Ok this is a big deal for me. DH is going to let me dive in face first to the cake business. I don't have a lot of time spent going down the cake decorating avenue but do a lot of "country" type homestyle cakes...and I am practicing and practicing my decorating...anyways DH is deciding to have a beautiful cake building built (might be because I have so many toys they don't fit in the house anymore). I will post pics of the building tomorrow because I have to go take a pic of the one we are duplicating. It is 500 sq ft, a cathedral ceiling with beams exposed (is this ok???), he is going to have a place down the road make my decorating table and mixer stands, also I will have one wall of shelving with drawers incorporated for tips, couplers, colors, etc. We have checked on the double restaurant style sinks (coming used from a restaurant store probably) and a double oven. We already have a chest freezer but am going to move old fridge out there also after we get new one for the house.
I guess what I need to know, before I go get licensed do you have any advice for me (before we start construction) on what NOT to do with the shop...like something you did and shouldn't have...or something that I should do that you might of forgotten setting up your shop, kitchen or whatever. Also, can we use hardwood flooring or should we go vinyl or laminate or even tile? And also lighting what is the best so I don't go blind 
Thank you for taking your time to read this from a soon to be LEGAL baker 
honestly, dont waste your time working on the building until you find out what the regulations are for your area!
im in PA so the rules are different than they would be for you, so i cant give you specifics. contact your department of agriculture, or the health department. say you are going to be getting a license in the future and want a copy of the food code and the regulations relating to home-based businesses, etc etc etc. they will tell you what you can and cant have in the building. dont guess.
also, if you are smart you wont put hardwood floor where you are going to be making a mess! stick with something easy to clean like vinyl tiles or laminate flooring.
another thing i just thought of, you may be required to have certain watt lights. like florescent not regular old bulbs. but its different for every state, and county and town!
good luck!
Definitely don't build until you know what they require in your state and your county or city for licensing. I would hate to see you not being able to use this building! Every state differs, so it doesn't even make sense to speculate!
One thing I would get, besides double/triple sinks is a grease trap... some inspector on here explained why they were necessary and after that I think we ALL should have them!!!
Melissa
i agree with the others, do not build until you know what your state regulates and allows
like here in Illinois you have to have a triple sink, not double
also make sure of all the requirements for being licensed, don't forget to check out the requirements and classes you have to take for working with eggs, it's a totally different class then the food handleing class.
check the regulations on what building supplies you can and can't use, especially for shelving and countertops etc.
these may seem simple to us but some states require certain materials and don't allow others.
Thanks guys for the advice...looks like I still have a whole lot of researching to do before the construction .... and that is ok, I would rather be safe then sorry
If you don't mind though I would like to post the building that we will be building AFTER I get my homework done
Thanks again for your help
We would love to see it! By the way, where in Kentucky are you?
In Indiana, EVERYTHING has to be approved by the health dept. Exposed wood beams in the kitchen? Check it out first .... ceilings must be non-pourous and easy to clean.
someone down the road is "making" your tables? Does this mean they are wood? Porous material .... great little crevices for bacteria to grow! Our health dept has strict requirements on food prep surfaces.
2-compartment sink? Are you sure you don't need a 3 compartment sink for wash/rinse/sanitize?
Chest freezer and "old" refrigerator? Be sure your health dept doesn't require commercial NSF rated equipment ... most don't permit household chest freezers and such in a commercial kitchen.
Flooring also has to be health dept approved materials. Everything has to do with porous vs. non-porous and the ability to easily clean everything.
Even my floor plan has to be health dept approved. I can't go in and just put my equipment anywhere I want. they need to make sure that you have sufficient refrigeration storage and that the workflow of the kitchen is proper so that foods are not left out longer than necessary. (if the refrigerator is ALL THE WAY OVER THERE, you are more likely to take out more than you need to save a trip, resulting in foods being unrefrigerated for longer periods of time.
If you're working with icing, I am sure they will require a grease trap of some sort.
In addition to the 3 compartment sink, we are required to have a hand washing sink every 25 feet and I also need a separate food prep sink.
Will you have a stove in there and will it need an exhaust vent overhead? These are pretty expensive. mine is $1000 a linear foot and I need 8 feet of it. PLUS the cost to bust thru the roof and ventilate it.
These are just some examples of what we have to consider in my state. I would check with your health dept (or whoever oversees these) FIRST, before you commit to any large purchases, to find out what you need. It's always cheaper to do it right the first time!
indebyi I did a lot of seaching and we happen to know one inspector. My DH called him last night to just chum up a conversation and asked a few questions. You are right, we need a 3 compartment sink! 
We haven't purchased ANYTHING yet let me clarify this to everyone. DH has just approved to use any monies I needed to get started, which means NOW after I get all the facts down he will do what is necessary. I was just very excited because he had taken the initiative to back me up with something . This will be a long road.
