best place / location for reloading bench - room

[ReloadKy]

Looking for some advice folks..
My wife and I are in the position to be able to build our forever home on a piece of land that we own. She has been gracious enough to think of me through this process and has inquired as to where my "reloading room" should be. So what say ye???
Should I just use a part of the basement?
Should I just use a nook in the garage?
We may have a little bonus room above the garage, should I just use that?
Should I just stick to having a bench in the shed / shop?

What are the positives or negatives of any of the above mentioned options?

 

[Guy Miner]

I've had my loading bench in the garage, and that was "okay." It worked. For a long time.

When I got a chance to take over a bedroom in our home... Turn it into my fly-tying, gun-tinkering, handloading room...

Things got so much better! Air conditioned. Heated. Right down the hall from where I sleep.

So my vote is for inside the house if you can manage it.

Guy

 

[DrMike]

I've had my loading bench in the garage, and that was "okay." It worked. For a long time.

When I got a chance to take over a bedroom in our home... Turn it into my fly-tying, gun-tinkering, handloading room...

Things got so much better! Air conditioned. Heated. Right down the hall from where I sleep.

So my vote is for inside the house if you can manage it.

Guy

Excellent advice. Wherever you can, but preferably in your house. Mine is in the basement, which is well appointed and laid out with adequate shelving and plenty of space for work. I have no children at home, so this has not been a problem. I gladly surrender the upstairs so my wife can have her space to conduct genealogy research.

 

[mjcmichigan]

Hard call. I want the living areas clean and free of toxins.(ie tempilaq has no place in a living area).

Maybe a heated outbuilding..


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[JD338]

Congratulations on your upcoming build. This is an exciting time for the both of you.
My reloading room is in the basement. There is plenty of cabinets both above and below the work bench. Under cabinet lighting provides ample light over the entire work area. HVAC provides a temperature stable environment as well.
On a different note, have you considered a walk in vault? Many times you can turn the front porch area into a vault. Usually after the footings and walls are poured, this area is backed with dirt. By adding a doorway in the basement wall, you can get a vault door installed. By adding rebar to all concrete and not back filling, you will have your vault.

JD338

 

[Blkram]

Heated and humidity control would be the best conditions for your loading room, wherever that may be.

 

[truck driver]

Good suggestions and options from everyone. A room over the garage ( man cave ) would be perfect if it was heated and cooled since temp control and humidity control is required to maintain primers and powder.

 

[NYDAN]

Basements are notorious for dampness. That would NOT be my first choice. Heating and air conditioning would be desirable so that your guns, powder, and primers are NOT subjected to large temperature and humidity changes. A room on the 2nd floor (to prevent ground level entry through a window), with a sturdy (solid wood) lockable door with reinforced door jambs would be my first choice.

Dan

 

[wvbuckbuster]

Congratulations on your new home to be built. I'm with having your room inside. Being comfortable while reloading is nice as my reloading-gunroom is in our basement which is heated and cooled. Dan.

 

[FOTIS]

Inside!

 

[Gun nut]

Another vote for the basement here. I decided to go with an area in the “storage” area of our walk-out basement. The environment in this area has the same controls as the rest of the house. So the temperature and humidity are handled quite well. The only downside to using part of this “shared” storage area is my wife expressing concern about “her” Christmas and Easter stuff storage area shrinking. Hmm...
Duane

 

[Nimrod84]

Congrats on your new home!

I would fundamentally agree with NYDAN as I'm from MI. I know your screen name is for KY; but if you are moving to a desert or coastal area, your situation will be very different.

Basement is generally a good idea as long as it is properly conditioned. Main issues are humidity along with flooding and or pipe bursts depending on your area. Big benefit is concrete floor with hopefully no settling. This is where I have my setup, but I also have a dehumidifier which runs in the summer along with AC.

Bonus room above the garage can be a decent idea. Main issues are making sure the floor is well sealed and insulated - need to keep car exhaust, fuel fumes from getting in and also to keep the room conditioned. Big concern can be the fumes in the garage and also fire hazards that are kept in the garage - fuel, oils, etc. The other big concern would be making sure the floor is level and stable for scales (garage door opening and closing / other doors people walking shifting the floor / house settling).

