Garage planning

[DaddyGlenn]

I am planning on remodeling my garage and I think I have settled on my plans but wanted to see if anyone had experience with the two companies I plan on purchasing product from.

So, anyone have experience with this company?

http://www.americangaragefloor.com/

Or this one?

http://www.garagestoragecabinets.com/index.html

[Dan in Pasadena]

No experience with either company but you may want to do a search on garage floors here. The costs for those floors on that site are astronomical compared with the coast of ordinary vinyl 12x12 tiles availabe from Home Depot. I know some Pelican used black/white tiles except they used a 2'x2' pattern instead of the 1x1 as it is too busy. There is a very, very clean picture of the install comeplete with a nice white 930 parked on top! WOuld probably save you enough to "go long" on the nice shop cabinets off the other website. Best of luck and please post "before" "during" and final pictures.

[EarlyPorsche]

Try www.garagejournal.com . I stumbled upon it but haven't really looked into it. Seems like a good starting point.

[JeremyD]

Glenn try http://www.gregsmithequipment.com/Floor-Tile-s/26.htm

I have their floor and have been very happy with it

[squelch]

If your are looking to save money and are interested in doing a little work, I bought these plain wood cabinets from Home Depot (or maybe Lowe's) for $65 each and then painted them and added the steel panels and knobs. They are 36 x 30 x 12. I am very happy with the price and the results, but if you want different sizes, there are many different ones to choose from.

[Grady Clay]

Jeremy,

Is that a hot water heater? I don’t care if your hot water heater is “within code”, get it out of your garage! The life you save will be yours and your family. The car you save will be your Porsche.

Are those hot air & A/C ducts to a furnace and air conditioner in/under your house? There is another potential problem.

Concerned,
Grady

[DaddyGlenn]

I'm looking at $2.63 per square foot for the flooring. I've got 400 square feet to cover.

I considered the tile but I am concerned about ease of cleaning. With the roll floor, I can mop it or hose it down and don't have to worry about stuff leaking through the cracks.

I'll have to look at Lowe's and Home depot to see if I can find cheaper cabinets. I really would like a factory finish instead of having to paint them.

Grady - that's pretty much the way they build houses in Florida. The water heater, air handler and all that cr@p goes in the garage. You don't find too many basements here.

[JeremyD]

Lowes have the gladiator cabinets - that's what I ended up with. The water heater is electric. and I've had one in the garage for the last 20 years - never had an issue -- - the air handler (2) is above the drywall in the garage - In Florida, the least of my worries is an exploding water heater. The tile is really easy to clean - it was nice because basically I cleaned the floor then put it down - no other drama.

I was in that range too - I think they had a special of 2.29 on ebay and matched that price when I called the store correct.

[Grady Clay]

OK, I think the order of design concerns probably should be:

1) SAFETY; (probably 2, 3 & 4 also). Garages have gasoline in them – in your cars and otherwise. Gasoline is probably the most dangerous substance we normally ever come in contact with. The fumes are highly explosive so there needs to be the ability to vent the garage to the outdoors. There should be no possible way for fumes to get into the house or near an ignition source. Of course there are usually all sorts of other chemicals. The floor should have a slight grade to the overhead door so leaking gasoline can exit the garage. If you have a floor drain, it should not go into your sanitary sewer. Fume, CO, smoke detectors and sprinklers should be mandatory.

Of course lifts, floor jacks and jack stands also present safety issues.

2) UTILITY; the garage has to work for its intended purpose(s). Most aren’t a dedicated Porsche-only home workshop. The ‘other’ considerations need to be addressed; bicycles, ski rack storage, golf clubs, kid’s science projects and ‘honey-do’ projects.

Part of this is your access to electricity, compressed air, a venting system, parts cleaner, pressure washer and most important lights. You can’t work on what you can’t see. I’m in favor of a solid, very light gray (almost white) floor and lots of overhead lights.

