So this trapping thing has quickly become a family affair and a real enjoyment. What we wanting to do is put up and finish our fur so we need a climate controlled place to do it. And I have some ideas and options and would like to know what you guys think would be best. Also looking at heat options. Propane,electric, wood?

Option one I have a 30x40 shop. It has insulated walls but not the ceiling. I was thinking about walling off the back 10’ that would give me a 10’x30’ room to work fur. My freezers and skinning rig would be outside the finished area. I would put a ceiling in. Pro on this it would be the quickest and easiest. Con I loose 10’ of depth on the shop

Option 2 I have a lean too down the 40’ section on the south side of my shop. Pro it would be bigger. Con I would need to pour concrete and then finish it in and would loose that area for “Animals” but these are the last steers we are raising just don’t know down the road when I sell if that would be wanted. Also I thought about parking my old ford tractor out there to gain room in the shop

Option 3 buy a premade shed and finish it off. Pro it would be dropped off and then I could finish it quickly. Biggest con is getting power to it and or gas. I do have an 220 run on the side of the house for a hot tub we took out. Would electricians heat be good? Or would like a 100 pound bottle run a propane stove for awhile?

Thank you for any help or advice on this subject. Oh and pics are always welcome

Any of your options will work well.
I have a 12x28 building for my shed. I wish it were bigger, but it works well. It's well insulated and easy to heat.
Whatever you go with, make sure it has plenty of outlets and put in more lighting than you think is necessary.
And I would go with electric or propane heat. Much easier to regulate temperature and you won't have a wood stove taking up room.

I use a 16x24 area and it works fine. My freezers are not in this area though. I have 8ft. ceiling which works well for hanging boards on. My heat is electric base board. When I fill my beaver boards they are put around the outside of the room. It has worked for me for years but I am not a big time long line trapper either.

Well sounds like finishing off the back half of the shop might be the best way to go. I was looking at the King 5,000W electric heater. It says it heats up to 450 SF so I think it should work. Now should I build a floor to help insulate it? Also thinking about OSB for the ceiling to I can build a system to hang pelts. This option is very doable and would be the quickest and easiest. Does anyone have any experience with electric heaters?

I put down those inch thick rubber stall mats on the floor in mine. Works pretty good for insulation.

You dont need a lot of room to skin, flesh & board animals.
Keep work stations close together to avoid walking and wasting time. Have all tools within reach at each work station. That may mean having 2 or more knives, combs, brushes ect. with 1 at each work station, don't waste time walking back for knife or comb.

You will need space to dry fur. How much space needed depends how big your catch is each season.

Anyone finish fur in the garage? We have one side we don't really use because the garage door is funky. If I was to put a tarp down would I be able to finish fur in the garage? Do fur sheds get stinky? I do have 220 available since there was a hot tub on the place when we bought it.

The garage would work fine. If you keep things clean you won't have an odor problem.

It will not be odor free but it should not be too bad. I used to finish fur in my basement and it was tolerable. The main things I noticed odor with was beaver and otter. Skunks were deodorized prior to skinning so no issues there.

Garage works for me and both vehicles fit in fine too.























The Beaver Table works great as a project table during the off-season...





The fur dry in the basement, stink hasn't been a problem. To be honest I don't put up a lot of fur...

Thank you very much for the pics! Those are very helpful looks like the garage would work for sure to start