A couple of questions for the guys with single car garages

[mschoo92]

I’m looking for some feedback and advice from the guys with one car garages and/or small double garages. I’ve found plenty of inspiration regarding organization from these smaller spaces and there’s definitely an appeal to them! Nothing against the larger shops, I dream to be at that level one day but it’s not in the cards at this stage of life.

I currently do not have a garage and use my basement as my workshop. This is fine for woodworking but I really would like a work space for my cars, or at least a means to have tools power etc readily available when wrenching on something in the driveway.

With that said:

1. would you think it worth the cost to build your same size shop from scratch if it didn’t come with the house?
2. Do you still park a car in your garage regularly, or has it been relegated to outdoor parking in favor of a more spacious workshop setup? Does this change seasonally if so?
3. What would your top organization advice be for a small space?

As mentioned above I plan to build a shop space. Unfortunately for me, after getting quotes for foundation this will end up being an expensive route to build a detached garage. I’m trying to determine if a shed workshop that is used to work inside and store tools but not park inside would fit the bill, with a possible carport in the future for covered work space for auto maintenance/projects and parking. I’m in North Jersey so snow is a concern, but covered parking beats wide open.

Here’s a sketch of my layout I drew up, main reason for not pursuing a large attached double is cost - I’m sure I’ll be at this house for at least 10yrs, but my fiancée and I will most likely want to move at some point so any 50k+ additions are off the table for me.



Just looking for some feedback and ideas, I want to move forward on something this year even if it’s just part 1 of a multi stage endeavor - tired of carrying my tools across the yard and up/down from the basement!

Thanks in advance

-Michael

 

[Prospecter]

Buying a shed would give you a nice shop space at a more affordable price. A 12x20 has only 12 ft less wall space than a 24 x 20, since the fourth wall would be garage doors. If you can manage it, your future self will appreciate additional length. You can add insulation and heat to those sheds.

The ability to open doors for shop adjacent projects is nice, especially for grinding and woodworking and welding. One of those inexpensive canopies can give you additional temporary covered space for projects.

 

[bbxlr8]

Regardless of size or situation, organizational ideas are always super useful, and I have found that this struggle continues.
Food for thought: When in your situation, I added a large portable shed-type garage and actually brought it with me when I moved (surprisingly, a year later & am still happy with it 16Y after that). The point above regarding bang for the buck and configuration applies and caveat that the world has seemingly gone crazy!

So, I live near Amish country & visit Carlisle PA and found a vendor that was high quality, customizable (built to order), and reasonable at the time. Not plugging anything but they are still in business and deliver nationwide. I designed for a particular spot and ended up @ 12x36 with a roll up in front and barn swing double doors on the back half section mid-side

In the pro column, useful for many purposes, lower taxes (hopefully). Went PT 12" on center in floor and added electric wiring for inside & out lights w/switches, outlets etc. Designed to tightly store 2 vehicles end-to-end vs side by side but only ever had one plus "stuff" (numerous projects of many types, lawn & garden, tools, and now all of the above/ w tractors and implements)

 

[mschoo92]

Buying a shed would give you a nice shop space at a more affordable price. A 12x20 has only 12 ft less wall space than a 24 x 20, since the fourth wall would be garage doors. If you can manage it, your future self will appreciate additional length. You can add insulation and heat to those sheds.

The ability to open doors for shop adjacent projects is nice, especially for grinding and woodworking and welding. One of those inexpensive canopies can give you additional temporary covered space for projects.

Thanks for the tip on wall space, only advantage to going 12x16 vs 12x20 is no building permit required under 200 sq ft but I’d rather have the extra space, not to mention at 20ft I could store a car in a pinch assuming I design most things to be on casters, folding etc. Great point about opening up to adjacent workspace for messy jobs, I plan to put a garage door on the side facing forward and that would open up the parking pad as workspace when needed.

Regardless of size or situation, organizational ideas are always super useful, and I have found that this struggle continues.
Food for thought: When in your situation, I added a large portable shed-type garage and actually brought it with me when I moved (surprisingly, a year later & am still happy with it 16Y after that). The point above regarding bang for the buck and configuration applies and caveat that the world has seemingly gone crazy!

