Thread: Studio Size ? and Flooring ?

I took the plunge and arranged for the back half of a butler building to be converted into a dance studio. I got tired of trying to fight the ballet students for time, so I'm going to have a place of my own to teach.

BUT -- the actual live dance space I'm looking at is 20 foot by 20 foot. Is that enough???? There will be a foyer/waiting area and bathrooms separate from all that. But I'm worried that 400 square feet isn't enough room. We usually have about 12 people in class.

Also, they want to know what kind of flooring I want. I'd LOVE a spring floor, so if you have any cheap construction ideas, let me know. But do I want carpet, marley-style linoleum, or wood laminate? I'm leaning towards the wood. But would it be better to have carpet (for padding) and then lay a sheet of linoleum over that?

Ideas please?

Aziyade,
Congratulations! I took the same plunge, for the same reason...I was fighting with the ballet studio for the time slots I needed.

Spacewise, 400 sq ft is going to be very tight. I doubt you will be able to accommodate 12 students. I have close to 550 sq ft right now, and although I think I can squeeze in 12 (at least in a beginner level class, sans veils or other "big" props), 10 is probably more comfortable.

This is the flooring I have, and I LOVE it:

Stagestep Encore Flooring

My landlord bought it and installed it, and that was the main reason I chose the space I did, in spite of the small size. This flooring has the perfect amount of "slip" to it, as far as I'm concerned. I really feel that a wood surface is ideal for belly dance and ME folklore. Marley has too much "stick" to it, IMO.

Hope this helps!

Nisaa

Also...I've got a good resource for cheap mirrors, if you need it...just let me know!

When we expanded our basement to add a new room, I put in a sprung dance floor on top of the concrete base. I called the local university's theater department, found out who was in charge of flooring for the university's dance studio classrooms, and asked him my questions. He was wonderful. He urged me to have my contractor call him directly, so I did. My contractor followed all his advice, and I ended up with a beautiful sprung floor.

So, first you need to make sure that your floor will stay dry. We have a water drainage system under the one in our basement, but another way to accomplish that is through a vapor barrier (piece of plastic) laid across the floor. Then you install your studio flooring on top of that.

My floor is finished off with click-down flooring made from real wood.

I do NOT have marley on mine, nor did I want it. Marley is good for stuff like ballet where you're really worried about being able to take a flying leap, land on your toes, and accomplish all this without risk of skidding and falling.

But in belly dance, we don't move in the ways that pose the risks that marley is meant to solve. If you get marley, it'll be a status symbol and will impress any of your students who come from a ballet / jazz / modern dance background. If you don't get marley, everyone should still be able to move safely in Middle Eastern style of dance.

My first studio was 20 X 35, and I could fit 20 beginners in there, but it was like sardines. I could only accommodate about 12 intermediate/advanced students (who need to use props and travel). With such a small space you may need to divide your classes by topic and offer more than one at each level. If they're very friendly and cooperative and already know each other, and you keep the price low, you may be able to work with them on a half-dances, half-watches basis or something.

Flooring is the bane of my existence. I bought an expensive rolled flooring called DanceStep (from the stagestep people above) that I was told I could install right over the low-pile carpet in the studio. Spent about $4,000 including shipping and adhesive. Loved it, but the stuff wouldn't hold still.

Now I've moved to a bigger space and have tile over concrete, which is AWFUL. Buying enough of the flooring to cover the new larger space would cost me thousands of dollars again!

So you're wise to get the floor right from the beginning.

If the landlord is paying for the floor, then you don't need to worry about making it portable. But if YOU are paying for the floor, it is possible to install it in a way that is portable, meaning you can take it with you if you move to a new facility in the future. Basically, you don't glue anything in place. This is true regardless of whether you get a rubber roll-up floor or a click-down sprung floor.

Also, if you use J-hooks to install your mirrors and avoid using glue, those too can be taken with you if you move to a new facility in the future.

Originally Posted by Lauren_

Flooring is the bane of my existence. I bought an expensive rolled flooring called DanceStep (from the stagestep people above) that I was told I could install right over the low-pile carpet in the studio. Spent about $4,000 including shipping and adhesive. Loved it, but the stuff wouldn't hold still.

Did you keep the DanceStep flooring and take it with you when you moved? If so, you should be able to install what you've got in your new studio so you can at least allow your smaller classes to dance on it.

What's the average actual SIZE for a small studio? I keep measuring out (in my yard) a 20 x 25 area and it doesn't look that small, but it's hard to visualize it with people in it. I'm hoping for 20 x 30, but I think I can make 20 x 25 work -- the owner is building the inside walls where I want them (within reason).

I want my classes under 12 people, because 10-12 is about the most I can see easily. Plus I prefer a more intimate setting. BUT, we want to be able to bring in guest teachers for small workshops. Is that not going to be a possibility at all for the smaller space?

We're thinking about installing a raised platform area (stage thing) too, but that WOULD cut into the live dance area.

