Budget Racing Shop

[Chadddada]

Finally getting my budget racing shop [crapcans] build underway! I have been involved with 24 hours of Lemons as part of a local team [speedycop.com] for a couple of years now and recently started doing some AER. I hope to expand the racing I have been doing from endurance to possibly some NASA HPDE, TT and possibly Spec 3, Spec 46, etc. It's been a good building year for the team getting some more infrastructure in place. Now is as good of a time as any to try to get my garage up for the Spring race season. I am sick and tired of wrenching in my slopped driveway or having to drive upwards of 2 hours to get some quality greasy time in. I posted earlier in the introduction thread here - http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=297175

So brief recap of what I plan on building - 24'x30' 12' ceiling pole barn style garage. I am going with a builder out of PA and will probably add their name to the tread if all goes well. Currently I have paid for 1/2 the the building to try and expedite getting my construction plans. My county also requires engineer stamped plans so there is a bit of extra cost/time there as well. I have stopped by permitting a couple of times now just to verify what I can build, zoning, etc, so I hope as soon as I get the plans I can finish off the permit in a single trip. I am shopping for separate contractors for each part of the build (tree removal,building, concrete, electrical) in the hopes of getting decent prices. It's been fairly challenging here in the DMV to get good communication and decent prices on jobs.

So enough typing for now and here is the progress so far: Trees, now you see them now you don't! Before and after tree pics. All of the wood chips have now been cleared. Next steps get the drawings, get the permits and level the site!
Will keep an album updated as well here: http://s269.photobucket.com/user/chadddada/slideshow/Garage%20Build

 

[LXCam]

Very cool, a dream come true. Best of luck with your build and your future bud.

 

[Chadddada]

Engineered stamped construction plans in hand! I have made 2 visits to permitting so far just to verify zoning requirements and building requirements. Hopefully what I have in hand will be good to go. The office said, as long as things are good, it's a 1 day process. I am going to go by there in the morning and hopefully leave with the go ahead.

 

[Chadddada]

Site plan:

 

[Chadddada]

wooooHooooooo... permit in hand. The permitting office was a good test of patience for sure. I spoke to 6 different people (departments) and everyone of them made some kind of error, had to fix a mistake, contradicted things the phone support of their department had said before, etc.
-Front desk: The permit number on the paperwork and what was keyed into the system didn't match. The SF of the lot and building were swapped - 10.5K SF building , 720 SF lot... hows that work?
-Zoning - The changes I made the last time I visited, based of their recommendation, was incorrect and I had to move the building another 3' into the lot at the counter. Previous visit
-Land development - Had the site plan in hand (see above) and thought that little box 'proposed building' was 10.5K SF and that this was a commercial zone (even though it also had the residential block/lot number/zone written at the top of the sheet (hidden in the picture) so they were going to need a whole water control plan.
-Plans review - These guys were pretty good, the best office there for sure. Bit of confusion over the inspections.
-Plans review hand off to payable - Very confused on inspections checklist, couldn't answer a single question.
-Payable counter - Kept keying in the wrong permit number and of course $ wasn't correct.

Whew...

Upcoming this weekend/week:

-Lining up a mini excavator drop off for this upcoming week to level the site and dig my power trench. Pulling my dad to give me a hand on this and save ~1500 over the cost most contractors have been quoting me.

-Getting the install date to the cement contractor.

-Locking in a date for the builders. Finalizing the color scheme for the building. Couple of color schemes below, what looks good? I guess I like all 4 of them but not sure which 1 better. The green is an evergreen, red is a burgundy and the lighter color is light stone.

 

[Cobra4B]

Nice!

 

[Chadddada]

Building color:
I think I decided to go with the stone siding and the evergreen roof/trim/wainscoting. There is a darker color also (clay) but I think the lighter stone color looks pretty good also.

Install date:
Wooohooooo! So we are T - 5 weeks out from my install date weather permitting! Should be the last week of October.

Site leveling:
Talked to a couple of different gravel/stone companies and I just need to narrow it down to 1 to deliver. 1 of them I found has a single axle truck that can do ~ 7-8 tons of 3/4" blue stone chips I believe. I think I am going to need 16 tons (~9 yards) for my 24x30 and 4" deep. Does my math look right there? Should I get extra stone to go around the building to help with drainage? This will mostly be to level the site and to be the cement pad base. I will probably try to get the stone dropped off next week.

