Shop construction and ease of additions.

I have been house shopping for over a year now and am either a day late or a dollar short on homes that meet my requirements. The one thing that misses the mark most of the times is the lack of a shop with a ceiling height of 15' or more. I am now looking at homes without/ with very small shops but have enough space to build a shop that will be useful for future goals. The shop space would be constructed in stages (based on funds) after moving in. The general plan has three parts and all will be built slab on grade with a rear sloping roof.

Phase one building will be 20'W X 24'D X 18'H all electrical and telecom will enter through this building.

Phase two same size as phase one building (built either left or right of phase one).

Phase three might be 30'W x 24'D x 12'H this building will include a office and one restroom requiring water and sewer to be plumbed inside.

Since this would be done in three phases could anyone recommend a building company or style that would be easy and cheap to make additions to and with any luck be able to reuse exterior wall section on the next building phase. The Morton buildings seem nice but I am not sure on how easy they are to add on to.

Paul B

I'll asume you've already checked local codes for set back, height, footprint, etc.

So your end building is 70' long? Plan ahead for your plumbing needs, running a drain and supply 70' back to where you stated could tough. Beyond that, adding on shouldn't be a big deal, just be sure your end wall isn't a 'supporting' wall so you can take it out later.

One possible issue may be lateral load resistance. Generally at least 2 walls are assumed to be lateral load resisting panels. Usually one in each direction. If your side walls are both removable for expansion capability that load needs to be resisted another way. It could be with braces, but If you want it to be fully open you may need a moment resisting frame. These tend to be a little pricier.

All metal building manufacturers should be able to do this. It would be wise to design it for expansion from the start, so lateral load resistance is accounted for.

FWIW, it is generally easier to build an addition that is NOT the same size and shape as the building you are adding on to. That way, you don't have to patch back the roofing and wall panels. (For example, the middle section could be a little taller and stand proud of the 2 side sections. The inside/ outside corners are much easier to do then patching the panels back to match.)

I wouldn't worry too much about saving the end wall panels. They are not that valuable. If you really want to do it, put a seam in the end wall at the eave height. Leave the gable panels when you add on, and re-use the tall wall panels.