Garage Thread

[DMRK]

I wouldn't mind a flying car.
Ok here's some pics of my messy garage.

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Let these stand as before pictures as I am trying to clean and organize. I broke my foot riding dirt bikes with one of my boys a couple years ago and it went down hill fast.

[DMRK]

I am done "finishing" that garage as I will be building a new one in a few years.
Here is an idea of what I'm thinking of. It is 30' by 60' with 13' walls with 3 10' by 10' doors and extra room for shop, man cave or pool house. Any ideas or criticism welcome.

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[Tom]

Looks good -- maybe some high windows for light without taking away from wall storage space? And door tracks that hug the ceiling for lift clearance. And plenty of outlets, including some 220 circuits. And plumbed air with a sound deadening compressor room. And HVAC. And a sink. Maybe a bathroom. Polished concrete floors maybe. And Baldhead cabinets. And, and, and.... With a clean slate like that, the possibilities are endless! Enjoy the journey and keep us posted!

[blueline]

I am done "finishing" that garage as I will be building a new one in a few years.
Here is an idea of what I'm thinking of. It is 30' by 60' with 13' walls with 3 10' by 10' doors and extra room for shop, man cave or pool house. Any ideas or criticism welcome.
IMG_20230207_205921436~2.jpg

Your current garage looks like it's being used and put to good use - that's good in my book. Organization and whatnot can always come later!

Regarding your drawing, one thing I know is that you'll really appreciate the 10' wide doors; same with the separate people entrance. I'm no designer nor architect but your roof has a good steep pitch which indicates you may live in a snow belt somewhere. Don't know what you're planning, so I'll just list a few things off the top of my mind - insulation (always a good idea, especially if you plan on adding heat and/or air), running water, plenty of electricity with a sub-panel twice the capacity of the max you think you'll need, outlets everywhere (can never have too many in my book), lots and lots of light, good internet capability, de-humidification (depending on where you live), plenty of drainage, aprons high enough to keep out the water, a big belt-driven exhaust fan...

I'm sure you'll come up with more - that's the way it works. But, best to do it going in if possible or at least to have the building constructed in a way such that additions you might want to add down the road are not too difficult or disruptive.

Good luck and have fun!

[blueline]

Looks good -- maybe some high windows for light without taking away from wall storage space? And door tracks that hug the ceiling for lift clearance. And plenty of outlets, including some 220 circuits. And plumbed air with a sound deadening compressor room. And HVAC. And a sink. Maybe a bathroom. Polished concrete floors maybe. And Baldhead cabinets. And, and, and.... With a clean slate like that, the possibilities are endless! Enjoy the journey and keep us posted!

Lol. You covered a bunch Tom, some of which I made redundant in my reply. (While you were posting your reply I was writing and thinking at the same time - a challenge sometimes.) Yes to 220!!!

You're correct, the list can be endless. A nice problem to ponder.

[Bill in Bama]

While you're at it you might consider a small sleeping area, just in case your wife kicks you out for spending so much time in that new garagemahal.

[dr bob]

After shrinking my junkumulation from 3500 to 2000 in rented shop space to about 1200 square feet for the last 20 years, i propose that you include a full bath and a laundry/utility room. HVAC and local (tankless) water heater. My air compressors live in sound-blocking cabinets in the main workbay, one 5hp regular plus a smaller quiet one that gets the lion's share of the compressor duty. Plumb the place for compressed air and water. I use a MaxJax as others here do, and have air and (twist lock) electric service ports over the columns. The actual service consoles have supermagnets on them to secure to the MaxJax columns. Works the same for any lift type really, saves you from extension cords and air hoses on the floor. I have air-hose reels at the ceiling in a couple places too, and several connection ports on the walls. The sections are segmented with isolation valves, so no need to inflate the whole system when I just need to do one thing in one place and use the small Makita compressor. If you plan to do some painting, a small screw compressor with a real dryer will be a blessing. As others mention, over-plan your electrical design. That compressor and the HVAC previously mentioned, plus welding and a clothes dryer each demand 220V service. Use shaft-drive door openers, and follow that guidance on having them follow the ceiling contour on the way up. I ended up doing the design on mine myself, after the door contractor balked it the task. There's no such thing as too much lighting, but set it up by area and in stages so you have enough to safely walk through, then another stage or two for serious tasks. Make sure to have a decent wash bay inside, including floor drains and sufficient slope for them to work. Install a mixing valve so you have hot water there. Utility sink there too. You may need a grease/oil trap to meet local codes, and for sure if you have a septic system. Do finish and paint the walls inside. Like Tom and others, I invested in porcelain tile flooring, and used epoxy grout. The slab is 6" thick, so the lift can sit on top of the tile without worry. I had the holes for the lift anchors cored in steps through the tile. Baldhead Cabinets is right here in town less than 10 minutes away, so it was an easy choice to have them come install the cabinets and benches, all hung from the walls and off the floor. Walls were spec'd for the cabinet weight. Mine is a working garage/workbay so it has maple tops. The stainless looks great until you use it and it gets scratched up. The wood gets a sand and refinish when it gets damaged from use. Some that has carpet on it for a few reasons including protection. Add audio and video cabling, plus ethernet as needed. Include a wifi AP, phone lines, etc. as desired. Wire for fire, CO and smoke detectors and a remote alarm capability at he house. Make sure tour ethernet wiring includes security camera capability both inside and outside.

