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Between 265 & 485 SQ/FT The 12-Gauge Garage

Workspaces sized between 265 and 485 squarefeet.

onemore

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Jan 18, 2011
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long island ny
Jack, some project looks great! I do some sewing as well, I will have to show my wife I', not the only nut! Also kind of nice to see you're shop and side area a mess, you are human! How's the Jeep, still going?
 
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aps63

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Dec 3, 2012
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New Jersey
SPECTACULAR!!!! That's all I can say. I showed my wife and I got the anticipated response. "WELL, get busy". I agree with her 100%. I'm already rethinking our entire outside space. Thanks for the inspiration.
 
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Jack Olsen

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Thanks!

The shop wasn't just a little bit messy. I had done a bunch of work on the car's suspension right up to the last minute for a track day. Then I got back, parked the car, and started right in on the deck with no clean-up. The deck work meant metal dust, wood dust and broken stone pieces all over the place.

Then I got volunteered to lead a woodworking project for a group in my son's preschool. What do you do with 4-year-olds who want to bang on nails? Well, my first thought was to just bring in some 2x4 scraps, nails and hammers. But then I also did some Googling and came up with this little dinosaur that can be made out of a 7" length of 2x4. I did the cutting in advance so they could assemble and then screw (or nail) the arms and legs onto one of these bad boys. I called it a Wood-o-saurus.

https://sphotos-a.**.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/537133_10200954641812608_661512297_n.jpg

It turned out to be a lot more popular than banging on nails. I had to make four more kits for the following day.

And that meant more sawdust.

But the place is clean now. Lots of sweeping.

And the deck got its first guests. Everyone liked it.
 

ODIS

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Apr 30, 2012
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Location
Pacific Northwest
Really nice! A beautiful space to entertain your guests. Would be great to do something like your covered space in the PacNoWest, but then, we would need to plan on a way to handle all the moss on the canopy......

Great work and an even better design.

Ody.

PS: Wonderful "Wood-O-Saurus!
 

Responder

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Nov 1, 2009
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368
Location
Saskatoon, SK
Love that outdoor living space! As mentioned earlier, great for entertaining and a great area to just be outside.

That is a really cool idea with the kids doing the wood project, I might steal that idea for the grandson if you don't mind!

By the way, this has got to be the longest thread I have seen. I keep checking in every week or so and catch up on the posts that have been made. Plus, you still have time to contribute valueable info on other forums as well.....I spend a bit of time on the welding forum as well.

Keep up the great work!
 

Responder

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Haha, I just realized that since I joined in 2009, I have finally made my 100th post and now have become a "senior member". How fitting it was to be made on your thread!
 
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Jack Olsen

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Thanks.

That is a really cool idea with the kids doing the wood project, I might steal that idea for the grandson if you don't mind!

I swiped the idea in the first place. It's intended for older kids as a way to teach them about making angle cuts. But for a group of 4-year-olds, I thought that wouldn't work very well. The instructions and a template are [ur=http://www.finewoodworking.com/woodworking-plans/article/kids-woodworking-project-a-t-rex-figure.aspx]at this link.[/url]

Haha, I just realized that since I joined in 2009, I have finally made my 100th post and now have become a "senior member". How fitting it was to be made on your thread!
Congratulations!

Doesnt it rain in LA?
How is this going to handle rain?

Basically, no. Not from now til October, possibly November. Seriously.

Dan's right. But when it does rain, we can get many inches of it at a time. The shade fabric will not stop the rain, although it will break it up a little and pretty much stop any lateral movement. So everything on the deck is weatherproof. I don't expect any surprises, since I've had a similar shade canopy over our front patio for years.

almostthere.jpg


final01.jpg
 

Chucktown

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Apr 20, 2012
Messages
94
Location
Lowcountry, SC
Jack, do you have to worry about the shade fabric staining for leaves, birds, etc, or does the rain keep it clean? That fabric in the last picture looks brand new!
 

Chucktown

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Apr 20, 2012
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94
Location
Lowcountry, SC
Does it also prevent dust/pollen from collecting on your furniture? Or maybe that's just a Kansas problem...

(also just commenting to turn the logo next to your thread green to make it easier to find)
Not sure about LA, but the Lowcountry SC is finishing up one of the worst pollen years I've ever experienced. :tantrum2:
 

Dan in Pasadena

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Feb 18, 2009
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Pasadena, CA
What's "pollen"?

Kidding, but pollen isn't a huge problem in SoCal. But dust and **** off the freeways IS. At least where I am and its only 10-12 miles from Jack's neighborhood.
 

SBogaCH

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Apr 24, 2013
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302
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Russia
It's a very awesome garage!! I'm excited! Your job and your garage is an icon of style for me. It's rather difficult to make such things In Russia, but I try not to let down. I can post my garage, but it's not so cool.
 

Dan in Pasadena

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... It's rather difficult to make such things in Russia, but I try not to let down. I can post my garage, but it's not so cool.

You've got a garage IN RUSSIA! How friggin cool is that?!

Post those pictures. Everyone is cool here and will be helpful, ESPECIALLY Jack. Not to speak for him (Well, it IS his thread) His wasn't always like it is now.
 
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Jack Olsen

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Thanks, guys.

The shade fabric on the front patio has held up fine. I guess it's been almost three years, now. It's polyethylene, which is pretty resistant to just about anything sticking to it.

Today I got a chance to get started on one of the two gates for the deck. This one is going to be steel, and is going to have some concentric gothic arch shapes on it. So I had to curve some 1" square tubing with my $111 Harbor Freight roll bender. Zeke on this board helped me out by widening out some of HF's 1/2" dies.

