# Garage Ideas?



## mbell (Sep 9, 2008)

I'm moving to a new house and have the chance to start over with a new garage/work space for my bikes. Do any of you guys have any ideas that you would do if you had the chance to start over?


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## Ford Prefect42 (Aug 31, 2011)

Heated garage


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## NYrr496 (Sep 10, 2008)

Heated garage floor, air conditioning, ceiling fans, satellite radio, lots of security.


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## driveroperator (Aug 16, 2010)

fair amount of peg board. Bike parts are awkward in size and a pain to put in boxes. Also a good way to hang up riding gear to dry/store like shoes, helmets, and gloves. 

Rolling tool box. 

A sink is one thing I don't have that would be fantastic. A lot of auto mechanics swear by having an old dishwasher for parts cleaning too. Be kinda cool to pop a cassette and some cranks in a dishwasher.


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## MitchD (Jun 16, 2010)

I am finishing my new garage now. I put in 36 feet of formica countertops,and craftsman toolboxs underneath for storage.That was my biggest goal


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## crclawn (Sep 26, 2010)

As the above poster stated:

Pegboard and plenty of table top. Rolling tool chest are really nice too. Get ones with locking drawers or the ones that stay shut. The ones from Harbor freight made by General are a freaking outstanding deal. Very good quality for a low price. I would buy again and again. You won't find better quality for a lower price. Good luck brother.


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## tyler243 (Oct 28, 2009)

heating, air conditioning (make sure you have really good insulation), deep countertops (as in 30 inch, deeper would be better though so you can lay wheels and such without worrying of them falling off) pegboard, rack to put all you bikes in. and if you have a choice in size make sure you have space to pull your car in that way if you want to work on it you can in heated comfort (trust me nothing worse than working on your rig in sub-freezing temps...)


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## nov0798 (Nov 27, 2005)

Check out this website. possibilities are limitless.

The Garage Journal


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## NYrr496 (Sep 10, 2008)

I was going to use a wood pellet stove to heat a garage I was building at my last house because they sell a motorized hopper that can keep the heat going for eight hours while you're not there. Now, years later, I learn there's a shortage of those pellets all the time. 
Maybe a small natural gas heater. Seriously, if you're building this garage from scratch, have radiant tubing put in the floor. If you heat the floor, that's all you'll need.


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## Mtn-Rider (May 21, 2010)

Music, cool posters on the walls, lots of power outlets, big-*ss air compressor. Dirty corner for the messy stuff like bike washing and tubeless setups.


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## Dad Man Walking (Sep 7, 2004)

Medium gray porcelain tile floors/dark gray grout to hide stains. A local Toyota dealer has this in the shop; it sees more traffic and fluid spills in one day than my garage will see in 10 years, but it always mops up clean.

And if you have the headroom, put in a lift for your car while you are at it.

Oh....while you are at it, put one of these in the floor:


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## RSWMTB (Jun 7, 2011)

Installed ceiling fans this past summer and WHAT A DIFFERENCE. I can't wait to see what they will do (when I flick the button to reverse the direction) for moving the heat around my shop.

:thumbsup:

I use a propane-fired heater...$88 from Northern Tool and equipment...my shop is very toasty.

If (when) I do it all over again, I will have the garage/shop insulated, etc...you guys are giving me great ideas!

And yes, I use a rolling tool chest cabinet...I call it "the porn tower" (my G/F named it that! Ain't she cool??), since so much bike porn comes out of my shop  That big black thing with casters is my shop stand...a buddy at work, who does metal fab on the side (innovativeperformance.co - Home) built it for me...I have pictures of me DOING CHIN UPS from my bike stand...his stands are bad azz :thumbsup:

I'm very lucky and blessed, as I can have the back door open and look out on the lake behind my house.


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## wbmason55 (May 30, 2010)

Kegerator


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## twinracer (Sep 1, 2008)

RSWMTB said:


> I'm very lucky and blessed, as I can have the back door open and look out on the lake behind my house.


that's awesome!

can you post a picture of exterior of your garage?


