We bought a new house many months ago, and the house needed a ton of work. The "house" part of our remodel is almost over, and now I'm making plans for the garage. I actually can't believe I haven't but more thought into this yet as one of the primary reasons we (or I ) liked the house is it has a big 2-car garage AND a big 3-car garage. And a big yard. Yay me.

Without benches or storage, I think 10 914s would actually fit in the 2 garages (tandem).

So... What do you think of my layout plan? Any other ideas below. The most space I've had to work with before this was a 22x20 2-car garage.

1. LIFT - We have to do some concrete work in the garage now anyways, so I think I may put some type of scissor lift in the floor. The ceiling is flat and only about 8.5' or 9.0'.

- Any lift recommendations?

- What needs to be plumbed into the lift? Just power or ? (I'm just starting my research now)

- Do you think the center position is the best for the lift?

2. BENCHES. What do you think? Benches as I drew along the top, or benches in the bottom stall? That closet has to stay there.

Any ideas or inspiration? Thanks!

-Steve

All flared cars? No narrow body 914s? :-) Looks like a great plan. I am jealous. :-)

Install a motion sensor light aimed at the entry way(s). That way if you're going in for just a quick errand you don't have to worry about turning the light on and off and if you leave with your hands full you don't have to futz with the switch.

Plan your lighting so it's around the perimeter of each bay instead of centered. You can't have too much lighting.

Enjoy the space, but remember a basic law of physics......nature abhors a vacuum.

I love my snap on mid rise lift
Bought it used for $500
It fits under my car without driving up on any ramps
It's built like a tank

Led lights

Just a thought, but the lift might be better served on the wall with the window. That way, the lift would be easier to connect to power without having wires running across to the center. Plus, if your planning an a/compressor, again hoses wouldn't be all over the place and can be routed along that wall. If you ever needed to paint, the outside wall would be near for a fan and you could drape off that area easier. Plus the extra light helps.

I think I might shorten the bench on the "B" end somewhat to store rolling table there.

What a great setup. Best of luck with it.

Looking great. Our garage is 24' x 36' with a an 8' x 12' bump out for the workshop area.

A few thoughts/questions/suggestions:

- Are you running 220 outlets?
- Are you plumbing a sink?
- 28 ft width is interior or exterior width? Looks like exterior. Fitting three across will work but be a bit tight for a lift on the side, therefore I would go center.
- Shelving, any thoughts for shelves or cabinets?
- Lifts - my neighbor has this one:
http://www.gregsmithequipment.com/Atlas-TD...le-Scissor-Lift
- This one will be going in my garage this spring (friend is an independent mechanic running this one up and down several times a day times 3 years now w/o issues):
http://www.gregsmithequipment.com/Atlas-BP8000
- Lighting? I have 13 twin-bulb 48" fluorescent shop lights on three switch banks so they are zoned. Plenty of light from above, but I'm going to run a few down low along the walls and down the corners - Concur there is never too much light in my opinion.
- Bench area - definitely in my opinion as working with parts on the floor gets old.
- Agree with motion sensor lights outside - love ours, plus from a security standpoint motion sensors make more sense than leaving lights on all the time - light is on, someone is coming or going and grabs attention.
- Storage area - what are the dimensions? Looks narrow.

Good luck, keep us posted - off to a great start.

Do not put the lift in the middle. At one point, you'll want to grind something. With the lift in the middle, you're always too close to the car!

A 2 post car lift is the best solution: e.g. when you want to drop an engine, it's really a one man's job! Again, don't put in the middle.

Position a sink close to the door; that way, you can be 'clean' without crossing the workshop towards the door.

Consider the best layout for your bench & tools: are you left or right handed? Do you have space to position a vice? Do you need a blasting cabinet or a lathe?

Tools: personally, I prefer a trolley with the most common tools next to the car. Other, larger or specialised tools need a prominent place on the wall.

When you restore a car, you need 4x its space: one for the car, two for all the items and one for yourself to work. You can store the parts off course, then you need less room.

In my garage, I've wired the electrics through one main switch: all power, including the lights on the ceiling + radio are centrally controlled. One single flick of the switch and I'm certain that all is safe.

I've mounted curtain rails + runners on the ceiling of the garage. I mounted an extension cord on the runners, that way I can reacht through the complete garage for power.


Invest in proper LED lighting: it has several advantages.

Finally: most of my tools are electrically powered. In hindsight, I would have opted for air powered tools. Lighter, often stronger.

To clarify, the motion sensor light goes inside the shop.

If it's feasible, build a shed off the outside wall for the compressor so you can isolate the noise.

The best place I know for garage inspiration is still the Garage Journal.

