Between 485 & 705 SQ/FT From a "double" to a DOUBLE

[Purist]

You won't regret the pressure washer. Just make sure to maintain the engine and carburetor and to winterize it properly before your garage gets to the freezing point. I would also suggest dropping an extra $40 or so on a turbo nozzle if you are going to do much concrete cleaning. I loaned mine to a friend who cleaned his driveway and walks in about an hour and a half. He said the same job usually takes about 6 hours. I call that nozzle my moneymaker. The only problems I have had with the PW is the oxygenated "gasoline" sold around us has so much alcohol that it soaks up a lot of humidity. After the second time taking the carb apart I now only add enough gas to do the job at hand so I can run it dry and if I don't expect to use it again for a few weeks I hit it with fogging oil in the intake. I don't know if it is the design of the Briggs carb on this model or what but I want it to fire when I pull the cord.

I guess I do indirectly have access to a pressure washer, after all. Before my uncle moved to Colorado, my father and my uncle (his brother) split the cost of a pressure washer, figuring they could share it when needed. The washer is located a few towns away, in my uncle's old house which his son (my cousin) now occupies.

That said, it's annoying to have to figure out transportation to get the washer to my house, especially since I no longer own a pickup truck. So for the sake of convenience, I'll probably buy my own sometime down the road. And winterizing it definitely makes sense. I try to do that with all my machinery (tractor, mower, trimmers, etc.). Those carbs sound pretty finicky...Seafoam!!!!

Thanks for the suggestion on the turbo nozzle. When the time comes, I'll absolutely make sure to grab one of these.

 

[Purist]

Not a ton of movement on the garage front, but that's not to say there hasn't been progress elsewhere.

Up to this point, I had planned on building a shed along with my father-in law. I'm not the handiest guy when it comes to carpentry or electrical work or things of that nature. I can do my own oil changes, brakes, swap out fuel pumps, etc., so I'm not a complete imbecile.

My FIL, on the other hand, is super handy. He has taught shop class for the last umpteen years and can make or fix just about anything. Thus, I figured building a shed would be a great learning experience for me. That is, until I went out for cigars with a buddy of mine recently, who was also looking to get a shed in the near future. This buddy is a master electrician and also incredibly handy and perfectly capable of building a shed. But once he rationalized to me the amount of work that goes into building a shed (you're essentially building a small house) and the cost savings (which weren't as great as I thought they were going to be), I started to sway in the other direction.

I reached out to the company he was going through (East Coast Sheds in nearby Berkley,MA), and they responded almost immediately with a very thorough and informative email. After looking over their prices, optional add-on items and styles, I was sold. Actually, I was sold after seeing this photo, which is what my wife and I both want our shed to look like:

Spoke with one of the sons at East Coast Sheds this morning and we have a build date of 3/22. They're going to match the vinyl siding and roof shingles from my house, which will looks awesome. And we're going to buy the black shutters separately (they don't provide them) ahead of time, so that they can install them while building the shed.

Shed specs:

We aren't going with the 7'3" wall height, as I think that's more of a luxury than $300 justifies. Besides, my last shed (a resin shed from Home Depot) had a height of 70", and that was plenty tall. This new shed will have a wall height of 73", so I'm very happy with that. Also, my last shed was 10 feet wide by 8 feet deep. So going with a 10x14 is going to buy me a ton more available storage space. I cannot wait to get my tractor and snow blower (once winter is over, of course) out of my garage.

Speaking of tractors....I'm actually trying to sell my Scotts tractor, which was built around 1999, I believe. I decided when we bought our house that I was going to use my annual bonus and treat myself to a new toy. I'm hoping to get to a nearby dealer tomorrow to check it out in person and maybe even take it for a cruise around the lot, so here is what I eventually decided on after some research:

I went with a 100 series for a few reasons, the main one being that my lot is only 3/4 of an acre. That is plenty big enough for what we intend to use it for, but it also doesn't require a heavy duty or commercial mower, so the 100 series made the most financial sense. Even though my Scotts was built by John Deere, I'm looking forward to owning my first, legit green and yellow Deere. And I specifically chose the D125 over the D110 due to the fact that it has a higher seat back (for those who use a tractor, you get it!), the better engine of the two: 20-hp (40 cu in.) V-twin vs a 19-hp (33 cu in., single cylinder), and cruise control!

