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Need garage finishing tips (insulation, floor,etc)


KFunk

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OK, so I have this huge attached garage that a previous owner built, but didn't finish. I want to be able to work on all the vehicles in the winter time fairly comfortably, and be able to move them in and out fairly easily.

I don't want some kind of dream garage, or to start spending all my time on garage forums. Just simple, economical, durable stuff. If it gets too expensive or work-intensive, then it'll never happen.

I just need to add insulation, wall board of some sort, ceiling boards, decent lighting, seal the floor, etc. For heating I'll probably just carry around my little propane heater and put it wherever I'm working.

I'm fairly new to doing this type of work myself, and need advice on the best materials to use.

I saw tons of floor sealing gimmicks at Menard's. What's the best for the money?

How much insulation, and what type?

Drywall, wood paneling, or what other type of wall boards (if any)?

How many lights, and of what style do you think? It'll brighten up quite a bit if I have white walls, then I figure at least a flourescent fixture over each place I might be working on a car.

There's currently no drain in the floor, for unknown reasons. Any solutions for that, which wouldn't involve tearing up concrete? Normally it's not a problem, but right now the Subaru is dragging in snow.

It's a 2 bay garage, but very deep. The lady parks in the shorter bay on the right, and I park 2 cars side by side further back in the bay on the left (can exit thru same door without having to move one out of the way), and a 4th car goes way in the back and requires moving the middle car in order to get it out (you can barely see roof of miata in pic). In summer time the Miata will be way in the back and not used, then rotated forward for winter time salty road use.

There's also a big workshop to right of the Subaru, separated by a wall. It has some insulation, lighting, pegboards, etc. Someday I may knock out wall for storing another project car, but most likely will just use it for storing tools and doing work on the bench. I have a craftsman rolling toolbox that I wheel around to whatever car I am working on. I think the previous owner did lots of woodworking, but not much work on cars.

And oh yeah, I need to have a rolling bar to wheel out from the workshop for serving beers to 02ers that want to come explore the twisty backroads here in Appalachia. :)

post-461-13667668725506_thumb.jpg

Bring a Welder

1974 2002, 1965 Datsun L320 truck, 1981 Yamaha XS400, 1983 Yamaha RX50, 1992 Miata Miata drivetrain waiting on a Locost frame, 1999 Toyota Land Cruiser

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Wow - awesome space. I'm very jealous.

For floor - I think all of the epoxy floor treatments are oversold. Everyone I've ever talked to has had them lift - even the professionally installed ones.

I think if I ever re-do mine, I'll do tile of some kind.

For good ideas on the cheap - visit this site:

http://www.12-gaugegarage.com/

Jack is a moderator over at Pelican parts. Specifically - the tile and lights he did are pretty cool. I'm not sure I like everything he did, because he effectively has turned a 2 car garage into a 1 car garage. I have 3 cars and soon 2 motorcycles in a 2 car garage. His workspace is better, my toy storage is better.

Details on the lights are hidden in this part:

http://www.12-gaugegarage.com/blog-5/index.html

Good Luck.

Ken

FAQ Member # 2616

"What do you mean NEXT project?"

-- My wife.

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If you don't know exactly how that slab was constructed, you're rolling the dice no matter what you apply or install.

1973 tii, agave, since 1992

1973 tii block 2763759

1967 Mustang GT fastback, since 1986

1999 Toyota 4Runner, 5 speed, ELocker, Supercharged

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If you don't know exactly how that slab was constructed, you're rolling the dice no matter what you apply or install.

I can find out with a few phone calls. What info is needed, and why?

Bring a Welder

1974 2002, 1965 Datsun L320 truck, 1981 Yamaha XS400, 1983 Yamaha RX50, 1992 Miata Miata drivetrain waiting on a Locost frame, 1999 Toyota Land Cruiser

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Anyways, we bought the house from an ex-Amish construction/contractor that knows his stuff, so he'd likely know any details if I asked.

I've read some reviews on Rustoleums epoxy covering, and it sounds like a good covering is possible, but it's a ton of work. Lots of surface prep, acid etch, over 7 days cure time, etc. There's also a higher-end 'U-Coat-It' that people have had better luck with, but still a ton of work for cleaning and surface prep. I'm sure tile is way more expensive and more work, and really, I don't know if its necessary at this point.

Floor may just wait for a while.

Top priority is putting up insulation. There are a couple new rolls left from the previous owner, and I just need to start stapling it up. Then I gotta figure out what to do for paneling/drywall. I suppose I'll look around Lowe's and see what's cheap and easy to work with.

Then will come the ceiling. It's been suggested that I could just use foam insulation boards, but I'm not so sure about that. Don't know if I should just put ceiling boards up, and insulation on top of it, or if insulation is even necessary there. I guess I'll have to get googling some of these things....

I'm going to try some of those lights from the 12-guage garage, and see how well they do. I've got plenty of room for big flourescent fixtures, but I'm not sure if those are necessary with the amount of options for CF and LED bulbs on the market now.

Bring a Welder

1974 2002, 1965 Datsun L320 truck, 1981 Yamaha XS400, 1983 Yamaha RX50, 1992 Miata Miata drivetrain waiting on a Locost frame, 1999 Toyota Land Cruiser

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If you don't know exactly how that slab was constructed, you're rolling the dice no matter what you apply or install.

I can find out with a few phone calls. What info is needed, and why?

Moisture rising up through the slab can cause problems. Drainage under the slab and type of vapor barrier between soil and slab are critical. Check this out:

http://www.moisturetesting.com/When%203%20lbs%20is%20not%203%20lbs.pdf

N

1973 tii, agave, since 1992

1973 tii block 2763759

1967 Mustang GT fastback, since 1986

1999 Toyota 4Runner, 5 speed, ELocker, Supercharged

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OK, just started to read that, but I'll look some more later if I think more about epoxy route.

