Iowa Garage

Hello! I have been a lurker/member for a very long time on this site. So much information from all of you, thank you for that!!

I finally started my garage project this year. It started off as a basic attached 2+ car (24x26) with no power or drywall.

I am well into the project now - wiring, insulation, drywall (sheets not yet taped), and flooring are done so far.

What I started with was quite the mess. The previous owner hung insulation over a HORRIBLY dangerous wiring job. When I stumbled across that, I tore out all insulation to expose any further issues. It took me way too long to get it sealed back up - the garage turned into an oven in the summer and icebox in the winter. This was my biggest motivation to get the garage done.





I do a little bit of everything in the garage - automotive and woodworking are a couple main ones. We are fixing up our house so lots of home projects. We have kids, so of course all of their stuff is around.




I started the project with wiring. I had done a very basic wiring job after finding the wiring disaster I mentioned above. I added 2 50amp and 1 30amp 220, new outside motion lights, and 3 outside outlets (one on each wall). I had a new sub panel installed in the garage, 100amp, fed from the house.



Then for my favorite part... insulation! I went with open cell full fill foam - 2x4 stud walls and 2x8 ceiling. I went back and forth on this, but given I wanted to heat the garage as cheaply as possible using electric, I figured it would be worth the money.



Then on to everyones favorite - drywall. Long story short, I have reminded myself I need much more practice with these damn sheets! Hopefully when I get to the mud/tape stage I can cover a lot of my sins!



On to current day. My wife's only request for this project was we make the garage nice enough to setup tables during holidays for family gatherings. As the floor was original to the house (1978) it needed some work. Our neighbors just had this flooring done by a local company and it looked fantastic. We decided to pop for the nice floor, definitely a splurge with this project.

Before -
After -

Next up is getting the drywall finished then onto paint. I am stealing inspiration from Toms Turbo Garage with gray bottom, black vinyl stripe, and off-white top. Should look great.

I will try and keep regular updates as I can get work done. With the weather being super cold lately, it has slowed progress down for sure.

Thanks!

welcome first post.
note for imgur posts to show up on here, you need to remove the "S" from the "HTTPS" in your links

As mentioned, I am stealing Tom's color scheme -
https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=130094



What are your thoughts with the exposed beam? I think I am going to clean it up and keep it exposed. I have debated if wrapping it in drywall would look better. It would definitely look more modern.

The Cobbler said:

welcome first post.
note for imgur posts to show up on here, you need to remove the "S" from the "HTTPS" in your links

Click to expand...

Apologies, I did not know that. I dont know how, but I was able to post the links in my initial post, but now am getting errors that my post count is too low. So now I cannot edit that post (yet).

EDIT - OK, links updated!

no need to apologize, it's just one of those idiosyncrasies on here

Looks good!! before you close up your electrical panel, put a piece of black tape on the white wires that are terminated on the breakers.

dw1 said:

Looks good!! before you close up your electrical panel, put a piece of black tape on the white wires that are terminated on the breakers.

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On the panel side? I was not aware of that, I did that on the other end (plug end). It seems redundant/obvious the wire in the panel is live. I am not surprised, some things never make sense

Nice garage. Best part your wife is ok spending money on it. Maybe you can ask for something else for the “party room”? Ceiling fan, extra refrigerator , etc...

captain14 said:

Nice garage. Best part your wife is ok spending money on it. Maybe you can ask for something else for the “party room”? Ceiling fan, extra refrigerator , etc...

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For sure, she is a trooper! I did get a beverage cooler that is waiting to be installed. She was not on board with a full fridge.

I thought about a ceiling fan, but with sloped roof and the middle support beam, I wasn't sure where to put it. I did get an electric heater that has a "fan mode" that I plan to use. Not sure if it will be great in the summer, but probably better than nothing.



Please ignore the hanging outlet and the plug installed on the heater. This is temporary while I work on drywall. I want to be able to unplug to take it down.

I picked up an upgrade for the garage today.

Went from this


To this


What a huge improvement. I was able to transplant all the tools into the new box with room to spare. The Craftsman was PACKED, surprised with the amount that HF box will take.

dsmproject said:

On the panel side? I was not aware of that, I did that on the other end (plug end). It seems redundant/obvious the wire in the panel is live. I am not surprised, some things never make sense

Click to expand...

Code wise, it has to be re-identified, you cannot have a white wire terminated on a breaker, just wrap a piece of black tape around the wire and you will be good to go.

dw1 said:

Code wise, it has to be re-identified, you cannot have a white wire terminated on a breaker, just wrap a piece of black tape around the wire and you will be good to go.

Click to expand...

Thank you, I follow what you are saying. Was just poking a little fun at the code. I will take care of that for sure. Appreciate it!

dsmproject said:

What a huge improvement. I was able to transplant all the tools into the new box with room to spare. The Craftsman was PACKED, surprised with the amount that HF box will take.

Click to expand...

I also run the General boxes.....LOVE them. I dont think there is a better choice for value/money out there. Very well built.

I have spent some time filling the gap between the slab and the foundation with caulk backer rod and concrete caulk. This was my first time using this type of product, and it was not fun. There is definitely a learning curve. I feel like I am NOW ready to do a good job Oh well. The "self leveling" didn't exactly live up to its name.

Another quick garage update. Saw a Harbor Freight coupon for 15% off anything until 11-27. I was going to wait until the holidays to get the top box, but figured this was too good to pass up.



Excited to start filling it up and re-organizing!