Garage Set Ups

[Roy]

{depressed}

[warps]

did someone say tyre rack?

It's free standing, and bolts together so I can flat pack it when (if) I move house or get out of cars and sell all of my car related crap

depending on tyre size, it will hold up to 30 tyres (24 in the case of most sizes I use)

[evil_weevil]

I need something like that tyre rack...maybe not as big!

any other ideaS?

[STATUS]

Wagon Paints in victoria for your floor epoxy paint. Ultimate garage floor covering i used the left over from the shop at home and its sweet as.

http://www.wagonpaints.com.au/

[NZM.031]

nice rack

[Duncan]

thanks for the details Trent...have just been trying to work out the best floor. ANything needed to maintain it once it is down?

BTW +1 for tyre racks...take up very little space but free up heaps. I have 13 tyres on my verandah and 4 more at Neil's place.....

[warps]

The epoxy floors are great - I used a mob called designer flake. These guys developed the flake epoxy floor process and are the best around my area.

One thing I find is that it is extremely slippery when wet. They do a rough non-slip surface too, but this is very rough, and hard to sweep.

Maintenance is a case of sweep or vacuum, and if it gets grotty, mop it (my neighbours thought it was funny when I was mopping my garage floor). the surface is easy to scratch if you drag a gearbox or other heavy metal object with sharp edges across it, and if you're grinding / welding it can mark it as well. Floor jacks, axle stands etc don't seem to mark it.

If you do chip or mark the surface, you can touch it up just the same way you'd touch up paint. If you damage a big area, just throw a handful of flakes down onto the wet base coat, then re-seal as normal. just get them to leave you a plastic bag of spare flakes when they do your floor (in case they discontinue the colours)

The tyre racks are a great way to store and manage your tyres. Mine's accessible from both sides, so I'm not restricted in garage configuration. I sometimes temporarily store stuff on one side or the other, so can still access the tyres easily. It currently only has 10 tyres and another 6 rims on it, so part of the rack is used for storage of other gear (can double up as shelving if need be)

[l_uk3y]

I'll try and get some of mine when I get a chance. Not as elaborate as some. But it does the job nicely as a blend of being able to work on the Skyline during the weekend/ Store 2 cars overnight whilst having easy access to turn into a gym type environment if I have anyone wanting Fitness or MA training.

Just need to do a bit of cleaning and I'll get a photo.

[boxheadmr]

what are the cost of the epoxy floor per sqm?

[PM-R33]

+1 I'd be keen to know rough prices for future reference.

[Swiper the Fox]

Im about to construct a purpose built engine room at home (Stace has had enough of me being away from the house building engines). Will feature strip/wash down area and enclosed temperature controlled assembly room.

In the design stage at the moment and will post some pics as soon as construction begins.

[PM-R33]

Ohhh sounds interesting

[warps]

what are the cost of the epoxy floor per sqm?

cost me about $45/m2. that was 2.5 years ago. It seems to be getting more popular these days, so prices may have come down. The guy across the road from me does it now, too, and he's very particular about the quality of the work he does (just resealed my driveway 2 weeks ago, and did a top job). Anyone on the gold COast wouldn't go wrong with either the guy who did mine (who basically developed the process many years ago) or my neighbour (who does charge more than some others, but won't skimp out on quality for anything).

Hey, l_uk3y - what type of floor do you have in the gym area? I use part of my garage for the punching bag / MA training, and am trying to get some decent floor mats to put down. The floor is too slippery to be jumping around on, and those black hard rubber gym mats look ridiculously expensive.

[Marlin]

I have the same flooring as warps in my home garages, superb stuff!

[NZM.031]

In the design stage at the moment

i have about 63 projects that are in this stage... all awaiting either funding, space, or time... the first two are hard to come by... the last one i have in abundance because of the unavailability of the first two

[Swiper the Fox]

i have about 63 projects that are in this stage... all awaiting either funding, space, or time... the first two are hard to come by... the last one i have in abundance because of the unavailability of the first two

I have 13 engine builds in this stage at the moment too...time is their enemy.

I need to clear the backlog and call in the brickies.

[t01-100]

garage in floor heating is on the list for the house about to be built... i'm sure its not just something thats a good idea in tassie

[our12]

This is an interesting topic and got me thinking about the way my father some 40 years ago went about lifting engines from cars.

When he built his workshop/garage he put a large wooden beam across the building which has a wood frame. He had 2 4 x2 Cut to fit floor to beam and cut so that half the end fitted under the beam and half went up the side of the beam ( the technique is some woodworking term which escapes me). These 2 supports are kept when not in use against the original garage frame held in by a g clamp. When you want to use the set up its simple- get the supports position them under the beam on either side of the car use a g clamp on each support to hold it in place on the main beam and the action is underway. The main beam has a permanent chain around it to attach the block and tackle.

A system the same could be fabricated out of steel the only bit of engineering would be the supports for the main beam or rsj .

A lot of engines were removed with no problems.

Another point in garages with limited space are work benches we have always used the same dimensions 1200 long 600 wide and 910 height. May seem small but used as a working bench not a storage space is more than adequate.

I have seen in pitched roof steel sheds a system of fixing mild steel hangers from the main support beam and a steel frame with supports across it and covered with tongue and grooved floor boards and supported at the wall end on the metal frame running across the shed. They were made as 2 units to a width with space between them leaving the centre of the shed clear. Ideal for items not to heavy. To access use a step ladder.

Hope i have given you some food for thought.

[warps]

Another good idea for garages with limited space is to have a hinged work bench. In my last house I only had a single garage. I attached an old bench top to the wall with 3 4" hinges, with 3 hinged legs. when I wanted to do some work, I backed the car out and folded the workbench out. Once done, pack everything away and fold the bench back down. It's also a good way to make sure your bench top doesn't end up as a storage space for piles of crap (which I tend to do all too often)

Edit: the heated floor is a good idea in cold climates. I was doing some work at one of the coal mines in gunnedah years ago, and had to lie down on the shop floor to inspect something. This was middle of winter where it was almost below freezing, and I noticed a nice warmth emanating from the floor. didn't want to leave the workshop and head back out into the pit.

Edited May 18, 2010 by warps

[NZM.031]

jack olsen is the master of making the most of small spaces... and doing it neatly.