Above 1200 Sq/FT Tuner4life's 30x40x15 shop and 2 car attached garage.

tuner4life · Jan 20, 2015

Hello again everyone! Yesterday we closed on what will be our new home! What is important is that on top of a 2 car attached garage, it comes with a 30x40x15 pole barn! In this thread I will detail any and all of my changes/projects/plans/daydreams/etc for both the shop and the attached garage.

The current owners are building a new house and we have agreed on a move in date of April 1st, however we have possession of the shop as of yesterday. So in the following couple of months, it may be a bit slow as we will just be moving house stuff and furniture into the barn. This will make it quicker and easier to move into the house when the time comes as well as making the old house easier to sell without all of our stuff in it. So, it will probably be a little slow going until we get moved completely in and can sell our old house. Until then, feel free to skim through the thread for the old garage here:

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=129039&highlight=tuner4life

Here are the initial pictures that I took last night:

14' doors!

In this picture, you can see the attached 2 car garage also:

I am like a little kid right now! lol! I have tons of plans and ideas for both the shop and the garage, but there are a few things that I would like to take care of before I really go crazy:

:3gears:

Initial Shop plans:
-Replace small wood burner with either NG radiant heat tube or hanging heater. (this is #1 priority, must be done before next winter)
-Add insulation as necessary (has 1.5" foam now.. May add more, we'll see).
-Once I can keep it above freezing at all times. I will run water out to the shop.
-I would also like to build a storage loft over the back third of the shop. Not sure exactly how this will go since support poles may interfere with parking below.. That's the plan for now though.

Initial plans for 2 car attached:
-Keep it clean, useful. Park daily drivers here.
-Add a small heater (radiant tube? Hanging? Idk...)
-Set up for cleaning and detailing cars.
-Eventually, I would love to add plastic shower paneling to the walls, cut a drain in the floor, and be able to wash cars all year round in this garage. That's a big project for later though.

As always, I'm always open to hearing everyone's opinions and ideas!

:beer:

dubber · Jan 20, 2015

Wow, congrats on the huge upgrade! What size is the attached, looks generous as well.

tuner4life · Jan 20, 2015

Thanks!

I am not positive on the size of the attached, but it is pretty standard. Doesn't seem to be oversized. I'll detail that garage once we take possession of the house.

MacTexas · Jan 20, 2015

The ceiling is tall enough for a lift. Congratulations on the new space.

baron405 · Jan 20, 2015

Nice shop

Purist · Jan 20, 2015

Congrats....nice purchase!! In for future updates to see what you end up doing with all of this awesomeness.

tuner4life · Jan 26, 2015

Thanks everyone.

Another quick question, I want to build a loft over the back third of the shop, but I am concerned with having support posts to avoid underneath when moving cars. Is it even realistically possible to have a loft clear a 30' span with no posts below? I know that it isn't usually Ideal, but what about loft > ceiling supports?

I think I'm planning on framing the walls with 2x4 in order to hold more insulation, then finishing with OSB. First, is that a stupid idea? or should I go another way with the insulation? I had multiple people tell me that that was the ideal way to do it, but it seems like it would me the overall space smaller? And if I do end up framing like that for insulation, could I incorporate the loft into that framing somehow to take some of the load off of the building itself? Am I completely overthinking all of this?

I know I need to talk to the local lumber yard about trusses and such, I am just wondering if it's even physically possible?

I am obviously a total noob when it comes to construction issues like this.

LoRollinLS · May 30, 2015

I followed your old thread and enjoyed it, can't wait to see what will come of the new place. Kudos to you for getting a house with a great garage set up!

tuner4life · Jun 8, 2015

Alright, here we go!!

WE have been scrambling to get moved in and haven't really done much with the garage or the shop yet besides fill it with a bunch of our junk. I finally started working out there a little bit over the weekend.

The loft won't be happening for a while, which leaves me looking for a place to store all the random car parts and stuff that is cluttering the floor currently. so far I just removed an old wood workbench that was on the back wall of the shop and built 3 gorilla racks 3 units tall. They are fastened to the wall and should hold a bunch of junk for now.