The air compressor should be somewhere else. They are all noisy and obnoxious to be around. Through-the wall air conditioners, heat pumps and heaters work well and prevent any exposure to an open flame.
Storage is always an issue; you can never have too much. This is sometimes called “The tyranny of things.” Things expand to consume all available space.

Garages are also typically used to park your (and spouse’s) cars.

3) CLEANING & CLUTTER; It is useful to have just about everything either on wheels, casters, hung or cantilevered off the walls. This will make periodic scrubbing the floor not so much of a chore. This also allows you to clean out the stuff that tends to accumulate in every available space.

4) COOL; part of this is to show the toys. The refrigerator disguised as a SnapOn tool chest helps. So does the HDTV. The WiFi connection to Pelican is a necessity. A few vintage (reproduction) Porsche 917 racing posters complete the touch.

5) CHANGABILITY; too many ‘built-ins’ make it more difficult to adapt to your changing needs and projects.

6) COST; few want to waste money. Being thrifty allows many to own several projects. Many solve this by having built ‘unfinished’ space and then DIY (with the door closed).

7) RESALE; it isn’t wise to build a ‘white elephant’ that will reduce the value of your house.

8) NEIGHBORS, COVENANTS AND ZONING; ‘nuf said.

Best,
Grady

[Nickatnyt]

Originally Posted by DaddyGlenn

Grady - that's pretty much the way they build houses in Florida. The water heater, air handler and all that cr@p goes in the garage. You don't find too many basements here.

I am tuning into CNN right now as I expect most of the state of FL to blow up any minute now. If it does then you can't say "Grady didn't tell you so."

[DaddyGlenn]

Originally Posted by Nickatnyt

I am tuning into CNN right now as I expect most of the state of FL to blow up any minute now. If it does then you can't say "Grady didn't tell you so."

If I were building a garage from scratch, I'd keep all that stuff out. But since I'm not I will have to yield to budget and practicality concerns instead of Grady's much respected safety concerns.

[DaddyGlenn]

Originally Posted by Grady Clay

OK, I think the order of design concerns probably should be:

1) SAFETY; (probably 2, 3 & 4 also). Garages have gasoline in them – in your cars and otherwise. Gasoline is probably the most dangerous substance we normally ever come in contact with. The fumes are highly explosive so there needs to be the ability to vent the garage to the outdoors. There should be no possible way for fumes to get into the house or near an ignition source. Of course there are usually all sorts of other chemicals. The floor should have a slight grade to the overhead door so leaking gasoline can exit the garage. If you have a floor drain, it should not go into your sanitary sewer. Fume, CO, smoke detectors and sprinklers should be mandatory.

Of course lifts, floor jacks and jack stands also present safety issues.

2) UTILITY; the garage has to work for its intended purpose(s). Most aren’t a dedicated Porsche-only home workshop. The ‘other’ considerations need to be addressed; bicycles, ski rack storage, golf clubs, kid’s science projects and ‘honey-do’ projects.

Part of this is your access to electricity, compressed air, a venting system, parts cleaner, pressure washer and most important lights. You can’t work on what you can’t see. I’m in favor of a solid, very light gray (almost white) floor and lots of overhead lights.

The air compressor should be somewhere else. They are all noisy and obnoxious to be around. Through-the wall air conditioners, heat pumps and heaters work well and prevent any exposure to an open flame.
Storage is always an issue; you can never have too much. This is sometimes called “The tyranny of things.” Things expand to consume all available space.

Garages are also typically used to park your (and spouse’s) cars.

3) CLEANING & CLUTTER; It is useful to have just about everything either on wheels, casters, hung or cantilevered off the walls. This will make periodic scrubbing the floor not so much of a chore. This also allows you to clean out the stuff that tends to accumulate in every available space.

4) COOL; part of this is to show the toys. The refrigerator disguised as a SnapOn tool chest helps. So does the HDTV. The WiFi connection to Pelican is a necessity. A few vintage (reproduction) Porsche 917 racing posters complete the touch.

5) CHANGABILITY; too many ‘built-ins’ make it more difficult to adapt to your changing needs and projects.