I would suggest a quick look at https://remodelworks.com/blog/how-to-ad ... -a-garage/ "Due to the size of standard garages, the long, open spans of space can make it difficult to build a stiff floor that supports the people and rooms above without interfering with the car space below. The floor needs to be sturdy enough so it complies with any codes, does not bounce, and also doesn’t interfere with any functionality in the garage (such as the garage door opening)."

In Michigan, I'm not a fan of garage loading and I don't know anyone who does it. If you were in AZ or another warm dry state I think it works fine. Guys will keep powder / primers / equipment in old freezers to keep the temp constant and help with humidity / fumes. In wet areas its generally a bad idea due to corrosion and the wear and tear on the body when you deal with the cold and or dampness.

Outbuilding can be a decent idea. Like the garage it kind of depends on your environment. I spent a few days with a guy in NC with a ton of woodworking equipment in an outbuilding. His outbuilding was conditioned as he needed it for his seasoned wood. In his case tacking on a reloading section was a great idea as he isn't adding any extra expense to his utility bills.

 

[358 WCF]

No kids at home, so the 3rd bedroom has become my office/library/gunroom. The closet renovated with shelves holds components, a wall of books, a recliner reading chair, & a computer desk fill the room.

 

[Slimfinn]

I am another for the basement, especially since you are having something built. I have had them in a spare bedroom, and even just on the kitchen table, and now I have it in a basement room that was storage and it is nice to have it out of the way/sight. like others have said it stays temp and humidity regulated but risk water in a leaky basement, but a lot can be taken care of during the build. You can make it the size you need, can set it up just for reloading or a whole gun room and still have it relatively small, you can fit out on your own when once the builder is gone. I would have them install a vent fan, nice to have for those rainy days you decide spend the afternoon stripping down and giving a few guns a good cleaning.

 

[noslerpartition]

My dies started rusting in the basement without climate control.
Moved them into the flat and take them down for reloading.
For tightly sealed powder, I like the basement. Temps do not vary much over the year.
New house is planned here, too, and I am considering were to reload there.

Maybe I will not have a besement. Then an upstairs room has to do

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[Elkman]

Mine is in the back of the garage, approximately 20 X 36 with two access doors, 3 big windows and an electric wall heater. It"s well insulated and easy to heat. My treadmill is in front of a window , as well as some other stuff. My components are in a smaller room inside of the bigger area. I love it, it's the best I have ever had. It cool in the summer and warm in the winter. Not fancy but very workable.

 

[KinleyWater]

Mine is in the basement and I constantly worry about humidity. Aside from that, it's an excellent place to have it since the floor is concrete and I don't have to worry about static or cleaning up after myself. Or when I constantly drop small things like primers, or springs, or primers...

So, I would just suggest that no matter where you place it, think about moisture and maybe consider getting a dehumidifier if you need one.

 

[Electron]

I've had two basement reloading rooms and been very happy with both. Both were very dry and comfortable with plenty of space for everything. Drawback was when range time came, I often take 3,4 or more guns per outing. The multiple trips from basement through the house to the garage and back with range bags, ammo, tripod, crono, targets you name it...was no fun. This my last home build I went with a 8.5x10' gunroom off the garage heated and cooled no door into the house. While it's not entirely finished I know I will enjoy the 8 steps to the bed of my truck backed up to the door.

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[ReloadKy]

Thanks for all of the quality input. I will definitely use all of the information when my wife and I meet with the architect next week!!

 

[Gun nut]

This is an exciting, fun, and challenging time for you guys. I remember the excitement and many decisions we had to make when we built a home. There are a lot of excellent ideas for you guys to consider in this thread.
This may not be a big deal but I have found it to be very handy. As I mentioned earlier our house has a walk-out basement. As part of the non-living, storage area of our basement we have a separate 12’x14’ lawn mower garage/garden room that shares the same heating/ AC as the rest of the house. This room has a small 6’x6.5’ overhead garage door for access to the backyard . There is a walk in door/wall that separates this room from the rest of the basement storage area/reloading room. I had the plumber install a large shop/laundry sink with hot and cold water in this garage/garden room. The room is very handy because I can do all my dry/wet tumbling in there. It keeps the noise isolated. It is nice to have the water available to rinse casings, media, etc. My wife likes it for doing her gardening / potting / cleaning tools, etc.
(FYI, We're located in northern Iowa with temperatures from -30F to 95+F with humid conditions in the summer months.)
Have fun working with your architect next week.
Duane