After some back and forth with a few local dealers, I got one to agree to include the dual bagger (installed) at slightly below the price they normally sell the bagger uninstalled. Not a huge savings, but savings, nonetheless.

 

[dislexiclawyer]

That shed design looks great! I love having a place for all of our lawn equipment to live, and I'm sure you will too. I will need to spruce our shed up this spring though. It has seen better days. One of the downfalls of wood panel siding instead of vinyl.

 

[polexican23]

I also think the D125 comes with a beer.....er i mean water holder and the 110 doesnt.

Dont quote me on that, but is why i got the D125 years ago.

 

[hedgehog]

Wow great new house, and the neibourhood is very nice too. I love two car garages bucause thats what i have and it gives me so many ideas

 

[M-technik-3]

Is that baby Deere a HD unit? Here is my 318 They do make magnetic cozy holder.


How much snow did you get? We got hammered with about 20" but some of that was probably drifting snow from the wind. Took so work to dig out.

 

[Purist]

That shed design looks great! I love having a place for all of our lawn equipment to live, and I'm sure you will too. I will need to spruce our shed up this spring though. It has seen better days. One of the downfalls of wood panel siding instead of vinyl.

Thanks! Yeah, as soon as I saw it, I knew I wanted our shed to look just like that. My wife agreed!

I also think the D125 comes with a beer.....er i mean water holder and the 110 doesnt.

Dont quote me on that, but is why i got the D125 years ago.

I believe the new D110's do come with cup holders.

Wow great new house, and the neibourhood is very nice too. I love two car garages bucause thats what i have and it gives me so many ideas

Thank you!! The neighborhood is really coming together. They just poured the forms for the newest house and have 3 more to go after that. I'll have to take some new photos of the houses that are nearing completion once I venture out.

Is that baby Deere a HD unit? Here is my 318 They do make magnetic cozy holder.

How much snow did you get? We got hammered with about 20" but some of that was probably drifting snow from the wind. Took so work to dig out.

Not sure if you're referring to Home Depot or heavy duty by the 'HD', but they do sell this particular model in HD. I'm going through a legit JD dealership, though. I've read some horror stories from folks who've purchased tractors through HD, parts not bolted on correctly and things falling apart. I'll let the pro's at JD assemble mine, thank you very much!

Your 318 is a beast!! How long have you had that thing for?

We ended up getting right around a foot, with another 2-3 inches last night and more to come via tomorrow's storm.

My 20 year old, hand me down snowblower (thanks to my father-in-law) was really put to the test, but it persevered. I'm thinking this may be it's last winter before I move on and grab a new unit. It works fine when the snow is light and fluffy, but as you know, we don't often get that in New England. We usually get the wet, heavy **** and she really struggles with that. The new units are just so much better at dealing with heavy snow, and heated grips?!?! Sign me up!

 

[M-technik-3]

Is your old one a two stage? you could do the impeller flaps to make it throw snow further. I did that with my MTD and it throws the darn stuff. In comparison to last years snow fall we are way ahead . yeah fill the reservoirs.

Today is like ground hog day from Thursday. We have about 8 inches already not as heavy but snow load on roofs has to be getting up there. I am going to get my snow rack out and some pantyhouse deicer bombs for ice dams

 

[Purist]

Is your old one a two stage? you could do the impeller flaps to make it throw snow further. I did that with my MTD and it throws the darn stuff. In comparison to last years snow fall we are way ahead . yeah fill the reservoirs.

Today is like ground hog day from Thursday. We have about 8 inches already not as heavy but snow load on roofs has to be getting up there. I am going to get my snow rack out and some pantyhouse deicer bombs for ice dams

Yep, it's a two stage. I had never heard of the impeller upgrade but now that I'm reading up on it, it may be something I seriously consider trying out this winter. Thanks for the tip!! If it buys me another year out of this thing, then totally worth it!

We didn't get a ton today, and it's been back and forth between rain and snow. Yes, take care of those ice damns before they get really bad. I had to shovel off my roof last year and my buddies roof. Not something I ever want to have to do again. Good luck!!

 

[Mr. Roboto]

Awesome news on the shed! They are a life saver in organizing your garage; you're going to love having one. What are you plans for the base? Are you having the shed company prep the site, or are you going to tackle it yourself?

 

[krcoomer]

Congrats on the shed decision. You now have another space to worry about keeping organized. I have thought about burying electric and a copper line to store my compressor in mine for noise reduction inside the garage, but have yet to pull the trigger on that. I would suggest that you make sure it is raised up enough that you don't hit the siding with your weedeater. Also, since the siding matches the house you might want to pick up a few extra strips while the color and grain patterns are still the same.

