keeping work areas clean

[revkev6]

I've been looking over the pictures of work areas and organization in every garage thread I can find. I see TONS of pictures of these perfect pretty garages. I work on cars in my garage mostly. hot rods are my hobby. i have welders grinders saws and grease.... on a clean day! things like pretty stainless workbenches with a bench grinder mounted to them and a shiny white wall behind it start to make my lip twitch....

how do you keep those garages clean and manageable. I have my bench grinder on the corner of my wooden bench the entire 4ft circle around it is grey by the end of the project. Do you really wash the walls or what??

I want my shop to look nice, but I don't want it to be something I clean more than my house! (actually I think I already do that lol)

 

[PoorOwner]

I use my dust generating tools in the driveway.

 

[revkev6]

I live in new england. 6 months out of the year that's not gonna happen because of snow and cold, and the other 6 months it's raining 50% of the time lol

plus, neighbors are close. shop equipment stays inside.

 

[CoogarXR]

Yeah, I try to do all my sanding and dusty-stuff outside. If I did more of it, I would invest in a dust collection system.

Basically, my only cleanliness rule is, I clean up after every job. I put all my tools away (wipe them off if they got dirty), this includes putting them totally away (take bits out of drills, put sockets back on rails, everything back in its place), roll up hoses and cords, throw away all boxes and trash, and sweep the floor. It's no big deal really. Maybe 20 minutes each time. But the messes add up if you leave them. Plus the frustration of not being able to find stuff.

I'm kinda sickly, and I can run out of energy suddenly. So I always factor in clean-up when I am working. I always try to quit before I am totally exhausted so I'll be able to clean up, lol.

All that being said, if somebody were to look at my garage (and I have never posted pics of it), they probably wouldn't call it clean by the standards on this forum, heh. But I know where everything is, and the tools and floor are clean, doggonit

 

[firworks]

I've been looking over the pictures of work areas and organization in every garage thread I can find. I see TONS of pictures of these perfect pretty garages. I work on cars in my garage mostly. hot rods are my hobby. i have welders grinders saws and grease.... on a clean day! things like pretty stainless workbenches with a bench grinder mounted to them and a shiny white wall behind it start to make my lip twitch....

how do you keep those garages clean and manageable. I have my bench grinder on the corner of my wooden bench the entire 4ft circle around it is grey by the end of the project. Do you really wash the walls or what??

I want my shop to look nice, but I don't want it to be something I clean more than my house! (actually I think I already do that lol)

I clean my garage much more than my house. But then I accept that the house will always be a disaster and just enjoy being out in the garage more.

I think how clean you can keep it is a function of how much space you have to an extent. If you have too much stuff and not enough space you have no chance of staying clean. If I want to do any kind of assembly work, staining, painting, it has to happen on my table saw. I don't have enough room to have a second flat surface in there. There's not enough interior volume in my crappy one car garage. Thus when I want to use the table saw I either have to move all the **** that has accumulated on it because it's the only open flat surface, or resurface the top to get all the **** off from staining / gluing up on it.

My guess though is you'd be better off picking what YOU think is a clean and good shop and focus on that. I wouldn't care about the wall behind a grinder unless I was trying to sell the house. I do like the floor not being covered in saw dust and cut offs and stuff to trip over though just because it makes it more enjoyable to work out there.

One other factor here is if you have enough money to have the perfect garage with beautiful floors walls and Vipers parked in it. You probably have an out building or machine shed where you can grind, resurface things and only use the "show" garage for assembly / installation. Some of the fancy race deck style garages I probably wouldn't even want to change oil / transmission fluid and the like in depending on the car. I'm trying to remember which one it was but one car I was helping someone with had the oil drain plug right above a piece of subframe where as soon as you popped it out oil was guaranteed to go everywhere.

 

[Ilikeike]

I use a leaf blower A LOT to help keep my home garage and shop at work clean.

If you clean up after yourself at the end of each project or at least tidy up little at the end of each work day I the garage it's not too difficult to keep your work area clean.

 

[hh76]

Basically, my only cleanliness rule is, I clean up after every job. I put all my tools away (wipe them off if they got dirty), this includes putting them totally away (take bits out of drills, put sockets back on rails, everything back in its place), roll up hoses and cords, throw away all boxes and trash, and sweep the floor. It's no big deal really. Maybe 20 minutes each time. But the messes add up if you leave them. Plus the frustration of not being able to find stuff.
)

I agree, and try to do the same.

