Tag: safety

Dear Mr. Electrician:  How do I go about setting up a woodshop at home? Answer:  Setting up a woodshop in your home involves careful planning.  Give some thoughtful consideration to many of the factors mentioned below.  Do a lot of research before spending money.  Read about what others have done. NOTE: Some text links below go to applicable products on eBay, Amazon, Redbubble, or ClickBank.  As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.  Using my links helps to keep this website FREE. Table of Contents: FINDING BARGAINS FOR YOUR WOODSHOP ELECTRICAL POWER MAKING YOUR WOODSHOP COMFORTABLE SAFETY IN YOUR WOODSHOP HOW A PRO FURNISHES A WOODSHOP Avoid the most common mistakes when setting up a woodshop in your home.  Through my own personal experiences, I have realized that it is possible to save money on tools and materials and have a functional woodshop. Top Of Page FINDING BARGAINS FOR YOUR WOODSHOP I recommend that you not buy tools for your woodshop before you have a use for them unless they are a fantastic bargain.  In my youth, I bought new tools in case I needed them.  Many years later some of those tools are still waiting for a purpose. Often I have found good working tools at fantastic discounts, sometimes new, but mostly used at garage sales, rummage sales, and contractor going out of business sales.  Estate sales can be another place to find tools at a discount. Once, I saw a tool rental company have a going-out-of-business sale.  I bought a good, used conduit bender for about a third of its original price. Keep an eye on online advertising sites such as Craigslist.org and Facebook Marketplace.  Join local Facebook yard sale groups for your area.  I have found good tool deals on eBay.  An excellent place to find free things is Freecycle.org. Top Of Page ELECTRICAL POWER As an electrician, I would first research your electrical power requirements.  Your power needs can be substantial for a woodworking business or can be one 20 amp circuit for someone working at home. Your electrical needs may be small initially but likely increase as you acquire more equipment.  Some power tools require 240 volts, which is not standard household voltage in the USA.  Separate electrical circuits would need to be installed for tools with higher voltages. Is your main electrical panel in the basement, garage, or elsewhere?  Are there extra spaces in the electrical panel for additional electrical circuits if it is conveniently located? If the electricity is not conveniently located, will it be easy to install a heavy-duty electrical circuit from the main electrical panel to your home woodshop location?  If you are planning for many power tools, installing an electrical sub-panel in your shop may be best. I have some blog posts on the topic of Sub-Panels.  However, most of them are generator sub-panel installations.  You can ignore the generator input part and focus on the sub-panel sections. You may need some dedicated electrical circuits in your budget wood shop for power tools and possibly for workshop lighting, heating, air conditioning, and ventilation. Your basement workshop may...