Project Garage Condo

[HIRISC]

With my experience of working in my shop, I'd recommend it, that is if you want the loft to stay clean. But then again, what you work on may not be near as dirty or need near as much welding and cutting and grinding as the trucks I work on.

Considered a variation of that early on, but the way the stairs come up and the railing that we're likely to do, it won't be possible to seal it up.

I'm going to have a full (motorized) garage door size (18w x 16H) screen installed so we can keep the air flow maxed out without dealing with the mosquitoes/gnats.

Between that, the fans, and the upstairs deck door open, I'm confident we can evacuate any temporary smells pretty quickly.

It's a garage first, and a living space 2nd after all

 

[red92s]

Cool bed!

I love Room & Board. A little pricey for some stuff, but all very top end quality.

Agreed. A lot of the wood pieces get out of my price range pretty quickly. But most of the fabricated metal stuff is nicely priced for that "I'm tired of throwing out Ikea and West Elm furniture every time I move, ready to spend a bit more money for stuff that will hold up awhile, but don't have a Pottery Barn budget" stage that comes a couple years after graduating from college.

 

[tman74]

WOW!!!!!!!!!! Won the Lottery?????

 

[HIRISC]

Agreed. A lot of the wood pieces get out of my price range pretty quickly. But most of the fabricated metal stuff is nicely priced for that "I'm tired of throwing out Ikea and West Elm furniture every time I move, ready to spend a bit more money for stuff that will hold up awhile, but don't have a Pottery Barn budget" stage that comes a couple years after graduating from college.

We bought some of their 'slim' line - very nice and reasonably priced.

We have some Room & Board pieces that are coming up on 20 years old. Good furniture is a lifetime buy.. you're on the right track in your thinking!

 

[wtfovr]

Enjoying your updates. We don't have Room & Board down here in in Texas but we do have Rooms to Go.

 

[HIRISC]

WOW!!!!!!!!!! Won the Lottery?????

Nah, just saved.

Enjoying your updates. We don't have Room & Board down here in in Texas but we do have Rooms to Go.

I think you can now order their stuff online.. they ship everywhere.

http://www.roomandboard.com/rnb/stay_connected/customer_service/delivery.ftl

 

[HIRISC]

Mini (progress) update.
Lot's of little, time consuming things to wrap up.

Diamond plate around sink/faucet

Painted trim black around those elements.

Stair risers and edging - I wanted to keep the sides of the bottom stairs exposed (vs shaving them off and sheetrocking over them), so we decided to frame each stair tread edge individually and leave enough of a recess for the soon to arrive rubber stair tread to sit in. I like the way it turned out. (FYI - the stair treads will be black rubber)

Brushed diamond plate stair risers - ton of work as each is recessed and each is slightly different height x width.

Mounted the compressor to the floor via hockey pucks.

Added a couple of stools to the workspace downstairs (running out of things to add )

 

[Az Scooter]

Jealousy is a sin...Jealousy is a sin...Jealous..dang might as well repent now.

 

[HIRISC]

Jealousy is a sin...Jealousy is a sin...Jealous..dang might as well repent now.

 

[DIYnotBUY]

wow those stairs look great i check on like 4 builds a day and most are moderate diy dollar pinchers like me but i absolutely have to check for new updates on this because condo or not just building a building like this by itself would be my dream home haha 85% garage/shop 15% living.

 

[Fskof]

Where did you get that compressor?

 

[HIRISC]

wow those stairs look great i check on like 4 builds a day and most are moderate diy dollar pinchers like me but i absolutely have to check for new updates on this because condo or not just building a building like this by itself would be my dream home haha 85% garage/shop 15% living.

Thanks! It is the perfect scenario (for me anyway).. Too bad we can't live there

Where did you get that compressor?

I got it at Northern Tool. Listed at $1399 on their site, but I mentioned that I found it online elsewhere for $1299 and they matched the price.

Free shipping from the manufacturer to my place.

Wiring TBD in a day or two, then I'll fire it up. My understanding is that it's pretty quiet.

