I must have joined this board after this (If you were building a garage... ) thread ran.
There are three pages of good ideas listed ^ here.
It got me thinking that over the last year I had compiled a pretty extensive listing of elements of a garage. I copied ideas from various websites, from three or four garage books I have read and from friends. Yes -- I even found a few ideas right on our very owned beloved GarageJunkies.
So -- attached here (I apologize for the size of this one posting but this a VERY comprehensive collection) are notes neatly organized into categories. I just cross-referenced it to the collection of ideas mentioned in the above thread and have everything covered -- plus a bunch more. I did NOT cover paint booths or painting in this effort . . .
Hope this helps someone:
Size
• wide enough for at least two cars side-by-side with all doors open and still room enough to walk by
• deep enough for plenty of room on all sides
• workshop area, large enough to have a body and frame sitting side-by-side
• able to work without tripping over anything -- minimums seem to be:
...o 24’ x 48’
...o 25’ x 40’
• parking area is 3.5 bays wide,
...o each bay having its own door
Foundation
• 4” to 6” thick with reinforcement or rebar
• Plan apron into foundation
• Plan sidewalk into foundation
• Plan lift area
...o Thicker foundation
...o level
• Flat area
...o Suspension set up
...o Head light aiming
Floors
• concrete slabs with a smooth finish
...o painted or epoxy light color, or sealed or polished
...... the same stuff they use in airplane hangars
...o nothing sticks to it
...o easy to clean
...o reflects light
• floor drains in each of the bays
...o facilitate washing the floor and draining off melting snow
• sloped to facilitate fluids to drain system – except with the lift is planned to be and the possible truly flat area for setting up suspensions or aiming headlights
Walls
• ten- or twelve foot ceilings minimum
...o room enough for rotisserie
...o room enough for a lift
• constructed using 2” x 6” studs instead of 2” x 4”s
...o on 16" centers
...o adds less than 4% to the build cost
...o thicker insulation in the walls
...o and ceilings – sound proofing??
• 7-element trusses to hold heavy items (engines, rear ends, etc)
• ceiling and walls glossy white or a light color; first 24-30 inches are strong enough to withstand power washing of the floors without damaging the drywall
Doors
• insulated metal roll up or carriage doors
...o one door for each bay – keep the heat/cool inside
• separate pedestrian door
Windows
• only a few windows in the shop/parking areas
...o both for security and for insulation reasons
• Sky lights
...o Natural lighting
...o Watch installation – water leaks
Heating / Cooling
• radiant floor heating
...o Plastic or copper tubing is cast into the concrete slab and hot water circulates
...o the heat is even and dry
...o heats the low-level spaces where you live
...o is also extremely efficient
• geo-thermal heat, which should keep the water around 57 degrees year-round
• the floor will be nice and cool in the summer, too
Ventilation
• install ceiling fans in the workshop area to help move the air around
• roof ventilation
Air
• air compressor located outside with 60 to 80 gallon tank
• in its own sound-proof room
• add a cold-air inlet
• dedicated drain for the compressor
• lines will extend around the perimeter of the entire shop
• drops every 8 to 10 feet
• on every wall
• made of
...o plastic hose systems
...o galvanized pipe
...o stainless steel tubing and Swagelok fittings
...o galvanized tubing with the Swagelok fittings
...o 1" ID 400psi PVC pipe
...o soldered copper tubing
• Central vacuum
Water
• hot-water tank
• a sink
• a utility/slop sink
• toilet
• kitchenette with Refrigerator
• bathroom with shower
• several exterior hose spigots
• washer/dryer combination
Electrical power
• 120V, 20A, grounded, GFCI-protected outlets
• every 4 feet
• on three or four different circuits
...o use different colored face plates to distinguish between different circuits
• 5 feet off the ground/shoulder height
• all wiring is 12-gauge
• 2 or 3 x 50Amp well-grounded circuit for heavy duty equipment
• covered outlets in the floor adjacent to the in-floor light fixtures
• outlets in the ceiling
...o garage door openers
...o drop-down reel lights
• 220V outlets in several strategic locations
...o welder
...o other heavy-duty electrical device.
• wired for stereo
• phone jacks
• TV
• computer network connections (DSL or Satellite)
• intercom system to the main house
Lights
• banks of fluorescent lamps
...o cheap
...o durable
...o bright
...o relatively energy-efficient
...o multiple switches to allow banks of light to be controlled individually
• install about a third more than required
...o never too much lighting
• workbenches will have their own task lights
• install floodlights in the floor of the workshop under the lift
...o heavy-duty light cans
...o thick glass lenses that fit flush with the floor
...o no more drop-lights or trying to move flashlights around
• OPTION: install fluorescent lights in the wall one foot off the floor angled upward at 30º
Workbenches
• along two of the walls – corner for trophy display or TV
...o lots of work surface
• At least 30” deep
• 38” to 40” tall
...o Comfortable standing height
• Solid
• Sturdy
• Vise
• Topped with metal plate for easy cleaning or with removable plywood for quick and cheap replacement
• Mobile bench 4’ x 8’
...o Same height as work benches
Storage
• a bank of storage cabinets
...o towels
...o shop supplies
...o spares
• cabinets with doors
...o neater appearance
...o cleaner – keep dust and dirt out
• plan a place for everything
Dirty Room/Area
• bench grinder
• drill press
• blast cabinet
• powder coating station
...o oven
• buffer
• a workbench for disassemby
Other
• Fire extinguishers
• First Aid kit
• Exterior lighting on motion detectors / security system
• Clock – or not (depends how important TIME is to you)
