# Show us your Workshop



## bud16415 (Dec 29, 2017)

Today I fired up the heat in my tiny outside workshop. My garage is 24x24 and there was a small add on area that was 12x14. living in the north and trying to heat a large area at my old house I decided to close off the small space I insulated about 6 and then covered the whole inside with half inch plywood. Added a man door and heat and AC. Today it was 10f and I had the shop a nice 65f inside in about and hour. Because it is small If I do have a big job out in the main garage I can go between the two areas and have a chance to warm up doing the smaller stuff inside the warm or cooled workshop. I have it packed with tools to the point it is like a walk in tool box. But its the best I could do on a shoestring budget and here are a couple Panoramic pics. Makes it look larger than it is but shows most of it. 

I would love seeing others work shops for ideas big or small no matter how humble they may be. It is a good excuse to clean up the shop. Look at it that way.


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## nealtw (Dec 29, 2017)

You're better equipped than most contractors I know.


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## zannej (Dec 29, 2017)

Looks great!
Right now I only have exterior shots of my workshop.
This is a satellite view of my barn (top) and workshop (bottom right)






And here is the front view of the workshop









There is a concrete sort of porch area surrounding the workshop on 3 sides underneath an overhang and we put up some plywood panels and painted them, but some of them have deteriorated. There's also a piece of plexi for one chunk to allow in sunlight. The inside of both the covered porch area & interior of the workshop are a total mess right now. Stuff is piled up and we really need to organize and clean.


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## bud16415 (Dec 30, 2017)

zannej said:


> The inside of both the covered porch area & interior of the workshop are a total mess right now. Stuff is piled up and we really need to organize and clean.



Now you have a reason to get it cleaned up so you can show us the insides. Thats a nice size building you could do some big projects in there.


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## zannej (Dec 30, 2017)

bud16415 said:


> Now you have a reason to get it cleaned up so you can show us the insides. Thats a nice size building you could do some big projects in there.



It is a very nicely sized workshop. There are still a few unfinished projects my father had been working on before he died that are lying around. Not sure what his plans were for some of them. My friends are envious of the place. They've offered to help clean it up in exchange for being allowed to fix up vehicles inside. My mother isn't too keen on having strange vehicles brought over though.

When the concrete was being poured, I pointed out to my father that there was no ramp for vehicles to go up in through the large double doors at the front. The height difference from ground to the floor was enough to be a problem, so we made a mold and created a small ramp.

I need to figure out how to patch the roof where it seems to be leaking. Maybe spray some flex seal (or a generic version) up there. Years ago I got up there with a mop and Kool Seal (or something like that) and mopped it on. Foot went through the roof on the porch area, which was not good. Higher part of the roof was too steep for me to safely climb on though and I didn't get roof on the north side of the workshop. Gonna have to get that ladder set up and check it out when the weather warms up a bit.


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## bud16415 (Jan 13, 2018)

I moved this thread over here to see if some of the garage guys want to show off their workshops.


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## Deek281 (Jan 26, 2018)

Looks great! I recognize the drill press: I have one just like it, or at least one that appears to be just like it!


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## Deek281 (Jan 26, 2018)

Hey guys, question for you all.
I have a brick garage that I'd like to turn into a workshop. I need to insulate it to make it comfortable with Indiana's crazy seasons. What do you guys thing about the idea of my mounting a 2x4 as header, footer and middle, directly to the bricks. Then putting in a sheet of 1 1/2" foam insulation, covered by 7/16" plywood. I'm thinking that this will be a good insulation, but I'm hesitant to drill the walls at the same time. Would it be worth it to just build a stick frame inside the brick walls and insulate that instead, and mount the frames to the ceiling joists and floor? 
 Thanks Guys, 
Deek


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## nealtw (Jan 26, 2018)

Deek281 said:


> Hey guys, question for you all.
> I have a brick garage that I'd like to turn into a workshop. I need to insulate it to make it comfortable with Indiana's crazy seasons. What do you guys thing about the idea of my mounting a 2x4 as header, footer and middle, directly to the bricks. Then putting in a sheet of 1 1/2" foam insulation, covered by 7/16" plywood. I'm thinking that this will be a good insulation, but I'm hesitant to drill the walls at the same time. Would it be worth it to just build a stick frame inside the brick walls and insulate that instead, and mount the frames to the ceiling joists and floor?
> Thanks Guys,
> Deek


 *Would it be worth it to just build a stick frame inside the brick walls and insulate that instead, and mount the frames to the ceiling joists and floor?* 
Leave a little space between studs and wall like a 1/2" between.


