Keeping Garage Clean

[ssanto]

I've had it with my grungy garage!

It is a 3 car garage that is home to my race car project plus all the tools I need to maintain and do projects around the house. I find that the surfaces and tops of all my cabinets and workbenches and stuff that doesn't fit in drawers (like welders and torches and stuff) are always covered with dust and grit.

I think I've got 3 main causes:
1) Poor sealing of the garage door that allows dirt and dust to blow in (I'm fixing that this weekend)
2) Grinding and cutting metal inside the garage blows **** everywhere
3) Spray painting overspray gets all over sometimes

I have the garage door open frequently so stuff is going to blow in. And I'll try to move the metal saw and grinder outside when chopping metal. But I still need to do grinding on the bench when it needs to be held in the vise.

Any tips? How often do you guys clean your garage?

Thanks!!

 

[FredWanaker]

it is an ongoing task. Each task you complete is one less that piles up.

 

[FMB4]

I have the same problem with our 3 car here in S. Idaho (in the Great Dusty Basin). All I can do is keep it under semi control by brushing, sweeping, and vacuuming once a month. I prefer a paper filter element vac for such. As for wood working, I do as much outside as/when possible. Another issue is our 70 lb. Australian Sheppard that sheds like crazy year around.

 

[HPRifleman]

Depends on your definition of clean. Does that mean tidy (items are stored in their places) or actually clean (like you can eat off it).

Your post implies the latter referring to dust and overspray. Move the messy work outside. No need to clean if it doesn't get dirty. Also, cobwebs in corners capture a lot dust. Get some Swiffer sheets and slide them across surfaces often.

 

[41ratrod]

Depends on your definition of clean. Does that mean tidy (items are stored in their places) or actually clean (like you can eat off it).

Your post implies the latter referring to dust and overspray. Move the messy work outside. No need to clean if it doesn't get dirty. Also, cobwebs in corners capture a lot dust. Get some Swiffer sheets and slide them across surfaces often.

I blow every thing off with the air gun and then use the leaf blower to clean the floor, the garage door open [and then the wind blows it all back in] the i use the broom.

 

[loganb]

Thanks man!

Here's the link, I can already tell a difference.

https://www.garagedoorstuff.com/product/garage-door-top-seal/

I'm ready for the snow if it hits us, in all reality, I love an excuse to push snow on the skid steer

I had a lot of light leakage at the top of my garage doors and used used product linked above and was very happy with it.. easy to install....fast shipping and worked well! Not sure how much dust was sneaking in there but made me feel better at least!

Otherwise I'm a big fan of using the cordless leaf blower for cleanup after I sweep up the bulk of it

 

[engineer2]

Sweep with a broom and lobby pan
Shop-Vac after a project.
Open the garage door:

Leaf blower for leaves that blow in and minor ****​

Air hose for more detailed dusting​

 

[welder4956]

Another vote for the leaf blower. I keep a brush near the workbench to sweep sawdust or grinding dust off into the trash can after a project or at the end of the day, then take the leaf blower and blow everything else out the door. Occasionally I'll go around the shop and blow off shelves and other surfaces that gather dust before blowing the floor.

 

[jonshonda]

When I did construction one of my mentors (foreman) would always preach "sweep softly" when we were cleaning inside enclosed buildings. What he meant was don't aggressively start and end your sweeping motion. Don't slam the broom down or try to push the pile fast. While you might be leaving a few fines on the ground, you aren't making them airborne.

I would say if possible replace the air gun and leaf blower with a broom and vacuum. If you cannot move grinding outside, then possibly try to contain with a curtain of some type? I have moved my grinding outside, and while it is inconvenient at times, it sure does cut down on the mess.

 

[Bob Peach]

I just repainted the floor in my shop. Made a huge difference in being able to sweep up sawdust. the concrete was holding the dust. As a bonus the light gray color makes it much brighter.

 

[mmb617]

Any garage where you actually work is going to have a certain amount of dirt, as opposed to clutter. I try to stay ahead of clutter by returning tools to their proper place when a job is done. About all that can be done to combat dirt is cleaning as often and as thoroughly as you feel necessary. I always wipe off or vacuum surfaces and sweep the floor as I feel using air guns or leaf blowers just make the dirt airborne where it inevitably settles on the surfaces again.

 

[Stuart in MN]

Any garage where you actually work is going to have a certain amount of dirt, as opposed to clutter. I try to stay ahead of clutter by returning tools to their proper place when a job is done.

