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Ultimate One-Man Shop
A woodworker’s new space is a year-round haven for his favorite hobby
B y P h i l i P h o u c k
Look what
blooms in a
woodworker’s
garden. Houck
felt guilty about
abandoning his
basement shop
every spring
to enjoy the
sunshine and
blossoms of
his home near
the seashore.
His new shop is
located perfectly
to solve that
dilemma.
Light and
space. With
13 windows
and a full array
of fluorescent
fixtures, Houck’s
roomy shop
is bathed in
light from
every direction.
Extra-strength
ceiling joists and
under-floor dust
collection allow
an open floor
plan with no
support columns
or hoses in the
way.
30
F I N E wO O dwO r k I N g
Photos: Michael Pekovich
COPYRIGHT 2011 by The Taunton Press, Inc. Copying and distribution of this article is not permitted.
Ultimate One-Man Shop
A woodworker’s new space is a year-round haven for his favorite hobby
B y P h i l i P h o u c k
F
or several decades, from the time I started as a wood-
my desk. Over the years, the shops grew in size and equip-
ment, but as a gardener and lover of the outdoors, I found
that even a great basement shop could seem dismal on a
beautiful day.
Every so often I tried open-air woodworking, setting up shop
on my deck during the warm weather (I live near the ocean,
in New England). That was better, but far from ideal. For one
worker until very recently, I did almost all of my work
in underground shops. My first workspace was in the
basement of my parents’ home. I was 9, and I made toys and
useful objects for my family.
As a newlywed, my shop consisted of a vise mounted to the
end of a 2x8, which I clamped to a rude table that doubled as
31
T O O l S & S h O P S 2 0 1 2
COPYRIGHT 2011 by The Taunton Press, Inc. Copying and distribution of this article is not permitted.
ALL THINGS CONS IDERED
Philip Houck spent a year designing a shop that is easy to heat,
with plenty of light and an open floor plan. Beefed-up framing,
extra insulation, and an under-floor dust collection system helped
him achieve that goal.
thing, I found myself constantly in need of yet another tool, and
I spent much of the day traipsing up and down the cellar stairs.
A few years ago, when I finally had enough saved to build the
shop of my dreams, I was able to stop being a seasonal, subterra-
nean woodworker. I wanted a year-round shop: cozy in the flying
snow but not claustrophobic when the azaleas bloom. I wanted
plenty of light, room, and storage. For a year, I researched and
mulled over the design, and then I spent the next seven years
building and fitting it out. I think my approach could help some of
you, even if you already have a shop and are just making upgrades.
High windows on the north
side make room for the
wall-mounted lumber rack.
Underneath, an array of
upright boxes holds cutoffs
of varying lengths.
Let there be heat
Ensuring that the shop was usable year-round meant making it af-
fordable to heat through a New England winter. But I also wanted
large windows—and plenty of them—to let in natural light and
the view of the trees and two ponds.
To combat the cold, I supplemented the cellulose wall insulation
with two layers of rigid foam and a
3
⁄
4
-in. barrier of trapped air
behind the drywall. The ceiling over the second floor has 16 in.
of cellulose and the roof has another 8 in. of insulation between
the rafters. The framing contractor thought I was going overboard,
but he wasn’t going to pay the heating bills. The extra care paid
Whole-shop dust collection
Smart use of
crawl space. A
network of rigid
ducts mounted
under the floor
carries dust from
each machine to a
cyclone collector.
dUst coLLector
By going under
the floor, Houck
was able to
keep his duct
runs as short
as possible for
efficient airflow.
For even more
efficiency, each
branch feeds into
a larger main
trunk.
LatHe
PLaNer
JoiNter
taBLesaw
7 iN. dia.
6 iN. dia.
LatHe
The shop’s dust
collection is provided
by a cyclone fed by
rigid ductwork. Running
the ductwork under the
floor was “a miserable
job,” Houck says.
BaNdsaws
5 iN. dia.
4 iN. dia.
driLL Press
Mortiser
32
F I N E wO O dwO r k I N g
drawings: John hartman
COPYRIGHT 2011 by The Taunton Press, Inc. Copying and distribution of this article is not permitted.
 16-in.-wide plywood I-beams
used as ceiling joists support
the upper floor with no need for
posts underneath.
The upper floor
houses a small
office and storage
for jigs, projects,
and parts.
Houck’s benches
and hand tools
are located at one
end of the shop,
near the sink
for easy access
to water during
sharpening. The
carving bench is
stationed by the
window to take
full advantage of
natural light.
construction detail
Cedar
shingles
Drywall
Air lock, created
by furring strips
2 layers of
tar paper
Rigid insulation with
aluminum faces on
both sides
½ -in.
plywood
Houck made the shop energy
efficient by following the
construction and insulation
advice offered in
Builder’s
Guide to Cold Climates
(2006, eeba.org).
Studs and
cellulose
insulation
Rigid
insulation
33
T O O l S & S h O P S 2 0 1 2
COPYRIGHT 2011 by The Taunton Press, Inc. Copying and distribution of this article is not permitted.
Benches
For handwork,
plenty of elbow
room. The bench
area, opposite the
machines, includes
two benches
and lots of open
countertops, with a
sharpening station
and sink. There is
ample space to
move around the
main bench from
all sides.
The second bench
is adjustable.
Houck varies the
height of his Noden
Adjust-a-Bench
to accommodate
a range of
tasks including
handplaning,
routing dovetails
(far left), and
carving (left).
off: The propane used to heat the 960-sq.-ft. shop has averaged
about $180 per winter.
The floor is open
The shop building is 24 ft. by 40 ft., large enough for three cars
(or two and a boat) if a future owner ever wants to convert it.
The first floor is supported by 2x10 pine joists.
The dimensions are generous for a one-man shop. To make the
most of that space, I wanted an open floor for flexibility of layout
and for elbow room. The design for the shop’s ceiling called for
joists made of 16-in.-wide plywood I-beams. Their rigidity allowed
me to dispense with support posts, despite the large floor area.
COPYRIGHT 2011 by The Taunton Press, Inc. Copying and distribution of this article is not permitted.
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