6) COST; few want to waste money. Being thrifty allows many to own several projects. Many solve this by having built ‘unfinished’ space and then DIY (with the door closed).

7) RESALE; it isn’t wise to build a ‘white elephant’ that will reduce the value of your house.

8) NEIGHBORS, COVENANTS AND ZONING; ‘nuf said.

Best,
Grady

Grady, I am honored to have your input.

1) I am working with an existing garage so I am limited on the structural changes. It is really just a remodel.

2) I'm focusing on lots of storage and clear space to park/work. I'll be adding lights and have selected a gray (not so light) floor color.

3) That is a big driver of this project. All cabinets will be 10" off the floor to allow for easier cleaning. And lots of cabinets to hide the mess that lives in the garage now.

4) I think neat and tidy is a cool start but will add appropriate decor as time goes on.

5) I think I've got that

6) Total budget is in the $2,500-$2,700 range

7) lots of usabe storage space, nothing gold platted about it.

I'll post my layouts in a little while.

[DaddyGlenn]

Plan view (the garage opens to the east)


south side


North side


west side

[mhoffman]

you may think this is insane, but I had a friend who put in porceline (sp?) tile- he bought it on sale for .99/ft at Home Depot- what a fantastic surface! not too slick, easy clean-up, no tire marks from hot tires, easy cleaning, very durable and certainly enhanced house value...
Most garages are square sided, so laying is not too hard.
Might be worth hunting around for a deal....

[DaddyGlenn]

Originally Posted by mhoffman

you may think this is insane, but I had a friend who put in porceline (sp?) tile- he bought it on sale for .99/ft at Home Depot- what a fantastic surface! not too slick, easy clean-up, no tire marks from hot tires, easy cleaning, very durable and certainly enhanced house value...
Most garages are square sided, so laying is not too hard.
Might be worth hunting around for a deal....

I'm sure it would look great and be an easy clean....but i tend to drop big heavy tile busting things. Just ask my left big toe. (Cylinder head from a '76 rabbit)

[speedracer]

Originally Posted by mhoffman

you may think this is insane, but I had a friend who put in porceline (sp?) tile- he bought it on sale for .99/ft at Home Depot- what a fantastic surface! not too slick, easy clean-up, no tire marks from hot tires, easy cleaning, very durable and certainly enhanced house value...
Most garages are square sided, so laying is not too hard.
Might be worth hunting around for a deal....

Porceline tile is a great garage floor surface, though usually expensive. It is surprsingly strong and if you break a tile you just pull it up and replace it. Several higher end shops use it...

[ruf-porsche]

Originally Posted by DaddyGlenn

Grady - that's pretty much the way they build houses in Florida. The water heater, air handler and all that cr@p goes in the garage. You don't find too many basements here.

At least they got the GAS hot water heater off the floor. It will take just a little bit longer for gas fume to reach the pilot light of the Hot Water Heater.

[ruf-porsche]

Originally Posted by DaddyGlenn

I'm looking at $2.63 per square foot for the flooring. I've got 400 square feet to cover.

I considered the tile but I am concerned about ease of cleaning. With the roll floor, I can mop it or hose it down and don't have to worry about stuff leaking through the cracks.

I'll have to look at Lowe's and Home depot to see if I can find cheaper cabinets. I really would like a factory finish instead of having to paint them.

Grady - that's pretty much the way they build houses in Florida. The water heater, air handler and all that cr@p goes in the garage. You don't find too many basements here.

Go to a tile and floor store and check out the rubber floors with the tactile dots. They come in either tiles or rolls (like carpet). They are sometime referred to as Pirelli floor tiles in the contract interior business..

[Danny_Ocean]

Originally Posted by ruf-porsche

At least they got the GAS hot water heater off the floor. It will take just a little bit longer for gas fume to reach the pilot light of the Hot Water Heater.

The water heater pictured above is electric. No pilot/sparks.

[DaddyGlenn]

So.... back on topic.

Anyone have experience with the two companies in my first post?