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## bud16415 (Jan 26, 2018)

Deek281 said:


> Looks great! I recognize the drill press: I have one just like it, or at least one that appears to be just like it!



Ya its an old harbor freight drill press. Has a double reduction and I use it all the time. Takes Morse taper and I have drilled 1 holes in steel no problem. 

Thought I would see a few more workshops by now.

 I spent most of the day in mine today it warmed up to low 40s and I kept it a nice 65-70 all day with my little propane heater. I have been out there around zero and can keep it 60 without much trouble.


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## Chris (Jan 26, 2018)

Kind of a mess but my shop is 30x40 and two story. Metal and automotive work downstairs and woodwork and storage upstairs

View attachment 20180109_173853.jpg


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## Gary (Jan 27, 2018)

I don't have a single shop. I have buildings here and there, wherever I can make stuff fit. This is the fab shop. I use it mainly for the camaro project, that has been put on the back burner for awhile now. Also fabricating sign frames & odd jobs here and there. These are old photos, things have changed some. Maybe if I get time to clean the place up someday I'll post current photos.


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## zannej (Jan 27, 2018)

Looks nice, Gary!


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## Chris (Jan 29, 2018)

Gary, are you sure you can still call that a camaro?


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## oldognewtrick (Jan 29, 2018)

Chris said:


> Gary, are you sure you can still call that a camaro?


Camaro shaped Space Shuttle maybe...


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## Gary (Mar 21, 2018)

oldognewtrick , it's been an expensive dust collector the last few years. Too many other irons in the fire. Here's another shop. This one is the sign shop and woodworking shop when it needs to be. 

Also a shot of the laser station, that shares space in the garage.


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## slownsteady (Mar 23, 2018)

With you guys showing impressive workshops, it's no wonder the rest of us would like to keep ours under wraps.


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## bud16415 (Mar 24, 2018)

slownsteady said:


> With you guys showing impressive workshops, it's no wonder the rest of us would like to keep ours under wraps.



Mine is far from impressive. My buddy built his he painted the walls a dark blue the lower 4’ and then white on the top and has a racing stripe around the middle. It looks really sharp. He did the checker board floor and the whole bit. When I put the plywood up (notice each piece is stamped REJECT) I was going to paint it and then I said what’s the point.


I’m a chronic messy tools in piles person and used to spend more time looking than working. With this house I vowed to change my ways and so far its been working. I have a few totes and tool boxes I keep empty and when I need to do a remote job I try and take what I think I will need only. I have one box I keep a second set of common tools in I call my handy box. Lots of times I just grab that and go. You always forget something though.


It is just really nice to have an open area to work and know where your stuff is finally. Just thru the man door is a little deck I built and a fire pit. The work shop does double duty as the outside kitchen if we are sitting around the fire. People for some reason enjoy sitting in the shop and having a beer and talking.    


Now post your shop no matter how humble there is no place like the workshop.


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## zannej (Mar 28, 2018)

Once my ankle recovers, I need to get some more shots of mine, although it is a total mess right now.
It has a sort of porch area that wraps around the right side and rear of the building. Concrete was poured for the ground (used to just be dirt) underneath the overhang. Yeas ago we walled most of it in with some plywood and used plexiglass for windows. Dad built shelving most of the way around the outer perimeter (inside the walls). Despite being painted, some of it deteriorated. There was a door out the back left side but it's all destroyed now.
There is a side door on the right (near the front) for main access and there are shelves lining the walls. There are shelves in some pockets at the back where they are on either side of a small room that has a vent fan and is very well insulated. On top of that little room and the little side alcoves is a loft. There's a ladder that folds up with a rope and there is a pulley system for raising heavy objects up to the loft or lowering them down without having to carry them down the ladder. There's an window air conditioner unit sort of built in to a spot on the left wall just above a utility sink. We have shop lights hanging from the lower crossbeams and the roof itself is pretty high. The front of the building has two large barn doors that slide open, but right now there are toolchests and furniture in the way and it's almost sealed shut. There's a nice workbench in the front middle, a tablesaw off to the left, and a Shopsmith in the front left corner. Pegboards line the left wall in some spots with little bins for screws/nails/etc. There's a drill press on one of the shelves on the right and an old defunct refrigerator that is no longer plugged in. Stuff is pretty much piled everywhere though.


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## tuffy (Mar 29, 2018)

mines about 24x24  I've got tools wood ( tires which are my sons) thrown all around once i get it cleaned up I'll post a picture.


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## bud16415 (May 14, 2018)

Well my shoestring retirement workshop is evolving.