I talked to Sunbelt Rentals about the mini excavator and seems like this should be a fairly painless rental process. I will probably try to get the 6-7K LBS mini dropped off in 2 weeks now and possibly a trencher at the same time.

Electrician:
Got a quote so far for my heavyup, discussing a bit here, http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=304461 , which will be the 1st step of getting power to the new garage. Waiting on 1 other quote and supposed to meet 1 other person anytime now.

 

[Chadddada]

Updates to the timeline:

-Next week, site leveling.
-Next week, trenching to building.
-2 weeks out, heavy up in the house. 100 amp to 200 amp.
-3 weeks out, building install.
-4 weeks out, sub panel in the garage.
-5 weeks out, cement pour.

I did some hand digging today for my trench. The gas company marked where they were and I knew I had more stuff in there (power going to pond pump, french drain, cable wire.. yeah lots of stuff).

Pics of my Maryland clay pain.

 

[CooperS7777]

Awesome build!

Who do you run with in NASA? I run with NE quite often and MA occasionally as well. I'm looking at either an SE46 or GTS build over the winter too!

Cant wait to see your progress.

-Coop

 

[kts]

Howdy coworker!

I stumbled on this last night, glad to see you posting photos so I can see the progress. As I mentioned a few times I am still very jealous of your soon-to-be garage!

 

[Chadddada]

Howdy coworker!

I stumbled on this last night, glad to see you posting photos so I can see the progress. As I mentioned a few times I am still very jealous of your soon-to-be garage!

Hopefully soon after this goes up there will be a 325is or 330CI parked in it that will required some knuckles to be bloodied. No pay but there will be beer in the fridge

 

[Chadddada]

Awesome build!

Who do you run with in NASA? I run with NE quite often and MA occasionally as well. I'm looking at either an SE46 or GTS build over the winter too!

Cant wait to see your progress.

-Coop

Just been doing 24 hours of Lemons for 3-4 years and now some AER. Looking to get a car that would be able to run 1 of the spec NASA series (Spec 3 or Spec 46) possibly. Build it to knock out some HPDE and then possibly 1 of those. The spec 3 would be more affordable for sure.

NJMP is ~ 2 hours away so I would probably want to run up there quite a bit. VIR in the MA is an amazing track for sure so I would want to run down there time allowing. We were there with AER ~ a month ago and I fell in love with that track. We had 4 of us racing over 16 hours. We ended up getting 3rd in class in the Sunday run and 3rd in class overall for the weekend. I need to practice 11, 12 (oak tree) a bit more. I will have to post a cool picture I pulled out of AIM data logging.

 

[kts]

Hopefully soon after this goes up there will be a 325is or 330CI parked in it that will required some knuckles to be bloodied. No pay but there will be beer in the fridge

My fingers are crossed that pans out. I'm in.

Keep an eye on the NJ BMW CCA forums for potential cars: http://www.njbmwcca.org/forum/index.php?c=7

That's where I found my E30 and when I check there from time to time I often find what look to me to be pretty good deals on well sorted cars vs the "it's an 85 325e with 450k miles that overheats as soon as you look at the car, a trashed interior, and rust everywhere but it's a BMW so I want $4k for it!" posts I see all the time on CL around here.

 

[Chadddada]

Keep an eye on the NJ BMW CCA forums for potential cars: http://www.njbmwcca.org/forum/index.php?c=7

I will take a look. I have been looking on search tempest (all the Craig's lists), bimmer forums, e46 fanatic, and a couple others.

Here's some data I pulled from the AIM Solo I got and ran for the 1st time last AER race. We were on track for ~ 8 hours for this plot, 4 guys. I sent this out to the guys after the race showing everyone's fast lap. Basically you can see slowest/max speed you did, where that was on your lap and the distance on the track (how far along). For our 1 guy who was a bit slower this was a great teaching tool because you can see on the track (there's a 2D map in Race Studio also) where you are slower. The long and short of it, brake later and on the power sooner. Also interesting you can see he was hitting his highest speed on a different straight than the rest of us.

