Small Upgrades, Big Difference - My temporary garage/shop build

I

imported_Quenga

New member
I currently live in an apartment complex (originally built to be condo's) and detail out of my garage. It's small, but it works. Unfortunately, we are moving out of here in less than 2 months. So I'm doing small upgrades that will make a huge difference, and transfer to my next place. My girlfriend and I will be renting a house with her two other cousins. Even though I like this place, it's small and I've had to have my parents look after my dog until we could move out (long story on why I had to give him up temporarily and move here).



I wish I could afford a legit place separate from my home, but if you know what SoCal is like, you know that's out of the question. $2k out here will get you what you're looking for and that's 5 times my current monthly business expenses! Anything cheaper and you're not even remotely close to your customers.





Anyways, here's a shot of how it looks now. Will post photos tonight!



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Wow, that is small! Makes me feel like I've got a warehouse to work in by comparison, and even I'm in just a single-car garage.



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Yeah, it's NOT easy to detail in here. I'm SO glad my girlfriend's cousins decided to move out with us. 2-car garage here we come!



When I get trucks I have to hang part of it out while I detail...which is another reason I'm re-arranging.
 
moderator2 said:
Charlie

How did you get legal zoning to work out of your house? Do you live on commercial property?
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Zoning is not an issue. There are a lot of us here on Autopia who work out of residential garages, along with several mobile detailers who work on-location at client residences. It's perfectly legal.
 
All cleaned up!



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Finally organized and ready to work in the garage, or load up fast if I've gotta be mobile. I keep all my microfibers in the house since there's not a lot of room. I will be migrating all of my mechanic stuff to the back patio so I can add a few more tubs for the towels.





Still more to do, but I've gotta write a Marketing paper and load up for a detail tomorrow morning...
 
Mush-Mouth said:
Did you ever check with your city or community to confirm this? Just because several people are doing it doesn't mean they are legit. Unless you are zoned commercial, industrial or rural you are playing with fire. Being a mobile detail working on location isnk the same as running a auto repair business out your house. I certainly wouldn't mind if my neighbor had a mobile mechanic at their house working on their car for a day or 2, but if I had a neighbor doing repairs out of his house on a regular basis you can bet I'd call the city and as many federal agencies as I could find to shut that crap down.
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In the state of Michigan, detailing is not classified in the same category as a mechanic or 'auto repair' business, nor the same category as a body shop/refinisher. None of the work I perform/services I provide are in violation of any regulatory standards.



It has never been a secret to anyone here that I don't work out of a commercial facility, and it has never been a secret to my neighbors that I operate a legitimate detail business out of my garage (in fact, one of them used to do the same, and now he sends inquiries my way). I am not a high volume operator, so it's not like I have multiple cars per day going in and out, or always even a car here every single day of the week to be worked on and about 90% of the time one is here, it's behind a closed door and there is little to no noise pollution.
 
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