After I got the used HF welder and saw it works I made a makeshift table out of some sheet steel I had from the swimming pool I tore down for free to get the wood for the deck. I was setting it up and taking it down on saw horses and rolling the welder around and it was taking me an hour to set up to do 30 seconds of welding. I didn’t like the idea of welding in my workshop room and wanted a weld booth. With keeping in mind I didn’t want to spend money on anything I cleared out a 7x8 area in the main garage and covered the walls with the steel from the ring of the used pool. I then mounted the steel top I made to the base of an old charm glow grill. The place where the propane tank is storage for my grinders and supplies. The cart sits beside protected from splatter by a scrap of plywood. Using it for storing clamps etc. I added 2 LED spots lights and a little bench vice. Shelf for helmet, gloves and weld jacket. I have a 24’ power cord I added to the welder and it stores on the cart if mobile but added a place to wind it up when being used as a fixed welder. Never toss an old 10 speed bike without taking off the handle bars they make a great hose or cable storage.


Here are a few photos of Bud’s budget weld shop. LOL, as of right now I have about 200 bucks invested and that includes gas and weld wire.


The last photo is of my first project I welded in the shop. Holly has been doing what is called Cross Fit for the last 3 years. It is a gym they call a box old factory buildings work best. The training is absurd as far as anything I want to do. It came about from Navy Seals. She has been wanting to do some of this at home as her plan is 3 days a week. So she has been asking for barbells and stuff. So I go to a competition to get a feel for what she needs and they pick up these massive weights that are rubberized and they have a rubber floor and when they lift they almost drop them down. Not the gym class I remember from high school at all. So we go to some sports stores and all the good weights are steel and the junky ones are plastic filled with concrete. And these rubber things are big bucks. If she drops the steel ones in the garage she will bust the floor more than it is and the cheap ones will smash the weights. So I get the idea to make my own weights for her out of rims and tires. Something I have for free. I had a matching set of donut spares never used I got for free. They weigh right around 30 pounds each. I had a 10’ pipe I cut to 6’ and made a curling bar and a barbell out of it. I made some collars to fit inside the wheel and taped a .5-13 hole for a set screw and welded them to the rim. So the whole thing sitting on the floor weighs about 70 pounds and she can add 10’s or 5’s on the outside to get what she wants. I have collars I made for the outside to hold them on. When you drop these they bounce just right.


She loves them and asked how she changes the weight and I told her right now they have 30 pounds of air in them and if she wants them heavy we can add more pounds of air. She said ok cool. I asked her if she believed that and she said no that was a stupid joke but she was being nice because I made her weights.


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## zannej (May 15, 2018)

Looks good, Bud! And that was very sweet of you to make the weights for your wife.


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## bud16415 (Apr 4, 2019)

Lots of new members in the last year giving the show me your workshop thread a bump.


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## thebuilder20 (Apr 5, 2019)

Looks good, will post my a little bit later.


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## bud16415 (Dec 4, 2020)

There are a lot of new members floating around It is time to bring out some old threads and see what they have to contribute.


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## DesertRider (Sep 20, 2021)

slownsteady said:


> With you guys showing impressive workshops, it's no wonder the rest of us would like to keep ours under wraps.





bud16415 said:


> Mine is far from impressive. My buddy built his he painted the walls a dark blue the lower 4’ and then white on the top and has a racing stripe around the middle. It looks really sharp. He did the checker board floor and the whole bit. When I put the plywood up (notice each piece is stamped REJECT) I was going to paint it and then I said what’s the point.
> 
> 
> I’m a chronic messy tools in piles person and used to spend more time looking than working. With this house I vowed to change my ways and so far its been working. I have a few totes and tool boxes I keep empty and when I need to do a remote job I try and take what I think I will need only. I have one box I keep a second set of common tools in I call my handy box. Lots of times I just grab that and go. You always forget something though.
> ...


l would rather see the smaller sized workshops, than the 100 X 100 footers... see how others have handled the limited space issue...


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## zannej (Sep 21, 2021)

These are photos while it's still a mess. I need to get the leaky roof fixed. Exterior wall to the north is falling apart on the outside. I need to patch it and paint it. The door frames and random doors in the middle are things I'm working on. Need to get them painted. My dad was very organized and loved to label things. He also loved to put together models. Old brown fridge was a gift from a late friend. Not plugged in anymore. Used to be for cold beverages (non-alcoholic). The metal food tray is from World War II. We found it near a crashed WWII plane in Guam. It had been lost but they had recently discovered it after a storm cleared some trees.


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## zannej (Sep 21, 2021)

Two more pics since you can only get 10 per post. Last one is near the entrance to the shop.


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