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Starting from scratch

thomer

Member
Joined
Dec 11, 2009
Messages
11
Hey folks. I was hoping you could help me out with this hypothetical scenario:

You have a small, uninsulated, detached two car garage. 18' wide x 26' long x 7.5' high.

You live in the midwest. It can be 90 degrees one day and 20 degrees the next. Your cars get wet. Fortunately, there is a drain in the middle of the garage.

The garage is too narrow to have anything on either side of the cars. But you have pegboard and some cupboards on the side walls.

The garage is too short to store anything above you, except for two bicycles that are suspended and mostly out of the way. You still occasionally run into these with your head.

On the back wall, opposite the garage door, you have a workbench the length of the wall, with pegboard and shelves or cupboards above. There is a door in the corner to access the backyard separating you from your house.

You are not interested in adding drywall, insulation, heating or cooling to the garage. You aren't THAT serious about your garage (yet). You would like flooring that can handle extreme temperature swings, isn't slippery when wet, and separates you from the chill of the concrete floor. You don't know what product can do this.

You have ample electrical outlets at 120v, good lighting, and even a natural gas line that is currently capped.

You aren't building hot rods or fashioning credenzas from a single piece of oak. You want to become a functional, generalized handy man, who can make small to medium repairs on a car or motorcycle. Or fix random things that break around the house. Or build a birdhouse, or a doghouse, etc.

You have zero tools, zero tool boxes, zero vice grips, zero anything. You are stocking your garage. What do you buy and in what order?
 
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philwire

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Nov 16, 2011
Messages
58
Location
Near Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Well, you're one step in front of me: you got a garage! ;)

There are lots of ideas around here.. Check out Jack Olsen's garage; He put the cheapest ceramic tiles he could find and was ready to change them as they broke, but I haven't read a single post where one broke by accident - he had to use his sledgehammer for where he installed his cisorlift inground. He also made fold-up work benches right on the wall where he parks his Porsche. Other people made fold-up shelves between wall/ceiling trusses.

Not having a garage for now makes me use the house's wasted spaces... Under the outdoor deck, under the stairs, the shed's attic.

I did a really quick search for tools on CL, and well, some people either get fed up with their tools, or sometimes "divorce garage sales" get really low prices; one ad suggested a compressor, air tools, a lift and jack stands, 100$ for the whole shabang. Otherwise, just buy as you need; need a hammer? Go buy one. Need a drill? Go buy one. Sometimes there are combo deals at the store like a free nailgun bundled with a new compressor. Sure, it's gona be bic-quality, but it might be good for starters.

Oh and...
:needpics:
pictures will help everyone to visualise your problem and give suggestions.
 
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thomer

Member
Joined
Dec 11, 2009
Messages
11
Yes sir, I've been grabbing ideas for a while. I know exactly what garage you're referring to. IIRC, Jack lives in CA, or maybe I'm assuming he does because I recently read he's a writer. Anyway, the ceramic tiles sound great but I imagine they would be very slippery when wet. Also, I don't know if they can handle the temperature swings.

Sorry about the lack of pics. There's nothing to show you because I'm planning the build for spring 2012. I have the workshop layout mostly figured out.. but have no idea what equipment to stock up with. The real motivation for this thread is "what should I put on my Christmas list?" when I'm basically starting with nothing.

I'm really trying to figure out how to do it "right" on the first purchase. For example, does that mean buying an air compressor for a bunch of air tools? I don't know how one gets into the hobby of becoming a garage monkey but I'm trying.
 

rickairmedic

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Joined
May 31, 2005
Messages
4,165
Location
louisville ,Ky
Well if you want a floor that is going to seperate you from the concrete . You will be looking at racedeck or some other type of synthetic flooring that will sit ontop of the concrete . I have a bunch of the 2' X 2' puzzle piece floor tiles that I will lay out infront of the bench if I am going to be working at the bench for a while in the winter . They can be found at Harbor Freight or Big Lots and even alot of auto parts stores .


As far as tools I would start with a nice mechanics set from Sears that come with sockets , ratchets and some combintation wrenches and add to that as you learn and find a need for more tools .

Rick
 

fergus

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Joined
Oct 4, 2009
Messages
1,620
Location
Yolo County CA
I'd buy a decent set of hand tools. Like 200 something piece set at Sears, or wherever you feel like buying. A full set of screw drivers. A couple hammers and a decent nail bar. Used tools are super cheap if you feel like going that route - garage sales, ebay, here in the classifieds, whatever. Get yourself a decent cordless drill/driver. That is the single most useful tool I've ever purchased. Maybe a circular saw? A miter (chop) saw is very usefull also.

You don't really need a compressor or air tools. They're nice, but I made it thru 20 years of wrenching without them. I'd say get the basics covered first.
 

crewchief888

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Joined
Dec 3, 2009
Messages
13,751
Location
NW indiana
just my $0.02

since you are starting with nothing, heres my take on the project
1 insulate the walls and ceiling
(wanna work on the floor in the cold? any insulation is better than none)
2 gas line is there, put it to use, even with a ventless wall heater.
(40* is better than 10*)
3 racedeck type flooring may be the best option right now.
4 sit back and decide what you want to do in the garage, if it's a parking place, then you're already done, if not then wall finishing, storage, and working spaces would be next on the list.

my garage is packed so full, it would take a day to clear it out just to start working on a "better" space.
my luck it'll snow that day :eyecrazy:


:beer:
 

