Sixstring's Garage Build

[sixstring]

Hi guys,

I've been lurking around on here for a while and after reading through tonnes of posts of nice garages I've finally decided I want to spend this winter in something a little nicer and a little warmer.

Before I start dropping time and effort into this build I wanted to ask some questions and play with some layouts in Google Sketchup.

My main requirements/goals for the garage are
1. Must fit two motorcycles
2. Basic workshop facilities (bench, hydro press, compressor etc.)
3. Entertainment facilities (32" TV, PS3)
4. Must fit my wife's Santa Fe

The two main challenges with my garage layout is:
1. It's a two door which limits what you can put on the sides of the garage.
2. One side of the garage isn't as deep as the other so it would never actually fit 2 cars.... even thou its advertised as a 2 door garage.

Here is my basic layout:
The pink seciton is roughly 16'x16'. The blue section is 10'x2.5'... so as you can see its not a terribly big garage and lots of space is wasted due to the pillar in the middle dividing the two sides.

Currently the walls are half finished and half bare studs. I plan on insulating and covering everything with drywall then giving it a Kawasaki Green/Lime green paint job:

Paint option 1

Paint option 2

Here's what I'm thinking for a basic layout. Workshop on the left, car parking on the right. Everything is to scale within an inch.

With this current layout, there is still some space that isn't fully utilized. I'm not convinced on the placement of the mini fridge for example (the white box) and the space between the car and bike could probably be used for somethign as well. There is also about a foot of space above each garage door to shove things.

The blank wall in the last pic is going to be used to hang rakes and stuff but I don't know where to put the lawn mower.... and my wife will personally start world war 3 before agreeing to put a shed in the back yard.

Anyways I know the layout I have so far isn't the best so any feedback is appreciated.

I also have some general questions:

1. My floors are slightly uneven but generally tilt towards the exit of the garage. When I'm painting strips in the middle, do I want to paint with the angle of the floor or just go with whatever is actually level?

2. The bench I have designed for the space is made mostly of 4x4s and measures about 10'x6'. What is the best way to make it level? I've seen people using threaded inserts in the legs but I can't find any at the hardware store (Canadian Home Depot is pathethic). Are there alternatives?

3. What are some flooring options? Racedeck tiles (or something similar) appeals to me because its pretty quick the put down, can be moved to my next house, looks nice, and worn tiles can be replaced. On the down side the tiles to cover my floor will probably cost more than I'd like to spend. Is there anything cheaper out there with comparable properties?

Once again any feedback on the design or approach to this project would be much appreciated. At this point everything is just in the planning stages. Once it pull the trigger on it thou, I'm going to take a week of work and just go at it 24 hour a day

 

[Canoman]

I must say, that's an awesome Sketch Up model.

 

[akdiesel]

That is a tight location for the vehicle but nice use of space.

 

[Ray916MN]

That's a tight space for 2 bikes with a lift table. One of the things I would consider instead of having a workbench with cabinets above is building your work benches with shelving over the bench tops so every bit of space above the work surface can be used for storage. I've found having empty shelves to store bike parts when you are working on a bike essential. Somewhere safe to put a gas tank, exhaust, fairings and other pieces you've taken off a bike you're working on really helps make sure you always have good clear bench tops to work on. I would also consider building a bench long enough with the bottom shelf off the floor enough to slide the lift table under the bench when not in use. If you can get the lift table out of the way when you are not using it, it is going to make the space much more usable on a daily basis.

Frankly I'd look at designing shelving/racking for the entire long wall and short wall next to the door.

For leveling stuff in my workshop I use lumber yard shim stock. Cheap, easy to use and effective.

 

[PT Doc]

Seems tight if its drawn to scale.

 

[sixstring]

That's a tight space for 2 bikes with a lift table. One of the things I would consider instead of having a workbench with cabinets above is building your work benches with shelving over the bench tops so every bit of space above the work surface can be used for storage. I've found having empty shelves to store bike parts when you are working on a bike essential. Somewhere safe to put a gas tank, exhaust, fairings and other pieces you've taken off a bike you're working on really helps make sure you always have good clear bench tops to work on. I would also consider building a bench long enough with the bottom shelf off the floor enough to slide the lift table under the bench when not in use. If you can get the lift table out of the way when you are not using it, it is going to make the space much more usable on a daily basis.

Frankly I'd look at designing shelving/racking for the entire long wall and short wall next to the door.

For leveling stuff in my workshop I use lumber yard shim stock. Cheap, easy to use and effective.

Thanks for the feedback Ray

Your right its gonna be REAL tight but I gotta play the cards I'm dealt unfortunately. Althought I need to be able to cram 2 bikes in the garage, the vast majority of the time I'll just be storing one. When I work on one I'll just have to push the other outside.

I agree that its nice to have a clear bench to put take off parts but I really need as much storage space as I can afford to get. Besides I make do right now with 6' of bench space.

Currently I have the long wall close to the door with a row of 4 shelves but the Santa Fe's mirrors won't clear them so I can only have 2 shelves there. I could fit a shelf over where the mini fridge is stored which would give me some extra shelves...

I've attached some 'as is' shots of the garage I just took. Hideous I know.

 

[sixstring]

Oh, and also I plan on putting the table lift where it is in the picture permanently as a parking spot for one bike. Is that not adviseable for some reason?

 

[tininjun67]

I always go up with storage when possible. in our old garage the entire attic above the garage held all my parts that didn't get used much. I would build a shelving unit on the left wall all the way to the ceiling that encases the compressor, press, etc. that way you can eliminate the one where the van is.