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## mbell (Sep 9, 2008)

Anyone have any insight on how they've ran their compressed air? I'm not interested in PVC. Thanks.


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## tyler243 (Oct 28, 2009)

mbell said:


> Anyone have any insight on how they've ran their compressed air? I'm not interested in PVC. Thanks.


I used 3/4 copper piping when i did my dads whole garage. Ran it through the attic and down through the walls. Worked great


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## Dad Man Walking (Sep 7, 2004)

mbell said:


> Anyone have any insight on how they've ran their compressed air? I'm not interested in PVC. Thanks.


You can do it ghetto style with air hose (and pipe hangers, or duct tape for real ghetto). I surface mounted copper pipe in my last garage. That was easy to do (just cut and solder) and you don't need to worry about it holding the pressure. If I were doing one now I would also look at the RapidAir system...that looks pretty slick and they have some nice outlets that recess or surface mount depending on how you have run the tubing.


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## Ranger Radon (Aug 15, 2011)

mbell said:


> Anyone have any insight on how they've ran their compressed air? I'm not interested in PVC. Thanks.


Why would one need to run the air?

To keep the compressor outside for noise or os theres something im missing?


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## sasquatch rides a SS (Dec 27, 2010)

A bathroom. Great place to shower after a ride, or take a big dump in the middle of a wheel build. Also as stated you can wash your hands and clean parts in the sink...or toilet.


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## NYrr496 (Sep 10, 2008)

I had a garage that I installed a urinal. It was great when working on big projects or repairs.


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## estabro (Oct 9, 2009)

Mini-fridge.


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## RSWMTB (Jun 7, 2011)

twinracer said:


> that's awesome!
> 
> can you post a picture of exterior of your garage?


Thanks!

It's nothing spectacular...its attached to the house. I'll see if I can snap one.

NYrr496: I have a TON of turtles.


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## Dad Man Walking (Sep 7, 2004)

Ranger Radon said:


> Why would one need to run the air?
> 
> To keep the compressor outside for noise or os theres something im missing?


In my garage, there are several places where it would be nice to have an air hose handy. The compressor is on one side of the garage,in a corner, the only place it can sit. But my bench and toolbox are on the other side of the garage, 30+ feet away. Sure you can always run the hose to the work when you need to use it, but having an air outlet and a short hose like one of those plastic coil jobs right where you need it is much better.

Plus it's just plain too cool. Air on tap in your garage is like beer on tap at your outdoor grill. Major man-card points.


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## IRONMAN1518 (Jul 19, 2008)

Had my shell (outside walls/floor) built by a contractor, so I was able to start with a totally clean slate. Did lots of planning and ideas down on paper and used some paper models of workbenches and rollaways, air compressor, grinder, drill press, etc to move around on paper to get the feel for what would be best. County wouldn't let me install toilet without a ton of hassles. (Did install a sink with a "French drain" outside of on of the garage walls). Drilled a hole thru the wall for the drain pipe. Works for me. 9ft ceiling and 8ft door makes life real easy too.
After the empty shell was done me and a friend wired the garage, my wife and I insulated everything and the walled are alll reall pretty pegboard that my wife picked out. 
Lighting I did install two skylights, wished It had been 4. I used 5ea 8ft florescent tubes light fixtures.
CARPET or $$$ garage flooring is a must! Keeps you warmer in winter and a lot less painful if you gotta get on the floor for car work, etc. Went to a carpet dealer and they let us "dumpster dive" for some carpet that came out a house. Also used some of the old pieces from our own home when we haf it re-carpeted. Keep spares in the shed, and use a lomg wide piece under the bike stand to catch all the dirt/grease. When it gets real dirty throw out and use another.

I ran air hose thru the rafters to 3 outlets and ran a 3-outlet feed from Harbor Freight to connect air compressor to it. 
I took a lot of time to "shop" for the things I knew I wanted and was patient and bought when they went on sale. My Gladiator cabinets were a steal at Sears at a feature sale!