I was also looking at the foam insulation and I need a little advice. There are panels of foam on every inch of the wall panels. But there seems to be nothing (besides some of the framing) between the metal walls and the foam. I'd estimate around 2" of foam thickness all around. It would seem like this is definitely not enough insulation for the Indiana winters. I was thinking that I could just frame the walls with 2x4 and fill that with insulation, wiring, air lines, etc.. Would that be the best option? Or is there a better way?

Anyways, I'm just happy to be able to start making progress for now. I'll keep this updated as things progress.

tuner4life · Jun 10, 2015

Seems like I get less than an hour a night on average to work on the shop.. Just trying to get things organized enough to get all the projects inside before this coming winter, and be able to work on stuff as needed.. So almost everything I am currently doing is temporary until I can get the walls, ceiling, and loft built how I want.

Last night I started loading up the gorilla racks with non-car-specific stuff as well as setting up part of them as a workbench using the same hook racks from the old garage.

I'll use the larger built in shelves for the specific car parts that are currently all over the floor. Also cleared out under one of the shelves and rolled the spare engines over there.

tuner4life · Jun 18, 2015

Got some more time to work the last few days. I've been scrambling to get parts off the floor and onto shelves in some sort of order. We have gotten a lot of rain this week and the concrete floors are sweating quite a lot. So far I have almost all of the Saab Parts on the east wall, I even have some extra shelf space on that wall. That will be handy.

Some of the extra Cressida parts are on the top sections of the gorilla racks on the north wall, and tools throughout the rest. I made the center section of the 2 racks into a workbench for now and have mounted the tool racks in there. Starting to see the floor for the first time since we threw all our junk in there!!

Also managed to get my air compressor and reel mounted and hooked up last night. That should make things much easier!

I have lots of little friends that look like this guy that come visit me every night after it has rained during the day.. Literally dozens at a time.. They are harmless, but keep trying to come inside when I have the garage doors open.. I need to do something about that. Anyone know of anything that repels frogs/toads?

I am currently looking for a good structural engineer locally to give me an idea as to what I need to make this loft idea work.

tuner4life · Jun 19, 2015

Did some more cleaning and organizing last night. Took this picture from up on a ladder at the back of the shop. Slowly getting more usable!

I also cleaned up and relocated an old wood pile on the west wall of the shop and replaced it with the last gorilla rack, some old sunroof assemblies and radiators (wasn't sure where else to put them), and got the drill press set up and ready to go too.

The sunsets off to the northwest of this new property are amazing too!

madoc1 · Jun 20, 2015

looking good. I think either an I beam or a laminated beam with one centrally located support will work just fine for a loft. you also have to consider access to the loft, stairs etc. you could build the stairs out into the shop or have them hug the back wall and come up under the loft. good luck.

jim

1/2 Cup · Jun 20, 2015

Coming along nicely, thanks for the update.

Regards

Lawson4450 · Jun 20, 2015

Nice ! I have family in Indianapolis myself.

tuner4life · Jul 20, 2015

Had last week off, so I finally had some time to work on the garage and shop.

First of all, I realized that there wasn't a good shot of the outside of the place. I am loving this driveway and the structures!

I did the most work in the attached garage. It is currently being used to house the 1998 Volvo C70 and the 1997 Volvo 850. These are the 2 cars that get driven the most..

Here's basically what I started with:

I wanted to make as much floor space as possible, so I needed to add hanging storage and shelving. In the southwest corner, there is that platform and stairs that are the entry into the house. I need to clean that area up a bit, and I want to paint the whole thing do some trim work..

First I hung the bikes.

This is on the west (back) wall I added some shelving and finished it off with some metal trim edging. It's high enough to be out of the way, but fairly easy to reach. The trash cans, car wash stuff, and various yard tools are on shelves below.

This is on the North wall (away from the house). I already had some modular hanging rail stuff, but I bought more and hung up as much as I could.

