Where does your garage stand in your hood?

[chrislehr]

We all seem to have nicer than average places.. just wondering how you stack to the Jones's

I think my neighbors are consistently surprised at how much I am out there. They always wave, but few have come to see what I am working on. I have yet to see a neighbors garage open except for one guy who has a pair of triumphs up the street...

 

[ovilla]

I try not to attract too much attention and keep the doors closed as much as possible. The whole block saw me bringing in and installing my BendPak HD-9 and they do see me loading/unloading cars almost every weekend as I'm always working on my cars or that of my friends and family. Anyway, I always try to be as considerate as possible and keep the noise down to a minimum. I purposely bought a quiet dual stage Craftsman air compressor, a 2135QTIMAX (which is actually somewhat quiet), and a stereo that I keep kind of low (except for when the doors are closed). Years ago I used to live next to a loud neighbor and I swore to never be that kind of neighbor. There's nothing wrong with enjoying your passions, just let others enjoy theirs too.

As far as the garage itself goes, it's not fancy but it's definitely more equipped than anything my neighbors have. Besides the Bendpak, air compressor, ceiling mounted reel, gladiator wall cabinets, workbench, and gear track, I also have a hoist on 12' of barn track so I can get things up/down from the garage attic. Most of my neighbors don't even have drop down stairs in their garage attics.

My neighbor across the street has an awesome garage that looks like something out of a Gladiator brochure. He's got every cabinet they make, even an under counter mini fridge (which they no longer carry). The walls/floors are painted and everything is perfectly in place. He even has an air compressor piped in from the basement and has air hookups all over his garage. Unfortunately he travels a lot and doesn't get a chance to really use it much. The coolest part is all of the flood lights that he mounted in the ceiling. At night, it's as bright as a night game at Comiskey Park. Overall, it's a very nice garage and he worked hard on it so he deserves.

Finally, the rest of the 260+ houses in my subdivision are pretty boring, garage wise. I've walked my dog around a lot and have never even seen a garage that required a second look. A couple had TV's in them and a few more had big craftsman tool boxes but that was about it. Garages around me are mostly used for storing cars, bikes, and baby strollers.

 

[gatewaysysop]

Heh. In my neighborhood the houses are slightly past 20 years old now. I'm guessing mainly due to that fact, at least half the ones on my street that I've seen opened are completely full of ****, from floor to ceiling. There is nobody, I repeat nobody who actually parks their daily driver car inside, it's all just driveway or curbside.

I've actually seen, more than once, where people do have a car in there, but it's completely surrounded and covered by the other **** in the garage. I don't think there's more than one guy who actually works on a car (or anything else) in his garage at all.

 

[Vinko]

I try not to attract too much attention

Same here. But mine's nothing special.

 

[bcjames]

Mine is small and set back behind some 7ft gates, so I don't think most people know it is there! My neighbours both have bigger garages, but I think I certainly have the most productive

 

[ulev1st]

When I moved in to this neighborhood we were among the youngest people here and I was just over 50 so that should set the stage. The neighbors across the street actually set up lawn chairs and sat out there with binoculars and watched us unload our stuff. All was fine until the second day when I brought my drag car in on a trailer and fired it up to unload it. The cops were here in less than ten minutes! So...I am the scourge of the neighborhood. I have since installed a privacy fence with automatic gates and try to keep them closed a lot. But I still mess with fast cars so I'm not too popular with the geriactic set. The cops have been here 4 times in five years..all for the race car. So when I work on friends cars part of the payment is for them to back out of the driveway come to a complete stop and let er rip when they leave. That way it pisses the old guy across the street off...its NOT me...and they are long gone so who they gonna call the cops on. I have even had "code enforcement" out here about an "illegal repair business"..I told them to pound salt..I don't charge anything and I only work on family projects.The fact that I have seven cars/trucks and a 32 foot enclosed trailer and a Harley probably doesn't help. But I have calmed down a little and don't work on anything before 9am or after 8PM.

 

[jay50]

When I moved in to this neighborhood we were among the youngest people here and I was just over 50 so that should set the stage. The neighbors across the street actually set up lawn chairs and sat out there with binoculars and watched us unload our stuff. All was fine until the second day when I brought my drag car in on a trailer and fired it up to unload it. The cops were here in less than ten minutes! So...I am the scourge of the neighborhood. I have since installed a privacy fence with automatic gates and try to keep them closed a lot. But I still mess with fast cars so I'm not too popular with the geriactic set. The cops have been here 4 times in five years..all for the race car. So when I work on friends cars part of the payment is for them to back out of the driveway come to a complete stop and let er rip when they leave. That way it pisses the old guy across the street off...its NOT me...and they are long gone so who they gonna call the cops on. I have even had "code enforcement" out here about an "illegal repair business"..I told them to pound salt..I don't charge anything and I only work on family projects.The fact that I have seven cars/trucks and a 32 foot enclosed trailer and a Harley probably doesn't help. But I have calmed down a little and don't work on anything before 9am or after 8PM.