Also, are those posts between the row of cars? If so, ask your builder to run an i-beam and get rid of them if possible.

Too bad your ceiling is too low for a two post, but for a 914 or 911 you can still drop the engine from a scissors lift, and certainly makes suspension work easy.

With a lift on the side, just make sure you will truly have enough room to work between the car and wall. I prefer no less than 4 ft to make room to work with others, but that is me.

Motion light in the interior - not a bad idea, never thought of that.

Also, is that a large garage door on the side? If so, could be handy...

Besides garage doors, any regular doors to get in/out of the garage?

Off to a great start - when's the garage warming party?

No entry door other than the bay doors? The 16x7 notated in the wall on the left is what? Also, what is the compass direction that wall faces? Bear in mind any conflict with overhead door tracks. You might post some photos of the interior.

Greg smith equipment sells a 10' 2 post that might work for you with a couple of smallish holes in the ceiling for the extra post height to slip into.

Looking at the side elevation, the exterior wall of the room above the garage is supported by the posts. Clear spanning the space will involve major engineering and surgery

Oops, lost track that this is an existing house, so yes, if those are posts it's not an easy change at this point...

Max Jax two post lift, you can set it up/take it down quickly when you need the room. I put one in last year and kick myself for not getting one years ago

http://www.maxjaxusa.com/

Hi - thanks for the input!

> You can't have too much lighting.

Yup - I'm my current 2-car (22x20) garage I have a total of 32 4 foot t-8 bulbs. It's like daylight and I love it and plan on duplicating that.


> Are you running 220 outlets?

Yup, they were already there. The previous owner was a truck guy.


> Are you plumbing a sink?

Unfortunately, no, and adding a drain is cost prohibitive at this point. It is the lowest part of the house and far from other drains or the sewer line.


> 28 ft width is interior or exterior width? Looks like exterior. Fitting three across will work but be a bit tight for a lift on the side, therefore I would go center.

Where to put the lift is the big question. It is 28 ft interior, and there is probably room to put the lift on the side,


> Just a thought, but the lift might be better served on the wall with the window

Yes, I think you may be right. I spent a bunch of time their this afternoon and I think I'll move it to the wall. There is still enough room, and the old 2-car garage door will still be there to provide lots of room to open things up.


> Storage area - what are the dimensions? Looks narrow.

Yeah it is narrow and not ideal, but would have been difficult to change.


> At one point, you'll want to grind something

You are forgetting this is 914world. You mean at some point I might stop grinding and welding...


> Also, are those posts between the row of cars? If so, ask your builder to run an i-beam and get rid of them if possible.

Yup, existing house, and I'm done with major structural work at this point.


I'll post some more pictures of how it looks today later tonight...

In the interim, here is my last idea based on more input and research.

-Steve

with 914s for scale

-Steve

I just built a 20'x28' Porsche space. Don't know what you have for shop equipment but this is how I'd do it. I find if there is no space to work around the cars then the cars don't get worked on.

Bench- 3 feet deep with 6-8" shelves for the little stuff; spray paint, bolt jars, clock, stereo, fluids.

Pegboard- I hang keys, hammers, tie downs, plastic bins +. I've seen tools hung too.

Shelves- I like 18" deep, or 24" as they fit Avon boxes really well. Find an Avon rep and acquire their shipping boxes, they are sturdy and at 12" x 16" x 9" can keep quite a few things organized, or out of sight.

If you leave the bottom open on the bench or shelves you can roll the jack or tires or slide stands under and out of the way, and the welder if it's on a cart.

Air- 30 gal compressor. Can't work on cars without one

In my workspace I have a 30"x54" or so folding table with a drip pan on it for doing messy work; trans, calipers, axles. Remove the pan and I have a nice elevated open space for other stuff.

Lights over the car don't work as well as having them in between.

I have a midrise lift and works great for dropping engines since I to do not have a enough height for a two post lift. I have a SCCA buddy that has the Maxjack system and that seems to work well also. I would add for you shelves on along the wall in 3 door garage shown next to the 914 (parked at a angle) I would use some heavy duty closet racking and hang it off the wall above the care so you can park straight. Use that area for storage of parts / stuff that you will not need access to that often. I did that in my garage and it helps keep stuff off the floor .

some photos from today. we are adding the 3 single car garage doors. the prev owner used the garage for farm equipment or something, but even then it makes no sense where the original 16 x 7 door is. the 16x7 door driveway turn is too sharp for even a 914.

thise window holes will be the 3 single garage doors.

16x7 door

inside

and our current 2 car garage. lots of home depot shelves.

Funny how cars look so much better in photos... I just took that photo, but Green 914 is super dirty and dusty right now.