I have been wondering about the cracks. Guess your weather has not been as cooperative as ours lately since you were talking about using your snowblower. I moved mine into the garage (from the shed), but never have gassed it up. Guess I won't have to run it dry and fog the carb this year.

I saw a cart like yours at Costco the other day. Price was very close to what you paid and it looked very similar. May have to pick one of those up before they are gone.

 

[Purist]

Awesome news on the shed! They are a life saver in organizing your garage; you're going to love having one. What are you plans for the base? Are you having the shed company prep the site, or are you going to tackle it yourself?

Thank you! Tell me about it...I've only been without a shed for 10 months now, but it feels like eternity. Something you definitely take for granted when you have it and miss the **** out of when you don't.

The shed company does ALL the work, as long as the site is level within 6-10 inches (which it should be!). So they'll be building the shed on cinder blocks.

Congrats on the shed decision. You now have another space to worry about keeping organized. I have thought about burying electric and a copper line to store my compressor in mine for noise reduction inside the garage, but have yet to pull the trigger on that. I would suggest that you make sure it is raised up enough that you don't hit the siding with your weedeater. Also, since the siding matches the house you might want to pick up a few extra strips while the color and grain patterns are still the same.

I have been wondering about the cracks. Guess your weather has not been as cooperative as ours lately since you were talking about using your snowblower. I moved mine into the garage (from the shed), but never have gassed it up. Guess I won't have to run it dry and fog the carb this year.

I saw a cart like yours at Costco the other day. Price was very close to what you paid and it looked very similar. May have to pick one of those up before they are gone.

HA, I guess there's some give and take. More space = more **** = more organizing. As for raising it, I think with the cinder blocks and the landscaping we plan to do around the shed, I'll be fine with the height and ensuring I don't hit the vinyl with the weedeater. Regardless, good thought and thanks for bringing it up!

I'm pretty certain I'll run power to the shed. Helps when 3 of your best buddies are all certified electricians (one is a master). I can see adding an outlet or two in the shed, and maybe a spotlight on the exterior of the shed to help illuminate some of the backyard. But I think I'll be keeping my compressor in the garage...for now, anyway!

Nope, my snowblower has definitely been put to work over the past week or so. I replaced the fuel line and carb 2 seasons ago and she's ran great ever since (had developed a small leak and the carb was junk).

I've only had to use the cart once so far (winter will do that!), but I can see myself using the heck out of it during the spring/summer months. I highly recommend grabbing one, especially at that price!

 

[Purist]

I took advantage of some unseasonably warm weather this past Saturday and organized/cleaned up my work bench area. Up to this point, it had been neglected all winter long and there was **** piled up all over and around it.

I also scored this off craigslist a few weeks ago, for a whopping $25!

Plan is to move the wire shelf pictured above with all my detailing and auto-related products to the basement and store all that stuff in the cabinet. Will be nice to have things hidden, for that "clean" look. And while my long-term goal is to have all matching Husky cabinets (that also match my Husky tool chest), this will absolutely do the trick for the time being. Then I can always relocate it to the basement, as needed.

Side note...finally pulled the trigger on the John Deere D125 tractor. Scheduled to get delivered 3/24, just two days after my shed is scheduled to be built. Spring cannot get here soon enough!

 

[Purist]

Not a ton of progress lately, but I did manage to sell my Scotts tractor. That is, after dealing with an endless wave of craigslist deadbeats and lowballers.

Asking price was $400 (firm, as I was pretty confident I'd get that the closer we got to spring and gas cutting weather), you wouldn't believe the amount of "would you take $200" emails/messages I received.

Regardless, it's gone and now I wait 8 more days for my shed to be built. And my Deere will be delivered two days after that. Thus, no more tractor storing in my garage:

Once the snowblower is stored away for the summer, it's going to great with how much free space I'll have all around both vehicles.

Side note: bought myself an early birthday present with some of the funds from the tractor sale. Anyone else into Traxxas (or any brand) RC's? This is my first and if a first impression is worth anything, I'm pretty confident it won't be my last:

 

[Purist]

Today is the big day. Shed installers arrived at 830...and left my house just about 15 minutes ago. So in less than 4 hours, that section of my back yard went from this:

to THIS:

Pumped to get the extra storage and free up space in my garage and basement. My Deere arrives in two days!

