New garage shop - should I insulate it? Pictures.

[Rich Souchek]

I would let the builder finish his work, then do my work.
First step for me would be to put up a wall with big opennings to partition off the wife car side. I would insulate that wall and have several 4' wide doors there.
Replace the gargae door with something insulated and weatherproofed.
Then add a dedicated electrical sub pannel to the shop. Add plenty of wall sockets about 4'-6" up from the floor, and also several in the ceiling. Then would come the lighting, probably 4' flourencent lights, perhaps 6 to 8 of them.
Then would come the dust collection system and piping. My expereince is without this, I would not be spending the time in the shop. This should be considered a requirement.
Then, I would put 1/2" plywood or OSB on the studs that separate the house section from the shop section, using square drive screws. This lets me hang heavy stuff righ on the wall.
Make any sense?
Rich S.

[Michael N Taylor]

The best way to insulate the block is to get a company to foam fill it, you will get a better r value and it seals any air leaks. It should be cheaper than furring the walls and insulating them then covering them wit some type of material.

[John Fricke]

Absolutely positively install vapor barrier under floor.

[Pat Germain]

Just about the time I get it warmed up, my wife comes home and opens the garage door

Oh, dude, we live in the same world!

I just read that quote to my wife and she also laughed because she knows she does that to me constantly.

[Jerry Kim]

Thanks everyone for your replies.
More info :

The rest of my house is getting baseboards for heat. Any reason to do not to baseboards again? Many of you suggested radiant hydronic floor heat, but would that just heat up a thick layer of ground underneath the garage and waste a lot of energy?

I thought about doing the 2x4's and insulation by myself later, but the builder is very reasonable with his prices. I'll let you guys know what he quotes me.

The house is a side-by-side duplex, so to the right is another unit, to the right is the exterior, to the back is my basement, below the basement is a sub-basement, and to above is another two floors of living space. I'm pretty sure the builder is going to apply fire-rated insulation on top of the garage (which would also be the floor of the living room)

[Jerry Kim]

I'm looking at your picture and there is one thing that bugs me a little. I can't tell from the picture if you have a basement or just a crawl space under that part of the house but I assume the floor joist we are seeing under the wall framing is resting on a foundation wall. Make sure when they pour the floor that they leave a large gap between the framing and the concrete.

This is a perfect place for termite entry at some future date. Nothing better than a path from the soil to the wood framing that is out of sight and hidden. I've seen too many cases where concrete is poured next to framing causes problems years down the road.

I wouldn't even put foam insulation next to the framing. If it were mine I'd add a sheetmetal termite shield under the joist to the inside and extend it well above the concrete level on the outside.

Termites just love paths of entry that are a short walk from their house to your house.

Ron, not sure exactly what you mean. Are you talking about leaving a gap between the concrete floor and the wall framing as indicated by the arrows ? Thanks.

[Ron Coleman]

You got it. If they pour the concrete tight up against the framing or whatever they sheath the wall with, there will be a nice hidden path from the soil under the concrete to the exposed framing a few inches away. Sure would be nice to have an inch or two gap for inspection.

Little hidden paths are all it takes, even gaps as small a 1/64 inch are an entry point. Stucco exteriors is popular around us and more than one house gets termites when the builders carry the stucco down over the framing and foundation and end it below the soil line. Those little suckers will find the smallest crack or gap and get up behind the stucco and start eating dinner.

Ron, not sure exactly what you mean. Are you talking about leaving a gap between the concrete floor and the wall framing as indicated by the arrows ? Thanks.

[Bill White]

Yep!! Insulate as others have said. Now, My shop is +- 370 sq. ft. Insulated walls and ceiling. Living in N. Mississippi is not the ice box of the South, but we do get into the teens this time of year. I heat with elec. oil filled radiators. Granted 17 x 22 x 9 is not a monster shop, but it sure stays toasty. On the coldest days I will turn on a second unit. Have had no moisture probs either. Trick is to keep it somewhat warm all the time, and turn up the heat for a bit when you will be in the shop for a period of time.
Ditto on the termite issue. Ya sure don't want any of those critters.
Bill

[Greg Pavlov]

Insulating would also cut down on the noise transmitted from the shop, which might be a good thing to do in a condo complex.