Converting a horse barn into a woodworking shop #3: Installing the furnace and electrical work

Wow! Time sure flies! After spending the fall taking online business classes, then doing a 3 month fellowship at the Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport, ME, I seem to have lost a bit of time!

Well, on to what is new so far. I got the furnace installed. As I mentioned earlier I had wanted to install radient floor heating, but just could not justify the added cost at this time. I got a used propane force air furnace installed for less than half of what it would have cost me to do the radient floors myself.

I have all the electrical work finished. On top of having 110V outlets about every 4’ around the shop I installed 220V outlets about every 8’ or so. I also put 4 – 110V outlets in the ceiling and 3 – 220V drop cords as well. The drop cords are placed where I plan on having my tablesaw, jointer and planer.

I used 4’ “shop lights” for my lighting as they were the cheepest I could find. I nailed 1×4’s to the trusses and then screwed the fixtures to them rather than hang them with the supplied chains. I cut the plugs off and hardwired them rather than installing enough outlets (23) to plug them into.

I enclosed the furnace and my air compressor in a “utility closet”. I sheetrocked the back of it – made much more “fun” due to my drywall being very warped. (If your building materials supplier tells you that the sheetrock you ordered is “completely wrapped in plastic” – don’t believe them! Mine was just covered on top, so the rain still got through from below and soaked it all. By the time I found out, it was all warped and mold had started to grow.) I used tongue and groove siding on the end as I will build my sheet goods storage there and want something a bit more durable than sheetrock for the back of the storage area.

Check out my shop site for the newest images.

-- Ric :{) - Appleton, ME - (http://www.crwashburn.com)