I will use quite a lot of frost insulation. I will raise the walls with concrete blocks to bit over ground and then continue with wood.

dwczerr:
There was a company doing the excavation. I will do a two layer concrete slab for thwe power hammer. First there will be a 20cm thick slab and on top of that there will be 55cm (22 inches) thick slab. Between those two slab I will put 50mm (2inches) thick EPS board. The idea is to prevent the transmittance of vibrations. I've heard that they have used polyurethane rubber for this, but that stuff costs an arm and leg. Good luck with finishing your shop!

I will add some photos sometime next week.

So in theory your slab is floating on the insulation to keep it from heaving?

So in theory your slab is floating on the insulation to keep it from heaving?

No, the power hammer slab is on insulation board in a vague attemp to mimic something like this: Fabreeka

The cement truck came today and we got the footings poured.

Thanks for the update - good pics!

Hi minataur,
Where abouts in Finland are you? my wife's uncle and cousins live near Tampere

Hi minataur,
Where abouts in Finland are you? my wife's uncle and cousins live near Tampere

I'm living in Espoo. That's on the south cost. Not that far from Tampere.

congrats on starting your build. Times seems to slow down when I'm waiting for something to finish

Things are going slowly but steadily. Last week I put all the cement blocks in place. On Tuesday there was a cement truck and the blocks were filled and the base for power hammer poured. Tomorrow there will be a foundation and drain inspection. All together there will be 14 different inspections.

Looks like great progress. That is going to be a great foundation for the power hammer. It seems that most people are just happy to sit it on the slab but then you planed ahead for it.:cool:

You foam insulated the hammer foundation? Won't it stand a good chance of shifting, making the hammer lean after a while?

I'd think ground penetration or concrete contact treated plywood would be the stuff for the expansion/isolation joints.

Then again, I'm not a builder and live a long way from Finland and it's building codes. The forms and foam, etc. passed inspection so that is for all practical intents what counts.

Looking good.

Frosty

My office mate is from Finland but as of tomorrow he's becoming a US citizen.

You foam insulated the hammer foundation? Won't it stand a good chance of shifting, making the hammer lean after a while?

Well, that's a possibility . However, the stuff I'm using isn't normal foam, its quite a bit stiffer. The idea is to kill vibrations.

Usually a simple gap is more than enough to damp vibration as the foundations are isolated. Filling the gap keeps the foundation from moving around but I have seen a couple with no filler.

The machine foundation was cast, then after stripping the forms it was wrapped with a couple layers of paper and the rest of the floor was poured. That was in a really OLD factory though so I don't know if it's still okay, it HAD lasted a good hundred years but modern engineers may not like the idea.

I'd ask a (millwright, engineer that installs machinery in factories.) about the proper way to make an isolated foundation before pouring the concrete. Once the concrete is set everything gets harder.

Frosty

In the big factories that I have had the pleasure to design fire protection for the foundations of the machinery seemed to have a neoprene like material at floor level. The foam will not take any hot chips or slag and may dissolve if exposed to any solvents. I think that is something you would want to protect from flame or any other hot material. Looks like a fire hazard to me if exposed above slab.:cool: Frosty, I think the foam is just used as an expendable form for the power hammer foundation instead of wood like you and I are used to seeing.

Edited November 21, 200817 yr by Bentiron1946