What about rubber?

http://www.rubberflooringinc.com/garage/vented-grid-loc.html?utm_source=googlebase&gclid=CIbJgrzBkLUCFYpDMgodKDkA1A

and plenty of other options:

https://www.google.com/#q=rubber+garage+flooring&hl=en&safe=off&tbo=u&source=univ&tbm=shop&sa=X&ei=oUsJUf30E8fJyAHElIHQDw&sqi=2&ved=0CGwQsxg&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_cp.r_qf.&bvm=bv.41642243,d.aWM&fp=8e33d332475560&biw=1920&bih=977

Not perfect, but easy to hose off and/or replace. Sure sounds comfy on my back, compared to laying on concrete floor (no plans on getting a lift in near future, and creepers are annoying).

Bring a Welder

1974 2002, 1965 Datsun L320 truck, 1981 Yamaha XS400, 1983 Yamaha RX50, 1992 Miata Miata drivetrain waiting on a Locost frame, 1999 Toyota Land Cruiser

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Congrats on the new large garage and workshop. Wish I had room to work in a space like that.

Now that we are in the middle of Winter, I would insulate and put up some pegboard or cheap plywood on the walls and you could possibly just leave the insulation in the roof sections (using those spring wires to keep the insulation from sagging). Paint the walls white or another light color to help reflect the lighting.

I'd hold off on the floor until the weather improves and you can move everything out, power wash, acid etch and apply some paint. I've heard some good things about the Lowes' / Home Depot garage floor paint like Rustoleum.

Make sure the electrical is up to snuff. The PO had woodworking equipment - any 220V prewired for a possible compressor or welder?

You can get cheap fluorescent lights from any store - even Walmart sells them. Put up a bunch of 4 ft. ones rather than longer units - the long bulbs can be expensive.

Get yourself a push squeegie to move standing water/slush out.

How is the ventilation other than the garage doors? A box fan in a standard double-hung window works well in the summer time.

Jim Gerock

 

Riviera 69 2002 built 5/30/69 "Oscar"

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Congrats on the new large garage and workshop. Wish I had room to work in a space like that.

Now that we are in the middle of Winter, I would insulate and put up some pegboard or cheap plywood on the walls and you could possibly just leave the insulation in the roof sections (using those spring wires to keep the insulation from sagging). Paint the walls white or another light color to help reflect the lighting.

I'd hold off on the floor until the weather improves and you can move everything out, power wash, acid etch and apply some paint. I've heard some good things about the Lowes' / Home Depot garage floor paint like Rustoleum.

Make sure the electrical is up to snuff. The PO had woodworking equipment - any 220V prewired for a possible compressor or welder?

You can get cheap fluorescent lights from any store - even Walmart sells them. Put up a bunch of 4 ft. ones rather than longer units - the long bulbs can be expensive.

Get yourself a push squeegie to move standing water/slush out.

How is the ventilation other than the garage doors? A box fan in a standard double-hung window works well in the summer time.

The electrical work seems to be of good quality, and the house inspector didn't find any problems. No 220 outlets, though. I have a small 120V compressor that does well enough.

Welder will be in the future, and I also have to learn to weld. My fiancee insists though that we have the welder somewhere else, though. She's afraid of fire risk, and wouldn't want to burn whole house down. So yeah, I've gotta convince her that it's OK in the garage, or use the ramshackle shed out back (barely standing, and next to a huge propane tank), do welding in driveway, or build a small pole building for welding like her dad did.

I hadn't thought of ventilation for the summertime. There are roof vents, and only a couple small windows. Might want to put a put in a decent fan somewhere...

Bring a Welder

1974 2002, 1965 Datsun L320 truck, 1981 Yamaha XS400, 1983 Yamaha RX50, 1992 Miata Miata drivetrain waiting on a Locost frame, 1999 Toyota Land Cruiser

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As far as the surface goes, there is nothing wrong with bare concrete. I've done a lot of wrenching in my parents garage that is bare concrete without any problems. Yes it's got some oil spots but that's no biggie. You can throw down cardboard or those vinyl mats that are under office chairs so it doesnt get to the ground. I havent had any issues doing this over the years. My garage here is the same way. I just throw something down.

Lighting wise, I would put in some of those double fluorescent light hanging fixtures. They throw a bunch of light and are cheap to buy and put bulbs in. I need to do this in my garage right now, I only have two CFL's in my whole garage... It's a wee dim :P

-Nathan
'76 2002 in Malaga (110k Original, 2nd Owner, sat for 20 years and now a toy)
'86 Chevy K20 (6.2 Turbo Diesel build) & '46 Chevy 2 Ton Dump Truck
'74 Suzuki TS185, '68 BSA A65 Lightning (garage find), '74 BMW R90S US Spec #2

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  • 1 month later...

KFunk,

The place I bought had a 2-car garage addition and the PO put a lot of thought into it - he had 5 british Morgans

He used Armstrong Imperial Texture (standard Excelon vinyl) tile. Don't know anything about but it holds up and I like it. The paint on he used in the other 2 car garage and it has lifted.

I also agree with Jim - light colors and lots of light, I have two 4 bulb flour over each car. If you trash walls you may want to think about panels like wainscoting to protect them more than drywall.

Also - go ahead and set-up where your fire ext will be and where you will store chemicals.

I also picked up a small window AC unit since Ga is hot. Think about 220 (welder/oven for powder coat) now since it will be easy before walls go in - at least run wiring near the panel

--J

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