"Datsun Ranch" - My 68x40 garage / shop in Arizona

[AZhitman]

I've been lurking / reading for several months, and my dream shop / garage is finally coming together.

We're in Surprise, AZ (the far NW corner of the Phoenix metro area) and have grown tired of HOA living and suburbia. Kids (4) are almost all "out-of-nest." Lost my Dad a couple years ago, and my Mom is lonely in a big house on her own.

So, we decided it was a good time to downsize the house, upsize the garage.

Not finding anything already-built, we found a builder who does great work and decided on a 2900-sq ft, 4BR/3BA house with 3-car attached garage... and my dream shop.

My wife and I restore and collect antique Datsuns and Datsun memorabilia, and trying to maintain our collection in a 3-car garage was taxing to say the least. I figured if I really wanted to indulge my hobby properly, I'd better do it before I get too old to enjoy it. So, without further ado, here's my layout:

The northwest room is a "dirty room" (welder, grinder, chop saw, blaster, polisher, etc). The northeast room is an office / bedroom.

This space will have a ceiling height of 10' 8". Walls and ceiling will be white, and floor will be very light grey gloss epoxy.

I'll post up some pics of the build thus far... Suggestions / critique / questions are totally welcome, this is all new to me!

Thanks, and I hope my "Gallery" entry is at least 1/10th as cool as some of yours here.

 

[AZhitman]

Here's some "justification" pics... why I needed a bigger garage (note: not all cars are pictured, I just searched my files for pics taken inside the garage).

I like to host "tech days" for our Datsun friends... somehow, this has expanded to our other cars as well, so on any given weekend, we might be wrenching on Corvettes, Miatas, Infinitis, or even a couple Model As.

 

[AZhitman]

The lot is 1.3 acres... somehow, the pics really make the shop look a lot closer to the house. Anyhow, here's some photos of the process thus far:

Stem wall / slab prep:

Becky (my spouse / partner-in-crime) walking the plot:

The NICOclub.com Tow Vehicle posing "inside the garage":

Plumbing and ABC down:

Slab poured:

 

[AZhitman]

Walls going up:

...and one of the many reasons we love Arizona:

 

[AZhitman]

I wanted to get a little natural light inside, without exposing the interior to too much of our scorching desert heat... so, you can see the 18x18 double-paned argon-filled windows (and a larger window in the "bedroom" area per building code).

Doors will be 3x 16x8 insulated standard doors. Roof will be flat (pitched 4* front to rear), coated in polyurethane foam with an elastomeric coating.

Three scuppers on the rear of the building will handle rainwater (5-6 times a year when it rains) and the entire roof will be home to solar panels (to power the shop and the house). The "parapets" will conceal the panels from view.

Here, the OSB is going on, and you can start to see the "shape" of the building (such as it is):

 

[Craig Balzer]

Azhitman

I am envious! Great floor plan (lot's of space) in a fabulous environment (rust-free AZ).

I built a powerpoint slide with your floor plan as a back drop. I have several comments/questions? Hope they help.

Craig
(without a garage but lots of plans/dreams)

 

[Boosted1]

AZhitman,
I like the garage and the Datsuns even more.

 

[e30bradley]

I love datsuns! Nice building too.. are you sure its big enough?

 

[Lone Star Blaze]

red convertible, red wagon and green and black sedan are all cool do not guess I am familiar with those vehicles. What are they?

 

[upndown]

hitman, your place is going to be sweet! Loving the Roadster as well as the 510. Always wanted one of those.

 

[JimVonBaden]

Very cool! Where in AZ? I grew up in Tucson!

 

[Sunbimmer]

Datsuns.....I'm very interested, nice car collection and nice build

I subscribed.

 

[upndown]

Very cool! Where in AZ? I grew up in Tucson!

Jim, he stated Surprise AZ. That's the northeast side of the valley. Nice area!

 

[188slo50]

Going to be watching this one, had a 77' 260 as my first car and always did like them.

 

[greystoke]

where are you at Azhitman? are there lots available in the area? I currently live in Surprise.