(I'm on my own for the floor. And it's on concrete, which I'm told will sweat, so a linoleum of some type is going to be my only option, I THINK.)

Originally Posted by aziyade

(I'm on my own for the floor. And it's on concrete, which I'm told will sweat, so a linoleum of some type is going to be my only option, I THINK.)

The sweating concrete is why a vapor barrier is recommended for underneath dance floors.

Think carefully before you proceed with linoleum directly on concrete. It's horrid. It can cause leg joint pain (knees & ankles), foot pain (especially for people with bunions), and shin splints. If you can't afford a sprung floor, at least consider a rubber floor. Get one that you don't attach with adhesive, so you can roll it up and take it elsewhere (or sell it) when you no longer want this studio.

Ohmigod Shira so right, I go to this one studio for my Indain dance classes and the floor is so hard and has no give that my left knee is starting to crack! and feet are killing me afterwards

Originally Posted by *Shira*

The sweating concrete is why a vapor barrier is recommended for underneath dance floors.

Think carefully before you proceed with linoleum directly on concrete. It's horrid. It can cause leg joint pain (knees & ankles), foot pain (especially for people with bunions), and shin splints. If you can't afford a sprung floor, at least consider a rubber floor. Get one that you don't attach with adhesive, so you can roll it up and take it elsewhere (or sell it) when you no longer want this studio.

thank you ladies for this. this will all help me with my research.
now how do i bookmark or save these somehow?

36 square feet per person, including the instructor, is the minimum you need.

If you want classes of up to 12, then you'll need a minimum of 468sqft of actual dance space. If you want classes of up to 20, you'd need 756sqft.

Good luck!

Deborah

Originally Posted by *Shira*

The sweating concrete is why a vapor barrier is recommended for underneath dance floors.

Think carefully before you proceed with linoleum directly on concrete. It's horrid. It can cause leg joint pain (knees & ankles), foot pain (especially for people with bunions), and shin splints. If you can't afford a sprung floor, at least consider a rubber floor. Get one that you don't attach with adhesive, so you can roll it up and take it elsewhere (or sell it) when you no longer want this studio.

Where would you get the kind that you can just roll up? What's the average cost of it?

Originally Posted by RatedTotalPackage

Where would you get the kind that you can just roll up? What's the average cost of it?

Stagestep Dance & Theater | Aeson Health & Fitness is one source of rollup flooring that another dancer I know really likes. I don't remember costs, because I ended up going with a full sprung floor instead of a rubber floor. I have danced on rubber floors, and they're MUCH better than linoleum over concrete, though not as nice as sprung.

The Ultimate Portable Dance Floor System is where we got the flooring supplies used in building the sprung floor for my home studio. It even has "individual practice" and "home studio" models.

I am curious to know whether you went with the 20' x 20' space in the end and, if so, how it worked out. I may have a similar opportunity myself and, like you back then, am wondering if it could work with smallish classes of 10-12.

If you have access to someone handy with saw, nails, hammers, etc and a bit of time here's an inexpensive alternative to a sprung floor:

cover the floor with plastic as a moisture shield

purchase 2"x2" lumber in a sufficient amount to create a grid to cover the floor

screw a layer of plywood to the 2"x2" grid

add a layer of foam flooring insulation, the type used with inexpensive snap flooring

screw another layer of plywood in the other direction, this layer should have the finished side showing

you can stain the top layer or create interesting henna type designs

I like to cover the finished layer with satin finish clear sealant. I prefer water based poly, I cannot tolerate the fumes of oil-based plus it takes so long for the fumes to clear the space is basically not useable. Depending on wear-&-tear maybe once a year or two, maybe three - add another coat of sealant. Easy to apply the sealant, use a roller.

If you ever leave the space the floor is easy to remove. Nothing is attached. The grid is held in place by the walls. If the floor is accessed by a different floor height you can angle a board for a gradual incline. That also makes the transition wheelchair accessible.

Originally Posted by showtime

If you have access to someone handy with saw, nails, hammers, etc and a bit of time here's an inexpensive alternative to a sprung floor:

cover the floor with plastic as a moisture shield

purchase 2"x2" lumber in a sufficient amount to create a grid to cover the floor

screw a layer of plywood to the 2"x2" grid

add a layer of foam flooring insulation, the type used with inexpensive snap flooring

screw another layer of plywood in the other direction, this layer should have the finished side showing

you can stain the top layer or create interesting henna type designs

I like to cover the finished layer with satin finish clear sealant. I prefer water based poly, I cannot tolerate the fumes of oil-based plus it takes so long for the fumes to clear the space is basically not useable. Depending on wear-&-tear maybe once a year or two, maybe three - add another coat of sealant. Easy to apply the sealant, use a roller.

If you ever leave the space the floor is easy to remove. Nothing is attached. The grid is held in place by the walls. If the floor is accessed by a different floor height you can angle a board for a gradual incline. That also makes the transition wheelchair accessible.

Brilliant! I knew there must be a reason I married a carpenter!!!