You don't live in one of those nazi HOAs do you?

 

[bb1970]

I live out where the chicken f##k the hoot owls. We have a 8 year old home and my barn (shop) is only 5 years old. It stacks up better than most around. I think most folks out here take pride in their homes. And keep them up nice. There are still some that don't give a damn.

 

[fabman_52]

I only know of one other person in the Hood that has a setup like mine. Pete and I have a lot of the same stuff.
I'm a welder by trade, by choice and for hobby. Therefore my garage is actually a small fab shop. The only thing that gets parked in there is my Fat A..! In and out all day everyday from about 8:00 am until generally 9/10:00 pm when I'm not working, when I'm working it's from about 6:30 pm until 9/10:00 pm.

I also have the neighbor lady's garage for storage, good working relationship. I keep her grass cut and snow shoveled and I get to use her garage. It has worked great now for about 20 years or so.

Any and all of my automotive work is done in the driveway, my neighbors have always been cool about what I do. Generally when they need something fixed I just do it for them, that way they stay off my fat a.. If the house on the left of me ever gets sold then I'll just have to break them in right, but the way they have been burning houses down around here........who knows. It has become a HUD house.

I really do have a nice set up for what it is. one of these days I'll get some pix up.

George.

 

[Rickster]

I have an attached garage up front and I like to keep the door open when I'm working in the garage in the warm months. So I keep the daily drivers in the drive in front of the open door to keep the street viewing to a minimum. When we first moved here we were among the youngest on the block, now several younger couples have moved in. Lucky for me my neighbors are "originals" and now the old timers's are getting hard of hearing! In my neighborhood there are two kinds of garage interiors; most have a single shelf with some WD40 and a broom and a few others have it packed to the gills with stuff!

 

[russlaferrera]

Most of the homes in my area do not have a garage. About 50% of those who do, use it for a shed. The other 50% work on cars and other things. Most of the people except one or two don't care what you do. The best part everyone is one has 2 ac or more.

 

[chrislehr]

Oh yea, HOA's. We picked based on homes WITHOUT one of those. Our neighbor has a buick on jackstands that looks like it might never come down. I don't mind that too much, I figured I can't get in much trouble with him.

 

[NRChopshop]

Most of the houses in the 'hood dont have a garage. Out of the ones that do, my garage is the biggest and most used. Im the 3rd owner and both before me were Hot rodders. I think my neighbors are used to it by now. Plus they're all good friendly people. No HOA so i can do whatever i want, but i do respect my neighbors in just the same way i would like to be. I open shop doors strategically to minimize noise and line of sight. Im not loud in any way other than some air tools here and there. I take pride in having a nice, clean and well kept property. Im not working my *** off to let the place got to hell.

 

[ddawg16]

If I were to place my garage on the 'hood' of my jeep, I'm afraid my jeep would be crushed.....

Oh, you mean 'neighborhood'? Sorry...hood sounds so ghetto.....

At 1040 sq feet....my garage is as big if not bigger than many of the houses around here....all of the garages are about 18'x20'.....single story....mine is 20'x25' 2 story......but it is in the rear of the yard....and I have gone through considerable steps to make it match the general look of the house and not be an eye sore.....end result...one neighbor has already gotton a copy of my plans so he can do something similar....neighbor behind me is kicking around ideas on how he should rebuild his....(money is his main obsticle)...

When I was doing the plans, I showed, ran the plans past the adjacent neighbors....hence, they had time to express any concerns...and non were made....

 

[Rolling_Thunder]

I am blessed with 2 garages a 22x28 attached which has floor to ceiling shelves on the back wall for storage and its main use is to house the Wifes car and my Goldwing. I have a detached 24x24 behind the house that is all mine!! I recently insulated and walled it, put in a heat pump, cable tv and a nice stereo system! Its absolutley my MANCAVE. I live in a single road neighborhood with mostly larger homes and all are on 3-6 acre lots and no HOA. Mine is the last one at the end of the cul-de-sac and then down a 1/4 mile private road. Most of the neighgbors have garages and its really weird like I said the houses here are big but there are a few neigbors with atached garages that have them setup with couches, recliners, carpets, Big Screen TV's and they sit out there watch NASCAR races and other sports. I use my mancave to work in yes I do have a 27" tv but thats for watching while I working on my cars or motorcycles. One guy has Picinic tables in his and they eat out there alot! But luckily all my neigbors are good people and get along with each other! Ive even sat in one of the garages one night and watched a NASCAR race!!