 

[Beenman]

Nice!

 

[403is300]

I spy with my little eye…

240sx Vert
Nardi Wheel
Weds Kranze Cerebus 2 - rebuilt and gold plated.

DO TELL MORE!!!

 

[anth]

Love it! As a rule of thumb, I have to click any thread with Datsun in the title. Your 510 is super sweet, I'm not usually a big fan of BRE stripes, but the black and gold is perfect.

 

[Mpower5266]

I cant wait to see more, and I love that 510.

 

[AZhitman]

Azhitman

I am envious! Great floor plan (lot's of space) in a fabulous environment (rust-free AZ).

Thanks Craig - Awesome suggestions! So appreciative, since it always helps to have lots of eyes on something before committing it to wood / steel / concrete.

In order:
1) No. All outer doors open inward (at least here in AZ). My house front door, door into the garage, and french doors onto the patio - all open inward.
2) 220v x3 (compressor, welder, something else) already set - I'll post up my wiring / lighting schematic tonight. Good call!
3) Good catch - Water heater is actually in the opposite corner where you suggested. That little room at the northeast corner is for water heater, water softener, and lots of shelves / storage. However, no biggie to run water heater lines really far in AZ... the tap water most of the year is warm enough for a steamy shower (even at "full cold")!
4) Yep. Contractor added that, and it was a smart move. East side of the building is for washing cars (will be a 20' x 40' covered - not enclosed - space). 2 bibbs on that wall (one hard, one soft).
5) No 2-post in my future. I have a 110v drive-on (seen in pics) and it's mobile, so it'll find a place (probably just to the left of the office/bedroom). All good ideas, that whole wall will be a workbench / cabinet combo.
6)
7) Service is on southwest corner (closest to the house). That's where I originally wanted my mandoor, but the cost to run the service to the shop another 80' was ridiculous - so I said, "I'll walk the extra 80' to the door - or walk in through one of the 16x8s." Totally agree that it would have been nice at the storage room, but code here requires it on the outside (plus, our solar meter has to be out there as well).
8) No, that room is a bedroom / office. My resto process kinda avoids that very issue, but I will build some overhead storage racks for hoods, fenders, and spare "big stuff." Probably take advantage of the 2.5' above the doors. Great call!

 

[AZhitman]

red convertible, red wagon and green and black sedan are all cool do not guess I am familiar with those vehicles. What are they?

Thanks, LSB!

Red convertible is Marilyn, a 67.5 Datsun Fairlady Roadster with a stroked 1600.
Red Wagon is Alice, a 67 Datsun 411 SSS with a stroked 1600.
Black / gold sedan is Betty, a 68 Datsun 510.

 

[AZhitman]

where are you at Azhitman? are there lots available in the area? I currently live in Surprise.

North of the Grand / 303 intersection. Plenty of land out here, I'm on a small county island (so as to avoid the bureaucratic boondoggle that is the City).

 

[AZhitman]

I spy with my little eye…

240sx Vert
Nardi Wheel
Weds Kranze Cerebus 2 - rebuilt and gold plated.

DO TELL MORE!!!

Good eye, brother! If you *really* want to know: 240sx Convertible - The Droptop From Hell

 

[motorbreath53]

Damn fine start to the shop sir... Strong work.

 

[AZhitman]

Electric (first round) and plumbing are in, as well as HVAC.

5.5 ton Trane unit should keep it reasonably useful when it's 118* outside, and more importantly for me, it'll warm it up in the "winter" (I have a tough time when the mercury drops below 60).

Electric got roughed-in before I had a chance to "direct" things, so the contractor will be back out here to redo it. Going to max out on outlets (per code) and keep all outlets in work areas at 4' height.

Installed an 8" vent with cap over the "dirty room" to evacuate welding fumes, and I'll be building a vent hood (like in a pro kitchen) to come down over my table... need to find a good, inexpensive inline 8" fan that'll move enough air to be useful.

More pics to come this week - Thanks for all the supportive comments and ESPECIALLY the suggestions! I want to do this *right*, but I'll admit it's all a little overwhelming.