Here the thing is with some of the stock I used for the pergola:

http://sphotos-a.**.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/544294_10200948799306549_1765812366_n.jpg

And here is a single 20' length of 1"x1" tubing, cut up and curved.

bent.jpg


It took less than an hour to do all those pieces.

Of course, it's going to take longer than that to make this gate. But these are the pieces that will make it look cool. :beer:
 
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Taurus

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Jan 10, 2013
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Switzerland
Hey Jack, its just awesome what you are doing. The garage, the backyard - selfmade in perfection. I really like to look in here from time to time. Go on and have fun.
 
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Jack Olsen

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Thanks!

Yes, Dan -- the gate will be the one that leads to the driveway. Here's the basic shape -- I was testing to see how it would look. The 'temp gate' behind it is a section of an old playpen.

The wiring for the candle will run through the frame, but it will be 3V. I'd be a little leery about running 120V through a structure that opens and closes. Sooner or later, it seems like the wire would fray or break.

testshape.jpg


And here it is tacked together. I like the way the arches sort of suggest a radiant pattern around the candle light. (And, of course, it's also the same arch shape I used for the cover of the deck.)

gaterough.jpg


If the kids would have napped longer, I could have gotten it all put together.
 

Dan in Pasadena

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The wiring for the candle will run through the frame, but it will be 3V. I'd be a little leery about running 120V through a structure that opens and closes. Sooner or later, it seems like the wire would fray.

Exactly what I was thinking but didn't want to come off as critical. So the LED comes with some kind of step down transformer? I confess I know nothing about LED's. It's going to look great.
 

rharman

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The wiring for the candle will run through the frame, but it will be 3V. I'd be a little leery about running 120V through a structure that opens and closes. Sooner or later, it seems like the wire would fray or break.

If you could get a 12V bulb, it might be even better/easier. I see a Malibu transformer right there. Assuming the on/off time works OK for the gate, that is.
 
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Jack Olsen

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There are going to be about 35 of the LED-illuminated candles on the deck when it's done. And the plan had been to use the timer-controlled 12V box to power them, wiring them in sets of four to give 3V to each one. But the thing I discovered is that the flicker circuit in each LED will go into sync with the other four in its series when you wire them that way. So I switched gears and got an $7 AC adapter that I'll use in conjunction with a motion sensor.

I'm trying to think of other uses for that 12V power supply, now.
 
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Jack Olsen

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I didn't. For the draw these little bulbs produce, I guess it would be a straightorward application. But it's hard to compete (cost-wise) with a $7 adapter.
 

1Garageman

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May 12, 2009
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Columbus, Ohio
You have a great design ability, and you can do the job yourself. That gate is going to look awesome up there!
 
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Stuart in MN

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Sep 8, 2005
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Minneapolis
And the plan had been to use the timer-controlled 12V box to power them, wiring them in sets of four to give 3V to each one. But the thing I discovered is that the flicker circuit in each LED will go into sync with the other four in its series when you wire them that way.

I remember that discussion, but never considered the flicker aspect. That could be annoying, it would be like having a strobe light show in your back yard.
 

ntrddragn

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Apr 5, 2013
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hey Jack, im new to the forum but i have to say your built is sooooo awesome and inspiring.

richard
 
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Jack Olsen

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Here's an update on the deck. I don't know if I mentioned it before, but I decided to lower the roof of the thing by a foot. This was to make the thing look less colossal from our neighbors' yards. None of them complained, but my wife and I agreed that it needed to come just about a foot lower.

For reference, look at the strip of light showing through under the shade fabric in this picture:

35readyforoil.jpg


The trick, of course was how to do it. I came up with a pretty simple method. I propped each leg up, one at a time:

chopshop01.jpg


Then I used my little cordless circular saw to cut through all three pillars.

chopshop02.jpg


I sectioned out 12" and left an inch where the base plates were. I used some scrap lumber to hold each leg up when I was done. Here you can see one shortened, and one not:

chopshop03.jpg


Here are some pictures with the lowered roof. It's still pretty tall, honestly. But it does look better from the adjoining properties.

lowtopp.jpg


lowertop03.jpg


lowertop01.jpg


I'm going to raise the lights up a foot later this week.

That's still not the furniture that's going to be there when it's done. And there are still going to be 27 hard-wired candles added. And two gates. And some other stuff.

But I'm getting closer.
 

Looping

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Mar 10, 2013
Messages
35
Location
Belgium
I'm sorry to tell you that I think you have done a mistake :

The roof was too high on the TOP and you have cut legs on the DOWN... :wtf:

:D Sorry, I know it's a stupid joke but I can't resist :bounce::bounce::bounce:
 

temoore55

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Feb 6, 2010
Messages
12
Where did you get those lights??

I don't comment much but I have been following your thread for a couple of years. Incredible, simply incredible!!! I'm borrowing your sunshade idea for my pergola. Sometimes the sun is just too much, even in Chicago.
 

Dan in Pasadena

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Feb 18, 2009
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Pasadena, CA
Hi Jack,

I like the perimeter "troughs" with the impatiens - very attractive and an excellent choice for this cool shaded area. Did you (will you) plumb in some drip lines? I'd suggest it if you haven't. I'm sure water would be easy to add if you T a small valve off your hose bib below the deck. Also, if you put them on a timer you'll rarely have to think of them.

Anyway, everything is looking great. Keep plugging and when you get all the lights working please post a couple photos of it in the evening.
 
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