165 interior sqft, 187 exterior. I'll freely admit, I should have built this building at least 100% larger. Beyond that, I would start to get into problem with using up too much of my yard, and not to mention cost.
It wouldn't have been too hard to go to 100% larger 320sqft. Guessing this would require about 360 exterior sqft, I could increase it to 20x18. About 5 feet longer (it's currently spaced about 20 feet from house, so that would make it 15, still plenty of room for my dreamed 12 foot deep patio), and 5.5 feet wider. Not much loss in the useable yardspace to the north. Biggest aesthetic issue is that then the workshop would be pretty much *all* I could see from the master bedroom, other than sky. Maybe that's not such a problem, though I would probably loose some tree views, and I think it would be ever so slightly claustrophobia inducing, like the "views" from the small bedroom windows of my house which view nothing but the neighbor's house 10 feet away. That might be a fairly minor loss. I rarely open master bedroom window anyway.
How much more would this cost? The slab size and roof size double, of course, while the sidewalls only go up about 35%. Worst case would simply be to apply these factors.
Additional Slab cost: $6600
Additional Roof cost: $1800
Additional Wall cost: $600
I figure, all inclusive (!), I will ultimately pay about $28,000 for the current building and basic amenities. That's including lots of stuff not paid to contractors (total contractor bill is only around $22,000) like AC unit, french door, Fleetwood window, and tile. For $38,000 I could get double the interior space, still built to the same specs, and still subject to the same misjudgements on my part (like dealing with my first contractor, I should have spent about $2000 less for what I got, I let him steal from me). Of course I'm already pretty strapped paying for what I am. Perhaps a wiser person could have gotten the larger size built just as well for the same price. But that's not something we can assume. Instead, about 30-40% additional cost for 100% more space is the safe assumption. It would be worth it in the long run, maybe. Or another alternative would be lower standards, and bigger for the same price, but I don't think I would be happy with that. Having nice stuff is more important that having more space to me. This building isn't a big barn or metal shed, it's the jewel of my estate (built nicer than anything else) and to me that's the most important thing about it.
It was interesting to do this estimate, and makes me feel a little less bad about what I am getting. $10,000 additional cost...I could do a lot with that. And that would be about the limit. I'm SURE I wouldn't want to spend more than $38,000, even if it did reduce my cost per square foot.
Anway, coulda shoulda woulda. It can't be changed now, and in fact I was pretty well locked in by the time Ronnie got the engineering and dug the hole, sometime in June, psychologically if nothing else. I had paid $4000 and was hoping to get the job done for about another $4000 (now I know it would have been unlikely, and wouldn't have been sufficient either, since it didn't include electricity or A/C).
How I happened to choose the current size is a long story, which started with the original 10x12 plan from Tough Shed in 2009 which would have cost about $10,000 two years ago (counting amenities again, the actual estimates added up to $7500, including upgraded slab and siding, but didn't include french door, AC, etc). That size was suggested because back then it was the max size w/o permit. Then Ronnie convinced me to go to a larger size, within the new no-permit limit of 200 sqft. Then I was afraid to make length longer than 15 feet for fear Ronnie wouldn't build the slab strong enough, and 15 feet is about the limit for no-expansion-joint slab, and it couldn't be squarer for acoustical reasons, given one side 15 feet the other simply has to be around 12.5.
I could actually get a cheap 10x12 metal shed to store garden tools, fertilizer, and such. Stuff that people normally put into their sheds that don't have climate control or even very good insulation. The only problem would be where to hide the shed (I'm think about putting it onto the easment, since it could be moved if needed anyway, or simply tossed). Another alternative is a plastic shed placed right behind the house...so it can't actually be seen from the house windows. Those options would give me more space in the workshop for the stuff that needs climate control.
It wouldn't have been too hard to go to 100% larger 320sqft. Guessing this would require about 360 exterior sqft, I could increase it to 20x18. About 5 feet longer (it's currently spaced about 20 feet from house, so that would make it 15, still plenty of room for my dreamed 12 foot deep patio), and 5.5 feet wider. Not much loss in the useable yardspace to the north. Biggest aesthetic issue is that then the workshop would be pretty much *all* I could see from the master bedroom, other than sky. Maybe that's not such a problem, though I would probably loose some tree views, and I think it would be ever so slightly claustrophobia inducing, like the "views" from the small bedroom windows of my house which view nothing but the neighbor's house 10 feet away. That might be a fairly minor loss. I rarely open master bedroom window anyway.
How much more would this cost? The slab size and roof size double, of course, while the sidewalls only go up about 35%. Worst case would simply be to apply these factors.
Additional Slab cost: $6600
Additional Roof cost: $1800
Additional Wall cost: $600
I figure, all inclusive (!), I will ultimately pay about $28,000 for the current building and basic amenities. That's including lots of stuff not paid to contractors (total contractor bill is only around $22,000) like AC unit, french door, Fleetwood window, and tile. For $38,000 I could get double the interior space, still built to the same specs, and still subject to the same misjudgements on my part (like dealing with my first contractor, I should have spent about $2000 less for what I got, I let him steal from me). Of course I'm already pretty strapped paying for what I am. Perhaps a wiser person could have gotten the larger size built just as well for the same price. But that's not something we can assume. Instead, about 30-40% additional cost for 100% more space is the safe assumption. It would be worth it in the long run, maybe. Or another alternative would be lower standards, and bigger for the same price, but I don't think I would be happy with that. Having nice stuff is more important that having more space to me. This building isn't a big barn or metal shed, it's the jewel of my estate (built nicer than anything else) and to me that's the most important thing about it.
It was interesting to do this estimate, and makes me feel a little less bad about what I am getting. $10,000 additional cost...I could do a lot with that. And that would be about the limit. I'm SURE I wouldn't want to spend more than $38,000, even if it did reduce my cost per square foot.
Anway, coulda shoulda woulda. It can't be changed now, and in fact I was pretty well locked in by the time Ronnie got the engineering and dug the hole, sometime in June, psychologically if nothing else. I had paid $4000 and was hoping to get the job done for about another $4000 (now I know it would have been unlikely, and wouldn't have been sufficient either, since it didn't include electricity or A/C).
How I happened to choose the current size is a long story, which started with the original 10x12 plan from Tough Shed in 2009 which would have cost about $10,000 two years ago (counting amenities again, the actual estimates added up to $7500, including upgraded slab and siding, but didn't include french door, AC, etc). That size was suggested because back then it was the max size w/o permit. Then Ronnie convinced me to go to a larger size, within the new no-permit limit of 200 sqft. Then I was afraid to make length longer than 15 feet for fear Ronnie wouldn't build the slab strong enough, and 15 feet is about the limit for no-expansion-joint slab, and it couldn't be squarer for acoustical reasons, given one side 15 feet the other simply has to be around 12.5.
I could actually get a cheap 10x12 metal shed to store garden tools, fertilizer, and such. Stuff that people normally put into their sheds that don't have climate control or even very good insulation. The only problem would be where to hide the shed (I'm think about putting it onto the easment, since it could be moved if needed anyway, or simply tossed). Another alternative is a plastic shed placed right behind the house...so it can't actually be seen from the house windows. Those options would give me more space in the workshop for the stuff that needs climate control.
We are not as particular about you about building materials and such, so we are quite happy with our workshop, except, yes, it would have been nice to have it be larger.
ReplyDeleteThe plastic building where you can't see it from inside sounds like a good idea for junky stuff, yard tools, etc.
I hope you will have a party in your workshop before you start filling it up with too much stuff. We can admire all its special features.