Minifridge is nice for sodas and water/(quit the booze a long time ago, just didn't work for me anymore, thank you). Nice sound system doesn't hurt. I ran sound wire splitters from the house amp to the garage and it feeds into a garage amp with Boston speakers I got as a demo/floor model from Best Buy at a great price.Added a cheap CD/DVD player. A shop computer is nice (got one last Black Friday) and feed it thru Wi-Fi from the house. Good for looking up tech info when fixing something.
Go this thread for some ideas 
http://forums.mtbr.com/tooltime/whats-your-shop-look-like-thread-600073.html

Glad to share some pics/ideas if you like, PM me if you like. Good luck!


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## RSWMTB (Jun 7, 2011)

Agree on the fridge.


You can't see it in the photo, but I have a full size fridge in my shop, which has been re-named "The Beer-Chilling Machine"...it's on the left just out of the picture. It was a souvenir from a 5 year marriage to a stone cold sociopath. :yikes: 


Having a full size fridge comes in handy too around holidays and cookouts, as there is extra space for food and MORE BEER and spirits 


As for a urinal...I'm lucky enough to live on that small lake, as I have no back yard neighbors...I just step out the back door, stand on the deck stairs and let 'er rip (into some ivy)...only people gonna see are the Ducks, Geese, and Turtles 



.


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## Ranger Radon (Aug 15, 2011)

Dad Man Walking said:


> In my garage, there are several places where it would be nice to have an air hose handy. The compressor is on one side of the garage,in a corner, the only place it can sit. But my bench and toolbox are on the other side of the garage, 30+ feet away. Sure you can always run the hose to the work when you need to use it, but having an air outlet and a short hose like one of those plastic coil jobs right where you need it is much better.
> 
> Plus it's just plain too cool. Air on tap in your garage is like beer on tap at your outdoor grill. Major man-card points.


I get the coolness, at my dads we've long talked about putting it up on the attic, to keep the noise down, but that makes it harder to take with you into e.g. the garden, or to the car.

One thing i noticed in this thread and the 'show-your-workspace'-one is the serious lack of table space! You virtually no tables or workbenches..


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## Dad Man Walking (Sep 7, 2004)

Ranger Radon said:


> I get the coolness, at my dads we've long talked about putting it up on the ceilling, to keep the noise down, but that makes it harder to take with you into e.g. the garden, or to the car.
> 
> One thing i noticed in this thread and the 'show-your-workspace'-one is the serious lack of table space! You virtually no tables or workbenches..


Re: the fixed air installation, this does not require that you permanently mount your compressor. I have a 25-gallon horizontal tank compressor that rolls around--all I will do (when I get that RapidAir system ) is to mount the supply manifold on the wall near where the compressor sits, and use a short piece of hose with a quick disconnect to attach it to the compressor. It's easy to disconnect the compressor from the system and wheel it around. If you want to have the compressor mounted in a remote location, remember that you'll still need to get at it to service it (change the oil and drain water from the tank), and you'll need a switched outlet for it so you can turn it on/off as needed from your work area.

Sidebar -- interesting comment about the work surface. My own experience suggests that unless one is incredibly organized, excess work surface just turns into disorganized, messy, I'll-put-this-away-later stacked up storage. Mine does, anyway. I have a 60"x30" laminated maple tabletop over a cabinet that I built, and that is more than enough space for most projects that I do. Bike work requires very little work surface, General homeowner work like pounding on sh_i_t and squeezing stuff in a vice and drilling and nailing and gluing requires as much space as the size of the piece that I'm working on. When I built this bench I was lusting for something much larger, but now that I've lived with it for over 15 years I'd say it's about the perfect size for my needs. Here's a pic of it several years ago when I was painting (de-Barbie-ifying) my boys' bikes:


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## William_Cannon (May 5, 2009)

3rd car garage... everything else is just a nice to have.


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## smilinsteve (Jul 21, 2009)

I never really thought about snazzing up my garage, but there's some cool stuff on that garage journal web site. It's got me thinking.


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## desnaephoto (Jun 11, 2009)

The big one I keep telling myself -- 10 ft doors! That way I can drive in/out and not worry about the bikes on the car roof. 