So, I live near Amish country & visit Carlisle PA and found a vendor that was high quality, customizable (built to order), and reasonable at the time. Not plugging anything but they are still in business and deliver nationwide. I designed for a particular spot and ended up @ 12x36 with a roll up in front and barn swing double doors on the back half section mid-side

In the pro column, useful for many purposes, lower taxes (hopefully). Went PT 12" on center in floor and added electric wiring for inside & out lights w/switches, outlets etc. Designed to tightly store 2 vehicles end-to-end vs side by side but only ever had one plus "stuff" (numerous projects of many types, lawn & garden, tools, and now all of the above/ w tractors and implements)

That’s a great point too, being able to bring it with me would be great when we move! And nice, I go to the Chrysler Nationals in Carlisle most years - fiancée has a Bronco now so seeing if we can swing the Ford show in June. Would you happen to be talking about Morton buildings or is it another vendor?

 

[DGersic]

I’m looking for some feedback and advice from the guys with one car garages and/or small double garages.

My house came with a detached “one car” garage, it’s really about 1 1/2 cars wide, so a little larger than a true one car.

1. would you think it worth the cost to build your same size shop from scratch if it didn’t come with the house?
2. Do you still park a car in your garage regularly, or has it been relegated to outdoor parking in favor of a more spacious workshop setup? Does this change seasonally if so?
3. What would your top organization advice be for a small space?

No. Legally, I couldn’t even build it again if I wanted to. The actual structure is a three car wide garage that spans the property line and is shared with my neighbor. There’s a wall down the middle, two overhead doors, two man doors,

But still no, I’d build it bigger if I could. I’d build the basement bigger, too.

I have three vehicles, one of which gets parked in the garage. The other two do not, unless they’re in for maintenance or something like that. I’ll also sometimes set up to work (wood, metal) in the garage, and all three are outside temporarily for that. But generating sawdust or metal dust is messy, so most of the time I’ll drag the messy stuff outside to work on it. Mostly depends on what I’m doing, and the weather.

Last year, I built drawers and cabinet doors for a project. Lots of sawdust cutting and routing pieces. The cutting on the table saw was done in the back yard. The routing and finish sanding were done in the garage with as much dust collection as I could get. Finishing prime and paint was done in the basement.

Grinding stuff I’ll take out to the driveway. Welding I’ll do inside to avoid the wind.

Biggest organization tip? You can’t stuff ten pounds of “stuff” in a five pound box. I don’t fill my space with decorative stuff. If it’s in the garage, it needs to be there.

Second, build a shed. I put up an 8x12 (biggest I can, without a permit). That gets the stuff that i would otherwise have to store in the garage, or haul up and down from the basement. Lawn mower, yard tools, table saw, seasonal decorations, all in the shed. The exception is that the snowblower goes in the garage during the winter. I reconfigure my garage for “winter” vs. “summer”. I move stuff around to make the snowblower accessible.

 

[CraigStu]

Since you are restricted on width I'd go as long as possible. Your 20ft would barely fit a 4 door Tacoma w/ the 5ft bed. I'd go 24 or 28 if possible. The 12 is tough for jacking at the side of the car. A typical 5.5-6.0ft wide car leaves you just 3ft to the wall on each side so figure on jacking at front or back. If possible I'd do stick built so you can put shelves 18" wide and 2ft down from the ceiling all around. These create a ton of storage space in a usually wasted area. As many as possible have things like tool boxes, saws, etc on wheels. Mine are all wheeled which is real nice to move to or out the door for grinding and cutting. Even my bench disc/belt sander is on a small Craftsman 4 drawer tool box so it moves and offers storage spaces for discs and belts, a drawer full of pieces of hose, etc.

 

[M.Brane]

I lived with a single wide double depth garage for 20 years. Not ideal, but made it work. Never put a car in it though that's where the bikes lived:



Behind that stop sign is another 10 x 12 storage room. One of the things I miss about that garage is the large patio on the side that was half covered. I could do all my dirty work out there to keep debris out of the garage itself:

 

[slomaro3.4]

I built a large "1 car" and honestly am ecstatic to have it. Life is about compromise and my fiance was not moving too far out of the city. Here is my thread: https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/threads/my-dream-suburban-1-car.549104/

IMO just being able to do car maintenance in the winter without freezing my **** off makes the space worth it. I do have an attached 2-car as well though.

 

[sjvicker]

I lived with a 1.5 car garage for about 15 years and the best thing I did for organization was to build a 200sqft support shed. For your lot I’d make a new garden shed that is 10’x20’ since that seems to be viewed as a temp structure and can be close to the drain field. Store bulky tools out there and build a small workspace there. It’s a good spot for any presses and saws

 

[mschoo92]

Thanks everyone for your responses!