-Steve

My space is 32x33, I remeber thinking when we were going to move in what a huge space that seemed like...now I have one 914, 6 or so mini bikes and my '44 Willys jeep in it and it's tighter than I thought. Sure you can stack cars double deep but you'll find you want the open space to actually use it as a shop...yes nature does abhor a vacuum!

Congrats on the new place!

That's one heck of a house project. It will be awesome when it's done.

My ability to pack a moving truck is legendary. My ability to pack a garage is too much for human eyes. Having a photographic memory and long term planning leads to a different kind of problem solving.

I.ll store that six in my teener for you while your busy on your house.

> I.ll store that six in my teener for you while your busy on your house.

I know, I can't wait to get it back in the car (orange 914).

-Steve

> Sure you can stack cars double deep but you'll find you want the open space to actually use it as a shop

Yup, very true. It will be nice to have space to work. I'll probably limit it to 3 small cars and my dirt bike.

-Steve

Couple of ideas for you to ponder. I built this shelving for all the stuff that I don't need very often like paint/drywall tools, plumbing stuff, etc. I have to use a step ladder to get it down, but that is only once ever few weeks at best. However, it is all up and out of my way in space that would otherwise be unused. The bins are just the 12 gallon units sold at HD/Lowes. Label maker is my friend.

The shelving itself is 18" deep (I believe) from HD/Lowes. The back is fastened at each stud on 16". The front is suspended by 2 x 2s running underneath the front of the shelving and turnbuckles/threaded rod every 4 feet into the trusses. Three bins fit between each support.

You would not believe how much storage this actually is. I can fit 20 bins across my three car garage, but as you can see I have a few Fuchs up there as well.
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The other nugget I have is this. I bought two of the 60" hardwood workbenches that HF sells for $139 (with coupon or on sale). I put casters on them and joined them together with window sash fasteners so they can come apart. Nice large work-space that can be moved anywhere I want it. It is also the perfect height for run-off from my table saw (bonus).
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One word....dust.

Get cabinets with doors for everything.

Some progress and the lift arrived today...

where the 3 single car garage doors will go.

914

lift

Thanks for the update, I was thinking about your thread the other day as I start my garage renovation, and am now debating lift types (thought I had it settled, but so many choices...) and location.

Keep the updates coming.

I am very excited for you in tackling your garage project. I am just finishing up the remodel of the home we bought about 18 months ago. All the inside except the laundry room, guest bath, master bedroom and master bath has already been completely redone, even all new Anderson top of the line windows and all new doors, floors, electrical, appliances cabinets, plumbing, tankless heater with recirc pump, insulation, etc. I hope to crank that project up in June and be done by end of August, maybe September.

Once the inside is finished I will begin the next big project, adding a 4th stall to the garage and then front and rear landscape and a complete new driveway, patio, walkways, etc. I will sink a scissor lift into the garage floor next to the new wall with a nice 4x6 window.

Really want to do the 4th stall. Wife not so much but grudgingly said OK - it's your money I considered that a win and just said cool.

We will see what happens- my time frame is to be able to begin a year from now .

After doing my garage I would consider the following

Lighting, loads of it / split on two switched ccts. One for popping in / picking stuff up and the second to beef up lighting levels for serious work
Ceiling mounted power sockets to avoid trailing power leads for things like trickle chargers / tripping over leads
Wall mounted surface trunking around the work bench, plus extra sockets around the place for general stuff
Really good insulated and draft excluded sectional garage door
Decent two pack epoxy floor paint / paint walls / ceiling before electrical 1st fix
Consider looking for ex office metal lateral filing units. I picked up some three draw units FOC and they work great for shallow / tall storage for things like paint, power tools, larger spare parts. Pull the drawer out and it's right there
Plumbed in air lines?
L6-20 or 30 socket for say a big welder? Not really sure if this is applicable or even allowable by the AHJ in a domestic environment
Couple of RJ45 sockets for a phone & Ethernet for computer / SONOS etc.....

My garage is a bit of an awkward shape but lighting wise I have 8x 5ft and 6x 6ft battens which are salt and peppered on the two switched ccts. No more scrabbling in the dark for a dropped nut


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914

Very cool

concrete should be poured this week.

Here are some photos of the area when we first bought the house. My kids still call it "The Junk House".

I still really have no idea why they put the 2 car garage door on that wall that is totally inaccessible.

-Steve

Another

914

Outside

footings in.

and i made the driveway a little wider (move existing rock wall) to make it easier to pull into the 3rd bay. but its still a bit tight. but i also hate to lose that persimon tree... hmmm...

914

914

914

914

am i boring you guys with concrete photos?

I'd like to see the vista from the deck top.