Building a custom garage, halp me design it!

[Krueger]

Hey Dude!!

Although the tits everywhere idea is always a crowd pleaser, i think having a pit on one side and having a lift on the other would be cool so you don't to deal with always putting the car on a lift to get under it and if you've got the money why not. its also a good way to clear some of the clutter.

[FredK]

It sort of sounds like 17x17 might be a little tight if you want to stuff an E30, a couple motorcycles, and a drumset in there.

I like having plenty of floor space. I had the opportunity to work in PeteD's uncle's garage and it is probably on the order of 36x36 with a 16+ foot ceiling. That is a great size for a workshop, and you can get a LOT done in a shop of that size.

Since you're building from scratch, it might be a good idea to think about making a bump out for a decent sized air compressor. That will allow you some noise isolation, and also avoid taking up valuable floor space. At 17x17, you'll have enough wall space for a few racks, a work bench, and maybe a hydraulic press. If you ever want to screw around with bulkier items, like a milling machine and lathe, you might not have enough room.

[OldDrunkenSailor]

It sort of sounds like 17x17 might be a little tight if you want to stuff an E30, a couple motorcycles, and a drumset in there.

I actually measured today and I'm at about 16x16 and I have just enough space on each side of the e30 for a motorbike, though the drums don't fit right now. They fit fine before the winter but I moved them indoors since it's not insulated/heated in there and it was too cold to play! I might leave them in my room for the spring though, it's just harder to jam with others.

I thought today of doing a hoist from the ceiling so I could start lifting my bikes up once I get past the current 2 (think of how tow trucks do it if you get a dead batt. or whatever). I told myself no more bikes until 2013, but there are a few that have made the short list for when the embargo is over.

oh and do a two post lift. scissor lifts get in the way. you could have one that recedes into the foundation instead of having a huge frame taking up a lot of space.

I don't follow how a scissor lift takes a bunch of space, could you elaborate? I was thinking of sinking it into the floor. Those big block lifts look like they'd be worse even if recessed since they're just so giant.

[evandael]

I meant on the car itself. Refer back to that picture of the Porsche in the air.. the entire underside between the wheelbase is obscured.


Of course, that only matters if you want to do work that require access to the middle of the car (trans or exhaust). If that's no issue for you, then yeah a scissor lift would be great.

[rturbo 930]

If you read through the 12 Guage thread, he mentions that he was okay with using that lift because Porsches have a pan, and the lift doesn't really get in the way of anything. There's no drive shafts, brake lines, etc. for the lift to get in the way of. For any other car something like this would be better:



Taken from here: http://garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=25148

Lots of good ideas in that build, so you might wanna skim through it.

[SteveJ]

How high can you go? Put the drum kit on a platform that you can raise into the ceiling and lower down to play. Of course, you will need to insulate and control the temp of the ceiling area or plan on tuning the drums every single time.

I, too, have SGS or "small garage syndrome". It's far better than having NGS which results in garage envy.

Figure what it is you want to do in your garage. Prioritize those tasks. Storing items, working on things, other hobbies, etc...The ideal situation is not having to move three or four items out of the way to do a different task. That will get old real fast and result in organization failure.

One tool to use in the planning are the ABC's of storage- Assess, Banish, Corral. This will help you determine how much storage is needed, and what type- cabinets, shelves, overhead. If you are 20 years old, store everything up overhead. If you are older, like me, consider what you are storing up high and if you will be able to move it up there when you are 10 or 20 years older.

Another tool to use is 5S. Google it. Used in manufacturing, but helpful in the home. Basically, you will observe a situation, break it down into minute detail, find areas that are waste(moving things, searching for things, etc...), correct the causes of the waste, and sustain the new system of doing things (putting yer toys away). If stuff is left on the bench or the floor, it's usually because it doesn't have a home, or it's a pain to get out or put away.

I started out with a description of my dream garage, and then went down the list to see what items I could actually have within the limitations of my existing garage space. My current M3 project has overwhelmed my garage and has flowed into the spare bedroom for some time.

[OldDrunkenSailor]

How high can you go? Put the drum kit on a platform that you can raise into the ceiling and lower down to play. Of course, you will need to insulate and control the temp of the ceiling area or plan on tuning the drums every single time.

I, too, have SGS or "small garage syndrome". It's far better than having NGS which results in garage envy.

Figure what it is you want to do in your garage. Prioritize those tasks. Storing items, working on things, other hobbies, etc...The ideal situation is not having to move three or four items out of the way to do a different task. That will get old real fast and result in organization failure.

One tool to use in the planning are the ABC's of storage- Assess, Banish, Corral. This will help you determine how much storage is needed, and what type- cabinets, shelves, overhead. If you are 20 years old, store everything up overhead. If you are older, like me, consider what you are storing up high and if you will be able to move it up there when you are 10 or 20 years older.

Another tool to use is 5S. Google it. Used in manufacturing, but helpful in the home. Basically, you will observe a situation, break it down into minute detail, find areas that are waste(moving things, searching for things, etc...), correct the causes of the waste, and sustain the new system of doing things (putting yer toys away). If stuff is left on the bench or the floor, it's usually because it doesn't have a home, or it's a pain to get out or put away.

I started out with a description of my dream garage, and then went down the list to see what items I could actually have within the limitations of my existing garage space. My current M3 project has overwhelmed my garage and has flowed into the spare bedroom for some time.

That, sir, is a VERY well thought out post, thanks!

We did some initial mocking up yesterday and currently I've got a 16x18 garage, thinking of cutting down to 15x17, which still gives me enough space for 1 bike on each side of the car, a bench, walking space, and the drumset when the seat is scooted into it (size of electric set here helps immensely.

I'm also thinking that I'll use all of the 23ft my exterior structure is allotted, so I'll have most/all of that vertical at my disposal. I'm 24, so definitely planning on using the overhead :)

[89is]

swimming pool lights in the floor maybe, so you can see what you're doing

[SteveJ]

swimming pool lights in the floor maybe, so you can see what you're doing

I've seen this done for one guy that was fortunate to have a lift. Would beat the heck out of using a trouble light. The only down side would be if you bent down to pick up something off the floor and get blinded.