There is another section on the south wall that holds the brooms, shovels, and etc.. Along with some storage up high for some long 2x4s and the ladder.

And here is what's being parked in there for now.. I'll get some better pictures of the finished product soon hopefully.

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tuner4life · Jul 20, 2015

Also was able to do some work in the Shop. Finally got everything cleaned up and the floor cleared. I was able to get 6 cars inside and have enough room to walk around them. It's a little tight, especially with the van in there, but every car I own is inside, so I'm at least covered for this winter...

And late Sunday night I got my stereo hooked up so I can now rock out while i'm out there..

It's a little depressing to know that all of this work is temporary until I frame in the walls and build the loft, but it will work alright for now and I'm optimistic for the future. Now I'm just sorting and hanging tools.

tuner4life · Jul 23, 2015

It was nice outside last night, so I doug a hole.

The plan is to eventually extend the gravel area out and around the firepit with some more pavers to set chairs on.

75CrewDeutz · Jul 23, 2015

tuner4life said:
Thanks everyone.

Another quick question, I want to build a loft over the back third of the shop, but I am concerned with having support posts to avoid underneath when moving cars. Is it even realistically possible to have a loft clear a 30' span with no posts below? I know that it isn't usually Ideal, but what about loft > ceiling supports?

I think I'm planning on framing the walls with 2x4 in order to hold more insulation, then finishing with OSB. First, is that a stupid idea? or should I go another way with the insulation? I had multiple people tell me that that was the ideal way to do it, but it seems like it would me the overall space smaller? And if I do end up framing like that for insulation, could I incorporate the loft into that framing somehow to take some of the load off of the building itself? Am I completely overthinking all of this?

I know I need to talk to the local lumber yard about trusses and such, I am just wondering if it's even physically possible?

I am obviously a total noob when it comes to construction issues like this.

Just a thought, could you get a steel truss built to include a gaurd rail for the loft? 30' span and 4' tall truss. Seems like it would work but I'm not a structural engineer.

tuner4life · Jul 23, 2015

That is a good idea! I like the idea of the guard rail. Thanks!

tuner4life · Jul 28, 2015

Finally got to use the fire pit.. Between the rain and the horrible amount of mosquitoes it hasn't been ideal for a fire.. I also have 2 oil burning tiki torches and a bug light (which I have to clean thousands of bugs out of every couple days), and the bugs were still pretty bad.

I also replaced the defective driveway light.. Much better now!!

gtcs · Jul 28, 2015

Nice shop. I am building my 30x40 right now (I mean RIGHT now, taking a break from 101 heat) amazed to see 6 cars in there, I was hoping for 4 in mine....

Now tell me about that Celica hiding in the back...

tuner4life · Jul 28, 2015

Thanks, and good luck with your build! 6 cars is definitely kind of tight, especially with the van in there, if it was just 6 normal sized cars, it might not be too bad. 4 cars would be ideal.

The Celica was a $400 auction purchase last summer. It was neglected and eventually abandoned with timing chain issues. I had always wanted a red 1985 GTS just like this one (it is originally a red car). I was originally going to pass on it, but upon further inspection, it was rust free on the bottom.. There was only some superficial surface rust on the hood and roof.. Here's what it looked like when I bought it:

I went through and did a quick rebuild on the engine, freshened up the chassis, and temporarily took care of all the surface rust. The plan is to have it repainted correctly next summer.. It's also kind of an experiment for me because I do generally use it as a daily driver, I'm going to implement many varying types of rust and corrosion preventatives and drive it all year round in Indiana.. I feel confident that with enough prep work and cleaning maintenance, I can keep an 80's Toyota rust free despite contact with winter.. It will either work well, or I'll have to repair more rust down the road lol.. Anyways, here is how it sits now:

gtcs · Jul 28, 2015

Sounds a lot like the story of my supra. Bought in a field for $175, pieced it together and it was my DD for almost a decade... hoping the new shop lets me revive her.

