Second or Third Floor for track layout

Andrew,

 I have an attic in a newer home. It's finished and has heat and central a/c, and windows which makes it useable for trains etc. It was built with the house. From past experience to add a 2nd or 3rd floor to your current home is certainly feasible. It's all up to your budget and how much money you want to spend.

The sky is the limit! Your local building codes might enforce certain height limits. What does your current house have 1 floor or 2? Best o luck..

Still building, but mine is going in the attic. It is a bear humping everything up two flights of stairs...

Gilly

While I could put a second story on my house(several homeowners nearby have done so) I have planned to add on to the back of my house, as my property runs 120 ft from street to lot line. With the setback at 30 ft., the house being 35 ft deep, that leaves 40 ft for an addition. I can make it as wide as the present structure, but i'm only going halfway(22 ft). I have already checked with the city on how large an additon i can build, so i know what is allowed.

so i figure 21x38 will be big enough for an around the wall+ peninsulas----

My previous layout was built in what was an unfinished attic. I got a contractor involved and we were able to finish the attic with a set of regular stairs leading up to it. We installed two skylights for natural light and it made a terrific space for a train layout.

This time around, I built a two story structure with the second floor dedicated to the layout. The space is ideal with a big wide open room with no posts. So where practical, I am very much in favor of a second or third floor layout as I have had and used both successfully.

One big plus to an attic layout is that you will never have to worry about the room flooding like you do in a basement.  A friend has a beautiful attic layout in a previously unfinished third floor in his home.  He said the worst part was doing all the sawing in the garage and carrying everything up two flights of stairs.  Great space though.  Don't let not having a basement discourage you.

Art

Some of us have neither.  Layouts can be built on any floor, in any room.  The house I was able to buy has an add on back room that will be my train room, but while house hunting, I was keeping a layout in mind.  One home had an extra bedroom than I needed, and that would of been the layout.  One had some kind of office off of the master bedroom, another the living room was sized such that I could of gotten a 4' deep along the wall layout behind the couch.  Layouts can be built anywhere if you have the desire.

Terrific looking bench work!

Thanks for the kind words, Paul. You're seeing the "finished" side of the attic. I'm currently constructing the benchwork on the unfinished side. Not as pretty, but still "not too bad". I'll get some pictures of the other side posted once I'm a little further along.

Gilly

Wife suggested we build a separate building for workshop and trains. Trains upstairs workshop down, I'm happy,she's happy, knows where I am.

jippers:

Sounds like one smart wife to me. If you need some ideas, don't hesitate to contact me.

My layout is built in the finished attic of our home.  Works out nice. I think its as good or better than having a basement: I have a big, big window in my workshop.

My layout is on the second floor of our house in the unfinished upstairs bedroom. I have two levels and a track around the ceiling as well. I can run up to seven trains on the layout, it is 8 ft. by 11 ft.

Lee Fritz

Do you have any photos of your layout, or track plans?  I'd love to see how to run 7 trains in that small a space.

Andrew - I moved into a house with no basement and little room in the attic to plan a decent layout - so I had a pole barn built on my property that is 24'X24'.  I contracted an Amish owned company in PA to build it - it was up in ONE day.  I then had to insulate it, sheetrock and pour a concrete floor.  I ran a gas line to it for a heater.  It was a whole lot cheaper than putting on an addition on the house.

Paul

My biggest regret when I built my shop was not doing a second floor...a 25 x 40 foot train room would have been nice....

Just didn't think of it at the time.  Wish I could go back in time!

gilly, the fronts of your benchwork look great i would love to know more on how you built them! nice work.  Jippers I highly recommend a 2nd floor in your shop. mine has a 600 sq ft loft that has the bathroom, furnace and water system for the rest of the shop as well as  a entertainment area and the trains plus some storage. all of this was done to maximize useable shop floor and it works great.