What's new
CK5
Register an account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members.

New 3 car Garage

katugly

katugly

1/2 ton status
Joined
May 18, 2009
Posts
283
Reaction score
2
Location
Goddard, Kansas
So Im signing on my house next Friday and I have to think about the garage. Here is what I am thinking

White Epoxy coated floor

As many florescent strips as I can stick to the ceiling

Build a bench along the long wall in the back and put some cabinets up.

Have one side of the bench metal topped for welding and the like and have the other half butcher block for things requiring no conductive work surface.

2 Single phase 220 outlets for compressor and Tig machine

Shelving along the top portion of the walls for storage.


So my questions I would propose to you all is

1. Do any of you have good experience doing your own garage floor coating or is it worth it to have it hired out.

2. Should I spring for the 8 ft fixtures or just wire in 4 footers?
2b. Any place any one recommends for sourcing said fixtures? Granger looks like they have some good prices.

3. Should I build the bench outa 4x4 square stock iron or 4x4 wood? I know one will be standing around if the house blows away but im thinking the build involved with such a table would suck balls.

Thanks for your input folks. I will get some pictures up in a bit if i can find them.

19249_105485429471395_100000298162068_144842_5688999_n.jpg

12640_103366589683279_100000298162068_90956_7694432_n.jpg


Its the only picture i could find of the garage lol.
 
Last edited:
My ideas for my next place..



lights run in strips as you mentioned, but on the wall as well. One of the best places I have seen them installed was recessed into the panels of a garage door. It added some amazing low light, and often people do not put lighting when the door retracts, so it provides a benefit it opened, or closed. For these, cheap place would be craigslist!


I have done the do it yourself floor coating...yes it can/will work but it does wear easier than ind jobs i have seen. Also hot tires and turning will do a number on it. No I do not think it fully compares to a professional job. There also seems to be a huge difference between commercial and a residential job that you hire out. Im lost here on what to recommend, but I will say nice floors in a garage are a thing of beauty.


Air..

pvc is cheap.. run lines to the front of the garage on both sides as well as over the work bench and center of the ceiling. Ball vales for condensation. No more pulling hoses around tires, cars, parts.. grab a coil air line and go! If you can build a small room for the air compressor on the out side of the garage. My friend used a rubber made thing and also keeps his yard work crap in it, he opened the vents up and wired an exhaust fan that comes on when the compressor does to move air in there. Run one out back even, amazing how useful compressed air is.

here is the type of shed used.

Rubber%20made%20shed%202x4x6_full.jpeg


Solid benches all the way. Go get some locking casters, some 2x2 and a 1/4 or half inch piece from scrap for a table top. With a vice, this is a nice moving sturdy heavy work bench. My friends we made he also put a shelf under it with slots for tools and guides to keep grinders in place etc. Added a power strip under the table lip and a place to roll up a cord and working with multiple power tools is a breeze.. just roll the bench to the side of said project vehicle.. roll back when done. For air he also put a nipple on it with the short yellow coil hose, now he just plugs in and can run his air tools with out the weight of the hose trying to pull it off the table. Clean up is super easy as all the power tools are right where they need to be to clean up! We powdercoated his the same blue as his snap on box and he added a new snap on logo.. slick!


If you can, skylights in the garage would also be bitchin:D as well as wired in 500 watt lights on the front for driveway projects.


For shelving.. I hate it. Piled over, falling off parts, dusty bla bla bla. Score some cabinets off craigslist. Add some extra support and they will look way cleaner.


oh.. and jealous:D
 
I installed five 15 amp 110 volt outlets every 4' and at 4' off the ground on each side wall and also installed two at the garage/house wall and one more in the ceiling for my garage door opener, (i have since found the need for one more in the ceiling so i'm about to install another there) then i also installed three 220 volt outlets one in each corner up at the house end of the garage and then one at the garage door end. This makes it easy to move something around without having to use an extension cord. Because of where i installed my Gorilla rack shelving i did not put a 220 volt outlet in the last corner of the garage since it would have been useless to me.

