Garage Shop Layout Help

[Paul Fitzgerald]

Hey everyone!

Now that I have a 2HP Dust Collector, my inefficient garage shop layout has started to drive me batty. There's more tool-moving and dc-connecting going on than actual woodworking.

Here's my equipment and whether it's currently mobile...

1) PSI 2HP DC2000BCF Dust Collector (on casters)
2) Delta 28-276 14" Bandsaw (stationary)
3) Delta 17-950L 16-1/2" Drill Press (stationary)
4) Ridgid TS3660 10" Table Saw (on mobile base)
5) Ridgid JP0610 6-1/8" Jointer (on mobile base)
6) DeWALT DW716 12" Miter Saw (on mobile bench)
7) Jet JML-1014I 10"x14" Mini Lathe (on stationary stand)
8) Woodpeckers Router Table (on mobile stand)
9) Ridgid R4330 13" Thickness Planer (on mobile stand)
10) Woodcraft 8" Slow Speed Grinder (on mobile stand)

I need to maintain a path from the garage door to the entry door, and the lumber rack is attached to the wall. But other than that, anything's possible. Everything else in the diagram should be self explanatory.

I'd like to find a semi-permanent home for everything so there's little to no moving of tools. I'd also like to arrange the tools in a more efficient manner. I've been thinking about this for a while, and I'm having a lot of trouble figuring out the best way to do this.

I was really hoping you guys could give me some suggestions on the best way to move forward.

Thanks!

Paul

[Eric DeSilva]

In a small space like that, I'd still go with moveable bases. The position/orientation of your planer and router table, for example, are going seriously limit the size of the stock you can run through them. Might be better to have those on mobile bases so you can arrange to be able to run long stock through.

Is the 3' 2" space on the top RHS big enough to fit your DC into? If so, I'd consider closing that little area off and insulating it... DC can be loud and it might contribute to a better working environment to have the noise limited.

[Paul Fitzgerald]

In a small space like that, I'd still go with moveable bases. The position/orientation of your planer and router table, for example, are going seriously limit the size of the stock you can run through them. Might be better to have those on mobile bases so you can arrange to be able to run long stock through.

The planer and router table are currently on mobile stands. I roll 'em out into the open when I need to use them.

Part of the problem I have right now is I'd like to be able to use the Jointer, Planer, and TS to mill my rough lumber down without having to move the planer out of the way to use the jointer, then move the jointer out of the way to use the planer, and finally move both the jointer and planer out of the way to use the table saw. That get's old really quickly. :D Especially now that I'm connecting and reconnecting the DC before and after each of those moves.


Is the 3' 2" space on the top RHS big enough to fit your DC into? If so, I'd consider closing that little area off and insulating it... DC can be loud and it might contribute to a better working environment to have the noise limited.

That space is a step up from the garage floor and contains my gas fired water heater, so I don't feel particularly comfortable closing it off. Also, my DC is pretty darn quiet. In fact, my planer is way louder. When things get loud, I just put some ear plugs in. So... I don't have a problem with the SPL and wouldn't consider it a huge factor in any decisions to move equipment.

Thanks!

Paul

[David Hostetler]

Paul,

Your garage layout is ALMOST identical to mine, with that wierd bump out in the back, except mine is 5' 4". I put the DC and Thien Cyclone back there.

I am moving the stuff I had on mobile bases, off, and onto a stacking system, but I have mostly benchtop model tools to conserve space. I know a lot of folks are gonna fuss about the Benchtop jointer, but it does the job well, who cares what other folks think?

I am planning on installing heavy duty shelf standards to the studs, and then using the longest brackets I can find, set up a shelving system to stash my Ridgid oscillating sander, 13" planer, jointer, CMS, and bench grinder when not in use. These are all mounted up on 18" deep x 30" wide 3/4" plywood mount boards. I have a folding CMS stand with the adjustable wings that I simply bolt / wing nut the mount boards to... Creates a nice, sturdy base. I have a long ways to go but that is the concept... Setup and changeover between tools is VERY quick. But the planer is HEAVY...

My router table is actually part of my my extension rail / table system for my table saw. My total crosscut capacity on the TS is 72", and the router insert doesn't interfere at all with it...