Apologies for the bad pics, didn't have a digital back then.

tuner4life · Jul 28, 2015

That does look nice! They are a whole different breed of car then the ones made nowadays.. They are built so much better. Simple, and tons of fun! It's a shame so many of them rusted away. I have wanted to experiment with truly making an old car "winter proof", and this seemed like the perfect candidate.

Morio · Jul 28, 2015

Love the celica... I need to have a GTS or a mk2 supra in my life!

Eric Rinard · Jul 28, 2015

Parking 6 cars in there. Drool...

tuner4life · Nov 13, 2015

While working on winter preparation in the shop and the garage, I realized I haven't updated this in a while.

First, I was given 2 old Modine Hanging heaters. They were old and had set outside for a while, but were in decent shape. between the 2 of them we were able to make a decent one and with some more new parts it works very well. It's not really hung in an ideal spot and it kind of ugly, but it will heat the place from 40 deg to 60 in about 10-15 min. Can't complain too much. I will probably use this until it craps out and then I will upgrade to a couple of radiant tubes. Hopefully I will have the walls closed in and insulated better by then.

That is replacing the old wood stove that was in the shop when I got it. Don't have anything against wood heat, but I don't have time to deal with chopping wood, and I needed the floorspace. Here is the old wood stove: It is for sale locally. If you are in northern IN and want it, come and get it $300..

We also replaced my wife's 1997 Volvo 850 with a 1998 V70R wagon. It matches our C70 Coupe in Saffron orange and is equally as rare. This will be her daily driver that we can take family as well as dogs in. It was in pretty rough shape when we got it, but after a bit of work its getting better. still have some kinks to work out, but it is drivable now.

I have also made things significantly harder on myself when it comes to storing the cars inside because I bought a new daily driver for myself, a 1997 Lexus LS400. It is much nicer to deal with on a daily basis when I'm exhausted than the Celica, it is easier to get a car seat in and out of, and it will allow me to store the Celica inside instead of ruining it in the salt.

So I have been working frantically in the shop on a new layout that is going to allow me to (tightly) store 5 cars and a motorcycle as well as having 2 spots to work on the Cressida and the van in preparation for next year's racing season. It will be cozy, but I should have it mostly implemented this weekend.

Next update will likely be on Monday :beer2:

dubber · Nov 13, 2015

Nice job on that celica. My dad had one he bought new out of university, fond memories with it. BUT i really need to give a shout out to that V70 R. Huge fan, and extremely Jelly.

LoRollinLS · Nov 16, 2015

Thanks for the update! Glad to see that you are still getting work done out there.

tuner4life · Nov 16, 2015

Thanks! My love for the 3rd gen Celica started when I was young and my Grandpa had a 1984 GT that he loved. Always talked about that car and I have always wanted to own one since I was a kid. We love the VR too, the Volvos are technically my wife's cars. Her favorite color.

Friday night I was able to do a quick a project that I've been thinking about for some time now. A cleaner/more-organized way to store funnels. So with some sheet aluminum and a hole saw, I made a thing...

Nice and simple, it just drips into the pan on the bottom shelf.

Then Saturday I finished getting the shop cleaned up, got rid of some scrap, moved some stuff around, and got the cars inside. But before that, since Saturday was an abnormally warm/nice day for being the middle of November, I took some pictures of the entire fleet together. This is the first time I've had all of the cars in the same place and presentable on a nice day so had to take advantage of the situation.

Then I cleaned up the barn in preparation for storing 7 vehicles in it. Lots of folks said that it wouldn't work, but it did and I have enough room to work on the 2 on the right side too. Not too bad at all. Just like a big game of tetris!

First the cleaning (standing by the walk in door)

All swept up!

Then started putting cars in one at a time. It was a little tedious being the first time, but I will paint marks on the floor to make it easier in the future.

1

2

3

4

5 (this one was pretty tricky, had to actually jack the rear of the Celica up and push it around the corner)

6

7

There is still a reasonable amount of room to be able to work on the van and the Cressida this winter as well as finishing up the V70R and some other projects.. But those 2 are easily movable.. The 5 on the left aren't going anywhere till spring

Engage hibernation mode!