Times were 2:31, 2:32, 2:33, 2:37. Was a Merc 190E with a Cosworth that wasn't running right. The fuel distribution block was jacked and sending uneven sprays out of the injectors (volume). Getting a Mega Squirt installed tomorrow though I think. I need to figure out how to change the colors of the plots so they are not all green but you can get the gist.

 

[Chadddada]

Trying to sort some configurations out that make sense... The car to the left (horizontal) would have a lift under it. Not sure if I like this setup with a 30'x24'. This would just be the basic layout, the car could move into the center of the garage a bit more and away from that south wall...

I mostly want to have 1 car in there all the time (race car) that would be parked @ the lift for the most part. Possibly have a 2nd car in there that would be a parts car, just stripping a car for parts, etc. Going to want some workbench space, good size tool chest, welder, air compressor (possibly outside in a little shed/covered to fix noise.

 

[Chadddada]

This looks better... Should be able to pull the 2nd car in and put in on dollies if needed.

 

[CooperS7777]

We were there with AER ~ a month ago and I fell in love with that track. We had 4 of us racing over 16 hours. We ended up getting 3rd in class in the Sunday run and 3rd in class overall for the weekend. I need to practice 11, 12 (oak tree) a bit more. I will have to post a cool picture I pulled out of AIM data logging.

Awesome! I've got a friend who was down there racing that weekend also; his team took 1st on Saturday and but they lost the motor early Sunday. I'm pretty sure they were in the Seabring class. This is something Id like to get into next season as well - its hard to beat that kind of seat time!

This looks better... Should be able to pull the 2nd car in and put in on dollies if needed.

One big thing I notice looking at this layout is the position of the lift. If this is going to be a permanently installed lift, you'll want the post ~3' off the wall. Any closer than that and you'll be cursing doing brakes/suspension on the passenger side of the car, or you'll be pulling it out and turning it around every time you need to work on the other side.

 

[roscoe2000]

Looks like you will have a great garage. Personally I like the your first floor layout which would allow for a second overhead door. Better ventilation and any bay can be easily accessed.

 

[Z06Joe]

Looks like a nice shop you've got going there!! In for the updates/progress!

 

[Chadddada]

Site leveling and concrete stone base completed! Ended up being 17" out from far back left corner to near right corner. Took 20 ton of stone.

Other updates:
1)Hopefully getting 1 more quote for the heavy up tonight - tomorrow and then I will pick someone.
2)Hopefully (weather permitting) only 2 weeks out from the building going in.

 

[carotene]

Sub'd. Fellow MoCo and Lemons racer here (only once).
Looking good so far. I wish my r90 zone would allow thst dize garage!

 

[tywebb]

Looks good, I can't wait to come over and work on my hooptie.

 

[Chadddada]

Updates:

1. The garage install has been pushed back 2 weeks due to weather and overages (time wise) on other projects the builder is involved with. Now looking at 2nd week of Nov for the building install and 3rd week of Nov for the cement pour.
2. Electrical - Meeting a contractor to talk about the heavy up Friday and the sub panel work for the 3rd week of Nov.
3. Acquired a used air compressor. Campbell Hausfeld, 60 Gal, 3.2 HP, 11.5 SCFM @ 40 PSI, 10.2 @ 90, 135 PSI. Should be good to get me up and going. Thoughts?
4. Hook up some pre install plumbing to make draining water and oil changes easier.

5. And we now have our 1st project to put into the garage. 1990 BMW 535i with a M60 V8 swap from a 95 540i. We also have a 535i for parts that's in great shape.

 

[kts]

That should be a fun ride!

If the 535i parts car has an AFM with a part number that ends in "027" (should be on the top black plastic piece) and you don't need it let me know what you want for it... something I'm looking for to experiment with on my E30.

 

[Chadddada]

OK, finally an update! Looks like we are going to have some progress this coming week.

1)Garage install starts Monday!!! The weather looks like it's going to hold out so that should be good (as of now). Hopefully everything goes good with the inspector when he comes on site for the first time to check out the holes for the poles and he/she gets a look at other stuff w/ the site.

2)Going to finish my trench this week probably. All of the careful digging is done near the house. I will probably get a 24" deep trencher to run the remaining 60' out to the garage.

3)Hopefully the heavyup in the house is getting started this week and we are getting some cables run out to the garage.

4)We should be doing the rebar for the pour Friday.

5)I am replacing a section of the fence and getting a 12' double open gate added in.