Working in the barn in the summer and winter also has me say insulation, definitely! Lots of options on how to heat/cool the place. The stand alone heat/AC units with the pumps outside are very quiet and efficient. 

Otherwise, keep it simple. Better to start small, with what you MUST have and add later. You may never need something else and can use that $$$ elsewhere.


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

for having access to air lines across the garage, my dad had a retractable air line mounted to the ceiling. he could disconnect the compressor from it and wheel the compressor around if necessary, but if he just needed the air tools on the opposite side of the garage, the retractable air line in the ceiling handled that fine.

I only have a portable compressor right now, so I don't worry about that yet. 

I'm still working on my workspace. I built a couple of small tables a few years ago, and this year I added a wheeled toolbox and the compressor. My lighting sucks and there's not enough electrical outlets in my garage. one of these days I'll get some better lighting, but I don't plan on staying in my current place for all that long so I don't care to make major structural changes. I have some garage door insulation to add, though, that I picked up for a major discount awhile back.

my ideal workshop would be separate from the house (currently I have an attached garage), with at least a 3 car space. That way, I'd have room to park 2 cars and the 3rd car space could be workshop space. I'd prefer to have an apartment next to it that I'd turn into a man cave with a mini kitchen, bathroom, and lounge space with a big window to the shop. I'd want the apartment heated/air conditioned, but the workshop doesn't need such extensive climate control. It would just need good insulation, good ventilation, and a heated floor sounds nice. concrete with one of those epoxy coatings would be fine for a floor.


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## IRONMAN1518 (Jul 19, 2008)

OPPS, totally forgot, insulated garage door, makes life a lot nicer!


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## Ranger Radon (Aug 15, 2011)

Dad Man Walking said:


> .... If you want to have the compressor mounted in a remote location, remember that you'll still need to get at it to service it (change the oil and drain water from the tank), and you'll need a switched outlet for it so you can turn it on/off as needed from your work area.


I get it about the remote installation, we've discussed placing it in the attic, but has since disregarded that idea, due to the trouble of getting it up and down. But it would be awesome to be able to pump the tires from the outside in the shed, instead og hauling the bike all the way in to the workshop.



Dad Man Walking said:


> Sidebar -- interesting comment about the work surface. My own experience suggests that unless one is incredibility organized, excess work surface just turns into disorganized, messy, I'll-put-this-away-later stacked up storage. Mine does, anyway. I have a 60"x30" laminated maple tabletop over a cabinet that I built, and that is more than enough space for most projects that I do. Bike work requires very little work surface, General homeowner work like pounding on sh_i_t and squeezing stuff in a vice and drilling and nailing and gluing requires as much space as the size of the piece that I'm working on. When I built this bench I was lusting for something much larger, but now that I've lived with it for over 15 years I'd say it's about the perfect size for my needs. Here's a pic of it several years ago when I was painting (de-Barbie-ifying) my boys' bikes:


But where du you keep your drill press, benchgrinder etc?

Nothing is worse than a cluttered workspace, and yes larger tabletops seem to clutter more easy than a small one, but i maintain that i would need more "length" than whats been pictured here for the all-purpose garage/Shop. I grew up with about 12 feet of tabletop for bare workspace, and another 6 feet on the opposing wall for the drillpress etc.

It tends to clutter, i will admit that, but maintain that its my dads fault and not mine 
But we could be out there together, working on different projects, having a vice each.. wonderful!

On a side note, your table seems akwardly low!


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## smokerings (Sep 8, 2011)

We actually just finished insulating and drywalling our garage this fall, we even wired in a light to go in above the dartboard. I'm currently working on plans for a workbench that will cover the entire rear wall of the garage.
Thanks for all the ideas and pictures guys. :thumbsup:



RSWMTB said:


> Thanks!
> 
> It's nothing spectacular...its attached to the house. I'll see if I can snap one.
> NYrr496: I have a TON of turtles.