 

[HIRISC]

I thought you guys might want to see the AutoMotorplex compound from the air. This pic was taken last summer at one of the Minneapolis/St. Paul area's Cars & Cafe events. About 500 or so cars show up with another 1000 or so spectators. It's a great time.

 

[rebl68]

wow! i just read the whole thread, amazing job!

makes me want to go look for one around here......

 

[KM1013]

Makes me wanna move to Minneapolis. Seriously if that complex allowed full time residence I might be there.

 

[anotherS10]

This is awesome !

 

[stihl036]

Great idea and execution, you are doing a fantastic job.


Congrats on the build. Keep the pictures and the good work coming!


WW

 

[sam 8]

Love the aerial shot!
Your whole shop is outstanding!

 

[HIRISC]

This is awesome !

Thanks.

Great idea and execution, you are doing a fantastic job. Congrats on the build. Keep the pictures and the good work coming!
WW

Thanks much.

The stair treads have taken the most amount of thought. Who would have thunk

I'm excited to get the rubber landing/stair treads on and see how it all looks together.

Love the aerial shot!
Your whole shop is outstanding!

Thanks Sam

 

[NUTTSGT]

Are you putting railing up on the stairs and at the top where the desk is ?

 

[HIRISC]

Are you putting railing up on the stairs and at the top where the desk is ?

Yes, and down the lower stairs.. have to per code.

We've been waiting for 2 weeks for the rubber stair treads to get in and installed (tomorrow). On Monday, we'll make a decision on color (black, natural steel, or stainless) for the cable stair rail.

 

[kered]

Hi guys,

Been registered here for a while & been lurking even longer. This thread has brought me out of the woodwork, as I just had to post a response.

All I can say is WOW !

 

[HIRISC]

^^ thanks brother.

Micro Update

Things are crawling to a finish after waiting for weeks for the rubber stair treads to arrive.. still waiting on the rubber for the landing.

(Side note: The stair risers/treads/end finishing and the upcoming stainless stair railing will end up being the most expensive portion of the build - could have saved a bundle by just sheetrocking the whole thing in - LOL).

Got the kitchen finished up (we can't have a stove) and as soon as we can get the paint touched up, I can finally get the TV's up and the furniture deployed.

We're in week 16.. My house took less time.

So.....

 

[Enloe]

yeah but the house wasn't as important !!

 

[ironman70]

are you allowed to have a grill?

 

[KAILUAZ]

Thats a great idea. Excellent post.

 

[red92s]

are you allowed to have a grill?

I'd imagine if welders and plasma cutters are allowed, then grills might not be banned. But . . . there isn't even a stove.

 

[PurdueSD]

Can you tell me where you sourced the black rubber stair treads from?

 

[HIRISC]

yeah but the house wasn't as important !!

Didn't seem to be at the time.

are you allowed to have a grill?

I'd imagine if welders and plasma cutters are allowed, then grills might not be banned. But . . . there isn't even a stove.

We can have a grill outside on the main level. I'm buying the fold up gas type that will fit in the storage/maintenance room.

The no-stove thing is because the property is distinguished as commercial, not residential - and in Chanhassen, commercial only property can't have them.

Plasma cutters, welders, higher HP compressors, lifts are just fine and common.

Thank goodness we can have as many (beer stocked) fridges as we want.

 

[HIRISC]

Can you tell me where you sourced the black rubber stair treads from?

The installer we used ordered the flooring from Pro Source in Bloomington. Pro Source first ordered the wrong treads (design) in, then ordered the right treads with a 2" drop vs the specified 1.5" drop.

Normally, not a big deal, but we framed the stair treads for a 1.5" drop. The installer thought he could trim them, then figured out he couldn't, so the tread faces have a 1/2" of unsupported drop.

Not life threatening, but we put a lot of time into the look of the treads and their errors are annoying.

I wouldn't use Pro Source Flooring again.

During their fumbling around, I contacted Musson Rubber Company directly. They were lower priced and very quick to respond. I wish I would have just purchased from them.

http://www.mussonrubber.com/products/stairtreads/index.htm

 

[MrSnicks]

Looks awesome. I just joined the site today and will be looking forward to the finish of this build.

 

[Enloe]

I hope you will be adding a lot of pics when this years events start up.

