Garage Setup - Finished

3/30/2017 7:58am Edited Date/Time 9/20/2022 2:44pm
So I finally get my own garage. My bike has bounced around between friends garages, storage units, back patio at the townhouse, and currently resides in my parents garage. Wife and I closed on a new build that should be finished middle of May. It's only a two car garage so the wife gets one side and the bike/tools get the other. It's just shy of 20 feet deep and I'm getting a hand me down air compressor from pops. Right now just looking for ideas on how you have your garage setup and what works best. I'm for sure going to have an electrician come in and install some more outlets as the few that exist are of course in the wife's side. I'm a pretty ocd type guy and chances are the garage is going I be the most organized part of our house Laughing
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CarlinoJoeVideo
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3/30/2017 8:08am
Check out @dreamworkshops on Instagram. Endless photos


MR. X
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3/30/2017 8:08am
I tried to maximize space in my garage as well , I used medium duty pallet racking and used the center shelf as a work bench . I'm 5'9 ,any taller and it it probably wouldn't work out so well.
kxking
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3/30/2017 8:22am
Get lots of lighting, and try to keep as much on shelves and off the floor, as possible.....

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disbanded
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3/30/2017 8:28am
Be sure to get one of those storage things with the little drawers where you can keep all your screws and such.

The Shop

3/30/2017 8:29am
Right now I'm leaning towards something like this. I only have about 4 feet along the back wall because of the stairs going into the house



kaptkaos
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3/30/2017 9:16am
You have to start with the floor, right from the get go, or else it will be really hard to do later in the game. Spend your money on the floors and walls now, save the other stuff for later. Use a good floor finish, a really strong epoxy with a thick clear coat. Then you can cover it with mats or tiles like some in the pictures. Paint the walls with HIGH QUALITY paint, because they will take a beating and its a PITA to repaint later when its crammed full of stuff. Good lighting follows. Then start the shelving to keep stuff off the floors. My garage face the street and it gets a lot of dirt and leaves under the door, and the gardener loves to blow the driveway and stuff really gets in. Total PITA to keep it clean.

Congrats, good luck and post pictures. BTW- dont leave the garage door open with your bikes in plain view.
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Jordan Dogtown
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3/30/2017 9:16am
Wall/counter space can go a long way in a smaller shop. Mine is about the size of a decent one car garage but in a basement so not a lot of height to work with. Had a sink and mini fridge that I like having but they just took up too much real estate. Used some free pallets to make a counter around them now it's almost like another work bench.



4
3/30/2017 9:35am
kaptkaos wrote:
You have to start with the floor, right from the get go, or else it will be really hard to do later in the game. Spend...
You have to start with the floor, right from the get go, or else it will be really hard to do later in the game. Spend your money on the floors and walls now, save the other stuff for later. Use a good floor finish, a really strong epoxy with a thick clear coat. Then you can cover it with mats or tiles like some in the pictures. Paint the walls with HIGH QUALITY paint, because they will take a beating and its a PITA to repaint later when its crammed full of stuff. Good lighting follows. Then start the shelving to keep stuff off the floors. My garage face the street and it gets a lot of dirt and leaves under the door, and the gardener loves to blow the driveway and stuff really gets in. Total PITA to keep it clean.

Congrats, good luck and post pictures. BTW- dont leave the garage door open with your bikes in plain view.
Good stuff, didn't think about paint. Luckily the walls are going to be drywalled already so slapping on some paint shouldn't take long. Another nice thing is my street is only about a quarter mile long and is a dead end so not much through traffic to see what's inside
Gilby122
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3/30/2017 10:36am




When we had our garage built, I added a third bay that I completely walled off for my workspace. Insulated, heated, well lit. I had plenty of outlets installed (I should have done more.) Our cable/tv stuff is through Dish and they have the wireless hopper/joey...so I have one of the hoppers out there. I have all the music channels, races, my DVR, etc. with a surround sound. I bought the garage units from Home Depot when there were having a sale and have two countertops and all the black cabinets up high and the base cabinets on the one side. I slapped down the tiles for a little character and easy cleaning. The couch was leftover from downsizing to a smaller house and fits nicely. Pretty cool when I have a bunch of guys come over to ride and we can take a break in the garage and have ESPN on or whatever.