The good thing is if you can eliminate clutter, it's usually easier to clean up the dirt.

 

[Jazz1]

you can announce to the bride when you step into the house that the garage is ready to be cleaned...did not work for me so I put everything away daily and clean,,,if you procrastinate garage surely become overwhelming disaster area... As stated,,get rid of clutter.

 

[rburke65]

It IS a constant job. I try to put away…take the 15 seconds and pick i5 up, put i5 away now….don’t think ‘I’ll do it later’. I shop vac floor often. Wife says my shop is cleaner than the house…..that’s not true but it’s what she’s saying.

 

[PoorUB]

Epoxy floor sealer made a huge difference in my shop. The floor cleans so much easier.

I also have an air filer, like this, https://www.jettools.com/us/en/p/af...on-system-3-speed-with-remote-control/708620B and it really helps when painting and welding to keep the dust down. I run it a lot while working in the shop.

 

[Bucko]

My old house had a 3 car garage with a double door close to the door to the house and a single car garage door on the opposite end. I walled off the single car for woodworking which helped greatly with the dust and the added wall allowed for more cabinets which also helps to keep dust from settling on everything. It also had 10' ceilings so I put a perimeter shelf around both sides for storage and all of that went into Rubbermaid type totes. I often joked that I had so many cabinets in that garage that I did not even have space for a dart board and it was true.
Now I have a 3 car attached that just keeps all the storage stuff for the home like Christmas stuff and such and a 12' set of cabinets for other home stuff. All the messy man stuff is now in my detached shop which is also divided for wood and auto.

Attached is a pictures of the garage the day I sold it. The one empty section of wall is where the tool cabinets were. The area with two large side cabinets and a bench in-between was done that way so my car I was restoring would fit under the bench to have more room near the door.. Organization is the key to cleanliness in a small space or a good sized space with alot of ****.

 

[nadogail]

A clean garage is a sign of a sick mind, I clean mine just enough to maintain a low grade fever, I see no point in turning your work space into a "Clean Room"

 

[bad_idea]

The gritty grime on every surface is what drives me nuts. I still haven't figured out how to keep that at bay. I think adequate ventilation is key. Haven't proven this theory yet, working on it though. My thought is a vent hood over the work area to pull all of the air from your work area before the dust can float on the air throughout the shop. I get grit settling on stuff clear across the building (30x40x12).

 

[Craftfab]

I have been looking off and on at air scrubbers, both the industrial kind you can hang from your ceiling with lots of filter options (like charcoal), and the ~$500 HEPA filter canister air scrubbers (lower CFM) that people use in renovation and remediation work.

 

[lolaetype]

Any tips? How often do you guys clean your garage?

I've got an old HF vice bolted to a 2X4 that I then C-clamp to a Work Mate when I need to weld, grind or cut something messy outside. Easier than cleaning the garage. My grinder on it's stand gets moved out the garage door when I use it. I bought a cheap corded blower that I use to keep the floor "broom clean".

Seems like even the simplest jobs wind up emptying half the contents of the tool chest on to the workbenches and floor. When it gets too hard to find something I take a break form the work and round up all the tools I don't currently need for the job, wipe them down and put them where they go. And the job isn't done until the shop is cleaned and tools are put up.

Yes, I'm **** about a clean workspace.

 

[niget2002]

I've recently started draping fitted sheets over large tools when not in use. Helps to keep sawdust off of the mill and welding stuff.

 

[RivennHewn]

My only advice would be to never buy a Newfound dog. I am constantly chasing ********* fur balls. I can fill up a shop vac in no time.
I’ve come to the conclusion that I will never get a layer of paint, varnish, or epoxy that doesn’t include Newfie fur.

And then there is the drool

 

[LeonardY]

The key is containment. I use a dust collection. All my tools have the ability to hook up to a large cyclone or a mini one.
I also sweep and blow the garage out regularly. Although, currently the garage looks like a bomb went off. It's hard to keep dust and grime at bay when there is **** every where.

 

[Retctddvr]

Just happens that I just finished a planter/greenhouse project 8 foot by 3 foot. It involved 2x6, chicken wire, visqueen rebar, homemade brackets, pex pipe, pvc pipe, etc etc. slightly over planned...yes. Anyway the grace is a mess so today I am cleaning. Tools, dust and scraps everywhere.