 

[[email protected]]

I would make them get you the treads you specified. The extra drop does not look right. looks like you put a lot of thought in the details, don't let your supplier ruin it.

 

[TipsyMcStagger]

Amazing space! Hope you get years of enjoyment!

I assume since this is financially structured as a "condo," you have property taxes independent of the monthly association fee?

Tipsy

 

[HIRISC]

Looks awesome. I just joined the site today and will be looking forward to the finish of this build.

Thanks.

I hope you will be adding a lot of pics when this years events start up.

Will do.

I would make them get you the treads you specified. The extra drop does not look right. looks like you put a lot of thought in the details, don't let your supplier ruin it.

Since it would be almost impossible to remove the rubber stair tread covers without also pulling the treads themselves, we decided to have the contractor re-do the black stair sides.

Had to pull out the old ones, re-frame and re-paint. The sides now match the stair treads. They look great. *still need the top piece installed - backordered*

Amazing space! Hope you get years of enjoyment! I assume since this is financially structured as a "condo," you have property taxes independent of the monthly association fee?

Thanks, we plan to. Yes, but it's not zoned as a condo per se, it's zoned as commercial. Property taxes for commercial property in this municipality are 1% of assessed value per year.

 

[ket-tek]

Watching this whole thread progress has been a real joy.. Pretty much a perfect build as far as planning and execution. Though everyone has different taste and ideas of what a perfect space would be and of course any shop could always be bigger..

The floor looks great and interests me quite a bit once you begin to use it more.

And also would love to hear more feedback on what you think of the Quincy.

Great posts and even better pics.

 

[HIRISC]

Watching this whole thread progress has been a real joy.. Pretty much a perfect build as far as planning and execution. Though everyone has different taste and ideas of what a perfect space would be and of course any shop could always be bigger..

The floor looks great and interests me quite a bit once you begin to use it more.

And also would love to hear more feedback on what you think of the Quincy.

Great posts and even better pics.

Thanks much. It's all nice and clean and pretty empty looking at the moment, but in a few weeks after the lifts get setup, I bring my cars over, and the Factory Five kit/parts show up, it will start to look more like a working shop.

I've still got a lot of stuff to add downstairs: 8' workbench that will reside under the downstairs TV, the retracting air reel, engine lift and stand, welder, etc.

Upstairs, we're still waiting on furniture, and I've got another TV to put up and some 'art' that is garage-centric.

Lastly, and after it warms up a bit, I'm going to bring my vintage signs over, so that will change the look a bit.

My electrician must have forgotten about me - still waiting for him to swing by and put a plug end on the Quincy. I'll post up once I get some compressor time.

I'm may regret not going 40x80, but I still have 1100 square feet of garage at home with a four post lift, so it's going to be a while before I will fill up both spaces.

 

[Nealcrenshaw]

love the rubber treads,it still gives it the shop feel and functions as a slip resistant easy to clean surface.

 

[balddave]

Are you interested in adopting? I know of a 23 yr old that would love for you to take him under his wing...you don't even have to feed me...

In all serious though this is very similar to what I've been considering building shortly here when I buy my house. I love the steel beams for the mezzanine, makes for a more open space by reducing the beam height and reducing the number of poles, I am going to look into doing something similar.

Take care and keep up the good work!

 

[HIRISC]

love the rubber treads,it still gives it the shop feel and functions as a slip resistant easy to clean surface.

Thanks Neal - they seem pretty easy to clean thus far.. I hope they hold up well because they certainly would be a PIA to remove.

Are you interested in adopting? I know of a 23 yr old that would love for you to take him under his wing...you don't even have to feed me...

In all serious though this is very similar to what I've been considering building shortly here when I buy my house. I love the steel beams for the mezzanine, makes for a more open space by reducing the beam height and reducing the number of poles, I am going to look into doing something similar.

Take care and keep up the good work!

Interestingly, my 23 and 20 year old nephews have been sniffing around a lot more. Can't tell if it's me or the Motorplex. LOL.

The steel beam is the only way to go IMO, unless you want to leave the lam beam exposed, then it's pretty cool.