Now if all that can happen next week I will be a happy camper!

 

[Cobra4B]

Love that era BMWs. My mom had a '89 735i.

 

[Chadddada]

Got delayed a day with footer inspection but end of day 1 of assembly!

 

[zmotorsports]

Subscribed. Looking forward to seeing it come together.

Mike.

 

[OutlawDrifter]

i've done a lot of work in a 24x30. when set up properly there is a lot of usable space. looks like you'll have a nice setup once finished!

 

[sbd4de3]

Looks like the 24-25x30 is a popular size of shop. I'm starting one myself soon I hope! Keep up the posts and pics, I'm hooked so far!
Steve

 

[Chadddada]

Start of day 3 (really only 15 hours in since day 1 didn't start until 2PM).

 

[Paycheck]

Man, wish I could do that. I drive VIR on occasion, wish I had a dedicated track car.
BTW, VIR is in Virginia, not MA ;-)

 

[aka Larry]

Not sure how I missed this thread, but I know Jeff and have raced against his guys since we all started racing with the 24HOL series back in 2008 at CMP. I've run CMP, VIR, Watkins Glen, PBIR, and Barber. If you've raced at CMP you may have raced against me in our old '89 Honda Prelude (Magnum, PU). Good luck with your build and if you guys are headed to Barber in February look me up!

 

[Chadddada]

End of the day. Didn't have the z bar to go between the wainscoting and the sides so had to pause here until Saturday. The day was so miserable just pouring rain all day. I think everyone had about 5LBS of MD wet clay stuck to their boots. Only things left to do are the peak put on (was too wet/slick today), sides, sliding door on.

Hopefully I don't regret this sliding door but it has some locks on both sides that crank it down tight to the 4"x6"s. This company didn't have any roll ups and I didn't want to do a regular garage door and have the hardware come back into the building. It looks like I can put some of the blue Styrofoam in this slider though. It's hard to tell but the 2x4s on the door are inside a sort of frame where the foam could go. I can also just add a rubber strip at the top of the door on the inside if I want to heat this; There's only a 1" gap between the top of the door and the wall so it doesn't scrape the siding. There are no gaps at the sides of the doors.

 

[Chadddada]

So something else that is getting upgraded with this build is 1 of my fence gates. It was a double door 8'3" gate but that was too narrow to get the cement truck in, too narrow for the lumber delivery and probably too narrow for trailers. If I opted to just carry all the garage stuff back that could have worked and been free. However to get the cement back there it would have been a pumper truck ($800) or running loads back with a bobcat (~$500 because of all the extra work). And I would still be stuck with a gate that was a pain for a trailer. So, solution... new 12' wide gate!

Gone:

12 footer:

 

[Chadddada]

Just a tiny bit of trim left to go on the outside and the building is up!!!

 

[Chadddada]

Stone built up (5") inside the building, vapor barrier down, rebar down... Just need to get the OK from the inspector and we can pour!

 

[Chadddada]

Got the OK from the inspectors to do the pour. I have 5" of stone, vap barrier and rebar in. I am also doing 5" of fiber reinforced concrete. After talking with the lift guy/company I decided to make the area where the lift plates were going about 8" thick concrete just to give a little more meat in that area. Here is the process and the results. Hopefully the rain won't thrash the garage access and the cement truck can get in. The pour should happen this Friday.

So we made ~ 4'x4' areas just to give us a bit of play with the plates. The company also noted that if they get into the rebar that's going to be a more expensive bit and it make take a couple bits to complete the job based off how much rebar they get into. So in a cost savings effort we added mesh vs the rebar in the immediate area.


Vapor Barrier moved, stone moved, took out 3-4 inches of dirt.

Stone back in. It was tamped down also after this picture.

All of the rebar that was cut out was added back in around the lift area. Vapor barrier and mesh in place.

 

[hold_fast]

Awesome build. For your slab, are you going to go through and put the reinforcement up on chairs?

 

[Chadddada]

Awesome build. For your slab, are you going to go through and put the reinforcement up on chairs?

The plan is to pull it up to the mid/top of the slab as the pour happens. In the past helping my dad out we never used chairs to lift the reinforcement.... not sure if that was correct or not. Anyone have any experience of using, or not using, chairs and how the concrete holds up over time? Should I use the chairs?