I agree, 1. after every project clean and neaten. 2. Cabinets and toolboxes help. My latest Husky has the angled flip open top, greatest catchall area ever. Why can't I remember to close it at the end of the day and before using a saw or grinder?

So my take is that dust and grime happens if you are having fun with tools. I don't always like cleaning up my shop but it sure is inviting when its clean and organized.

 

[Xcursion88]

Any garage where you actually work is going to have a certain amount of dirt, as opposed to clutter. I try to stay ahead of clutter by returning tools to their proper place when a job is done. About all that can be done to combat dirt is cleaning as often and as thoroughly as you feel necessary. I always wipe off or vacuum surfaces and sweep the floor as I feel using air guns or leaf blowers just make the dirt airborne where it inevitably settles on the surfaces again.

This.
Leaf blow the floors, lift rails...
Wipe surfaces off once a month...especially if you use rice cakes for cleaning wheel lips, steering knuckles, etc.

That said it's still going to get dirty.

Clutter, on the other hand, is the absolute worst of it all. Empty parts boxes, floor dry or mats used lying around, cherry pickers/engine stands out of place, used shop towels...

Drives me crazy

 

[ZRX61]

Leaf blower....

 

[racecougar]

If you're able to cordon off a dirty side from a clean side while grinding, it helps immensely when it's time to clean up. I use a shop curtain consisting of two large tarps zip-tied together to parcel off one third of the shop into my work area. When I'm done working, I only have to clean up that third of the shop, and it keeps that abrasive dust off the cars as well.

I don't have a photo of the curtain deployed on this computer, but you can see it in its stored position here:

 

[dcg9381]

I have two automated (robot) vacs that I dispatch and clean a few times a week. We also have an air purifier to help with the dust...
Another "huge" factor is having a coating on a bare concrete floor..
But in the end, if you're making sawdust or metal, it's a lot more cleaning..

 

[u2slow]

I try my best to drag dirty, dusty, grinder work outside, or do it right near the shop door with the door open. Stuff doesn't blow in much unless I have the back door open causing a draft.

 

[PoorUB]

I have been looking off and on at air scrubbers, both the industrial kind you can hang from your ceiling with lots of filter options (like charcoal), and the ~$500 HEPA filter canister air scrubbers (lower CFM) that people use in renovation and remediation work.

IMO, a HEPA filter in a shop would be a wasted effort. Why try clean the air that well when you are just going to blow the air full of **** again? To some degree the air you are breathing will have dust in it at all times unless you can stop the source of the dust, and that isn't happening in a shop unless you move all the grinding, welding and painting to a booth with exhaust and none of it in the main shop. (good luck with that!) Just any good shop air cleaner helps a lot, or build your own with a furnace blower and pleated paper filters.

 

[PoorUB]

I've got an old HF vice bolted to a 2X4 that I then C-clamp to a Work Mate when I need to weld, grind or cut something messy outside. Easier than cleaning the garage.

That is great in your climate. This morning it was -6F. I am not standing outside in the driveway in sub zero temps cutting and grinding when I have a 70 degree shop!

 

[rayra]

Sweep with a broom and lobby pan
Shop-Vac after a project.
Open the garage door:

Leaf blower for leaves that blow in and minor ****​

Air hose for more detailed dusting​

All of this, exactly.
After every big sawdust-generating project and periodically generally.

I've got 1 stall of an attached 3-car as my shop. My next attempt at 'containment' is to install a floor to ceiling curtain wall to segregate the shop area from the rest of the garage

 

[PZ 1]

You could get a bench grinder with a dust collection system. There are times that having a vacuum cleaner hose inlet nozzle close to what you are doing will at least help.

 

[dcg9381]

IMO, a HEPA filter in a shop would be a wasted effort. Why try clean the air that well when you are just going to blow the air full of **** again? To some degree the air you are breathing will have dust in it at all times unless you can stop the source of the dust, and that isn't happening in a shop unless you move all the grinding, welding and painting to a booth with exhaust and none of it in the main shop. (good luck with that!) Just any good shop air cleaner helps a lot, or build your own with a furnace blower and pleated paper filters.

So we just acquired a "hung from ceiling" dust filter, designed for wood shops. It has a media filter that's designed to have stuff roll off of it and be cleaned with a "flow gauge" to show full of **** the filter is. Apparently it can accumulate enough dust to make it difficult to remove if you don't stay on top of it. This, in conjunction with a dust collection system - apparently works wonders in wood shops. I can't attest to it yet, I'm not much of a wood worker.