 

[DCarr]

I bought the residential lot behind me, had it added to my existing lot and am building a 40' x 60' shop on it that will stick out about 10' further than the houses on either side of it .... so far no one is pissed about it. And I have told the neighbors on both sides and all others that will be able to see it from their house exactly what I am building.

I just got the culvert pipe and my driveway alone is going to be 48' wide !

 

[gsport]

i think most of my friends thats seen my place are envious.. here it is

the small shop is 28'x43' and heated, the big shop is 45'x60' and not heated, it has the lift in it along with the 5th wheel. i spend most of my time in the small one....

 

[JOHNMAN]

In my neighborhood, the norm is to have a pole barn or at least an out building. That is why I bought here.

I really haven't been here too long (just about 6 months now).

Most of my neighbors seem to have farm type equipment in their out buildings. The neighbors on both sides have actual farm tractors that they use to attempt to mow approximately 2.5 acres (which is what most of the homes in this hood have). I swear my John Deere mower mows just as quickly and doesn't tear up the yard as much.

Where does my shop rank? From size alone, it's about as big as they are in my hood. From external appearance, it is in the middle. It is a 64'x48' metal pole barn after all.

The interior (which I am currently working on) is probably more set up for cars than others, but I really haven't toured (or seen) the inside of other guys pole barns yet. I prefer to not have nosy neighbors perusing my stuff.

Once the shop is settled, then I can worry about the yard and the outer appearance.

 

[hodag]

My garage when its finished (I just dug the footing trenches Friday night) will be the biggest in the neighborhood by far. My driveway is separated from the neighbors by 3 feet and so our garages will only be 3 feet apart when its finished. Mine will be 22' x 36' with attic trusses (about 21' feet high when finished). His is 12'x18' and full of his **** from the remodeling of the house.

Our house is 1912, so we are trying to keep the garage looking the same as the house. Stucco, carriage-house doors, etc.

I think everyone on the street should be cool with it, but there are no other gear heads on the block, mostly musicians and college professors. And a cabinet maker who home brews!

The true test will be when my FJ40 is up and running again (40 series Flowmasters), or when my buddy comes by in his deuce-and-a-half.

Hodag

 

[sam 8]

My house and shop are about 250' from the county road. From that road you can see the long side of a 20x30 garage. Unless you really look, you cannot see the crest of the roof of the 24x30 attachment built off of the back of it, making it 1320 sq.ft.
Friends and family are the only people who know what is in there and that is exactly the way I want it. The people on the road have seen the '40 and the VW projects come and go, and guess some have seen the welders, the Backyard Buddy, and the lathe, stc come down the hill, but I don't think many have put it all together.

 

[december45]

we have 13 acres here in northern ca... but we keep to our selves, and try to be as low key as possible, been around for along time, and the surest way to have problems is to allow your neighbors a view or access to your garage area, a jealous neighbor is more common than one would think... now we dont have all that, but the neighbor with the binoculars really hit home, dont need or want problems with any one.. too bad it has to be that way but like i said weve been around the block a few times.

 

[Tarheelgarage]

If I were to place my garage on the 'hood' of my jeep, I'm afraid my jeep would be crushed.....

Oh, you mean 'neighborhood'? Sorry...hood sounds so ghetto.....

At 1040 sq feet....my garage is as big if not bigger than many of the houses around here....all of the garages are about 18'x20'.....single story....mine is 20'x25' 2 story......but it is in the rear of the yard....and I have gone through considerable steps to make it match the general look of the house and not be an eye sore.....end result...one neighbor has already gotton a copy of my plans so he can do something similar....neighbor behind me is kicking around ideas on how he should rebuild his....(money is his main obsticle)...

When I was doing the plans, I showed, ran the plans past the adjacent neighbors....hence, they had time to express any concerns...and non were made....

ddawg, need to put a coat of paint on the shop before the neighbors complain that the building is an "eye-sore"...

 

[G-force]

We used to live in a upscale suburban neighborhood and I hated it. 3 car garage. Yuppees everywhere. People would always be driving by, stopping and staring, trying to peer in my garage. I honestly had anxiety issues about it sometimes.