I don't really care about clean, but hate clutter. If I walk out and the shop is a mess, I lose a lot of motivation, so I make sure that I clean up before quitting.

I find that having the shop vac plugged in and ready to go really helps keep me on top of grindin/ sawing messes (make sure to let things cool down first).

 

[Stuart in MN]

Remember that most people are probably cleaning up their shops before taking pictures.

Stopping a little early and cleaning up at the end of each day is a good way to keep it from getting away from you.

 

[CoogarXR]

... I'm trying to remember which one it was but one car I was helping someone with had the oil drain plug right above a piece of subframe where as soon as you popped it out oil was guaranteed to go everywhere.

Fox body 5.0 fords are like that- they have two drain plugs. The one on the front faces forward, and makes a %$@% mess every time. Squirts all over the sway bar, etc. Then the filter is on the side, and it dumps all down the block and drips everywhere too. Fun times.

I couldn't have a fancy floor. I'm always dragging jacks, jackstands, ramps, creepers, dumping fluids everywhere, etc. I keep my floor clean, but it's looked like a dalmatian since before I owned it.

 

[homebuilt burner]

I clean up after every job. That said my shop is far from some of the hospital type settings I see on here. It depends what you do in your garage. If you are changing oil, washing, and adding accessories the shop/garage stays pretty clean. Start blowing down an engine block for a tear down/rebuild and valve job and "stuff" is gonna fly. I have noticed at the tractor shows I go to the guys with the really nice tractors that do their own work have filthy shops and the guys with beautiful shops usually don't do full resto jobs. But some exceptions exist, I have seen ultra clean shops where guys really get into "it". They just clean constantly.

It really is up to the individual as far as how clean you keep it and how much work you are doing.

 

[revkev6]

I don't get anywhere near as much "shop time" as I'd like so usually what happens to me is I just get the project finished when I have to go into the house. basically drop the tools and go. I will then take a seperate portion of time to clean, usually smaller or while doing something else... fire up the grill, put some tools away. finish the lawn, sweep... that kind of thing. I've been looking that the 12 gage garage thread though and see how changing my layout of the shop would make cleaning and working both easier.

another thing, I currently have NO cabinets. all storage is free standing shelves. this is hard to get to, collects dust and adds to the appearance of clutter. I'm in the process of doing drywall so once that's done I will be putting in some reclaimed kitchen cabinets. of course they are white and very clean.

 

[Jazz1]

Some of the garage interiors look absolutely sterile like a catalogue setting. Only one thing can maintain that appearance.

 

[hh76]

I don't get anywhere near as much "shop time" as I'd like so usually what happens to me is I just get the project finished when I have to go into the house. basically drop the tools and go. I will then take a seperate portion of time to clean, usually smaller or while doing something else... fire up the grill, put some tools away. finish the lawn, sweep... that kind of thing. I've been looking that the 12 gage garage thread though and see how changing my layout of the shop would make cleaning and working both easier.

another thing, I currently have NO cabinets. all storage is free standing shelves. this is hard to get to, collects dust and adds to the appearance of clutter. I'm in the process of doing drywall so once that's done I will be putting in some reclaimed kitchen cabinets. of course they are white and very clean.

I hardly get any shop time right now, which is exactly why I make sure to clean up every time I'm out there. It easier to get started in the shop when everything is picked up and where it's supposed to be. If the shop is a mess, everything takes longer, and I tend to forget where I set a tool or part down. Less time available means you need to be efficient, which means organization.

Another part of my theory is that I don't bring anything home if I don't already have a place for it. Too many times in the past I'd pick up something on a whim, then have to set it on the floor or bench, where it may spend too much time. Too much junk in the way hurting you production.

 

[xtremek]

Mine will never be ultra clean. I just work toward less than a 1/2" of dust, soot, filings covering everything. Bench broom is one of my most used tools. But don't get your light colored shirt near my bench.

 

[dclassical]

First off I do not do any fabrication but only car maintenance and repairs (along with house maintenance/repairs). I like to keep my garage clean because I also do electronics projects there (from time to time).

What I do is clean up after every job. Sockets get a wipe, dirty handles get a quick wipe with WD40. Nothing more.

 

[Backpack Hunter]

While not a show room garage I merely tend to clean up after every project. If you walked into my garage right now I can tell you where everything is, the floor is clean, and the work benches are clean....not stain free, but clean.

