My garage makeover

[Dave In Florida]

My name is Dave, and I live in Florida. These things should be pretty evident based on my username.

I'm a lifelong gearhead, focusing on aircooled VW's, off-road rail buggies, and minibikes. As you can see, I have many and varied interests, and love to collect lots of projects in each of those areas. This makes me a packrat. Unfortunately I'm also extremely unorganized. My garage is a mess. I'm TIRED of it, and decided to do something about it. I've known about this forum for years, but just joined so I can get inspired by others.

I feel like a crack head, who gets caught performing ****** favors he isn't proud of in exchange for some rock. In other words, I've hit rock bottom, and am very ashamed of it, but I think this is the impetus I need to make drastic changes. so today, with great shame in my heart, here are pictures of my garages.

First, is my 28x40 block garage in the back yard. It was built by myself and friends in 2001, based on plans from a garage my uncle built. It was built from the beginning to house a lift. I had 2 "trough's" of concrete 24" wide and an extra 8" deep (total of 12") running the full depth of the garage to house the lifts anchors. I did this because at the time I built the garage, I wasn't sure if I was going to get a 2 post or 4 post lift, and wasn't sure where in the bay it would sit.

A couple of years after the garage was completed I added a 2 post 9k lb asymmetrical lift from Forward, which is apparently a lower level of the Rotary brand. I can't complain about the lift, it's worked flawlessly.

This is walking in the "man door", you can see the 10x8 bay doors on the left. The rest of the pics basically follow around in a clockwise pattern.

Next is the house garage. Technically, it is still a 2 car garage, because I have a fiberglass dune buggy body stacked on top of a rail buggy frame on the right side of the garage. The rail buggy frame is packed full of VW parts of all sorts, trying to make efficient use of space.

Overall view

So there you have it. My collection. I wouldn't say anything is junk, my hobbies involve parts that are either getting hard to find (old minibikes and VW's) or that wear out and break (off-road cars) so I do need to keep my stash. I just need to get it organized.

Feel free to point and laugh, offer suggestions, whatever. I have some ideas, and I'll document my progress in this thread as I go.

 

[Dave In Florida]

I forgot to add. My goal, for right now, is to spend at least an hour a day in the garage, organizing, cleaning, building, SOMETHING, to help this mess along. I work overnights as a nurse, which screws up my sleep patterns, and have a wife who is 5 months pregnant, and I'm also in school, so this makeover will be a long process.

 

[K04GTI]

I dunno, but I think you need to categorize maybe... all the bikes and bike parts, all the VWs and vw parts, all the lawn equipment and lawn stuff.. Tools in one place, Cans/spray cans/ bottles together.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Congrats Dave on taking it on. A little longer and we might have seen you on one of those cable shows about hoarders, lol!

Seriously, the first things I'd do is go through and throw away all the trash and heavily consider the stuff that's been there YEARS and you haven't touch them/have no immediate plans to use them. SOme of that stuff can be sold to fund the eventual shelves, paint, tool boxes, etc you will need to get this all in order.

Next, I'd gather like things together. Once that is done you'll have a better idea WHAT you need to organize the stuff: A toolbox? Open or closed shelves?

Best of luck. It'll be cool to watch this one come together.

 

[Dave In Florida]

You guys are on my wavelength. I want to categorize parts by hobby, to make things easier to find when needed (a big problem now) and also to sell unneeded items that I won't miss (like a 70s era gas pump that I wanted to restore. it still would be neat to do, but if I haven't done it in the 10 years I've owned it, and haven't missed it, it's going).

 

[bdamico]

generally need to create vertical storage to put stuff other than floor. Until you do that, you're just moving piles around. maybe even some pallet racks so you can stack some of the bigger stuff like bikes etc. (someone here did that for mowers, etc.)

 

[darkk]

generally need to create vertical storage to put stuff other than floor. Until you do that, you're just moving piles around. maybe even some pallet racks so you can stack some of the bigger stuff like bikes etc. (someone here did that for mowers, etc.)

X2 We're just setting up our pallet racking. You can get it in almost any height or depth.

 

[cgall]

My first goal for you would be to comepletely flush the 2-car attached and clean, fix and paint it out before that baby comes. Keep your lawn equip. and general tools that you need every day in there, make room for Mom's daily driver, put up a door opener, she might like that coming home on those days that it rains straight down at 4" per hour down there.

