Ultimate Garage Workshop

[TomMoorehouse]

that 3 rooms idea looks cool.... so does the wrap around work bench if i could just get a bunch of old kitchen cabinets to hold all my stuff..... keep the good idea coming!

 

[Ron Olson]

For cheap cabinetry, look for a house salvage yard in your area. You might be able to get other things there that you need, lighting, doors, a sink and other goodies. Don't forget to install a floor drain for spills or if you have to take a leak!

 

[Russell Bear]

Don't forget to install a floor drain for spills or if you have to take a leak!

Isn't that what the sink is for?

 

[ScottVanSlooten]

Tom for cabinets check wth localrebuilders/remodelers as they may know of some up coming jop that just may have with your looking for.

Easy paint booth can be made out of 2x2 and covered with pastic made foldable set it up in garge heat it do your painting and set it off in the corner and hdng boats/parts in shop to dry. this can be made any size you need .

Scott

 

[Mike G]

Don't forget the "Boat Rack"

 

[ClayGlover]

Isn't that what the sink is for?

 

[Mike Hughes]

For boat shelfs, I use 1/4 ply with a frame of 2x2 to stiffen it up. One sheet of ply cut into three 34x48 pieces will give you a shelf that is 12'x34" or you could go with a shelf 2'x16', two pieces 2'x8'. All you need is a 1/4 sheet of ply and five 2x2. Build the frame so there are cross braces every 4', plus the exterior frame. I use jack chain and hang them from the ceiling at 4' intervals. Works great. There are 20 some boats in my garage. I had to come up with something or there would be no space to work.

Mike

 

[Don Ferrette]

Tom, the wrap around workbenches are the way to go. When I moved down from my old house my shop was 30x35, I have far less now but to be honest I like it better, everything is right there. I do not have a dedicated paint booth but rather a good evacuation system to draw out the paint excess. With current HVLP guns overspray amount is not bad & if you use a evacuation from below the level you're spraying you will keep paint AND airborne contaminants below you. So that is floor space that when I'm not painting I can set up another table if I'm working on multiple projects, which seems to be all the time. Shelving is a must but as in a previous post keep it high. Look at the pics that follow & you'll see shelving near the ceiling of my shop in various places. These pics are taken standing right at garage door. Hope this helps.....

 

[Don Ferrette]

and the 2nd angle from other corner looking in..........

 

[Don Ferrette]

from left corner looking towards painting area.........

 

[TomMoorehouse]

thanks for the pics don.... you smaller shop is 3X bigger than mine will bw... im envious!

when you painted your boat it did not leave paint dust throughout the shop? I plan on mounting a big exhaust fan on one wall.

 

[Don Ferrette]

Tom I have virtually no problem with any paint dust. The key is two things- I paint with HVLP detail gun @ around 10 psi tip pressure so most of what you spray goes on what your spraying. Second is the evac system (pics were posted of it a short while back) is right there next to (& below) where I'm painting so out it goes. Keep in mind one very important thing, you've got to bring in fresh air to replace what you are pulling out so a filtered vent say in your door into shop to let air in should do it. Keep vent low also so you air movement in & out of evac stays below what you are painting & you draw down & away from it.

 

[Don Ferrette]

Tom-

Here's another pic of my "evacuation box". It's on wheels, hooks to garage door via a 4" flex duct & dryer outlet in door. The unit inside is a 665cfm (the original 115cfm bathroom fan just didn't quite get it done) 10" circular fan I got from Grainger that uses ordinary ductwork reducers to drop it to the 4" outlet. The front grille (typical home heat/a/c air inlet) houses a filter so anything outside the garage vent doesn't change color when I paint. This thing rolls out of the way under the paint bench when not in use, the ductwork has PVC slip connections on both ends.

 

[Don Ferrette]

One other thing to keep in mind- you can't have too much lighting. In addition to the flourescent lights on ceiling I added the 24" lights under the shelves over the work bench (I forgot to turn them on in last set of pics) & one over the paint mixing bench. The 24" single tube lights are like $10 each at Depot or Lowe's & well worth it!! (it's actually VERY bright in there, all those lights screwed with the auto-focus! )

 

[TomMoorehouse]

Yahoo!!! I decided to add 2 more feet! Making my garage 28X22.... now my shop gets 2 feet wider!

I'm so excited! I have not had a place i could call my "work shop" for..... well a long long time!

this should make my shop like 9 X 22 I should have plenty of room

Anybody in the chicago area that can help me with getting natural gas out there and setting up a heater?

thanks

tom

 

[MarkScott]

Tom,

Another reason to use a non-permanent paint booth is the EPA. Mary used to paint for the aero industry. If you have a permanent booth, there are regs' out the ying yang.

I'm jealous of you plan. Can't wait to make my own someday.

Mark.

 

[Don Templeton]

Tom,

Looks like you're going to have a first rate shop.

Don F. is right about the inlet air. Ackerman and I used to paint our boats at a local Lear Jet facility where he worked at the time. It was like a box car with full filtered doors on one end and on the other end a full filter with a huge fan behind it. We could actually meet there after work and paint boats in our dress slacks and white shirts.

Anyway, what really helps is an array of fixtures and hangers for being able to turn the parts while painting and hangers for drying.

I'll bet you're having a ball laying it out!

Don

 

[[email protected]]

One other thing to keep in mind- you can't have too much lighting. In addition to the flourescent lights on ceiling I added the 24" lights under the shelves over the work bench

I agree one of my favorite features is that neon light over my work table.

Don, that's an awsome vent system you got goin on. Can that work at all if your fiberglassing to suck out that nasty smell???

 

[[email protected]]

Don F gave great advice about having places to hang all your parts to paint and dry. About two years ago I was on a rampage to paint everyone's boats for "free"....GULP..........just to get experience. Well a friend brought me an old 7-litre Aeromarine sport 40. It needed the pickles refiberglasssed, and it was a pain to do. I got it all fixed, all painted and when I was going to clear coat it, of course on the last coat the god damn hook broke and the boat dropped like a rock, pickles first. Smashed right open! Took me two more weeks to sand, glass and paint the damn thing. You can only imagine how much paint I had to put on this piece of crap to. Sand, sand, sand, sand sand I did on that thing. Hell my DevilBliss gun was operating on 30HPI, it was like a dust inferno everywhere....LOL :lol:

 

[Slideblues]

Hey Don,

Was Ackerman at Lear in Wichita? I was at Teledyne, We had the GE contract for the CJ610-4 (engines used on the Lear 23) I took a couple hops in the companys Lear 23 over to the plant to pick up parts, Sheeesh!!!! Talkin bout a HOT ROD, Man it just screamed!!!

Gene

Sorry Tom, back to shops :lol: