What size hangar is enough?

[jimpappas]

Will a T hangar work for a 7A?

[az_gila]

Originally Posted by jimpappas

Will a T hangar work for a 7A?

Yes... but it will rattle around in one....

Most T-hangars accommodate small Cessnas at 37 ft span or so.... the RV-7 will look lost in it...

gil A

[edbooth]

Just figure out how much space you would like to have, then build it about a third bigger. I have a 50 X 60 Bax-Steel Hangar with 16 ft sidewalls, a 42 ft bi-fold and a 10 X 12 roll up on the side. I wish I had gone to a 50 X 80, and at the time would not have been that much more. I also wish I had gone the hydro-lift route. Makes a better awning. In the 50 X 60, I keep a RV-7 and Cessna 170B when I don't have the RV-10 I'm building in there.... along with a 25 ft travel trailer. Also, don't forget insulation. It keeps the building more comfortble wheather you have HVAC or not. If you want to paint the floor, do it before move in or it won't get done... still want to do mine, but would be a real chore now.

Ed Booth, Trenton, SC (S17)
Builder/flyer RV-6, RV-7, RV-10 and 53 Cessna 170B

[eric_marsh]

I've been kicking around the idea of eventually building a hangar and putting in a private strip on my place. Of course I've got to finish my airplane and get my certificate before it will be of much use, but let's just ignore that for the moment.

I've got about 2800' between fences at the highest line on my place. As luck would have it, that line is pretty much north/south. There's also an old concrete slab perfectly situated near one end of my "runway." (It's in the smaller fenced area to the left of the round cattle tank on this map.) The slab is going to take some cleanup but the concrete looks good. I measured it today and it's about 50' x 80'.

That would make a really nice sized hangar and storage area. It would also make for a fairly expensive building - I might have a little difficulty getting the wife to sign off on it. So the question is, considering 50' x 80' to be the upper limit, what is a reasonable size for a private hangar? I'm thinking one airplane for now, but you never know, there might be a second one sometime in the future.

Anyone have any thoughts on this?

[Mike S]

Biggest you can afford.

Never heard anybody say "Gee, I sure wish I did not have such a big hangar"

To get the wife on board, figure out what she would like to put in there, and make a space just for her.

Make it tall enough to fit the other kind of RV into, may come in handy later.

[SMO]

I am in a 30 x 40 foot with my RV-4. I share this with a Murphy Rebel (high wing). He has to pull mine out to get his out but otherwise we fit in there. Given you have 50' to work with I would use the full 50' on one dimension anyway.

[Ron Lee]

Longer dimension in width (aka door opening) is far better if you have more than one plane.

[eric_marsh]

Janet's already got a tiki bar in the back of my other shop. I'll have to try and come up with something to entice her for this one.

I was thinking about a 30' wide sliding door that splits down the middle. For the cost of one of those big folding aviation doors I could buy a bunch more hangar floor space. But the point about two airplanes is a good one. It's not just enough to have a place for them - it helps if you don't have to move them both to get one out.

[jrs14855]

RE: bifold hangar door. Buy a good mig welder and make your own door. 40' is a lot more managable for a bifold. maybe 20% of the cost of a commercial bifold.

[Ron Lee]

30' wide door. Please reconsider. Minimum 40' to accommodate most of the GA fleet. Get up to 50' wide and you are talking two RVs without moving either.