We now live on acreage out in the country, at the end of a long private dead end road. I have absolute privacy. The only uninvited passerby we ever get is the UPS or FedEx guy. I love it and will NEVER go back to suburban life if I have a choice.

Here's the view outside my attached garage...

My driveway (during heavy traffic)...

 

[ItBurnsWhenIPee]

Here's the view outside my attached garage...

The view would be better without that dude standing in front of the place.



As for the topic of the thread...I'm about average on my (non HOA) street. There's no neighborhood...Just a street about 5-10 miles outside of town.

I've got a 3 car garage on the house (no idea of it's actual dimensions, probably around 22 x 30 or so) and a 30x30 shop out back with it's own driveway. There are a couple of houses with bigger shops on the street, but most don't have one at all.

I don't really care about keeping up with them though...I've got the fastest car on the street that I know of

 

[oldgoat]

I put my 2nd garage in the back behind the house with the door facing 90 deg from the street so nobody can see into it without getting pretty snoopy. Everybody else has their's straight back and you can see anything that is in there when they have the door open. I'm not fond of people knowing what I have so that is why I put it that way. Since there isn't a HOA there isn't anybody to really complain and I don't try to make noise real early or real late. I might have a car in there working on it, or doing some woodworking and sometimes we've set a table up out there and ate out there so the granddaughter can ride around on her little battery powered car.

 

[kvom]

In terms of space I'm sure my garage space is the largest in our subdivison (1200 homes)since I have my original 2 car space plus my 2-story attached. There is one other 2-story detached garage in the neighborhood, but without the regular inside garage.

There is one house (which I really like) that is next door to friend's and has a 3-car garage with 13' ceilings. It sold for $1200K a few years ago, but is in foreclosure. It could be bought today for around $680K.

 

[Bevis]

I live in a decent neighborhood....well at least my street. None of my neighbors have complained about my 32 X 48 pole barn except my rear neighbor (my pee funnel hose runs to his yard ), but lately he has come to grips, after I asked about his car repair business he's running out of his back yard. I'vo only had one hoodrat wonder into my cabin, but was shortly proned out until the S.O. showed up.

 

[Old Moparz]

We used to live in a upscale suburban neighborhood and I hated it. 3 car garage. Yuppees everywhere. People would always be driving by, stopping and staring, trying to peer in my garage. I honestly had anxiety issues about it sometimes.

We now live on acreage out in the country, at the end of a long private dead end road. I have absolute privacy. The only uninvited passerby we ever get is the UPS or FedEx guy. I love it and will NEVER go back to suburban life if I have a choice.

Same thing for me before I got my own place, I want nothing to do with keeping up with the Jones. When I was still at my parent's house in my early 20's, it was a small, one car garage that I used. I had to clean out all kinds of **** to get my first decent car in there, a 1970 Plymouth GTX. Most people in the neighborhood would either fill their garage with junk, or convert it to a room for the house. They never put a car in theirs at all.

Once, when I was moving things around so I could work on the car, I had to put stuff in the driveway to get the car out a bit for room. As I worked on the car, I noticed 2 old ladies wandering around the driveway looking at all the stuff, so I asked them what was up. The answer I got was "Oh, we're sorry, we thought it was a garage sale."

Nosey neighbors ****, & being in plain site makes it easy for them to be nosey. They're more concerned over other people's business & create problems all the time over nothing. I once had a car that I was going to remove a the 440 from for another car, but had to wait until warmer weather. I parked it behind the garage for about 2 months waiting for spring where it was completely out of site.

I still got a letter from the town telling me I had an illegally parked vehicle & had 30 days to resolve it or I'd be fined. I knew the law & that I was wrong, but the thing that bugged me most is that the car was so well hidden you actually had to tresspass to see it. I swore that when I found my own place it would be private, & it is. Unless you're a bird or you're in an airplane, if you are looking at my house, you're tresspassing.

I'm on a dead end cul de sac with only 13 homes including mine. Most are ranch style homes from the 1960's except for mine & my closest neighbor who has a cape. (Ours were built later in the 80's.) Everyone keeps to themselves when it comes to what anyone else is doing, but everyone is friendly & will say hello. None are serious gearheads, one guy built a 2 car garage & moved, another built a 2 car & has an '03 Ram Hemi in it that's his toy, & my closest neighbor would love to get his hands on an Olds 442 when he can afford it.

As for all the other garages, most of them are just large closets.