No. Legally, I couldn’t even build it again if I wanted to. The actual structure is a three car wide garage that spans the property line and is shared with my neighbor. There’s a wall down the middle, two overhead doors, two man doors,

But still no, I’d build it bigger if I could. I’d build the basement bigger, too.

Wow, that sounds like a pain of a setup. And yeah, bigger is better if space allows.

Biggest organization tip? You can’t stuff ten pounds of “stuff” in a five pound box. I don’t fill my space with decorative stuff. If it’s in the garage, it needs to be there.

Second, build a shed. I put up an 8x12 (biggest I can, without a permit). That gets the stuff that i would otherwise have to store in the garage, or haul up and down from the basement. Lawn mower, yard tools, table saw, seasonal decorations, all in the shed. The exception is that the snowblower goes in the garage during the winter. I reconfigure my garage for “winter” vs. “summer”. I move stuff around to make the snowblower accessible.

These two points definitely are a primary focus for me at this point. My plan is to keep the 10x12 for all yard stuff etc, and to keep the one half of the basement as workspace where the other can be storage laundry etc.

Since you are restricted on width I'd go as long as possible. Your 20ft would barely fit a 4 door Tacoma w/ the 5ft bed. I'd go 24 or 28 if possible. The 12 is tough for jacking at the side of the car. A typical 5.5-6.0ft wide car leaves you just 3ft to the wall on each side so figure on jacking at front or back. If possible I'd do stick built so you can put shelves 18" wide and 2ft down from the ceiling all around. These create a ton of storage space in a usually wasted area. As many as possible have things like tool boxes, saws, etc on wheels. Mine are all wheeled which is real nice to move to or out the door for grinding and cutting. Even my bench disc/belt sander is on a small Craftsman 4 drawer tool box so it moves and offers storage spaces for discs and belts, a drawer full of pieces of hose, etc.

I like the idea of the shelves all around, I could see doing that or cabinets. Casters I plan on. Length would be nice but I’m trying to keep a nice size yard too so it’s a balancing act, leaning towards building the workshop so it can fit a car in a pinch or over winter versus a regular parking spot.

I lived with a single wide double depth garage for 20 years. Not ideal, but made it work. Never put a car in it though that's where the bikes lived:



Behind that stop sign is another 10 x 12 storage room. One of the things I miss about that garage is the large patio on the side that was half covered. I could do all my dirty work out there to keep debris out of the garage itself:

Love the covered patio workspace, that’s pretty much what I have in mind for the carport area. Sweet setup!

I built a large "1 car" and honestly am ecstatic to have it. Life is about compromise and my fiance was not moving too far out of the city. Here is my thread: https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/threads/my-dream-suburban-1-car.549104/

IMO just being able to do car maintenance in the winter without freezing my **** off makes the space worth it. I do have an attached 2-car as well though.

That’s a sweet setup too! Having an attached for parking and detached for workshop is ideal, maybe for my next property. I followed your thread while you were building that, one of the builds I’ve kept in mind while trying to figure this setup out.

I lived with a 1.5 car garage for about 15 years and the best thing I did for organization was to build a 200sqft support shed. For your lot I’d make a new garden shed that is 10’x20’ since that seems to be viewed as a temp structure and can be close to the drain field. Store bulky tools out there and build a small workspace there. It’s a good spot for any presses and saws

Absolutely, my plan is to keep the 10x12 and basement (“my” half is about 12x22) for storage, ancillary workshop etc with the garage/shed workshop I’m planning now as the main attraction for automotive work, possible storage of a car over winter. Even some woodworking as far as breaking down large stock with the tracksaw and maybe an excuse for a cabinet saw lol.

 

[bbxlr8]

That’s a great point too, being able to bring it with me would be great when we move! And nice, I go to the Chrysler Nationals in Carlisle most years - fiancée has a Bronco now so seeing if we can swing the Ford show in June. Would you happen to be talking about Morton buildings or is it another vendor?

Been to Chry @C a lot over the last 20+ years

There are a bunch now in the area, but no. One I used is in Atglen & appears to be split out into three different units based on use.
Was originally Horizon Structures; still is, but now just seems to be focused on Ag/Horse, etc. Garage-type structures are under AGS Structures and think overall is under Stotzfus (one location). They moved it for me DE to PA very nominally and deliver all over.