 

[Trey T]

That's a beautiful shed.

 

[cgall]

Here's a storage idea for a garage with a high ceiling, mine is 10'-6"

 

[ajohno]

Great shed. Also like your remote control car.

 

[dubber]

Beauty! Thats going to be SOOO helpful with keeping your garage properly organized.

 

[Purist]

That's a beautiful shed.

Thank you. It came out fantastic!

Here's a storage idea for a garage with a high ceiling, mine is 10'-6"

That's a great idea, for sure. Luckily, I'm not struggling for storage space at the moment but this could always help out down the road.

Great shed. Also like your remote control car.

Thank you on both counts. Looking forward to the warmer weather so I can spend more time outdoors and take the RC offroading!

Beauty! Thats going to be SOOO helpful with keeping your garage properly organized.

Yup!! Already hid my dump cart, garden cart and barrels behind it. So not only will it help for interior storage, but it helps create hiding spots behind both walls facing the fence.

 

[Mr. Roboto]

Just had a chance to get caught up on your thread, the shed looks awesome! Any pics of it all loaded up inside? Must have felt good to get that tractor out of the garage.

 

[lowspeed_highdrag]

This is a great thread! Your shed has me thinking about fighting my HOA for one just like it.

 

[Purist]

Just had a chance to get caught up on your thread, the shed looks awesome! Any pics of it all loaded up inside? Must have felt good to get that tractor out of the garage.

Thank you, sir!! Due to all the rain and poor drainage of my backyard, I've held off on doing too much back there up until today. Additionally, my buddy and I will be running power to the shed soon, so he asked me to not fill it to the gills until that's done. But I was able to get some stuff out of my basement and the snowblower/shovel out of the garage and into the shed. Amazes me at how much room I still have, and the shed isn't even optimally organized/arranged yet.

The Deere has been in the shed for a few weeks now, so here is what I accomplished today:

This is a great thread! Your shed has me thinking about fighting my HOA for one just like it.

Thanks, dude! Do it. A shed is a MUST have!

 

[Purist]

Some minor updates...but first, my son checking out the retaining wall in the backyard:

Added plants to the window boxes (ignore the shadows):

We also added an oil rubbed bronze nautical star above the double door, but I don't have a photo of that yet.


Views of the foundation crack from the outside:

My hand for scale

The plan is for the builder to come back after the rainy season is over (so figure on 2-3 more weeks) to break up the garage slab from inside the garage, repair the crack (as well as repair another crack in the rear of the house, not pictured) and pour a new slab. Meaning, I'll have to empty my entire garage of anything that is currently not on the walls. Yay.

The builder did offer up his trailer to me, so that I don't need to leave everything outside in my driveway, ripe for the taking. We'll see how this all plays out.


First time using the mower to mow my....um..."grass" (dirt patches):

Think that's it for now. Happy Easter, all!

 

[Purist]

New decor for the wife, courtesy of Hobby Lobby (awesome man cave/auto decor, in case you think it's not a place for men).

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[M-technik-3]

Nice updates, i updated my thread. It's not a good update, hence why I have not been around in awhile.

 

[Purist]

Thanks!

Minor update for today: my builder sent someone over to install foundation crack monitors for the two cracks I've previously pointed out.

Garage crack:






Rear of house crack:






Hopefully the repairs happen in the next 2-3 weeks. Looking forward to emptying out my garage...

...no, no I'm not.


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[M-technik-3]

Spoken with any of your neighbors? do they have cracks?

 

[Purist]

Spoken with any of your neighbors? do they have cracks?

One has minor, hairline cracks in their exterior walkways. But nothing with their foundations. My foundation was built up more than any other on the street, which might explain why I'm the only one seeing this.


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[M-technik-3]

At least the builder is being very proactive and seems to be concerned vs passing the buck. If grows what is his plan of action to stop the crack?

 

[Purist]

At least the builder is being very proactive and seems to be concerned vs passing the buck. If grows what is his plan of action to stop the crack?

Agreed. He's pretty unhappy with how the work turned out, as it's a direct reflection on him. I think they're hopeful that steel reinforcement bars will do the trick once the house settles. And a new slab in the garage, of course.


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[M-technik-3]

New slab in basement eeks sounds like some serious work.

 

[Purist]

New slab in basement eeks sounds like some serious work.