 

[freekwonder]

Nice collection. Would love to have the 411 goon. The roadster is it a short windshield or tall? I'm not up on the roadster stuff. Would love to have one, but I've always been told you either buy 1 already restored one, or buy a handful of part cars so you can piece together 1.

 

[403is300]

Good eye, brother! If you *really* want to know: 240sx Convertible - The Droptop From Hell

 

[Idle Serge]

Talk about an awesome space!

And the collection

 

[vectorw8015]

Nice set up. Cant wait to see what you do with all that new found space.

 

[j p smith]

Very nice! Looks like a well thought out project, good luck with the build. Jeff,101/W. Camelback

 

[Conner]

Hey man, good to see you over here. What, no pics of the 320???
Congrats on the move/build. Your garage shop is going to be sweet.

 

[evildky]

Welcome to GJ Greg

 

[fifth]

Looking good Greg...

 

[80WTI_55_CHEV]

Very nice collection you have mate, can't wait for more pics of the build. would love to see pics of that metropolitan you showed part of, i gotta get me one of those little rockets one day. Lee

 

[dhubbard422]

Wow. I love the collection! Especially, the 510 and the Fairlady. I also spent some enjoyable time reading your story on the "vert from hell", quite the project and very well done. If the other cars in the collection are held even close to a similar standard... they too are very nice.

Your new garage is a great size! I am envious and I wish my new (in progress) workshop was as big, however, it seems that you may be filling up this wonderful space very soon... 10'8" is tall enough for stacking cars, have you considered acquiring another (or even multiple) 4-post lifts to use primarily for parking?

The "dirty room" sounds like a good idea. I am planning on a slightly smaller dirty room (8x11) for my much smaller workshop, but I keep wondering if I should frame in an air compressor closet in a corner - primarily just to manage the noise. Have you considered something similar?

Anyway, you have a wonderful collection and I expect that you'll end up with a great space - i'm looking forward to following along.

 

[dewalt378g]

OH man I'm so jealous, love the garage, love the cars....Z cars?!!! you're the man!!! And glad to see other Z fans here too.

 

[Charles (in GA)]

In residential, the only doors I've ever seen open outwards are on Mobile Homes (yech!). Beyond that, I think code for commercial properties do require exit doors opening outward.

Charles

 

[AZhitman]

Nice collection. Would love to have the 411 goon. The roadster is it a short windshield or tall? I'm not up on the roadster stuff. Would love to have one, but I've always been told you either buy 1 already restored one, or buy a handful of part cars so you can piece together 1.

Roadster is the very last of the low-windshield models. Datsun parts aren't *that* hard to come by, just have to get involved in the community.

 

[AZhitman]

Wow. I love the collection! Especially, the 510 and the Fairlady. I also spent some enjoyable time reading your story on the "vert from hell", quite the project and very well done. If the other cars in the collection are held even close to a similar standard... they too are very nice.

Your new garage is a great size! I am envious and I wish my new (in progress) workshop was as big, however, it seems that you may be filling up this wonderful space very soon... 10'8" is tall enough for stacking cars, have you considered acquiring another (or even multiple) 4-post lifts to use primarily for parking?

The "dirty room" sounds like a good idea. I am planning on a slightly smaller dirty room (8x11) for my much smaller workshop, but I keep wondering if I should frame in an air compressor closet in a corner - primarily just to manage the noise. Have you considered something similar?

Anyway, you have a wonderful collection and I expect that you'll end up with a great space - i'm looking forward to following along.

You guys are too kind. Thanks much.... I have a build article for each of my restorations; glad you enjoyed that one.

I have thought about another 4-poster - my goal is to keep the "not-yet-begun" projects under cover (but not inside), which should conserve space. Problem is, if they're too hard to get to, they tend to sit idle.

Definitely intend to locate the compressor outside the dirty room after construction is done and we pass code inspection. Plan is for a small pad behind the shop - framed, vented and insulated, with an indoor switch.

 

[E12-535iTurbo]

I just love this model! What is it called again?