Falcon67

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Joined
Jun 11, 2009
Messages
18,371
Location
Merkel, TX
First shop - One stall, one hand-me-down box with small drawers (upper right) and a $12 damage sale Craftsman hand held (upper left). The bench is a couple of old 2x6s and the tool shelf and bench tops are free wooden packing crates. Wall shelves are 1x4s stuck between the studs. That's a 302 block laying on the pallet and a C4 trans next to it, both rebuilt in there and installed. Lots of projects done out of that small hole.
old_shop_500.jpg


Depends on budget really
I would:
Buy a decent roll away box - I used a 3 drawer for years. Plenty on sale around this time.
Buy a good 6' fiberglass ladder
Buy a good selection of general tools, like a combo set from Sears.
Buy a good portable belt drive air compressor - not an oilless direct drive.
Buy a good quality 19.2V or higher hand drill kit, plus matching jig saw and trim saw
Buy a 7 1/4 circular saw
Buy a drill press

This was done with a 9.2V Black and Decker 3/8" portable drill, a circular saw, measuring tape, a hammer, old wood ladder, small aluminum ladder and a 3/8 corded drill.
Build13.jpg

Build15.jpg

Shop1.jpg


So how come I need so much other tool **** to build the current shop! :lol: Don't let my wife see this post.
 
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thomer

Member
Joined
Dec 11, 2009
Messages
11
Crewchief: thanks for responding. I know my post was already buried several pages deep! I've decided against insulating.. unless you can talk me into it. Here's why:

The garage is old, 50 to 100 years old??, and built out of concrete blocks with stucco on the outside. Occasionally moisture gets through the walls, nothing major, but enough where I think insulation and drywall would get damaged. I can deal with the occasional moist wall. Fighting the battle to keep all the water out is daunting. There are zero windows, one entry door, and a newly installed and well sealed garage door. That'll keep me warm when it's 10 degrees out, right??

I will probably add a heater, to at least warm up the immediate workbench area, but I will mostly be hibernating in the winter months.

I'm getting samples of the Race Deck flooring in the mail soon. Their 'Free Flow' design is supposed to allow ample air flow and drainage, which is important because the midwest gets plenty of rain and snow. I wonder if I'll be able to easily roll a tool drawer on big caster wheels over this stuff.

Falcoln: cool garage. Did you take that photo with your toaster?? :wtf:

Thank you for your list! That's what I was looking for. A basic "must have" list from the garage journal members to the novices.

Any input on workbenches? Stainless steel seems to be the way to go. Maybe a thin layer of stainless on top of the wood..
 
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Charles (in GA)

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50 mi south of Atlanta
I could not get along without a compressor. I had a small 1 hp, 12 gal tank, 100 psi, for years. You have to have something to inflate tires, blow things off.

Charles
 

Falcon67

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Joined
Jun 11, 2009
Messages
18,371
Location
Merkel, TX
My air compressor and drill press were go-to tools for a long time. The mill put the drill press kinda out to pasture for most metal work. Air lets you pick up a cheap trim and/or brad nailer. Those make quick work of bird houses, household trim work, etc. Once you stick some little stuff together with an air nailer, your hammer will get kinda lonely.

>Falcoln: cool garage. Did you take that photo with your toaster?? :wtf:

Original shop pic - That's a scan of the only photo I could find. It was an old 3"x3" Instamatic 110 photo from 1974.

Any input on workbenches? Stainless steel seems to be the way to go. Maybe a thin layer of stainless on top of the wood..
I have a bench with a MDF top covered with galvanized. I went to a A/C duct work/sheet metal company and had them bend a top for it. It was like $30. I use it for transmission work. It gets dinged some from real heavy stuff, but that's a so-what to me. I have gotten a lot of mileage out of double thick 3/4" ply tops painted with some decent light gray porch or garage floor paint. A metal cover does make for easy cleanup. To clean my painted bench, I would remove most items, spray a rag with Chemtool and wipe real quick. 24" wide saves lumber, but 30" gives more work room.
 
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Zeke

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Aug 13, 2009
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Long Beach CA, the sewer by the sea.

camarotoolman

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Mar 12, 2011
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cocoa Fl.
This suject is asked quite abit, 2-3 days ago I think. Maybe we could put a list together and post it permanently or something, for new people?
 

Jack Olsen

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Mar 22, 2009
Messages
6,678
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Los Angeles
Yes sir, I've been grabbing ideas for a while. I know exactly what garage you're referring to. IIRC, Jack lives in CA, or maybe I'm assuming he does because I recently read he's a writer. Anyway, the ceramic tiles sound great but I imagine they would be very slippery when wet. Also, I don't know if they can handle the temperature swings.
Tiles come with three types of ratings. One is moisture content, which determines how they will handle frost/thaw cycles, another is hardness, which (basically) has to do with how difficult they are to chip/brake, the third is coefficient of friction, which will determine how slippery they will be, wet or dry. My 'cheapest Home Depot had' tiles are up to code for outdoor public spaces like malls. They are not slippery when wet. Installed properly, they are stronger (in some ways) than the concrete they sit on. Everyone's reference point seems to be bathroom tiles, which are a different animal altogether, and are installed with voids underneath them that make them (relatively) easy to crack.

All+Up1323038726.jpg
 
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Charles (in GA)

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50 mi south of Atlanta
Draw up a basic plan allowing for future interest in handyman and mechanical work, a drill press, bench grinder, etc. Then install an electric subpanel, wire the entire garage FIRST, insulate it, cover the walls, then slowly proceed with the rest of the plan. If its that small, you don't even want conduit on the walls, and romex will be a cheaper route anyhow. Get the electrical done first. You will hate doing it later.

Charles
 
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