Like anything in life, now that I've used it for a couple years and have it loaded with tools and bikes, I wish it was bigger, but love the fact we spent the money on it like we did. Best advice I could give is the lighting is a big deal...and depending on where you live, the fact mine is heated makes life tolerable during the cold months when all I can do is work on my bike.

Congrats on the new home and garage!
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OR Racer46
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3/30/2017 10:37am


Just started building my new one. But it's kinda like what you are looking for
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OR Racer46
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3/30/2017 10:41am


This was my model. .



ThorsMX
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3/30/2017 11:34am
Bought This one since it sits off the floor a little higher, I'll add a base board to keep shit from going underneath. Couple hundred less than what Amazon had it for plus it matches our vehicles
KHI Guy
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3/30/2017 12:47pm
First thing I would do is knock the back wall out and extend it another 20 feet. Sorry, couldn't resist Grinning

Anyway, you'd be amazed at how fast a garage fills up, regardless of the size. There's nothing you can do about it Sad
3/30/2017 1:15pm
Like others have said, keep things off the floor and store them on shelves up above your head. I have a tandem 2 car garage and am able to fit 3 bikes side by side because everything is stored high. Even have bicycles and surfboards and such stored up on the walls, off the floor.
Vonripper450
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3/30/2017 1:21pm
Wall/counter space can go a long way in a smaller shop. Mine is about the size of a decent one car garage but in a basement...
Wall/counter space can go a long way in a smaller shop. Mine is about the size of a decent one car garage but in a basement so not a lot of height to work with. Had a sink and mini fridge that I like having but they just took up too much real estate. Used some free pallets to make a counter around them now it's almost like another work bench.



I have been thinking about turning my walkout basement into a shop. Do you have any problems smelling gas or oil in the house using your basement as a shop?
byke
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3/30/2017 1:47pm
I like open space, so I always work the perimeter. The budget dictates what you do with the perimeter, be it storage bins, wire shelves, cabinets, etc. Bikes only go in the open area when they need tinkering, otherwise it's off to the side.
sumdood
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3/30/2017 2:00pm
I have 2 friends that made the same mistake on the epoxy floor coating. They got gray as the main background color with black and white little specks blended in. It looks awesome until you drop a 10mm bolt on the floor and it fucking vanishes from view like you're in the Bermuda triangle. Go with a solid color or checkerboard like the one pictured earlier in this thread. The multi colored floors camouflage every thing that lands on it.
Falcon
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3/30/2017 3:23pm
Yep, gray isn't the right color.
I went with a tan color and it really complimented my house. The workbench was about half the length of the garage wall, and I parked my bike all the way against the wall. The front tire almost touched the workbench and the rear tire almost touched the garage door. I had cabinets along the left side and 1/2 cabinets on the far wall so I could park my wife's ATV in there. We got both bikes, two bicycles and two cars in there with room to spare.



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jtiger12
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3/30/2017 4:37pm Edited Date/Time 3/30/2017 4:38pm
So I finally get my own garage. My bike has bounced around between friends garages, storage units, back patio at the townhouse, and currently resides in...
So I finally get my own garage. My bike has bounced around between friends garages, storage units, back patio at the townhouse, and currently resides in my parents garage. Wife and I closed on a new build that should be finished middle of May. It's only a two car garage so the wife gets one side and the bike/tools get the other. It's just shy of 20 feet deep and I'm getting a hand me down air compressor from pops. Right now just looking for ideas on how you have your garage setup and what works best. I'm for sure going to have an electrician come in and install some more outlets as the few that exist are of course in the wife's side. I'm a pretty ocd type guy and chances are the garage is going I be the most organized part of our house Laughing
Big congrats! I've been doing the same ever since I got my first bike. I've at least upgraded to an enclosed trailer

BobPA
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3/30/2017 8:02pm Edited Date/Time 3/30/2017 8:05pm
I have been thinking about turning my walkout basement into a shop. Do you have any problems smelling gas or oil in the house using your...
I have been thinking about turning my walkout basement into a shop. Do you have any problems smelling gas or oil in the house using your basement as a shop?
Nope. The only time I get a gas smell is when I spill gas lol. If you start a bike even for a millisecond your house stinks for a few hours. It is really bad when you have a few adult beverages and talked into doing a big smokey burnout, but that is another story.