My primary uses are car/metal work. For this use, sealing the floor with polyurea, adding a robot vac, and a simple HVAC filter has really worked well, but I stay on top of it.

 

[PoorUB]

So we just acquired a "hung from ceiling" dust filter, designed for wood shops. It has a media filter that's designed to have stuff roll off of it and be cleaned with a "flow gauge" to show full of **** the filter is. Apparently it can accumulate enough dust to make it difficult to remove if you don't stay on top of it. This, in conjunction with a dust collection system - apparently works wonders in wood shops. I can't attest to it yet, I'm not much of a wood worker.

My primary uses are car/metal work. For this use, sealing the floor with polyurea, adding a robot vac, and a simple HVAC filter has really worked well, but I stay on top of it.

I have one and use it all the time. I was welding and doing some light painting in the shop this afternoon and I turned it on as soon as I walked in the door.

It does a pretty good job of capturing particulate in the air from welding and painting too. I notice some paint gets through the filter, but it is much better with it than without!

 

[Craftfab]

PoorUB, have you tried the charcoal filter in your Jet, or just the standard outer and inner pocket filters?

 

[niget2002]

I had to dig this thread back up...

After spending most of Sunday cleaning the shop with the kids' help, I've noticed that walking into the shop is like a breath of fresh air.

I didn't realize how much I dreaded just walking into the shop because of all the stuff from projects piled up by the door and on the floor.

I've been working on a few projects since February that I've finished in the last few weeks that had most of the shop taken up. The worst one being the motorcycle project because the lift is right by the shop door and that's where all the tools/parts were scattered.

I think my brain is conditioned to see all the stuff when I walk out there because I noticed this morning that walking in I actually sighed.

It made me stop and think for a moment.

I also think I need to rearrange the shop so the motorcycle lift is not right by the door.

 

[jwilson645]

I had to dig this thread back up...

After spending most of Sunday cleaning the shop with the kids' help, I've noticed that walking into the shop is like a breath of fresh air.

I didn't realize how much I dreaded just walking into the shop because of all the stuff from projects piled up by the door and on the floor.

I've been working on a few projects since February that I've finished in the last few weeks that had most of the shop taken up. The worst one being the motorcycle project because the lift is right by the shop door and that's where all the tools/parts were scattered.

I think my brain is conditioned to see all the stuff when I walk out there because I noticed this morning that walking in I actually sighed.

It made me stop and think for a moment.

I also think I need to rearrange the shop so the motorcycle lift is not right by the door.

This! My metal shop is 1/2 of our small 2 car garage and whenever I work, I have the garage door open with 2 large fans blowing toward the opening. The other half is full of misc **** and our 48 Willys CJ2A project. Anything that anyone brings in gets piled on my side because you have to go through it to get into the house. Everytime I need to cut, grind, weld, I spend an hour moving all of the flammable items that have been left. Between that and all the grit on everything, it makes me hate the shop

 

[niget2002]

Heh. rereading this thread... I may have dug up the wrong one. I was using the site on my phone and this one 'looked right'.

There's another thread somewhere on this site that's more in line with just normal tidiness of the shop.

Oh well.

 

[Bucko]

I had to dig this thread back up...

After spending most of Sunday cleaning the shop with the kids' help, I've noticed that walking into the shop is like a breath of fresh air.

I didn't realize how much I dreaded just walking into the shop because of all the stuff from projects piled up by the door and on the floor.

I've been working on a few projects since February that I've finished in the last few weeks that had most of the shop taken up. The worst one being the motorcycle project because the lift is right by the shop door and that's where all the tools/parts were scattered.

I think my brain is conditioned to see all the stuff when I walk out there because I noticed this morning that walking in I actually sighed.

It made me stop and think for a moment.

I also think I need to rearrange the shop so the motorcycle lift is not right by the door.

Yeah I definitely can understand the feeling of a clean shop after it was a mess.
I usually need to hit the pause button on projects and have a shop clean-up day to get everything reorganized. It was a little easier in my old shop because of the small space. New shop is much bigger and separate from the attached garage so things can end up all over and pretty much being the only one that ever uses it accept for my father-in-law occasionally stuff can sit right where I left it and not be in anyone else's way.