No, no. Basement is fine (aside from the crack, of course). It's the Garage slab that is getting re-poured. One corner of it has sunk so they're going to break up and haul away the existing slab and pour a new one.


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[M-technik-3]

Meant garage duh. Hope that works. Maybe time for some footers for lift? The old you know while your in their bit.

 

[Purist]

Meant garage duh. Hope that works. Maybe time for some footers for lift? The old you know while your in their bit.

I like where your head is at, but I think a lift is still at least 2 years out, especially if I get a new vehicle in the Spring. Which is currently the plan.

So I'll probably address the footers when it's time to cross that bridge.

Heard from one of my neighbors that another neighbor had an inch of water in their basement of their just built home. So the builder is going to be installing a sump pump for them. Luckily I don't think I'll ever have that issue, seeing as how high up my house was built in a relatively high water table area. But the backyard drainage issues will continue to piss me off. My father in law thinks we can address this down the road, with some french drains (or similar). We'll see if it gets to that or not.

 

[krcoomer]

I like where your head is at, but I think a lift is still at least 2 years out, especially if I get a new vehicle in the Spring. Which is currently the plan.

So I'll probably address the footers when it's time to cross that bridge.

Heard from one of my neighbors that another neighbor had an inch of water in their basement of their just built home. So the builder is going to be installing a sump pump for them. Luckily I don't think I'll ever have that issue, seeing as how high up my house was built in a relatively high water table area. But the backyard drainage issues will continue to piss me off. My father in law thinks we can address this down the road, with some french drains (or similar). We'll see if it gets to that or not.

Glad to see you are getting some action on this. I have been following with moderate curiosity to see how things are getting done. My dad had to add a sump pump into his 50 yr old house last year. The explanation was that the water table is changing over time because of drainage issues and strain on drainage system from additional developments within several miles. No new building in the immediate area in about 30-35 years.

 

[Purist]

Glad to see you are getting some action on this. I have been following with moderate curiosity to see how things are getting done. My dad had to add a sump pump into his 50 yr old house last year. The explanation was that the water table is changing over time because of drainage issues and strain on drainage system from additional developments within several miles. No new building in the immediate area in about 30-35 years.

Thanks! Yeah, I'm pretty happy that this isn't being ignored. The monitors are still affixed to the foundation, so hopefully it won't be too much longer until they start doing the actual repair work.

I guess that explanation makes some sense, how the water table can change over time. Christ, I hope ours improves over time.

 

[Purist]

Monitors are still on, as the engineer evidently wants to wait a bit longer to see if there is any movement. So while we wait, we got our landscaping in order, FINALLY:

And I added this inside the shed:

 

[Purist]

Monitors are still on, as the engineer evidently wants to wait a bit longer to see if there is any movement. So while we wait, we got our landscaping in order, FINALLY:

I asked the builder if he could clarify on his "a bit longer" estimate and he responded with a "couple months". The bright side to waiting a few more months simply means that the garage will have had ample time (roughly 2 years) to continue settling and potentially avoid any future issues.

Having now been in the house a little over one year, I had a better idea of how I want my garage laid out. While I still plan on upgrading to matching cabinets and workbench at some point in the future, I'll make do with what I have.

I started by unloading one of the two wire-rack shelving units and relocating that one unit down in the basement, leaving just one in the garage. While doing so, I was able to move some stuff into the basement, as well as the shed, freeing up precious garage space.

After that, I moved the metal cabinet (which is now my detailing supply cabinet) closer to the middle of the two garage spots.

My thinking here is that I'll mount the retractable air hose reel above the cabinet, so it's in a central location in the garage, with the compressor located on the other side of the cabinet, closer to the outlet.

The laptop was also relocated, moving from my workbench to the top of my detailing cabinet. I think this is a great spot for it, since it will be easily accessible for me, regardless of which vehicle I might be working on at any given time. If only the WiFi actually reached out here. Range extender, here I come...

I'll probably end up mounting the two speakers to the wall slightly above where the laptop is, but for the time being, they look fine where they are.

Need a better solution for where to leave my wash/rinse buckets when not in use, but for the time being, I'll leave them on the ground directly in front of the detail cabinet. (Where does everyone store their wash/rinse buckets when not in use?)

Here's the cabinet all loaded up with supplies:

I'm still hoping to get a bit more junk out of the garage. The workbench area is still too cluttered for my taste, so I'll try and do some reorg work there and see what comes of it.

 

[dubber]

Nice work with the landscaping, that really turned out well.