We wont be doing hardwood floors we will be doing vinyl. The prep table will be stainless steel, (the people down the road do welding). The walls will be covered in a material that can be wiped down, and the beams unexposed (the building we are duplicating was just so pretty with the open cathedral ceiling). I have a call in to DH's "friend" to call me back. Maybe I can have a sit down with him and he can give me all the basics and then work from there.
I guess I am kinda sad now. I was so excited...maybe this won't happen. Not if it is going to take us another 20,000. I won't risk my families financial stability. The building itself is large enough to do what we want, but I sure didn't know I needed to know where everything went before we even started construction!! I understand the flooring and the wall material but we have to decide where the stove and fridge and sinks go before we start??? not so excited now
I was just thinking I guess I understand why you need to know where everything goes...piping, electrical and everything....but the fact somebody has to tell me where they go just kinda irks me lol.
Dont' lose your excitement and don't look at this info as the downside .... see it for the upside that it is! You have a friend in the field who will be a real help to you to make sure this is done up right. With the right information, your equipment purchases will be the right ones and you won't be making expensive purchasing mistakes.
Unfortunately, we've picked an industry that is highly regulated with a lot of requirements. I would get so frustrated at the "unfairness" of it ... my hubby does woodworking and if he wants to start a biz, all he has to do is buy some stuff from Sears, set it up in the garage and boom! he's set! But me? I cant' buy just any stove ... I have to have a SPECIAL stove! I can't just set it up anywhere I want .... I have to have the layout APPROVED by someone! Frustrating!!
It may take us more to get it going, but the love and passion we have for what we do makes it all worth it!
Thanks a lot for all the advice it is very helpful!! Might have to have u come on down to the south and look and see if there is anything else needed once things get going
But thanks a lot because without great people like you I probably would have proceeded with the construction next week !!! Yeah I know...I can't believe I wasn't smart enough to check into all these things before I got excited about the building itself....Is it still safe to get used restaurant equipment though? Was going to make a few road trips in the next couple of weeks to go look...or should I look into new equipment?
Or maybe I could go look at someones shop to see how theirs is layed out!
FIRST..... before you do ANYTHING, find out if you are zoned commercial or residential....... BUT... even if it is only residential, you can petition to have it re-zoned...... I'm already excited for you..... just cover all the bases, and keep us posted ( no pun intendend ) we want to be a part of this too !!
We are going through this right now...gosh it is so much paperwork...but really, take a deep breath, there are hundreds of others who have done it before you, you CAN too! Stay excited, it makes me sad that you seem so down...this is a great adventure for you and your family. When times get tough seek out the Lord's peace and then move forward...nothing is built yet, so you have nothing to "change"...check out my blog, we are moving into a building, so I am sure this will be stressful at times, having to make changes to the actual building. My dh is really supportive too, so that is one thing that you won't have to worry about. Blessings on your baking (and building), Shawn <><
There is a lot of regulations for a food business. Don't let it discourage you.
While I'm new to cake decorating I am not new to cooking. I'm planning to open a catering business within the next year or so. I already knew there were lots of requirements, so I just didn't let it discourage me.
Good luck!
don't get down!
its still totally possible!
i think everyone is trying to warn you so you stay on the "slow and steady path", not the "rush ahead and get into trouble highway"!
its awesome that you have welders to make stainless prep tables! i have a stainless 'island' on wheels that i can roll out of the way when i dont need it. consider adding that to the list! 
used equipment should be ok. they may want it to be commercial grade though. im allowed to use regular 'home' equipment, i just have to have seperate cabinets and shelves for the 'bakery' stuff.
you will need to take a food sanitaion course. why dont you work on that? then you will feel like you are getting somewhere toward the BIG goal. the servsafe course goes over alot of the stuff a commercial kitchen should have, but still, it depends on your area.
i hope you dont feel critisized and nit-picked!
i really believe everyone was giving you wise advice, some of it learned the hard way!
Yea I agree with the others to, please don't let it get you down. I am in the same process. We own a rental property that is vacant right now and are in the process of petetioning for re-zoning, luckily my dh works for the city and is very good friends with the mayor's right hand man/lady and she is trying to find the right way to get me up and running, she is for anything that will bring in money for the city. Once we are approved zoning then I have to get the hd out because we are on septic not sewer and the hd has to pass us. After that I have to send in my house plans and a $150 fee. Then once that passes it is time to shop. I have already begun wishful shopping. So I know what I want that way. It got me down for one day, but I look at like this, I want to be legite and I have to do what the hd says to do that. And not all inspectors approves the same way. You are very very fortunate to have a friend in that business that can and will save you headaches. And this Friday I am being laid off of from my full time position so money is very very limited right now. My dh is standing behind me in my desire to have my shop but is not able to help financially right now. So everything that needs to be done is being done by me and what I am taking out my retirement distribution.
Good luck and best wishes
Sunday from Bama
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