20x24 Garage - Cars vs. Projects

[Jack Olsen]

This thing used to be a mess. It`s an 84-year-old garage that was wasting away as storage for dozens and dozens of boxes of junk from three successive moves. I went at it in a single of week of hard lifting (and carrying, to a big rented dumpster) and my rule was that I could build new storage with whatever wood and shelving was already sitting inside the place. So the bench is an old hardwood door and a lot of the cabinetry is made of sheets of particle board or other scrap.



I tiled it on the cheap with Home Depot tiles. I let my wife pick out the colors for the paint. I told her I wanted it to look like my memories of working with my father in his shop back in Chicago.











I put the car on one side, so I could have room to work on the other. I wanted a table in front that I could draw on -- it sits either level or up like a drafting table.



The air compressor is in the crawlspace under the house, in an insulated box so no one can hear it.







There was an old sink that was kind of clumsily plumbed in. I added a counter top around it.







I made two fold-down benches that normally stow away against the wall.







One is for wood working.







The other one for welding:







To hold all the stuff that would have still cluttered the place up, I also built some storage in the driveway.







No sofas, no plasma TV, no bar -- just a place where I can get stuff done.

[D Tailor]

That looks super classy! Nice work!! Very much reminds me of an older shop with some cool additions. For some reason I keep thinking Gran Torino....

[Jack Olsen]

Thanks.



Leaving that movie, my wife asked if I was going to turn into that guy in 40 years. I told her 40 years wasn`t going to change a thing -- I was already there.



Next month I`m welding up a fence to keep those damn neighborhood kids from playing in my lawn.

[imported_Ivan Rajic]

Great work... garage and work space look perfect!

[MrCLRider]

WOW, that is some very creative planning put forth there!! Great job, and i`m so jelous!

[white gecko]

that is awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Perferd]

Thats great....Youre lucky...when parked in my garage I have to really pay attention to how far I open the door lol

[imported_slicknickis3]

Now that is an awesome, purpose built garage!



Love the fact that you made everything out of old pieces you had laying around, very resourceful!

[Jack Olsen]

Hey, Autopia. It`s been a while since I visited, and my garage makeover has gotten another makeover since I posted this thread. So here`s a 2012 look at the place, to contrast with the old 2009 version. Some of it is the same. A lot is different.



I think it`s still a good example of what can be done with a modest budget -- and a lot of time. I did all of it myself, from the sliding-door cabinets up top to the ceramic tile down below. My shoulders still remember digging out the hole for the hydraulic lift. Pretty much everything in the place is second-hand, repurposed or home-made.



















Benches fold down from the wall:















It looks nice cleaned up, but it`s a working garage:







And it`s got a video, too.



12-Gauge Garage Video - YouTube



The car is a 1972 Porsche 911, fitted up (Frankenstein-style) with components from different eras of the model. Lots of information on it here.

[imported_WCD]

Love the phone on the wall! Very cool lift as well!

[C. Charles Hahn]

Hey, wow! I never knew you posted over here; I`ve been watching your thread over on Garage Journal for years now, really neat space.

[mc2hill]

Jack, I love/hate your garage!

Like Charlie, I have been watching the build on Garage Journal for some time, and I am always impressed with the level of workmanship and the practicality of the modifications. Thanks for sharing your space!



Mike.



P.S. Congrats on the Family Handyman award!

[Brad B]

Super cool! I can really appreciate all the little details you crafted into your space. Nice!