My 30x40 block Garage

[NeilMig]

Hi Garage journal,

I want to start by saying thank you to everyone for making this such an amazing place. Although this is my first post i have been a lurker for many years. I have enjoyed following along with your builds and i hope to incorporate some of what i have learned into my own garage.

Some Background:
This is my first home. I moved in with may girlfriend last november (2017). Detached from the house is a large block garage (30x40 I think). This was a major selling point for both of us. The goal is to build out the garage into a sort of "do it all" shop. We are both engineers and like to tinker. I also have a project car that needs a home.

The first few posts in this thread will be from the past and i will work up to present day.

Now on to the pictures

First are the photos from the listing:
taken from the entry door

From the left side of the double door

After seeing these we where excited but its hard to get a sense of scale from the photos. That center shelf is ~5 feet tall

Heres a panaroma from the day we looked at it.

At this point we where pretty much sold.
Now onto the fun parts of actually buying a house. We started this process in July but didn't move in until November. The joys of buying an older home with the original septic system. Maybe the longest 5 months of my life.

 

[NeilMig]

I would have loved to set up everything just the way I wanted before I moved all my stuff in...but this wasn't an option. Ill just have to change things as i go.

First thing in was my 240z and all the parts i have collected for it.

Then the car

Getting it in the u-haul was the tricky part, getting it out was easy.

That's my dad who helped me and my girlfriend get the 240 in and out of the u-haul.

The space was already starting to fill up.

 

[JohnK007]

Welcome Neil! Very nice set up! Is that a steel I beam down the center? If so it looks huge! Looks like you got a nice old license plate collection in the deal too. What part of the planet do you hail from?

 

[NeilMig]

Hi John. Thanks for the welcome. I'm from Eastern PA.
That is a steel beam running down the center of the garage. I just measured it at 24" tall and 9" wide. Crazy overkill I'm sure but no vertical columns is a huge plus.

Here's another shot of the plates

 

[Kevkx125]

Welcome from a fellow eastern pa. member, I have the same size building, have fun.

 

[jeepinerdeep]

Nice set up !!!

A little paint on the block and steel beam, and few lights and you'll be surprised how nice it will be to work in there.

 

[NeilMig]

A little paint on the block and steel beam, and few lights and you'll be surprised how nice it will be to work in there.

Originally I wanted to frame and insulate the walls but that is going to have to wait. This garage also came with a house that needs some TLC. My goal now is to just get the shop functional enough to work on house projects. I do see some white paint in the future. I think it would really brighten up the space.

After moving more of my stuff in I decided it would be best to re-configured some of the shelving built by the previous owner. First to go was the tall center island. I'm not sure what the purpose of this was but it didn't work for me.

This really started to open up the space.

 

[LXCam]

That's an awesome shop. Congrats on the new place, it's always a win when you buy a shop and they throw in a house

 

[diernosaj]

That definitely looks bigger than 30x40 lol. Did you measure it?

More like 50x60. Or 40x50, 60.

 

[jp828108]

I agree with diernosaj, that place looks huge. I have a 30x40, and don't seem to have nearly the amount of space it appears you have. Congrats on the place. It is looking awesome.

 

[Paul_VR6]

Even with the car being about 12’ it does look more than 30 deep...

 

[C. Charles Hahn]

No way that's a 30x40... it's massive!

 

[jeepinerdeep]

Originally I wanted to frame and insulate the walls but that is going to have to wait. This garage also came with a house that needs some TLC. My goal now is to just get the shop functional enough to work on house projects. I do see some white paint in the future. I think it would really brighten up the space.

My shop is block too. About every 5 years I buy a 5 gallon pail of whatever exterior white semi gloss paint I can get on sale, and re-roll it to freshen it up. Makes a big difference. Heck the lower level of my shop was just Kilz latex primer for a long time. I just use a roller on a pole, and run it to the floor against some cardboard or plywood. It's not too painful. After the 1st few go-rounds the block and pits are starting to be sealed up pretty nice. Which reminds me, I'm due for a refresh.

 

[Intel]

Nice 240z!

 

[NeilMig]

So I measured it and......43' deep and 33' wide with 11' ceilings.

 

[NeilMig]

Next to go was the little room in the left rear corner. I think this was used for an office at one time. My idea was to get rid of the room and shift the shelves against the wall. This way I could slide the 240 back and leave the single door bay open for car maintenance.

The room in question:

In progress..

These are the shelves I want to move against the wall once the room is gone

No more weird little room

and somewhat cleaned up

 

[TomcoPDR]

Pure awesome NeilMig, is the overhead steel beam an I-beam? Where you might be able to put one of those crane trolleys to roll around?

 

[NeilMig]

Pure awesome NeilMig, is the overhead steel beam an I-beam? Where you might be able to put one of those crane trolleys to roll around?

Thanks TomcoPDR. I appreciate the support. Yes it is an I-beam and i have been keeping my eye out for a trolley. I think it would really come in handy down the line.

Now more pictures..

Something weird is going on with this picture but i think it gives you a good overall view. Once Those shelves are back against the wall the space will be completely open

With the shop being a mess this cart has been really helpful. As I find the tools I need I just throw them on. Having a cart like this is key for me. I can keep all my frequently used tools by my side as I move around the shop.

