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Buying an existing Hangar, asking for suggestions

T

tdhanson

Well Known Member
Well just signed on a contract to buy a home with separate metal hangar approx 50x55 size in N CA area.

Buying it as is with lots of junk to sort through and possibly toss much of it.

It's insulated and has some mininal wiring for 110 and 220 circuits. It also needs lighting. It may need heat or air at a later date but I think initially the climate is moderate enough to allow for just a space/dish heater or fans.

I currently have no plane and just a kit w/ qb fuse to start on. Going to start building wings first.

Some ideas for suggestions:

Is building a loft area or separate shop area within the hangar beneficial for the effort/cost involved?

It needs better lighting. I can get good deals on older high bay lighting from warehouse / old hangar retrofits or I can just install newer energy efficient LED lighting.

Floor is basic concrete. Hangar is littered full of stuff, junk, shelving, desk, tables, misc tools. It's going to take weeks to go through and figure out what to keep/toss. Might be nice to clear it out fully and paint the floor with an epoxy or other paint to brighten up or make easier to clean?

Any salvage value in aluminum or such in the carcass of a C 188 ag plane?

Hangar doors are a set of 4 panels that slide on tracks to each side. There's gaps at the top and between panels that allow light, air, bugs, critters. Looking to seal these better. Also looking to find a way to lock the doors better than a pin down through door into holes in the concrete.

Looking for opinions:

How best to approach the cleanup, setup, and planning for any upgrades to hangar to make it more useful.

1. Lighting Suggestions?
2. Hangar door security options?
3. Hangar door sealing options?
3. Paint floor Yes/No?
4. Loft or roomed off workshop?
5. Best way to approach cleaning/disposal of items?
 
Re a climate controlled, small walled off work area, call Jay Pratt and see what he has to say. I intend build a single airplane work area just like his if I ever move to an airstrip.
 
First of all, awesome purchase. Awesome. Totally sounds like my kind of place.

Pictures or it didn't happen. :)

I can offer the following limited advice based on my experience in a hangar where we've been building a Zenith 801:

1. A loft is nice but ours was overkill. In retrospect, we should have built something much more minimalist, or just spent the time building the airplane.

2. Go with LED lighting. Better long term solution, and the draw is so low that going LED may well let you avoid upgrading the electrical infrastructure. Get the LED version of the classic fluorescent light fixtures, and hang them from the ceiling using plastic chains -- power with extension cords plugged into a switched power bar. Simple, cheap, effective.

3. Some people love their pristine hangar floors but I say clear out the junk and start building. You might want to put down a mat of some kind where you'll be doing lots of walking, like they use in restaurant bars.

4. No idea how to seal the doors better, but that's probably a bigger priority than everything else combined.

Good luck!!


tdhanson said:
Well just signed on a contract to buy a home with separate metal hangar approx 50x55 size in N CA area.

Buying it as is with lots of junk to sort through and possibly toss much of it.

It's insulated and has some mininal wiring for 110 and 220 circuits. It also needs lighting. It may need heat or air at a later date but I think initially the climate is moderate enough to allow for just a space/dish heater or fans.

I currently have no plane and just a kit w/ qb fuse to start on. Going to start building wings first.

Some ideas for suggestions:

Is building a loft area or separate shop area within the hangar beneficial for the effort/cost involved?

It needs better lighting. I can get good deals on older high bay lighting from warehouse / old hangar retrofits or I can just install newer energy efficient LED lighting.

Floor is basic concrete. Hangar is littered full of stuff, junk, shelving, desk, tables, misc tools. It's going to take weeks to go through and figure out what to keep/toss. Might be nice to clear it out fully and paint the floor with an epoxy or other paint to brighten up or make easier to clean?

Any salvage value in aluminum or such in the carcass of a C 188 ag plane?

Hangar doors are a set of 4 panels that slide on tracks to each side. There's gaps at the top and between panels that allow light, air, bugs, critters. Looking to seal these better. Also looking to find a way to lock the doors better than a pin down through door into holes in the concrete.

Looking for opinions:

How best to approach the cleanup, setup, and planning for any upgrades to hangar to make it more useful.

1. Lighting Suggestions?
2. Hangar door security options?
3. Hangar door sealing options?
3. Paint floor Yes/No?
4. Loft or roomed off workshop?
5. Best way to approach cleaning/disposal of items?
Click to expand...
 
3. Doors sealing

I don't know how wide are the gaps, but the solution I have seen in a friend's hangar might work for you.
He used old, expired fire service hoses, screwed to the bottom of the doors. They are just the right combination between flexibility and rigidity to allow movement and keep intruders out.
 
LED Lighting

I'm in the process of preparing my shop for my RV-10 build. For lights I found the cheapest option was to buy the 4 ft LED tubes from Amazon and re-wire some cheap housings from HD. I can build a 2-bulb light for just under $35 that belts out the lumens, I was hard pressed to find anything cheaper that came pre-built plus you can swap bulbs in the future if you want. I went 5000K for color acuity.

LED Bulbs:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OMAIG2S/ref=psdc_2314207011_t2_B00SSNPGSC?th=1

Housing:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Lithonia...uorescent-Shop-Light-1233-SHOPLIGHT/203081577

Also Hi everyone! First post :D
 
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Costco has cheap 4ft LED plug in fixtures that I've used to replace the fluorescent fixtures in my garage. Much better light, last forever, and draw almost no power. Am thinking about replacing my hangar lighting with them.
 
paint the floor

Congrats on the new hangar.
I purchased a hangar two years ago when we moved to new home with only a two-car garage. It had a painted floor that had been trashed by a renter. So I rented a machine with diamond cutters that prepared the floor for new paint. I found a Sherwin Williams industrial floor paint and used the light gray color to repaint the floor. It has really lightened up the hangar, makes for a nice clean area to work in, makes it easy to find dropped hardware and get's rave reviews. It is nice having a bright clean hangar to work in and was worth the effort for me. Since your floor is just plain concrete, it will be a lot less work to paint it. I also use a dehumidifier in the summer to keep it comfortable.

Frank Huber
building an RV-7A
dues paid for 2017
 
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