Garage Organization
As with most all my projects, the motivation for this project came from my wife. Our garage was getting cluttered with my bikes, soccer equipment, ski equipment, camping equipment, holiday decorations, etc. It was getting to a point that if two cars were in the garage that we would literally be tripping over stuff to get into and out of the house.
I was pleasantly surprised when this project got prioritized. I always thought it was low on the overall priority list - behind things like the master closet and pantry.
When deriving the plan for the garage I was looking into a combination of modular/configurable organization options, smart cabinetry, and some work space. As could be expected, I wasn't satisfied with any of the "off the shelf" options, and I didn't want to pay for any of those "closet company" options. That left me with searching the internet for inspiration. As could be expected Google Images and Pinterest had countless ideas.
As with most of my projects, there is always a tool I need to buy and/or something I need to build to facilitate the project in scope. This project was no exception. I ended up building a customized Ron Paulk Workbench that would be permanently housed in a corner of the garage. Seeing my main workshop is below grade, it is difficult to get large volumes of wood, especially large sheet goods, down there. That is where this workbench comes in handy. I use it to break down sheet goods prior to moving them down to my shop. I also use it to build things outside, where I get to appreciate the beautiful Colorado weather (most of the time).
This project is still a work in progress, so check back for updates. I'm still looking to build all the cabinetry, pretty up the loft, and tile the floor.
Research
Flooring
There are a lot of "moving parts" that go into this build. I need to relocate some electrical and gas lines (gas line relocation is for my future backyard project's grilling station). I have to say, the area where I've spent the most time researching has been the floor coating. There are tons of options on the market, from paints and epoxies to tile systems, both interlocking and porcelain. After much deliberation, within my own head, I'm going to go with a porcelain tile floor. The overall cost will be on par with the other offerings - if not less, but the sweat equity for this project will be off the charts. Tiling a space like this is going to be back breaking work. I've previously tiled much smaller spaces. I've also installed hardwood flooring in a space that almost mirrors this space - my workshop that sits directly below the garage. Like most projects I work on, the rewards of the finished product way out weigh the time and effort initial investment. I guess it's fortunate that I have a short term memory for things related to my time and physical effort!
This site is one of the sites that put me over the edge with respect to my flooring choice:
Project Photo Album
Here is the source Google Photo Album for this project.
Related Projects
Bike Basket
I'm a nerd, what can I say. I built this super cool addition to my authentic Dutch bike. It only adds 10 pounds to to bike, but really that additional weight is negligible.
Gantry Crane
A crane built to enable the move of an 800 pound jointer/planer down into my workshop.