Little upgrade. Not a big deal but it felt good to actually make something

Also picked this up from a friend. I know a lot of people consider the radial arm saw antiquated but I thought I would give it a try. My plan is to use it for dados. I figure I have the space so why not.

 

[NeilMig]

Started sorting through my screws and nails last night and found a can full of these. No idea what they are for. Any ideas?

 

[NeilMig]

Looks like I forgot to take some pictures along the way. Please ignore continuity errors in the background lol. Here's the only one i have of moving the shelves against the wall. This really opened everything up. I could now move the Datsun back and open up the single bay for auto maintenance.

In this picture you can also see I'm getting ready to rip out another awkward shelf. The height didn't work for me and it was blocking a door. The plan is to move my big tool box here.

Now some auction finds:

Got this Craftsman 12" bandsaw with a few extra blades for 65$.

After tuning it up i had to try it out. Some table saw push sticks where the perfect quick little project. I used the Matthias Wandel design. Add a few magnet hooks from Hf and they are always where i need them (on the table saw )

I also picked up this anvil for 180$ I have no real plans to start blacksmithing but i always wanted an anvil. This one is in ok shape and came with a few extras so it came home with me.

After some inspection and research i think it's a Peter Wright 104#. If i ever get around to cleaning it up ill post some pictures of the makers mark.

 

[15til3]

<3 the 240

Any motor plans? Sticking with the L24 or going L28?

 

[NeilMig]

<3 the 240

Any motor plans? Sticking with the L24 or going L28?

I have an RB25DET waiting to go in.

Sorry i have been so negligent in updating.

Thought this was a nice overview

Some of my other tools

This Shelf was next to go.

Not a huge fan of these shelfs either but for now i'm making due with what i have. They offer much more storage than what was there.

Some cool leftovers from the previous owners.

 

[NeilMig]

I really need to speed this up. These photos are from April. Eventual i'll get to present day.

Shelves quickly filled up with stuff. Right now most of my tools are still in the blowmolded cases. I want to change this. Those cases take up so much room and i never know what is in them. Also, it slows down flow. I want to be able to just grab something and keep going. Better storage for this stuff will be a future project. For now this is an improvement.

Next

I think its funny how deceiving a photo can be. Its all about the angle lol

Took a little break for an outdoor project. The garden worked out alright. Next year i think we are going to add 2 more beds making it a C shape. It got pretty cramped as things grew.

Just something i like about this picture. filing a chainsaw blade at the end of the day can be pretty relaxing

(up to May 4th now)

So I would like my shop to be pretty well equipped for woodworking. In order to do this i have turned to Craigslist. It seems like most modern equipment is low quality or way out of my price range. I'm in no hurry so waiting for something to come along is not a problem. I also like the whole negotiation / meeting new people part of the deal. I decided first i was going to look for a jointer. It took about 5 months to find a deal i was happy with. I was able to get this Delta DJ-15 for 350$. It needs a little TLC but nothing major. The bearings and motor sound perfect. Just needs some cleaning

 

[dykstra]

Awesome shop!

 

[NeilMig]

Awesome shop!

Thanks a lot dykstra. I appreciate the encouragement.

I decided to build a quick easy stand for my miter saw. I had some cabinets i wasn't using. They made a good starting point.

All I would have to do is build a shelf in the middle.

I glued and pined everything together with this. Awesome 18ga pin nailer

Everything looks good from here

From here not so much

First problem, I didn't account for the 3/4" plywood top. The saw sits exactly 3/4" too high. Second problem, the saw can not sit back far enough to make use of the counter. I totally botched this one. I have plans to fix this but future me knows that still hasn't happened.

 

[NeilMig]

I added some more Delta to my collection

Scored them both for $400. The planer is in Ok condition. needs some cleanup and new knifes but everything works. When demoing the dust collector it started pouring white smoke out around the motor. Assuming it was dead the guy said he would throw it in as long as I didn't beat him up on the planer price. I had my fingers crossed hoping it was just a capacitor and sure enough

This thing was toast. I wired in a new cap and it fired right up. Awesome

 

[NeilMig]

Next project is move this pile of junk in the middle of the room.

and its gone

I think it was at this point the garage finally became "usable". That picture was taken in June. I'm a little embarrassed to say it took me almost 8 months. It's just a notch less then frustrating to work in now. Still a long way from where i want to be. My goal is just constant improvement. Even if it's just something simple. I need to get back to this idea.

 

[NeilMig]

In July a strong wind storm came through and ripped a section of shingles off the house roof. I tarped the bald spot and started getting quotes.

After talking with some friends it was suggested i contact my insurance company. This turned out to be an excellent idea. They came out and decided to pay for the roof. As the adjuster was leaveing he noticed how bad the garage roof was (30+ years old and full of moss). After some conversation I showed him a photo of a tree that fell on the garage roof.

Long story short they are covering that too

Here's the before

The during

They used this really cool dump trailer. It could drive around and raise right up to the edge of the roof.

The After

We decided to knock down the chimney. The stucco was starting to crumble so rather then fix it they just covered it. I'll add a small metal chimney in a less conspicuous location later. I have wanted to move the heater inside anyway.

I'm really happy with how it turned out. The seamless gutter looks good. Really draws attention to how bad i need to power wash.