And lastly, every car gets put on life support. (battery tender)

And that was Saturday! I worked on cleaning up the attached garage too, but was too tired to take any pictures of that one.

:beer:

JustinS · Nov 16, 2015

holy ****, now that is a fleet!

Morio · Nov 16, 2015

Nice job getting those cars in!

zmotorsports · Nov 16, 2015

Nice workshop and very clean Volvo's.

Mike.

tuner4life · Nov 20, 2015

Thanks everyone!

I went and picked up this 16' trailer last night.

I was really hoping that the whole setup would fit inside of the barn, but with the trailer backed up to my tool box, the van was sticking out about a foot or so.. I think if I rearrange the shop a little and move the tool box and engine hoist, I could probably fit the whole thing inside while connected. For now though, I unhitched the trailer (with the car on it) , cranked the jack all the way down, and backed the van up with the rear overhanging the tongue by about a foot.. No contact issues and it all fits inside now. Just takes a little longer to move in/out if I need to work on another project. (that and I barely have any room to even walk in there right now). I told my wife that the storage situation is great, now we need to build another garage for me to work in. She did not take that well lol.

tuner4life · May 16, 2016

First spring update since winter lasted forever this year..

The storage situation is still about the same, using the front 2 "storage" spaces as a work area for the race car for now, and slowly working on making everything more functional in the space.

Here are a few of the projects from over the winter:

First, I rebuilt the front suspension/steering on the van. Had everything powder coated and replaced all serviceable parts. Also installed 2.5" drop knuckles and all Energy Suspension bushings.

Lowering the front and adding "load adjusting" shocks in the back has drastically improved the stance and handling while towing.

That about sums it up for the van's winter improvements.. Going to be #1 project next winter doing the body..

Also been working on the Cressida.

Pre-season local car show.

Threw together a back bar that fits nicely under the bumper cover and has a jack point:

Rear sway bar upgrade:

Then ran 2 back to back bash events in one weekend. The car tested well and we had a blast:

No particular order:

Had a couple of weeks after those events to prepare for Round 1 of the Midewest Pro Am Series.

Had to make several safety upgrades to be able to compete in a competitive series.

I was worried that the car would be under-powered for a track as large as Gateway and I was unfortunately correct..

Had a decent morning in practice, but ended being just a little short of enough power to be able to manji a longer straightaway properly. ended up having to drive one part of the track way faster then I probably should have been in order to carry enough speed for the large sweeper at the far end..

Well I overdrove it just a little bit once and went off into a tire wall:

The damage was cosmetic and was able to continue through qualifying. I didn't make the top 16 however and called it a day.

Learned a lot and am optimistic for the next round of competition in June at a smaller more technical track more suited to my car.

I spent most of last week fixing the damage as much as possible without having to paint anything. It will be good enough for the rest of this season:

tuner4life · May 16, 2016

Also did a bit of work on the Wife's V70R over the winter.. I'll spare most of the details about that one, just doing 220k miles of neglected maintenance. Turning out to be a pretty solid car finally..

The duo:

And over the past weekend I actually did something relevant to the garage/shop. First I moved my air hose reel to the other side of the building where I could actually access it..

And I mounted my new awning with integrated flood lights for the yard:

I'll be honest I kind of forgot about this place over the winter. I'll try to keep this thread updated more often.

thetastelingers · May 16, 2016

That awning is fantabulous!

I love it!

That V70R though. a build thread or anything on it?

tuner4life · May 16, 2016

Thanks! The awning is actually something that my wife found on Pintrest and I happened to stumble on the hood at the junk yard on a half off day.

Here is the link to the V70R build thread if you are interested.

http://volvospeed.com/vs_forum/topic/170594-tuner4lifes-1998-saffron-v70r/?page=1

Purist · May 23, 2016

Sick awning!!

Above 1200 Sq/FT Tuner4life's 30x40x15 shop and 2 car attached garage.

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