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

I e worked in all kinds of fur “sheds” over the years. I’ve used tents, campers, sheds, shops, garages, lean to, and skin on the line as I catch. When it’s real cold and I’m on the line, I sometimes skin just to use the carcass keep my hands warm. I think you’ll regret taking up an entire 10’ of your 30’ side of the shop. How tall is the ceiling?

The trusses are 9'6" from the concrete. I have the garage door ordered and I am trying to decide between spray foam or putting a Ceiling in it. The thing is the trusses are 10' on center so I have a bunch of room between them if needed. Also looking at purring a propane stove in if I get the ceiling insulated. The walls are already insulated and have tin on them. I have also thought about hanging the fur in the garage to dry and just skin and flesh in the shop. I just want us to be able to work up fur next year. Selling green is ok but we want to go to the next level as trappers. We are planning on buying a bunch of boards at the FTA and our goal is to be ready to put up fur next year

Not telling you what to do with your space but try a 10x10 space just for skinning and drying. You’ll like it. Then you can add a lean to at some point.

My shed is 24X28 and I use the whole area for fur put up. I don't think to big will be any problem.

My biggest fur shed was 56’ x 36’. During trapping season I e used the entire thing. My smallest was a 10’x10’ shed and I loved that little space.

Is it better to skin in a colder climate? This is my first year and I've been doing it in my unheated shop between 35F and 45F. I figure it's better to keep things cold and then I'm salting the hides in a rubbermaid tub overnight and changing the salt the next day. I've kept them in a salted Rubbermade tote in the cold shop since I started in mid Dec. I keep intending to start the tanning process, but then I come across another to skin and salt.

I would recommend electric heat over propane. I've used, wood, propane and electric all over the years to dry furs. They will all work, but wood is harder to regulate and propane produces moisture. Also, use a fan for air circulation when drying. I currently am using a 12x28 section in the back of the shop walled off, insulated, and electric heat for fur put up and drying. My fleshing beam is in another building (where I put up furs before I had the shop) and I normally skin either in the woods or in the shop. So that area is plenty big for just putting up furs. I've dried furs in my living room when that was what I had available, but I was single at the time. lol. Just did some last week in an 8.5x18 cargo trailer with a wood stove, while camping in said trailer. Fleshing outside while it was snowing was not ideal, but it worked and furs dried fine in the trailer.

As USMC47 says, skinning a nice warm carcass on the line will warm up cold hands, and critters skin much easier warm. I prefer to skin within five minutes of dispatch when feasible.