 

[Ray916MN]

Oh, and also I plan on putting the table lift where it is in the picture permanently as a parking spot for one bike. Is that not adviseable for some reason?

Parking on a lift table is a bit of a pain in my experience. The problems are:

- tall bikes can be difficult to push on to a lift table if you're not tall (most tables are 7-8" tall, which makes handling a bike on them awkward).
- a bike on a lift table isn't as stable as a bike parked on the floor
- the sidestand on some bikes doesn't land on the table with the bike centered on the lift
- in order to park off center on most lift tables you need to remove the chock or wheel vise

Most lift tables are under 8'. If you built an 8' long workbench with floor to ceiling shelving above the bench top you'd be able to slide the table under the workbench. I'd consider moving the press and compressor to the wall nearest the door to the house where you currently have the mini fridge and cabinet. Shelving above these will get you more storage. If you can fit these, there and you have an 8' bench, you'll have 8' from the end of the workbench to the garage door, enough to park a bike in. If you can park a bike tight to the wall, then you'll be able to work on a bike on the lift without having to roll the other bike out of the garage and probably more importantly be able to take the bike parked deepest in the garage out of the garage without having to roll the other bike out of the way.

 

[sixstring]

Thanks for the ideas so far guys, I'm gonna play around with google sketchup some more.

I got another problem now thou. Even before I put any of these cabinets and stuff in half of my garage isn't insulated. The garage door wall half the wall in the pics above where the drill press and stuff are stored are all bare studs. I have no idea how to approach the garage door wall. I think the previous owners installed the garage door openers themselves and did an absolute **** job; nails randomly driven into boards, 2x4s all crooked... its a mess.

I think what I have to do to insulate and drywall around the garage doors is remove the door opener and then just drywall around the wood studs the garage door rails are bolted to.... in fact I wouldn't mind replacing the garage door openers altogether because the current installation is an absolute amateur job. Wires running all over the ceiling, and some sort of masking tape **** hiding all the bolts holding the angle brackets to the ceiling.

What's involved in removing/installing the garage door opener. Is this a big job or can anyone do it? Also, while with the door openers removed is there an easy way to lock the garage door so it can't just be pulled up from the outside?

I've attached some reference pics of the ****** studs around my garage door and the tape around the angles that hold the door opener unit. Few things in the world pisses me off more than bad workmanship.

 

[sixstring]

Got some work done. Full write-up on my blog:
http://zixiaozx7.blogspot.ca/

Here's some pics thou:

 

[sixstring]

Some more updates. http://zixiaozx7.blogspot.ca/

Got the machines lined up against the short wall. The main 8' bench is starting to coming to life too. Currently in place and lacqured up - just needs to be shimmed in place properly.

This is what I'm aiming for

This is where I'm at now

 

[sixstring]

Some more progress. Once again details on my blog:
http://zixiaozx7.blogspot.ca/

Basically I've now put in my bench, taken down an existing shelf an put up some cabinets.

New benches in place

Taking down shelf

Putting up new cabinets

Plugged TV back in

 

[The J]

Nice progress. I like the comparison shots of the Sketchup model to the actual.

I'll be borrowing ideas. We have similar sized garages with similar layouts. Keep up the progress!

 

[2fat2fly]

Glad to see you're on this forum now. You shouldn't hide your N like that (teasing us with a partial tail shot...). She deserves to be shown off.

 

[sixstring]

Holy **** dude I didn't know you were on these forums too! lol

We should start a garage/shed topic on ZX Forums

 

[2fat2fly]

Holy **** dude I didn't know you were on these forums too! lol

We should start a garage/shed topic on ZX Forums

I agree with you. I've overhauled my whole garage over the last 1 1/2 years. When I have it totally done I'll show it off a little. Your garage is looking good.

 

[sixstring]

Well, I'm just about done with my garage build now. My workspace pretty mcuh resembles what I was aiming for and its turned out well.

There's plenty of storage and my wife's car fits with plenty of space to walk around; With the Santa Fe parked, there's about 2 feet of space on either side of the hydraulic lift. If push comes to shove I could probably even store 3 bikes in the walk space between the bench and the hydraulic bench.

Anyways here's some pics of the final state of the garage. Some final touches are still needed though.... like that hole in the wall beside the TV.

More details here:
http://zixiaozx7.blogspot.ca/2012/12/my-grand-design-04.html

Here's some work I've been doing on my new bench:

 

[Ray916MN]

So you never sold your ZX7RR-N1?

 

[sixstring]

Nope. Gonna take it to the grave with me now

Were you looking to buy it at some point in the past?

 

[2fat2fly]

Gonna take it to the grave with me now

Good plan. I have the same one (plan, not the bike. It's on my list though.)

 

[timbitca]

Nice use of space in that garage!

Decided against painting it for now?

 

[Ray916MN]

Nope. Gonna take it to the grave with me now

Were you looking to buy it at some point in the past?

I stumbled upon it while doing some research on superbikes. Looks really nice. It is one of the bikes on my list to acquire someday.

 

[sixstring]

Nice use of space in that garage!

Decided against painting it for now?

Yeah... too much of a pain and I was also tired of not having a work space. Maybe I'll get around to it some day but function over form for now

I stumbled upon it while doing some research on superbikes. Looks really nice. It is one of the bikes on my list to acquire someday.

Cool. Good luck with your search. They're getting harder to find but definately not impossible. They even pop up for cheap every now and then!

Good plan. I have the same one (plan, not the bike. It's on my list though.)

Going for the holy trinity now are we (K, M. N)?

 

[2fat2fly]

Going for the holy trinity now are we (K, M. N)?

I would like to have the triple crown. Maybe some day.