 

[zmotorsports]

My shop is a true "working shop", not a "Garage Mahal" so therefore does not look like an operating room in a hospital. I wish it did but rather than polishing my equipment and wiping my walls down, I use my tools and equipment for the purpose in which they were designed and purchased.

Ok, that said, my shop is also kept very clean while working and everything is put away between jobs. It is small and I am busting at the seams and cannot afford to have things taking up space for no purpose. I have stainless steel benchtops and keep them cleaned and wiped down after each job. After 20+ years now they have a few dents and dings compared to when I originally installed them but for the most part they are still in great shape. I do NOT go from one job's mess into another without first cleaning up from the previous job or task at hand.

My welding/machining/fabrication section is basically one side of the shop and when grinding or machining, the dust or swarf is swept up at the end of each night's work, NO exception. It really is not that hard once you get into the practice of cleaning up for the last 20-minutes or so of each night before locking up.

Mike.

 

[SweetD]

I clean my garage much more than my house. But then I accept that the house will always be a disaster and just enjoy being out in the garage more.

Great post - glad I'm not the only one!

For me, the garage is the only space in our busy home that is all mine, and no one else really cares about. So I do keep it clean - not OCD clean - but tidy and cleaned up after projects.

We also have a standing "rule" that the garage will always be able to handle two parked cars at night, which prevents me from leaving it cluttered. My garage is only 24'x24', so we're not talking a lot of extra room here...



Dave

 

[Thumper68]

The worst part for me right now is that I have added so much equipment to the shop in the last year that things are not where they will ultimately end up and it is not so much the new machines it is the accy's and old machines that they are replacing.

 

[Beenman]

I've been looking over the pictures of work areas and organization in every garage thread I can find. I see TONS of pictures of these perfect pretty garages. I work on cars in my garage mostly. hot rods are my hobby. i have welders grinders saws and grease.... on a clean day! things like pretty stainless workbenches with a bench grinder mounted to them and a shiny white wall behind it start to make my lip twitch....

how do you keep those garages clean and manageable. I have my bench grinder on the corner of my wooden bench the entire 4ft circle around it is grey by the end of the project. Do you really wash the walls or what??

I want my shop to look nice, but I don't want it to be something I clean more than my house! (actually I think I already do that lol)

I once mentioned on here that I prefer the look of a busy workshop / workbench to one that looks clinical and seldom used and got flamed a bit. So I'm probably in the minority when I say I don't over clean my garage. I just pack every tool back in place, and give a general sweep of the surfaces and floor to remove most of the dust / shavings etc. That's it.....

 

[PoorOwner]

my 72"x24" bench surface clutter up real quickly. I constantly have some little hardware on it that I have not decided what to do yet.

I don't quite get those garage tiles that lets the fluid flow right through, must be only for parking and waxing your car. The metal shaving and wood dust and auto fluid will fall right through.

 

[SweetD]

I don't quite get those garage tiles that lets the fluid flow right through, must be only for parking and waxing your car. The metal shaving and wood dust and auto fluid will fall right through.

...and get stuck? Right?

 

[jeff lary]

I live in new england. 6 months out of the year that's not gonna happen because of snow and cold, and the other 6 months it's raining 50% of the time lol

plus, neighbors are close. shop equipment stays inside.

Weather in Maine *****,.. I don't know where you are but you are preaching to the choir.

 

[PelicanPines]

I also use a leaf blower in my garage... it blows lighter tools... so i have to make sure they are put away. It also blows my two garage cats out... so i have to understand where they are before proceeding.

 

[xtremek]

I also use a leaf blower in my garage........It also blows my two garage cats out... so i have to understand where they are before proceeding.

Is that why the cat in your avatar looks like that?

 

[SweetD]

I also use a leaf blower in my garage...

+1 - using the backpack blower to do a quick "sweep" of the garage floor is a nice way to get it done!

 

[countryroad82]

I do paint and body work. I clean a lot. Dust is a constant battle. I am a big fan of washing the floors down and blowing out nooks and crannies.

 

[crewchief888]

I once mentioned on here that I prefer the look of a busy workshop / workbench to one that looks clinical and seldom used and got flamed a bit. So I'm probably in the minority when I say I don't over clean my garage. I just pack every tool back in place, and give a general sweep of the surfaces and floor to remove most of the dust / shavings etc. That's it.....

i'm kinda the same, i clean up when i cant find tools anymore, or cant see the floor...

sometimes part of a project may take several nights, days or weekends. all depends on what else i'm "suppose" to be doing.
the "project" might include, cutting, bending, welding, electrical, ect

i try to pick up and put stuff away before it looks like a bomb went off.