What's up with that grass in front of the door, some is stuck to the bottom of the door, looks like an abandonded property.

 

[Ben Buck]

Holy smokes Dave, you need a good douche and or intervention!! I know there are people on here that would say he's doing his own thing, don't complain, do not criticize, Butttt!! I'd bet there are somethings that are really valuable, that you forgot about? Just get a beverage you enjoy and hit it!! By the way, where are you located!!! Ha-Ha! Good luck, you're on your way!!

 

[lrhredjb]

Better hope your water heater or furnace doesn't go out! I feel for u cause I'm a 3rd generation packrat. If I can find it I'll post a picture of my garage so you don't feel so bad.

 

[MSweetz13]

I see you have some stuff that can be utilized to help clean up, and you have some stuff that can be moved/used elsewhere (like that green rain barrel, put that into use and get it out of you way). Also clear out the area with the mowers and stuff COMPLETELY!!! Decide what you want to do with that space (Workbench, toolboxes, hanging storage, shelves, cabinetry, and so on) then take an hour or so for a few days cleaning through it. Then one day when you can manage to spare about 3-4 hours, go at it. Drag EVERYTHING out. Once its out put in that shelving or what ever you decided on. Then park all of your toys in a row, put your tools in the main garage in some tool box (or if you need them in here hang a pegboard with a small work bench under it and some shelving on the sides. If I were you I would start with the one in the house, because it will be good practice for when you go out to your big garage. It will also be quicker and easier, so you will get that since of accomplishment earlier, and you will be proud of it, that will help keep you from quitting when you move on the the big boy out side.

Good luck from Jacksonville Fl.

 

[hockey88fan]

My first goal for you would be to comepletely flush the 2-car attached and clean, fix and paint it out before that baby comes. Keep your lawn equip. and general tools that you need every day in there, make room for Mom's daily driver, put up a door opener, she might like that coming home on those days that it rains straight down at 4" per hour down there.

What's up with that grass in front of the door, some is stuck to the bottom of the door, looks like an abandonded property.

What he said.

 

[kald]

I forgot to add. My goal, for right now, is to spend at least an hour a day in the garage, organizing, cleaning, building, SOMETHING, to help this mess along. I work overnights as a nurse, which screws up my sleep patterns, and have a wife who is 5 months pregnant, and I'm also in school, so this makeover will be a long process.

I'm in similar situation. Long time pack rat, pregnant wife, 22 month old at home, working a lot at night(and days) etc... I just try to make some progress every day cleaning and organizing, in addition to cleaning the mess I/we made that day in my shop/work. A good tip I picked around here is to make sure everything has place. I always spent a lot of time cleaning only to finally realize the is no such thing as an organized pile.

 

[BARN ONE]

generally need to create vertical storage to put stuff other than floor. Until you do that, you're just moving piles around. maybe even some pallet racks so you can stack some of the bigger stuff like bikes etc. (someone here did that for mowers, etc.)

That reminds me of my buddy that had pallet racking in the front of his garage. He had the first shelf high enough that he could pull in with the hood of his cars under it. One day the battery in his wifes car was dead, and he could not open the hood to jump it. Also it would not shift out of park with no power. I told him to put some soapy water on the floor and drag it back with his explorer. Instead he spent a half day unloading the shelving and taking it apart to open the hood.

 

[shannonw]

holy ****.

it took me a year just to organize my 2 car and i still can't get a car in there. This would give me a nervous breakdown.

and i probably have 1/8 of what you do.

Anyways my suggestion is this picking and poking here and there is slow process without much immediate reward. You need to clear a space. When i got tired of my garage, i pulled everything down into the center floor as i had no where to put anything to even begin organizing. From there i pulled a couple long nights organizing, building storage,etc. Sent the wife and kids to the inlaws for a weekend =)

Wanna know what i'd do if i had a chance to do it over? Well first i'd probably move to a bigger space (seriously in the end it seems tons easier!) but I'd rent a storage unit, trailer 1/2 if not everything over to it. Then being organizing from scratch. You don't need that but clear out one space (where the mowers are and start from there is my suggestion). You got space though, clear out a command center =)