Plan-Plan-Plan. Make sure the workbays include sufficient width to walk past an open car door including wall and workbench cabinets.

I'm sure there's more....

[DMRK]

Looks good -- maybe some high windows for light without taking away from wall storage space? And door tracks that hug the ceiling for lift clearance. And plenty of outlets, including some 220 circuits. And plumbed air with a sound deadening compressor room. And HVAC. And a sink. Maybe a bathroom. Polished concrete floors maybe. And Baldhead cabinets. And, and, and.... With a clean slate like that, the possibilities are endless! Enjoy the journey and keep us posted!

I don't like windows in the garage, when I had my current house built I tried to have them left out but to no avail. Some high windows are a great Idea though. The other end might have some windows depending how I end up using the space. 220, 221 whatever it takes (Mr. Mom 1983). polished concrete floors might be a good choice but I love the porcelain tile you did. I was hoping to keep it under $50k but I'm not sure that's possible.

[Tom]

Looks good -- maybe some high windows for light without taking away from wall storage space? And door tracks that hug the ceiling for lift clearance. And plenty of outlets, including some 220 circuits. And plumbed air with a sound deadening compressor room. And HVAC. And a sink. Maybe a bathroom. Polished concrete floors maybe. And Baldhead cabinets. And, and, and.... With a clean slate like that, the possibilities are endless! Enjoy the journey and keep us posted!

I don't like windows in the garage, when I had my current house built I tried to have them left out but to no avail. Some high windows are a great Idea though. The other end might have some windows depending how I end up using the space. 220, 221 whatever it takes (Mr. Mom 1983). polished concrete floors might be a good choice but I love the porcelain tile you did. I was hoping to keep it under $50k but I'm not sure that's possible.

You can do porcelain tiles for under $50k, no problem. I have a love-hate relationship with garage windows. The light really helps make it a space I want to hang out in, but wall space is critical for shop equipment and storage. If I had a clean slate, I'd put in lots of high windows -- like the kind in grade school you had to open/close with a long poll.

Edit: I fear I just dated myself with the window-poll reference.... It was a thing back when gas was 29 cents a gallon....

[DMRK]

I am done "finishing" that garage as I will be building a new one in a few years.
Here is an idea of what I'm thinking of. It is 30' by 60' with 13' walls with 3 10' by 10' doors and extra room for shop, man cave or pool house. Any ideas or criticism welcome.
IMG_20230207_205921436~2.jpg

Your current garage looks like it's being used and put to good use - that's good in my book. Organization and whatnot can always come later!

Regarding your drawing, one thing I know is that you'll really appreciate the 10' wide doors; same with the separate people entrance. I'm no designer nor architect but your roof has a good steep pitch which indicates you may live in a snow belt somewhere. Don't know what you're planning, so I'll just list a few things off the top of my mind - insulation (always a good idea, especially if you plan on adding heat and/or air), running water, plenty of electricity with a sub-panel twice the capacity of the max you think you'll need, outlets everywhere (can never have too many in my book), lots and lots of light, good internet capability, de-humidification (depending on where you live), plenty of drainage, aprons high enough to keep out the water, a big belt-driven exhaust fan...

I'm sure you'll come up with more - that's the way it works. But, best to do it going in if possible or at least to have the building constructed in a way such that additions you might want to add down the road are not too difficult or disruptive.

Good luck and have fun!

You are right there is so much to think about and I know I won't be able to get it all from the start but I want to make sure that it is set up correctly to add stuff later. It is not in a snow belt area. It is closer to you and Bill's neck of the woods. I chose the steep pitch for aesthetic reasons because it is closer to the pitch of the house. It was built in 1884 and is very steep. My wife and I are currently restoring the house. Big project, still in the demo stage. Also, I plan on some sort of loft for storage with a dumbwaiter type lift maybe. The steeper pitch gives me more height.