Another Garage Shop Question...Need Advice Please

[Jason Morgan]

I am trying to set up shop in a 3 car garage that my or may not see one car during the winter (I'm in Wisconsin so it can get quite cold for a few months out of the year. My three options are as follows:

1. Use the whole garage and keep the cars/junk out of the gar-shop. Insule the bajeezes out of it and put in a heater. The three car garage is about 960 sq feet of which I could have free run of 800+ a nice nice shop by any standard.

2. Wall off the 12x24 third bay of the shop. Smaller shop yes, but easier to heat. I can still store lumber and materials outside the shop and then the car (and my truck) can both be snug in the garage part during the winter.

3. Do #1, but park the better half's minivan in the garage during the winter months. Im not so much concerned with space here as I am the moisture brought in by a wet/snowy car and the heat loss from the occasional (0-2 times a day) opening of the garage door. I am considering the ceiling mount radiant tube heater for the space and so I think I can keep the slab and tools fairly warm.

What would you guys suggest? Im leaning toward #1 if I can get away with it, then #3, but maybe you all can tell me if #2 isnt that bad.

Thanks

[Bill Huber]

I go for number 2.

When I had my shop in the garage it was a real mess. The car would bring in water when it was raining and ice when we had an ice storm.
If I left the car in the garage and did just about anything I would get saw dust all over it.
In the winter when I would get the garage all nice and warm the wife would need to run to the store for something and all my heat went right out the door.

A wall is cheap and would go up really fast, just need one door. That would also give you one more wall to put things on that you didn't have to move when you pulled the car in.

[Bill Wyko]

What kind of projects do you build? I have a 12x24 and it's a little cramped. I have stuffed a 1442 Lathe, a belt sander, a bench which has a 12" compound miter saw and a spindle sander. Then next to all that is a 22-44 drum sander, a 52" fenced PM contractor saw , a PM drill press. Then in the next corner is a router table, a rikon band saw and a dust collector. Then back around to the front is a small work bench. This leaves about 2 squares 6X6 to walk around. If you want to cut a full sheet of ply forget it. I'd Go as big as possible.IMHO

[Samuel Brooks]

I am working though this same issue myself. I have a 24x40 garage and I am thinking of putting a divider wall about 18' from the back to make an 24x18 area but then make the wall a slider like a large barn door so if I want to work on a large project I can still use the other part of the garage. Does a slider sound like it would work for you?

[Clay Crocker]

I do your option #3 in my three car garage shop. I would not be able to work in a 12 X 24 space, no matter how nice it was; I'm just used to having a larger workshop area. LOML parks in the single bay year round but it is nice to have that extra space for assembly and/or finishing larger projects when necessary. I even use the front and far side of her bay for my cyclone and lumber storage. My truck stays outside year round; since I work from my home office most of the time I don't have to go out and scrape frost off every morning like most poor Saps. ;):D Snow and ice melting off a car can be a problem depending on the slope of your floor. I bought a grooved car mat from Lowe's.com that LOML's car parks on and that took care of the problem w/ snow and ice melting; all the water stays on the mat and either runs out under the door or evaporates. I have a 60,000 BTU gas fired heater that keeps the garage warm. I don't loose that much heat when the car comes and goes, but the door is never open for more than a minute or two. IMHO you should grab as much space as you can, someday you will wish you had it!

Clay

[Bill Wyko]

You guys have way too much realestate:p I'm jealous.:D

[Jim O'Dell]

What if you walled off 1 bay for the wife? Or better yet, use a curtain that hugs the ceiling and the floor, maybe insulated somehow? Maybe use some of the 3M Thinsulate material if it can be found? It could control part of the heat loss, and help keep out some moisture. That way you could open it up for assembly/finishing when the need arises. Jim.

[David G Baker]

Jason,
Keeping your vehicles snug and warm in the Winter months may not be a good idea if your roads are salted. The moisture and salt that is on your vehicles when you park them after a Winter trip has a tendency to corrode metal much faster if it is in a warm environment. I was planning on heating my garage but did a lot of research and was advised to not heat for the above reason. Salt stops working or slows down as it gets colder.
Separating the vehicles from the work area and insulating it to keep from loosing the heat is a good way to go.

[Al Willits]

Most of the major power tools I have are on mobile bases, I have free run of our garage untill there's a hail warning (Beasty's got a new car) or its really cold out, which here in MN is most the time,... anyway...when she wants her car in, I move a few tools and she can bring her car in.
Don't divide the garage, you'll regret it...imho

Al

[Darren Ford]

Maybe you could get your wife a remote starter for the van and park it in the driveway.

[Jason Morgan]

I knew there was a reason I ask you guys all these questions:D

A remote start would kill all the birds with one stone. Wife gets a warm car and I get a warm shop. Good idea

[Jeff Raymond]

I wanna know how come the guy always winds up in the garage and the woman gets the warm house.

What happened to this equal rights deal?

[David G Baker]

Guess the garage beats the dog house, more room for tools.

[Art Mulder]

2. Wall off the 12x24 third bay of the shop. Smaller shop yes, but easier to heat. I can still store lumber and materials outside the shop and then the car (and my truck) can both be snug in the garage part during the winter.

Jason, you're missing an option:

#4) Wall off one bay. That is where the car parks. The remaining two bays are yours for the shop. a 2-car garage is a pretty decent size. (Bigger than what I've got!!)

If you really want parking for two, then you need to get creative. Maybe you could wall off 1-1/2 bays if one of the vehicles is short.

...art

ps: oh, and I almost forgot. What about the basement? (I have a basement shop)