What do you have for fish in that lake? I've been fishing and biking since I was little so both activities fight for my attention! I'm upset I didn't get out more this summer.


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## Dad Man Walking (Sep 7, 2004)

Ranger Radon said:


> But where du you keep your drill press, benchgrinder etc?


A 14" table-top bench press lives on a separate rolling cabinet I made, and a grinder/belt sander combo also fits on top of that. I keep it rolled against the wall and can get to both tools for quick jobs, and for more serious work we roll the cabinet out to where we can get the tool to the work/the work to the tool, or just get the mess out of the garage if we're using a drum sander in the drill press or doing much on the belt sander. We've also got a table saw with an extended side wing on it (the white formica behind the bench vice) so that give us another 5' of flat surface when needed. But honestly...it's mostly a place to collect more crap instead of putting it away like a should. We have had the cub scout den over here a few times for Pinewood Derby car building...then you want every square foot of table you can get. We moved both the bench and the table saw into the middle of the garage to get as many work stations as possible, and used lots of clamps to help the kids hold down their work while they pounded/sawed/filed/sanded.



Ranger Radon said:


> On a side note, your table seems akwardly low!


That's just an illusion from the crappy camera angle. It's a 36" high. Actually a couple of inches taller than a traditional woodworking bench (but I'm a couple of inches taller than a traditional woodworker).


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## Ranger Radon (Aug 15, 2011)

Dad Man Walking said:


> A 14" table-top bench press lives on a separate rolling cabinet I made, and a grinder/belt sander combo also fits on top of that. I keep it rolled against the wall and can get to both tools for quick jobs, and for more serious work we roll the cabinet out to where we can get the tool to the work/the work to the tool, or just get the mess out of the garage if we're using a drum sander in the drill press or doing much on the belt sander. We've also got a table saw with an extended side wing on it (the white formica behind the bench vice) so that give us another 5' of flat surface when needed. But honestly...it's mostly a place to collect more crap instead of putting it away like a should. ...
> 
> That's just an illusion from the crappy camera angle. It's a 36" high. Actually a couple of inches taller than a traditional woodworking bench (but I'm a couple of inches taller than a traditional woodworker).


Ok... well you could been a couple of feet shorter for what i know...

Ok, so you have workspace available... I get the clutter-stacking effect excess worksurface has... the more space you have in excess of what you need, the more crap can be stored "for later" instead of sorted or thrown out accordingly.. i will keep that in mind designing my next garage..


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## jtmartino (Jul 31, 2008)

This is a great thread. Thanks to everyone who has contributed!


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## trekterror (Sep 5, 2011)

jtmartino said:


> This is a great thread. Thanks to everyone who has contributed!


+1 lots of ideas...


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## burmer_skark (Nov 23, 2004)

Install a golf cart. Trust me, you'll wonder how you lived so long without one.


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## RSWMTB (Jun 7, 2011)

smokerings said:


> What do you have for fish in that lake? I've been fishing and biking since I was little so both activities fight for my attention! I'm upset I didn't get out more this summer.


Some bass, minnows, and we (my neighbor and I) stocked it with 50 grass Carp this past spring, as we had a Eurasian Watermilfoil invasion...between the Grass Carp and 2-4-D, the infestation has been crushed, the dead plants have sunk, and the Carp have food for YEARS between the dead Milfoil and the tons of sunken pine needles, etc. 

.


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## hartwerks (Oct 2, 2011)

A few shots of my garage. Lots of peg-board, and bikes on a pulley system in the lofted ceiling. I also have some new fluorescent lights installed by an electrician friend who I've done some bike work for. At this point I have a fully functioning shop in there (I do a fair amount of pick-up and drop-off tunes), plus 11 bikes, and as you can see I can still get the truck in there in the winter. There's also a big rolling tool box on a cart full of cleaners, hydraulic fluid, lube and other stuff that's not in the shots (it's in front of the truck) and a whole bunch of wheels and skis and snowboards above the open garage door (I teach both skiing and snowboarding in the winters).


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## IRONMAN1518 (Jul 19, 2008)

Very nice!!


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