 

[77Mini]

I use a leaf blower A LOT to help keep my home garage and shop at work clean.

If you clean up after yourself at the end of each project or at least tidy up little at the end of each work day I the garage it's not too difficult to keep your work area clean.

This ^

Leaf blower is a great garage cleaning tool.

 

[Casey69]

I use a leaf blower A LOT to help keep my home garage and shop at work clean.

same. always feel like bill murray cleaning his house in caddyshack when i do it though.

 

[ZRX61]

Had a guy a VNY who had the hangar two doors up from me clean out his hangar by pulling his Piper twin half way out & firing it up.....That worked....

 

[bczygan]

Those neat as a pin, look like a museum garages are an unattainable goal for me.

Best I can do is to get workable work spaces.

Bill

 

[BDT/NWMN]

I don't always have mine spotless, but I don't care to work in a pig pen.. On some projects, the broom and shovel are the most used tools.. One fellow asked for my help and advice while working under a semi truck. I told him that I didn't have tire chains on my creeper to deal with the two inches of mud on the shop floor under that truck. The mud had to be cleaned up sooner or later anyway;; so it was cleaned up first.. I consider cleanup to be an ongoing part of any project that I work on.. The term "reasonably clean" comes to mind..

 

[jeepinerdeep]

Everywhere I worked cleanup IS part of that job. If you aren't cleaning up, you aren't doing the whole job. Applies wherever I am now. Customer shop, dealer shop, our shop, my home shop- everywhere.

I think the main influence on some super clean places is that they start pristine, the owners are likely neat, methodical and probably doing more finesse type work . Thus it wouldn't be so hard to return to pristine status.

 

[TK-421]

Wipe things down when I'm done, or while in the middle of doing something if it's really bad. Use a dust collector to collect as much stuff as possible if I know stuff will get flung into the air and settle elsewhere. Try and clean up spills as soon as they happen, rather than when I'm done and they've stained the concrete.

I don't have a garage yet, but when I do that's how I hope to keep it mostly clean. I'll have to modify it depending on what I have, how much space I have, and what I'm doing, but that will hopefully take care of the basics.

 

[sberry]

I have it as part of the system, I put away as I go, just as easy to get it again as trip over or wade thru.

 

[lonestarky]

I've found if you spend a decent amount of time labeling, storing, shadowing, and organizing, cleaning up isn't tough either. 5s is ingrained, and I use it for all items in my life, from my closet to my toolbox. I do a lot of work, side and professional, and I've found that if there isn't a label or a system, that's how the mess starts. Additionally, sectioning for storage helps a lot. Think about a knife block, vs the store bought knife organizer. One is a slot for every knife, the other is a nested mess of 4 or 5 knives on top of one another with the thickest part (handles) all stacked together.

A place for everything, and everything in its place.

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

 

[sammons]

Everywhere I worked cleanup IS part of that job. If you aren't cleaning up, you aren't doing the whole job. Applies wherever I am now. Customer shop, dealer shop, our shop, my home shop- everywhere.

I think the main influence on some super clean places is that they start pristine, the owners are likely neat, methodical and probably doing more finesse type work . Thus it wouldn't be so hard to return to pristine status.

100% agree. a few friends give me a hard time for keeping my shop clean and I have been asked why do you sweep and mop your garage when its going to get dirty again. I respond, is that why you don't shower. What ever floats your boat.

 

[DieselPills]

I think a lot of those pretty pictures you are talking about are poses specifically for this website and they never look like that in actual use. Or it's just a silly man cave that never actually gets used for work.

Let's be honest - some people here buy stainless work benches and other **** like that just so they can post a picture.

 

[zmotorsports]

I do paint and body work. I clean a lot. Dust is a constant battle. I am a big fan of washing the floors down and blowing out nooks and crannies.

I hear ya on that. When I had my little shop at my parents house in high school I did a lot of paint/body work and was ALWAYS cleaning and that dust was like talcum powder and got everywhere. Especially in toolbox drawers, even with the damn thing covered. I swore when I finally was able to build my dream workshop at home that I would never do paint/body work in it.

So far after just over 20 years now I have been able to refrain and have never sprayed anything in my shop. Although I actually don't do much paint and body work at all now and sometimes I kind of miss it, SOMETIMES!!

I have painted a few things outside but even then I don't really care to.

Mike.