As far as lighting i went with 4' fixtures with T-8 bulbs (more energy effiecent and more light versus a T-12 bulb). I installed three down each side of the garage and wired them up so that one side of the garage (work bench side) they all come on at the same time with one switch, then the other side i used one switch for one fixture that is above the washer/dryer, and the remaining two fixtures come on at the same time with the last switch.

I built two pretty solid work benches with 4"x4" wood posts in the corners and 2"x4"s around the perimeter of the top and bottom then i installed a solid core wood door as the top surface. On one bench i covered it with a piece of .125" steel with a front and rear splash (front bent down and rear bent up). While the bench is pretty solid i have my vice on this bench and it isn't nearly as solid as i would like when i'm needing to use my vice so in the future i'm going to build a complete steel bench to replace one of my existing benches.

The previous owner of my house installed vinyl tile in the garage and someday i want to tear it all up and then epoxy coat the floor.
 
katugly said:
So you made your bench like a service cart?
Click to expand...

Well if 3' by 6' is a service cart.. sure:D

I like to work right next to my projects and so does he. Having the air and power strip right in the cart is handy, as is a intermediate hight between the floor and project right where you are working.
 
If I put a sink out there should I just put a mop basin or one of those plastic deep well sinks? What works the best in yalls opinion.
 
I have the plastic deep well sink (was already in the garage when we bought the house).
 
Also another question Im thinking about Gloss white in the brightest white that Sherman Williams makes for the garage promote reflectivity from the light sources.
 
If you're going to run air lines, I've read that pvc isn't the best choice since it shatters under pressure if a glue joint fails or it gets damaged over time. Copper would be a safer but more expensive choice.

For light fixtures, I like the smaller 36" ones because they are easier to find room to store the spares, and I am clumsy and tend to break 8 foot long pieces of glass too easily. :)
 
Ive seen plenty of shops that run pvc, conduit is also cheap and wont have a chance to shatter though.


For sinks, the waist high one all the way. The floor one would be pretty useless other than for a mop bucket to me, even then you can add a 3 foot washer hose real easy.


One thing that would be sweet, but not always an option would be a gantry crane, or a pulley on a slide rail! makes lifting a trans onto a bench easy or lifting a motor block.

Having splash guard for the first 3 or 4 feet all the way around along with the white paint would be killer! Add a red, blue or some color or two in a horizontal line around the garage would class it up.
 
I can't remember the exact shade of white paint i used or the gloss level but i chose the paint for ease of whipping dirt/grease off of it.
 
Also, for running air lines through the garage i would highly recommend using type L copper pipe. PVC has been used by many people but like Brian said, if it should fail it will shatter and send shrapnel thoughout the garage and could easily hurt someone really bad. Copper pipe won't shatter, it helps keeps moisture from forming and it won't rust and contaminate like black pipe, galvanized, or conduit will.
 
Wowza 5 bucks a sqft for that floor tile thats pricey even if it does make you feel like you just won the indy 500 when pulling in to the garage. :)
 
True, but for the cost of a good professional coating job you are about the same. I like the tiles and will probably put some in eventually, be much nicer than the current concrete, although the concrete beats the hell out of the gravel I used to work in.

My work bench is a 3'X6' bench that is about 3'6" off the ground, I like it taller because I am about 6'4". It is just a basic 2x4 frame with a plywood top currently. I will be replacing the top soon with an MDF sheet. It has a small shelf underneath for increased storage and I have some outlets to add to the back of it for powering my grinders and stuff. I have a small vise on the corner, and plan to add a bench grinder as well. Can't complain, aside from the new 4x4 legs I added, I haven't spent a dime on it.
 
hey Katugly hows it going? 4 ft fixtures strung together i think , you can replace 1 4 ft lamps cheaper then a full 8 ft er. I agree on the side lighting .. pricing , check home depot or lowes at the conractoer desk , they might get you a discount on a bulk order , also check the electrical supply houses.
Let me know if you need any help-- im currently laid off , and have a current journeyman electrical liscence lol
 
Ya Oak that sounds good Ill let you know when i get in there maybe I can get your input on how to wire it all up for some $$ or somthing.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest Posts

Top Bottom