Garage dirt in the house.

[K4luf]

How do y'all keep from dragging shop nasties into the house. More specifically oil and grease or other fluids on the bottoms of your shoes. I realize the obvious solution would be removing your shoes before going in the house. That's fine when your done working for the day, but what about a quick trip in to grab a snack or a potty break. Taking your shoes on and off gets old if your back and fourth a lot. Sawdust and metal shavings on clothing is also a problem for me.

 

[Gregishome]

I thought I was the only one with this problem. ...
Since we moved from a home with a detached garage/workshop to our present one with a attached garage, I hear " Wipe your feet !!! " in my sleep.

Wear a shop gown like lab workers do and remove it before entering the house for the metal chip problem. The type rugs that are used as welcome mats is what we use that have the scrapper fabric in them, plus a rug on the house side of the entry door. That is all I know other than moving to a home with detached garages or becoming a bachelor again.

 

[isaac338]

I piss in the garage sink or in the grass; if I need to drop a deuce or have a meal the boots are coming off anyways.

 

[John in OH]

I grew up wearing my shoes in the house. But my wife goes ballistic if I wear shoes in the house now. Learned over the years that it is a lot easier to just take them off and put on a pair of slippers whenever I come into the house. Not too big a deal once you get used to it ... I keep the slippers by the back door and most of my shoes ... except the work boots ... are slip-on style.

 

[crewchief888]

i dont use the front door of the house at all.

most of the time coming home from work, i pull off muddy, greasy and oily clothes and boots right inside the back door.
everything goes downstairs, much easier to clean up bare concrete.
my work clothes and boots get dropped downstairs, and i go straight into my shower downstairs.
i also have my own bluesink and toilet that nobody else uses.

i rarely leave my shoes on in the house anyway. even to go 15 feet from the door to the fridge.

 

[kb2tha]

Our dentist has a supply of disposable foot covers with an elastic band. Shoe protectors. I don't know how $$$ they are but I would think the cost would be better than the alternative.
Ken

 

[Free Willie]

Cabellas has plastic/rubber overshoes - like slippers you slide your boots or shoes into for short trips into the house. They are kinda goofy looking but they work great and contain dirt and anything else you might have on your boots and they clean up easily.

Wife just told me they are called Shoe-ins

 

[langss]

Depending on what Costco is local to you,they have Rubber Doormats that are actually ground up tires.The have grit imbedded in the surface. I have one in the garage right in front of the steps into the house and the same in the house going out to the garage. It works really well to remove anything that I might track in. Its easy to vacuum anything out of the pattern/spaces if you don't want to pick them up to clean. I'm in and out far to much to take off my shoes every time. I think they were like under $20.

 

[NUTTSGT]

I tore out the old used motor soaked floor and replaced it with a PT plywood floor.

I poured a new concrete floor that I could mop and sweep to keep it clean.

I remodeled the bathroom in my garage to make it useable to prevent trips to the house.

I have a fridge, microwave and a cupboard with some munchies to snack on.

 

[ddawg16]

You allow your garage to get dirty?

 

[Printer Mike]

Scrubbing oily/dirty shoes on concrete/asphalt with oil absorber gets off a lot of grime. When I was working on my 100 year old print shop tared roof, I scrubbed my shoes through a thin pile of oil absorber after coming down the ladder. That cut down on crud getting tracked in the shop.

It's no fun cleaning floors. Much easier to prevent making a mess.

 

[billcole]

I wear leather slip on shoes so i can put them on and off without bending over.

 

[camarotoolman]

I'm lucky, got a woods beside the garage.

 

[Kevin54]

I take mine off when coming in if they are dirty. If taking a leak, it's out back behind the garage

Then again, my floor in the garage isn't dirty with oil and grease. The older I get the more **** I get about keeping things clean. I use Purple Power or Simple Green, both in the concentrated form, to keep the garage floor scrubbed down. I also have quite a few of the 10' industrial runners in various places at different door and high traffic areas so feet can be wiped off on them also. Check your ReStore and see if they have any. I got my 3'x10's for $5 each. When they get dirty, they get power washed.

 

[sams]

I use slip on boots to make it quick and easy however I still manage to get some swarf in the house. I had to pick a bit of out out of my partners foot recently, she wasn't too pleased about that.

 

[Brentocool]

I wash my garage floor?

 

[BillK]

Kris,
I always take my shoes off. Some guys make it sound like it is the Wife's fault ? Personally, I like my house to be clean too so I dont use that excuse.

73,

 

[slip knot]

I'm more into keeping the shop floor clean. The older I get the more I seem to drop **** on the floor and its much nicer to look for a lost screw on a clean floor than a greasy mess. I also have the wife trained that there shall be no carpet between my back door and the toilet, or I pee outdoors.

 

[GirlnAgarage]

How do y'all keep from dragging shop nasties into the house. More specifically oil and grease or other fluids on the bottoms of your shoes. I realize the obvious solution would be removing your shoes before going in the house. That's fine when your done working for the day, but what about a quick trip in to grab a snack or a potty break. Taking your shoes on and off gets old if your back and fourth a lot. Sawdust and metal shavings on clothing is also a problem for me.

Remove shoes, but I wear pull on boots so its quick. Short of that, keep a mat either inside the door our outside to wipe your shoes. We picked up the habit from Japan not to wear shoes so it works well in this case.

Dust off before you go in, your jeans, cuffs, shirts, everything. Just wipe yourself down t get the loose stuff off. If I'm really planning on dust like when abrasive cutting I wear coveralls so I can remove them before going in.

