# Woodshop in their basement?



## CalumetWoodworks (Sep 1, 2015)

When it gets colder here in Wisconsin, I usually shut down my garage shop for the winter. This year will be different. I am getting more and more orders for my turnings that I need to work through the winter (not a bad thing). I convinced my wife to let me move my lathe to the basement of our house. My questions for everyone are:

Does anyone else do wood working in their basement?
How do you handle dust?

My initial plan is to move my mini lathe to the basement, pickup some kind of dust hood and hook that up to my shop vac and then hang plastic sheets from the joists to "wall off" my area. I do everything I need on the lathe so that is pretty much the only power tool coming into the basement for the winter.

Anything else I may have missed?

Thanks!


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## JR Custom Calls (Sep 1, 2015)

@woodtickgreg has a basement shop

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Sprung (Sep 1, 2015)

Keith, I have my lathe, my bench grinder, and a small drill press that have year round residence and use in our basement. Prior to our move to where we live now, my shop was fully in my basement, whereas the rest is in the garage now. I hung heavy plastic and use a shop vac for dust removal. I try to keep the space sealed up well when I'm working in it so as to try and minimize any of the dust escaping and getting into the HVAC system. There are no vents for the HVAC in my basement corner in the shop, which helps keep the dust contained better. It's not perfect, but it works - and it gives me something to do when it's too cold in the winter to build furniture and other stuff in my uninsulated and unheated garage.

But, @woodtickgreg , as Jonathan mentioned, would probably be your best bet for information. He's got quite the basement shop setup!

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## Matthew Jaynes (Sep 1, 2015)

I wish Basements were a thing down here in the Houston area, but with the Gulf a stones throw away the water table is to high to manage a full basement in this area. or so I have been told. I would love to have a creepy mancave for all things manly under a house !

Reactions: Like 1 | Funny 1


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## CalumetWoodworks (Sep 1, 2015)

Thanks guys!

@Sprung your setup sounds like exactly what I have in mind. I have a really nice two car garage that I do most of my woodworking in from March-November. In the winter months, I used to just pack everything up and move it to the back of the garage so we could park our cars in there over the winter. No wood working done from December-February. But since I have started to devote a lot more time to my woodworking, it is starting to take off and I don't see how I can take the time off.


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## jmurray (Sep 1, 2015)

The wife threw me out of the basement over a year ago. I made WAY to much dust and shavings. Dust never made it upstairs, but I tracked it thru the other carpeted half of our basement. I didn't have the cash to install a quality dust collection system. Harbor freights dust collector is a waste of money IMO. Good luck


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## Karl_99 (Sep 1, 2015)

I have a full shop in 24' x 12' basement utility room, which has a door. I use a central dust collector and it has kept the dust out of the rest of the house. It has worked well for me.

Reactions: Thank You! 1 | Useful 1


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## Kevin (Sep 1, 2015)

Matthew Jaynes said:


> I wish Basements were a thing down here in the Houston area, but with the Gulf a stones throw away the water table is to high to manage a full basement in this area. or so I have been told. I would love to have a creepy mancave for all things manly under a house !



Our basements are called tornado shelters.

Reactions: Agree 1 | Funny 1


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## woodtickgreg (Dec 15, 2015)

I just saw this post. This is my third basement shop. I enclose the shop and seal off all the floor joist so nothing can get into the other half of the basement. Duct tape on the cold air furnace returns is a good idea. A rug outside the door to wipe your feet on keeps from tracking dust through the house. Now I have a toilet in the basement so that reduces the need for me to go up stairs. And in this shop I now have 2 dust collectors, a harbor freight portable unit with a winn filter, and a psi stationary cyclone. A shop vac for the floor is a big help too. Dust is always an issue in a shop no matter where it is. So if it is in your basement do your best to seal it off, it works well for me. It's nice and warm in the winter and cool in the summer when it is hot outside. I love being able to use my shop year round and be comfortable.

Reactions: Like 2


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## winters98 (Dec 15, 2015)

I bought a house with a basement shop but I never did any woodworking down their as it is in the same room as the furnace. Can I lathe in a room with the furnace?


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## woodtickgreg (Dec 15, 2015)

winters98 said:


> I bought a house with a basement shop but I never did any woodworking down their as it is in the same room as the furnace. Can I lathe in a room with the furnace?


I wouldn't, turning still creates dust. My furnace and hot water tank are in another room sealed off from the wood shop.


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## CalumetWoodworks (Dec 15, 2015)

Thanks for all the replies. After much deliberation, and because the weather is unseasonably warm in Wisco, I am not moving my operation to the basement for the winter. 

Happy Turnings!


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## ripjack13 (Dec 15, 2015)

Mines in my cellar. Same room as the funace, the hotwater heater, oiltanks, and water pump. I use a dust collector and shop vac. It gets noisy in there....


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## Mr. Peet (Dec 15, 2015)

Kelvin,

The wood dust is an issue. If you have an oil fired unit, the dust will build on the air intake turbine fins. You'll need to clean them twice as often. If it is a forced air unit, you might need to change filters every 20=30 hours of shop time. Any dust system is better than none.... If you have a propane fired unit, the risk of flash over can be deadly. You prioritize, good luck....

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 1


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## ripjack13 (Dec 15, 2015)

Mr. Peet said:


> Kelvin,
> 
> The wood dust is an issue. If you have an oil fired unit, the dust will build on the air intake turbine fins. You'll need to clean them twice as often. If it is a forced air unit, you might need to change filters every 20=30 hours of shop time. Any dust system is better than none.... If you have a propane fired unit, the risk of flash over can be deadly. You prioritize, good luck....



Yep...I have to clean my intake fins a few more times than normal. I need to put up a wall or move into my garage....


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