This is how mine sits right now (literally)...slightly messy from what I like, but there is a bunch of work happening lol, I am packed full and my sled is currently tarped outside. Lighting is key, I have 6 more LED overhead lights going up over the work benches this weekend....Plus I have to finish building one of the benches. I am currently stacking some paper to build a garage, but will not be this year. Also shelving is one of the best investments you can make.





Question
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3/31/2017 2:41am
Mine is not great (light and floor), there is space and storage though, just an advice if you want to keep it on budget: some second hand full kitchen are sold for very cheap and some really give easily a team pro look. As it not made for heavy weight, just reinforce the area you plan to work on.
Question
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3/31/2017 2:42am Edited Date/Time 3/31/2017 2:42am
Mine is not great (light and floor), there is space and storage though, just an advice if you want to keep it on budget: some second hand full kitchen are sold for very cheap and some really give easily a team pro look. Update/upgrade the work plan, and as it not made for heavy weight, just reinforce the area you plan to work on.
mx691
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3/31/2017 3:12am


Then i woke up...
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MxKing809
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3/31/2017 3:33am Edited Date/Time 3/31/2017 3:37am
Ok, here's my garage build.

I started with a basic concrete floor 24x36 insulated pole barn, with 1 10' door, but essentially 2 vehicle bays. I wanted to keep the door side open for my personal truck, and use the other side for bikes.


When I started, here is how the bike side looked


I added peg board, OSB, some strategic outlets, led lights and switches.

Next, I got a stainless steel worktop from a restaurant that closed, and wired outlets into the splash guard of the bench. I also picked up 2 filing cabinets on the side of the road, and with some paint and an old door, made another bench.




I ran hose from my air compressor to a hose reel centrally located on the support post for the loft. I also started to hang all my tools and memorabilia up.








I went to Floor Trader and got a 12'x17' price of vinyl flooring for $250. This was way cheaper than a quality epoxy, and to this point I absolutely love it. Easy cleanup of oil and gas, hell.... I even spun my zero turn on it once not thinking!


Here are some shots all finished with bikes.






All together I'd say I have less than $750 into the whole reno. With paint, electrical, the floor and peg board it wasn't too expensive.
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Big Daddy
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3/31/2017 5:32am
Congrats on your new place. Nothing like owning your own home! I have a motorcycle shop in my 20X20 attached garage that is completely full of tools and equipment. Hopefully, within the next year or so, the Queen and I will downsize our living space and increase our shop space (kids grown and through college and both with great jobs).
She's on board (actually her idea), so I am constantly looking at ideas and options.

One website that provides tons of information through forums is "Garage Journal". Here's a link to their forums page: http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/

For motorcycle specific garages, here's the link to one of those threads: http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=46792&highlight=mot…

Good luck and keep posting photos of your progress.
Carrie998
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3/31/2017 6:10am
I love the Garage Journal. It was the source of a lot inspiration as well as many ideas in my garage. Here is a pano of my garage idk how well it turn up online.

Well I can get it to load but it's sweet! :sarcasm alert
TX24
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San Antonio, TX US
3/31/2017 7:18am
Pegboard, shelves, and cabinets. An outlet every four feet and outside on each side of the door is not too many.
An air jack outside the door would be nice. As said keep everything off the floor you can.
3/31/2017 7:22am
Well this weekend is a big determining factor on how extensive this "Garage Build" is going to be. We listed our townhouse this week and have 67 showings this weekend. Yes, 67! The market here in Colorado is crazy so we'll see what kind of offers we get and what my "budget" will be. After looking yesterday I'm pretty set on built in cabinets on the back wall and wrapping around the corner. You guys really made me even more lost on what I want to do on the floor. Imo, grey has the cleanest look and right now I'm thinking of laying grey down everywhere and then covering my workspace with some sort of snap in tile. I also think the sprinkles are a must, especially under my wife's car as it will mask any scratches from rocks in her tires or anything along those lines. The other thing I'm not really sure what do with is the fact that my ceiling is going to be like 10 feet tall. Even though I'm taller, I'm not that tall haha but could be some nice storage space for things less used. Anyways, keep the ideas and photos coming, love seeing what you guys have setup.
newmann
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3/31/2017 8:14am
Can't post any pics of my personal garage without triggering a few special snowflakes here but a light gray epoxy with no flaky stuff in it is most excellent for the floor.

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