Just got to get into the habit of trying to clean off before going in, even for a short time. If all else fails, put a fridge a urinal in your garage.

 

[Cars&Classic]

Tell the wife you need a buget for epoxy floor so it will stay clean...........

 

[K4luf]

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm actually asking this so I can develope a plan for when my shop is complete. It's a detached 24x30 post beam. Right now my floor is clean cause it's new. I tell myself I'm gonna keep it clean, guess I'll find out.

 

[K4luf]

Kris,
I always take my shoes off. Some guys make it sound like it is the Wife's fault ? Personally, I like my house to be clean too so I dont use that excuse.

73,

You looked up my call sign didn't you? Lol. I figure that's how you knew my name is Kris. Are you a ham?

 

[Daniel Dudley]

The bottom of my feet are rarely that dirty. The shop floor may be dusty, but I have catch basins for oil and a separate one for antifreeze. I have a big tray and I cut milk jugs to catch brake fluid.

OTOH, my hands and clothes can be a fright. I always have hand cleaner and towels handy, and coveralls are just great for old car projects. But I am also a big fan of power washing engines before taking them apart. Why would you want all that crud on something that needs to be clean on the inside after you put it together again ?

 

[Outlawmws]

Older thread, but I didn't see my solution:

I have scrap carpet runners in the main traffic areas of my garage, and more carpeting near the door to the house. By the time I'm coming in the door any ordinary dirt is off my feet. those runways get vacuumed regularly, and the rest of the floor is cleaned regularly also. Any grease or oil spills are cleaned IMMEDIATELY.

Same deal in the screen room between the outside door and the back kitchen slider, only that one is an old Oriental carpet from the house step to outer door. There is a scrap of regular thick pile carpet on the step for a final wipe. This keeps most of the yard tracking from ever getting inside.

I do a similar trick in the mountains while camping. I used to use ordinary scrap carpet sections, but discovered the desert tribesmen had it figured out a long time ago that the oriental type carpets are thinner, roll easier, and are lighter (take a LOT less space) and are easier to clean. (If nasty I hose or power wash them, and let them dry in the driveway on a sunny day. If not so nasty they just get vacuumed)

If they are wet from rain I can roll them and stick one end in a 5 gal bucket and minimize any water inside the vehicle. (the runners get transported that way anyway, wet or dry)

I carry one about 5x7 for the main cooking area and several long runners to get to and from the tents. Last is a couple of smaller door mat sized carpets for using next to a cot so you have a clean spot to stand when dressing, as the floor of a tent will have some dirt no matter what.

In camp we use a whisk broom to keep the big stuff off.

And its cheap, as you can get damaged oriental carpets at yard sales for anywhere from $5 to free.

 

[Zeke]

I have the opposite problem. My wife works at an industrial site and walks through oil soaked pavement to get to the office. The office carpet is black, the carpet in the car is black — it was tan. At least some of it rubs off before she comes inside the house.

I guess I don't have much to worry about.

 

[Kevin54]

Her ya go. Disposable shoe covers http://www.prosafetysupplies.com/category/shoecovers/

 

[Mark H]

I just make sure my wife is equiped with a good vacuum cleaner and a decent mop!

 

[santagary]

I grew up wearing my shoes in the house. But my wife goes ballistic if I wear shoes in the house now. Learned over the years that it is a lot easier to just take them off and put on a pair of slippers whenever I come into the house. Not too big a deal once you get used to it ... I keep the slippers by the back door and most of my shoes ... except the work boots ... are slip-on style.

Ditto...slip on clogs and slippers by the back door!

 

[lotsoftools]

Plastic grocery bags! Whenever I have to make a quick trip inside for food or whatever, I put bags over my boots and tie them around my ankles. Cheap and easy.

 

[bad_idea]

For all you guys preaching a clean garage.... You mean to tell me you've never been elbow deep in a welding project and had to run in the house? Grinding dust heaped all over the floor and you have to walk through it? Never had saw dust all over the place in the middle of a project? I keep my garage clean but still make a mess while working on a project. Not everyone has a fully equipped shop with dust collection.

The worst is saw dust. I have a regular door mat right inside the garage door but I think I will have to step it up to a better mat.

 

[Inventive1]

A previous house I lived in had a bathroom a couple of steps from the back door. There was a tile floor from the outside door to the bathroom. It was easy to sweep up saw dust, etc. I kept drinking water in the garage. Had to clean up some and take off my shoes before lunch, but that wasn't a big deal.

 

[Zeke]

Plastic grocery bags! Whenever I have to make a quick trip inside for food or whatever, I put bags over my boots and tie them around my ankles. Cheap and easy.

We need pics of that!

 

[mmhouse]

I have some old slip-on shoes that I usually wear in the garage (easy on, easy off) and a nice, big mat from Costco in front of the door. We NEVER wear our shoes in the house - got in that habit when we lived in a very snowy climate and the house, carpet, etc. was purchased with my money!

 

[Outlawmws]

For all you guys preaching a clean garage.... You mean to tell me you've never been elbow deep in a welding project and had to run in the house? Grinding dust heaped all over the floor and you have to walk through it? Never had saw dust all over the place in the middle of a project? I keep my garage clean but still make a mess while working on a project. Not everyone has a fully equipped shop with dust collection.

The worst is saw dust. I have a regular door mat right inside the garage door but I think I will have to step it up to a better mat.

Sure, but re-read post 24. Dusty dirt is easy to get scrubbed off your shoes in 10-15 ft of sacrificial carpet...