posted 12-26-2004 10:36 AM         

word of caution a few years ago I had a auto repair shop in Jamestown Ca. gets a little hot at time and had run schudle 40 pvc for air and in the summer months the pipes started to blow up on hot days shot slivers and chunks of plastic all over the place never hurt anyone but sure bandged loud and made a heck of a mess.

very nice pictures of your your project, deck looks really nice.

block-buster

posted 12-26-2004 10:47 AM         

1. The saw is for the edges but I am having a hard time bringing myself to cutting 2 inch sections off of a 12 inch tile for the sides. I'll accept it, probably later today, and make the cuts. At $3 per square foot a 2 inch cuts seems somewhat wasteful. (I need almost 60 tiles cut)

2. The Schedule 40 PVC compressor lines have worked for me for the past 12 years in my garage but now you are the second person to bring this to my attention. I am worried about it now and I'll have to reconsider. I suppose that I could still use them in the cement as if one blows the damage would be limited but I am now worried about using it in the open. I don't know if you can join PVC to copper which I guess I could use in the open.

Thanks for the input,

posted 12-26-2004 12:49 PM         

Another problem is any exposure to sunlight as standard PVC is not UV resistant and will break down from sunlight exposure over time. Many accidents also occur from PVC run exposed along walls. Any accidental bumping or hitting of the PVC will cause it to fracture and rupture. The PVC becomes very brittle over time and fractures easily.

The most economical choice for most uses is copper, with soldered connections. No rust or internal corrosion problems as with steel pipe, easily installed and maintained. Copper is the choice for air lines in many industrial/commercial plants.

There is a plastic product available for use as air lines but it's name escapes me at the moment. We have done a couple of installations were it was the material specd out, but it was not cheap to buy, although easily installed.

Both my shop and garage are all plumbed with stainless steel tubing, only because we work with it all the time and I have been able to use the leftover materials from various jobs.

Remember that an air line is really nothing more than an air vessel, no different than the tank on your air compressor. Unlike water, which does not compress (at least in simplest terms) air does. When a water line breaks the energy is immediatly released and pressure drops right away. An air line however, no matter what material it is made of, is storing compressed energy. When it fails, it is like a small bomb waiting to go off, normally rupturing the line and potentially sending fragmets flying everywhere with no warning.

Sorry for the long winded reply, but this is a serious issue and should be of concern to anyone using PVC piping for airline use. Keep it for your water supply (as it was intended) and nothing more.

posted 12-26-2004 01:06 PM         

Another option would be the installation of a flush box in the slab with a removable cover to access the airline connection when you want to use it. This way it is hidden and out of the way when not in use.

posted 12-26-2004 01:31 PM         

curtis

posted 12-26-2004 03:47 PM         

This area that I am building is strictly for a wood shop / work area and is not connected to the garage. The garage is separate and houses three cars. This structure is at the back of my property and is 768 square feet (24 X 32).

As to the tiles, you can jack a car up on them, use a creeper, drive on them or do most anything as the strength is rated at 3,200 per square inch and they are not affected by gasoline etc. They are used in industrial applications.

I am going to use copper pipe for the air lines on all areas that are exposed. I will continue to use the the PVC that is already installed in the cement as it leads to the middle of the room and there an island planed for that section which would be covered by the bench . It would not be practical to saw cut the cement at this point and if the pipe should rupture it would be contained by the wall and the cement. Not the best solution but at least it would be relatively safe.

I am glad I learned from the board about the PVC issues as I would have plumbed the rest of the connections utilizing schedule 40 if it had not been brought to my attention.

Thanks,

posted 12-29-2004 09:57 PM         

Today, I finished the floor, all 768 square feet of it. Several comments which are as follows:

Tiles come packaged as 4 square feet which helps if you are doing a multi-colored scheme that uses a 4 square foot pattern. Mine did, so it was somewhat easier to install.

The packaging could have been better. They use recycled cardboard and I don't think that it is sturdy enough for UPS's animals. Several of the tiles had a slight amount of "flattening" on the corners where the boxes had been damaged. On a motorcycle doing 60 MPH no one would notice but at $3.00 per square foot it is somewhat annoying.

They are easy to install if you use a rubber mallet and you are careful about alignment. If not, you have a tendency to "dent" the adjacent tile with the male peg. Again, at 60 MPH you would not notice but alignment is important.

No too bad to cut although, I only cut one so far as I needed a 3" and 1" hole for the saw dust collection pipe and the compressor line. I used a jig saw and it seemed to work OK. I still need to cut the last end pieces and I'll need about 52 of them so I have some cuts to make. It is my understanding that table saw works well for this so I'll let you know the outcome.

A little strange to walk on as it is clearly "floating" on the cement and it does give a little bit of a strange feel. I am sure that I'll get used to it and it is something that I only mention in passing.

The fastening system is first class and the hooks are positive and tight. This part I am truly impressed with it in terms of structural integrity.

All in all, a good look at a price that some might consider to be a bit expensive. I am certain that when and if I ever sell this house this shop will give the new owner pause as it is really first class.

Pictures to follow.

posted 01-09-2005 05:40 PM         

Still needs color coat on the outside and cabinets on the inside but I am making progress. The floor turned out great!

The Old Man

posted 04-29-2005 09:22 PM         

I got to get out of california, if I could have a garage like that and the space to park some more toys I could be car poor instead of house poor.