buying a house for train layout

[Rolo Tomasee]

 I have only been enjoying this forum for about a month.  I have been struck by all of the comments I have read about people new to and existing train enthusiast who say they are either buying a new home or looking for a new home and commenting on buying a new home and setting up a bigger layout. Who out there has bought a home so they could have a bigger train layout?

The house I live in I had built and was very involved in the process. I was not into trains then but if I was I would have built my house (rec room)  to accomodate my layout. As my situation is I have to design my layout to my existing house, every space is finished and furnished.

Talk about being an expensive hobby, buying a house to fit your trains?

[ADCX Rob]

I bought my home for a layout.

13 courses.

Dry - bone dry.

Gravity feed french drains, & no water ever in cellar.

Drylocked walls.

2 stairways.

300 amp electric service.

I'm still accumulating layout building materials and doing prep work - drywall & ceilings, electric & heat.

Rob 

[weldman87]

The only reason that I say I am looking for a house with a big basement is due the fact that I live 80 minutes from my place of employment. So we are looking for a house a little closer to work and we would like a bigger house with a basemnet to put a lay-out up.

[underworld]

Really new meaning to proper scale!!!!! Getting the proper 1:1 scale house for your 1:48 (or other) trains!

Welcome!!! to the forum. I understand all about working with the space that you have. I'm still in an apartment right now and I'm working out a plan for my gauge 1 (aka G) trains. I'm only working with about 4 X 6 feet....but I plan on designing it so that it can be sort of a module to a bigger (eventually) layout.

underworld

[lionelsoni]

What's a basement?..;-)

[underworld]

What's a basement?..;-)

The part of a house that's meant as a base!!!!!

My apartment building has a gigantic basement....can't figure out how to comandeer it though.

underworld

[traindaddy1]

One of my favorite songs: "When you wish upon a star.......your dreams will come true".  This "older" guy takes a lot of naps!

[fifedog]

When I was house-hunitng, a full unfinished basement was on my want-list. Now after being in my house for 14 years, I'm finally getting going on that 17 x 13 layout...just can't rush these things...

[trainbrain]

I moved in 1995 and again in 2005.  Both times, a prerequisite was a train room in the basement and both times it happened.  It just became a priority like a family room or nice kitchen or whatever Mama wanted.  She's always been  supportive of it.  That's the key!  Hopefully, this is our last move.  My " room " is the best it's ever been.  It has to be part of the plan!

[Anonymous]

The trainroom in the new house was a nice-to-have.  It just so turns out that the room is very nice sized for a layout!

The next house will be 100% custom and therefore I will be able to dictate how big the room is.  I'm thinking at least 30' x 40'... or maybe two rooms that result in that large space.

Brent

[laz 57]

YOU DA MAN BRENT. 30x 40 WOW?

laz57

[dbaker48]

Doe buying a room count?  I was going to add a large bonus room over the garage, long term would add value to the house, and probably be recovered.  Wrong!  Bonus room would have cost $100k, added value $60 to $70.

So added a "screened-in" patio room.  These rooms are usable 3 seasons, unless your in a warm climate.  We only have 2 seasons, so it works.  (Will see how hot it gets, supposed to be well insulated and wont be a problem.  Expected high 85-90)  This room WAS affordable, and so far has been great!  Room size 14x20. Adequate but not huge. 

[dochooter]

When we were designing our house, I was attracted to the 1.5 story designs given the huge basement that comes with them.  Out loud, I said I was impressed with first floor main bedroom.

[Prairietype]

I got married a year ago New Years eve. We were house hunting the summer before and we looked at a lot of houses. Each house was considered by me (privately) for its potential for a basement layout. We looked at a model home that was ready to be sold. I went down into the basement and saw what looked like the perfect floorplan (we liked the rest of the house too). I went back (without telling my fiance) the very next day to confirm my sense that the basement was perfect. I remember saying to myself "I can do it here!"  We bought the house and it took some months getting settled. Last October I started on the layout by laying track on the floor and constructing the benchwork generally above it, and then moving the track into place as I proceeded-the track defined the shape of the layout. It runs approximately 43 feet and ranges  from 4-7 feet wide. It has an odd similarity to Neil (former CTT editor) Besougloff's layout that is under construction as I write, in fact Neil B. started his layout at about the same time as I did, and under similar "new house" circumstances.

So I think it's fair to say that I bought the house for the train layout. I had dreams of doing this in the previous house, in an attic that was unfinished and in-temperate. Needless to say I never had the money to prepare that space, and so the trains remained in boxes for over a dozen years-making occasional appearances on floor layouts at Christmas.

[Santa Fe Kent]

Well first, I bought an old house right by the KCS line here in Wylie, TX. I can see everything right from my living room window. I'm also about to build a small 027 layout in the corner near that window. Eventually, after a bunch of rebuilding on the house, I will have a larger space for the trains. I also plan to put in a small garden layout, in 3-rail O gauge of course. I plan to use Atlas track for that since they say it's good for outdoors.

Hmmm.... I wonder if the city will let me move in an old caboose for a layout to go in?....

[jimsrpo]

My ideal would be a huge ranch house with a centrally located stairway.  That would be perfect for an around-the-walls layout.  Of course, a separate building with cathedral ceilings for those floor to ceiling mountains would be even better.  Then again, when that old supermarket building went up for sale down the block, I started dreaming again.....

oops, sorry - back to reality!

Jim

[Santa Fe Kent]

Hey... I like the idea of tall rooms with mountains that go way overhead. Imagine all the levels together with mountains that really look big!

[riverrailfan]

When we bought are house 3 years ago, my son and I were getting started in trains. My main reason for a basement was I did not want a crawl space. I was tired of performing repairs under the house shared with rodents, snakes and insects I never seen before. A basement also allowed us to shop for a 3 bedroom which were cheaper than a 4 or 5 and add the extra bedrooms we needed in the basement. In the end the wife rearranged the family room in the basement  and said here's your space for a layout(what a shock that was). Now I am building a 8x12 layout. 

[John Busby]

Hi Rolo

Its not so much buying a house for the trains.

Its buying a house to best suits life style.

In my case a big block large shed and small house

House to live in large block for garden railway ,dog and SWMBO garden

Large shed so all my Hobby stuff doesn't clutter the house and hopefully a home workshop one day.

Small house because there is only me and SWMBO and that's all we need.

So life style choices have more to do with the  purchase of the dream asset than the trains.

regards John

[Nick12DMC]

Hmmm, it can get expensive. We are building a Gamesroom and garage extension at the moment. Though the Gamesroom could accommodate a very large layout, we are going for a 16" x 8" foot Lionel layout. This is large by UK standards.  We want to fit in a Jukebox and pool table and give it a American theme.

I think its well worth finishing a rec room to a good standard. I have had this advice from a number of people. It gives you a nice comfortable place to run trains and adds value to your home.

Here's a pic

 

Nick