I am not sure what that round thing back in your niche is... But if it's like mine, it's a water purifier / softener system (my water sucks), mine is off on the wall though... If you don't mind rolling the DC out of there every now and again, I would definately put the DC there and plumb it out...

[phil harold]

That space is a step up from the garage floor and contains my gas fired water heater, so I don't feel particularly comfortable closing it off.

Gas fired water heater and saw dust?

check your insurance


I lived thru one one waterheater fire that totaled my house

good luck

[Ray Newman]

See Phil H. said about the water heater! This is not good....

I was never able to design my shop lay out utilizing a computer grogram. It just looked way too small. What I did was get large sheets of butcher/wrapping paper, then draw the shop out to the largest scale possible. I then made cardboard cuts out for the footprint of ea. tool & moved them around until I was satisfied.

--Grinder mostly for sharpening lathe tools?? Would it fit between the lumber rack & the garage door? If it does, you could then pull it out when needed.
--Drill press, fabricate a stout & wide mobile base, move it between the miter saw & the garage door & pull it out when you need more room to work w/ it.
--Band Saw, if not utilized a great deal, store it up by the water heater. Or put the router table there.
--Saw horses: collapsible or knock down? If they aren't, that might be something else to consider.

[Paul Fitzgerald]

See Phil H. said about the water heater! This is not good....

I'll be sure to check on that. The pilot light and combustion chamber is enclosed, so I haven't been terribly worried about it. I also work with the garage door open and fans blowing outward when I can.


--Grinder mostly for sharpening lathe tools?? Would it fit between the lumber rack & the garage door? If it does, you could then pull it out when needed.

Yep, it's mostly for the lathe tools. It will not, however, fit between the lumber rack and garage door. The lumber actually extends past the end of the rack and into the corner there.

Right now, the lathe is on a 1/4 sheet of 3/4" plywood that's supported by a pair of folding sawhorses. :o I was thinking about building a better stand and mounting the lathe on the left and the grinder on the right. The stand would need to be wider to accommodate both tools.

That way, I could get rid of one stand.


--Drill press, fabricate a stout & wide mobile base, move it between the miter saw & the garage door & pull it out when you need more room to work w/ it.

The drill press gets a lot of use drilling blanks for pen turning. Moving it to the other side of the miter saw and next to the garage door might work out well. Though I'm not sure it would need to be mobile.


--Band Saw, if not utilized a great deal, store it up by the water heater. Or put the router table there.

I use the band saw quite a bit. I cut blanks for pen turning. I sometimes rip rough lumber prior to face and edge jointing. I resaw a bit as well.


--Saw horses: collapsible or knock down? If they aren't, that might be something else to consider.

They're the ones from NYW. The plastic cases for my pneumatic nailers, sanders, drills, etc. live between the legs. I don't particularly care for them because they're short and don't knock down and they're always in the way. I can reclaim that space by moving the plastic cases to the shelving units and turning the saw horses into scrap.

Thanks! Keep the suggestions coming!

Paul

[Paul Fitzgerald]

My router table is actually part of my my extension rail / table system for my table saw. My total crosscut capacity on the TS is 72", and the router insert doesn't interfere at all with it...

If I can find a permanent place to put my TS, that's precisely what I'd do. A router table would fit perfectly between the rails of my TS3660.

I don't have the cash to do that right now, so the standalone router table will have to stay put... at least for now. :(

Paul

[Eric DeSilva]

I've got more floor area for my basement shop, and still have a lot of things (planer, open frame sander, BS) on mobile stands... I use a DC port with a shut off, move the machine near it, and use quick disconnects and some flex hose to get DC. Not complicated or too difficult.

Any chance of building wall mounted shelves over the RAS and clearing the back wall a bit? Maybe moving the wood storage higher on the wall and freeing up some floor space? Might allow you to move the grinder and lathe back there or something... I'd really like to see the planer with some clearance fore and aft.

One other thing to think about... I've got a TS w/52" fence and my jointer is fairly close to the side of the TS. I don't usually need a huge amount of clearance on the non-fence side, so its worked out pretty good--its actually on a mobile stand too, so if I did have some strange issue, I could move the jointer a bit (that would be pretty unusual). In Tolpin's TS Magic book, he also has a jointer very close to the side of his TS--in his case, he built a little thing with rollers on it that fits on top of the jointer bed and actually acts as a side stock support. Might think about that--the whole jointer in front of the RAS seems like it might be cramped.