 

[fabman_52]

We used to live in a upscale suburban neighborhood

Here's the view outside my attached garage...

Not to change the subject but.................................................................
That is one good lookin Sportie, looks like it just might kick a little a.. too! Had more than my share of Harleys when I wore a younger mans clothes, Plan on at least one more before I start pushing up daisies.
Have had 13 in my life, of them 2 were Sportsters, 2 Low Riders, 1 original Super Glide, 1971 with the duck tail rear fender, 2 1969 and 1 1967 Pan/Shovel Electra Glides. One was a retired Police Special from the Detroit Police Department, got it at auction for $550.00 back in the day! And the rest were all Electra Glides in one form or another. But my favorite by far was my 69 Pan/Shovel Police Special!
Thanks for letting me steel the thread for a moment to bring back some really great memories!
George!

 

[wrigh003]

I'm under-garaged for my area, everyone seems to have at least a shed or outbuilding. I have the space for a detached shop, and plan to build one, but first I have other stuff to take care of with the house. The attached 2-car carport needs to get closed in, and the unfinished basement 1-car garage will get converted to living space first.

 

[A_Pmech]

Neighborhood? What's that?

 

[Mike83]

My two-car garage is about average, although some folks only have a one-car. I resolved when we moved in that the garage was going to house our cars, and it does. All the **** is in the basement! I have a few toolboxes in the garage and the snowblower in winter, so I keep the door closed to keep an honest man honest. With garage theft in the area, though, I am inclined to put bars over the window.

No nosy neighbors really. When we moved in the neighbors offered for me to borrow any tools I needed, etc. I laughed to myself a little and politely said thanks for the offer If only they saw what I had!

 

[wachuko]

You don't live in one of those nazi HOAs do you?

I do... major pita....

Hard for me to keep a low profile because, for now at least, everytime I need to work in the garage I have to haul all the sh$% out to have the space to do work. So the bikes, lawn stuff, and any project gets moved outside while I work....

I do try to keep the noise down.

Even my son gets his car out

and a photo of the garage before I start working

a few more:

 

[autoist]

Lots of garage guys in my neighborhood - a second garage structure is not uncommon & I can stand in my yard & see at least 6 garages that are used solely for man spaces.

I keep my garage open when I'm out there & neighbors & friends drop by all the time..

Mine looks like somebody built a 2nd house real close to my house except I've a large gravel parking area in front of it....my house faces into the corner of the intersection & my garage sits at a 45-degree to my house, connected by a huge breezeway/outdoor kitchen.

Front of House:

Alignment of house & garage (house porch on left, garage wall on right:

Front of Garage:

 

[JMURiz]

Most of the houses in the 'hood dont have a garage. Out of the ones that do, my garage is the biggest and most used. Im the 3rd owner and both before me were Hot rodders. I think my neighbors are used to it by now. Plus they're all good friendly people. No HOA so i can do whatever i want, but i do respect my neighbors in just the same way i would like to be. I open shop doors strategically to minimize noise and line of sight. Im not loud in any way other than some air tools here and there. I take pride in having a nice, clean and well kept property. Im not working my *** off to let the place got to hell.

My neighborhood is about the same...most of the garages around me are of the 1930's/40's 10x18 variety...so mine is nice in size (actually the largest you are allowed to build in the county zoning laws. It looks like it fits into the neighborhood though, so it doesn't draw more than a second look from the street. But having a a 14' cathedral ceiling makes a huge difference. Once it's all done and the lift is in, I'm sure it'll be one of the top 5 garages in the immediate area. Guess only time will tell though.

 

[sberry]

I am the only kid on my block with one like it.

 

[RbrtAWhyt]

Have you had any issues with thost Shortshots? We put a set on my buddy's Dyna Glide and they started rusting. He sent them back and they sent him another set without any hassle...

 

[wachuko]

Have you had any issues with thost Shortshots? We put a set on my buddy's Dyna Glide and they started rusting. He sent them back and they sent him another set without any hassle...

Sorry for the hijack... but same question here... I am trying to convince my wife to get the same pipes...

Man! I was sooo close of getting rid of my bike for that same flat black Nightster. I still see them in the street and drool...

Or is that the Iron 883??? Either way, it looks badass!!

 

[hobie1dog]

All the houses in my subdivision have the same small 2 car garage, it ***** from what I used to have....I pray daily to be able to move once things change financially.

 

[RbrtAWhyt]

Nice ride. You're lucky. I wish I could get my wife to learn to ride her own, but she don't want none of it. Says she's perfectly happy riding behind me...