Probably planning too far ahead, but...

I'm working on the assumption my girls will be off to college in six years and at that point I'll have too much house and too many belongings.  I'm going to start whittling down my pile in preparation for an ultimate retirement/move, but I'm thinking really hard about relocating closer to Ozark International Raceway so I can participate in track days & such.  I thought perhaps we could have an ongoing discussion of what features/dimensions would be desirable for a "shouse" (shop/house) design--presumably a big open shop space with an apartment sized living area in the upstairs.  

Any  contributions in discussing this or photos of nominations for examples would be welcome.

Is it just you or are you married?

Just me.  Unless I win the dating lottery (HA!) a Man Cave, Bachelor Pad, whatever, awaits...

one thing I'll note is you probably want some space in your design that's easily convertible/comfortable for "guest use", that way one/both of the daughters and perhaps eventual "others" have a place to stay while visiting?

sleepyhead the buffalo said:

one thing I'll note is you probably want some space in your design that's easily convertible/comfortable for "guest use", that way one/both of the daughters and perhaps eventual "others" have a place to stay while visiting?

Yeah, at least one guest room.

I've dreamed of building a small retirement house with a large shop out back that includes hookups for a RV.  I figure I could rent out the house, roll a used travel trailer into the shop, live in it until it falls apart, rinse and repeat.

I was in your shoes 23 yrs ago.

I bought 5 acres out of town.

Built a 2 story shop, 32x40.  Took about 4 yrs to get it up to speed..

Upstairs with dual floor plan...wood shop or 2 bedroom house.

Downstairs...metal/car shop.  There's also a loft over the toilet (12 ft ceilings) as a 3rd bedroom.

Retired 10 yrs ago

I met my second wife during construction.

We ended up buying a 30x40 3 bedrm house 15 miles away...the Queendom.

I spend most days at the shop...the Kingdom...where I also have my own fenced in Boneyard.

Everyone is happy.

YMMV.

I'm not a fan of the "house in a shop" thing due to fumes, fire hazards, and dirt and dust making it's way in the living quarters. People that know more than me about construction have commented a lot on here about zoning and legal aspects of it also. If it were me I would build or buy a house that fits my needs and have a seperate shop.

As far as layout goes, my attached garage is 40x24 with two 16' doors on one side. It's not a bad size to work in, but I think six feet deeper would be better to have more room when pulling engines and more bench space. I also think three 10' doors would be better than two 16'. I would make it a high enough to have a two post lift in one bay and a loft in the rest for storage.

In reply to stroker :

It's funnier when you move away from the last daughter during spring break of her senior year and forget to mention it.  That's my plan. 

In reply to Datsun310Guy :

She'd need one hell of a sense of humor.  I suspect the Ex would take that along with the custody agreement and use it as a court-ordered suppository on me...