Just my thoughts, but I'm not a turner, so your shop may need different things.

[Andrew Joiner]

Paul,
How high are your ceilings? When I had a small shop all my shelves, storage everything that wasn't used daily was 4' off the floor.
I had shelves like bookcases I hung from the ceiling so the space under was free to clear swinging boards or a rolling machine.

Could you hang your sawhorses from the ceiling ? Every inch of floor space adds up.

[David Hostetler]

Gas water heater?

Oh boy...

Yeah, you might want to close that off from the sawdust...

[Rod Sheridan]

Gas water heater?

Oh boy...

Yeah, you might want to close that off from the sawdust...

Wow, you guys must have shops that are full of dust.

The air in my basement shop is very clean (Oneida Cyclone) and I've never had visible dust in the air, or on surfaces to any extent greater than a normal water heater in the basement type of installation.

I can understand if the air/dust ratio were to reach explosive levels, or you were to let dust accumulate to several inches in depth, however how else would you have ignition of workshop dust?

Regards, Rod.

[Paul Fitzgerald]

How 'bout this one?

Everything will stay put except the planer and router table, which will be wheeled out for use.

I've incorporated one of the shelving units into the lathe/grinder stand and added an outfeed/assembly table.

The jointer is short enough that it won't interfere with the use of the table saw and I can use the outfeed table as a place to put jointed stock that's ready for the planer.

I also may be able to store the router table below the left side of the table saw. I'll have to check on that. (Edit: Nope, the router table is a bit too tall to fit beneath the fence rails of the table saw.)

Any thoughts about the flow?

Thanks!

[Rod Sheridan]

Looks good.

Would moving the jointer to the other side of the TS be beneficial since the planer/jointer are often a tag team operation?

Regards, Rod.

[Eric DeSilva]

How 'bout this one?

That looks like a great use of space to me... We need pictures now. ;)

[Paul Fitzgerald]

Looks good.

Would moving the jointer to the other side of the TS be beneficial since the planer/jointer are often a tag team operation?

Regards, Rod.

I've been struggling with how to place the TS, Jointer, and Planer.

If you're standing in front of the infeed table on the planer, the height adjustment wheel is on the right side of the planer body. I'm usually standing slightly to the right of the infeed table so I can feed the stock and adjust the height without having to keep walking around the planer.

I think the attached image is the best setup for the jointer and planer. Black arrows show feed direction. Blue circles are where I stand. Blue arrows show the path I take.

I thought maybe putting the assembly table between the two would give me a place to put stock ready for the next operation. Is there a better way to setup the flow between these machines?

Thanks!

Paul

[Paul Fitzgerald]

Any chance of building wall mounted shelves over the RAS and clearing the back wall a bit? Maybe moving the wood storage higher on the wall and freeing up some floor space?

I've wanted to build some wall cabinets for a while now. I just haven't found the time or money to do it yet.

The lumber racks are pretty full, so I'm not sure I could clear any space below them to scoot any equipment.


One other thing to think about... I've got a TS w/52" fence and my jointer is fairly close to the side of the TS. I don't usually need a huge amount of clearance on the non-fence side, so its worked out pretty good--its actually on a mobile stand too, so if I did have some strange issue, I could move the jointer a bit (that would be pretty unusual). In Tolpin's TS Magic book, he also has a jointer very close to the side of his TS--in his case, he built a little thing with rollers on it that fits on top of the jointer bed and actually acts as a side stock support. Might think about that--the whole jointer in front of the RAS seems like it might be cramped.

I think that'll work just fine. See the image in post #13. Is that what you're talking about?


Paul,
How high are your ceilings? When I had a small shop all my shelves, storage everything that wasn't used daily was 4' off the floor.
I had shelves like bookcases I hung from the ceiling so the space under was free to clear swinging boards or a rolling machine.

My ceilings are just about 100". I don't have much on the upper walls (except for the lumber rack). I've been trying to move storage vertically to take advantage of the unused wall space... but it's pretty slow going right now.

Thanks!

Paul

[Eric DeSilva]

Looks good! The arrangement seems a lot more functional to my eye.