garage hacks

[Anonymouse]

You said you are putting in a workbench anyway so install an easy pitch stairway running up the same wall the work bench is on.
One end will be a little cramped by the stair rise but if it's long enough that shouldn't really be a problem - use it for cabinet drawer storage.

You can REALLY help yourself out by having the trusses used for the roof built with beefed up bottom chords (2x6 or even 2x8) that when covered with 3/4" REAL plywood (not OCB oxboard composite) will be as sturdy as an honest-to-goodness floor & capable of carrying an immense amount of stored material.
Try to use a truss design that allows for large open spaces, not those "W" strut trusses that drop a mid-chord right into your face every 4'.
By using a heavy bottom chord an interior gambrel design is greatly facilitated while keeping a normal-looking gable roof outside - if that's your preference.
For true stability you should consider a support beam and at least 1 column underneath to support the longer spans of a deep 3-car garage anyway.

The point is, consult and design AHEAD, to maximize overhead storage and avoid some shaky pull-down ladder system.
Using oversized bottom chord members isn't REALLY very much more expensive and the design options really open up for the few extra bux invested.
On the plus side there are some snazzy fascia, soffit, & gutter design choices involved with a deeper bottom chord too.

Yer gunna spend THOU$AND$ on a new garage and then scrimp on a couple hundred bux worth of lumber for the roof trusses and cheat yerself out of an entire floor above the garage?
Come on man...do yerself right.
It's way cheaper to add a couple feet of width or length from the jump than to figure you need a couple of extra feet of space and don't have it, then try to build creative solutions (usually expensive as heck) to configure enough side space and work area that won't ding your vehicles.

(An extra foot of height overall for the walls & a taller 9' garage door would come in handy for pulling the boat in too.)

[clawman]

Slatwall rather than pegboard. I painted mine the same color as the walls and threw on some left over paint flakes from the floor enamel.

Key point- install the slatwall before sheetrocking. This way the entire wall is flush.

[Lakefront]

Originally Posted by brian1785

I'm going to have the luxury of a new, 3 car, deep garage next year and want to be able to make sure it has plenty of storage all around the sides for my gear, plus a workbench. We won't have a basement which we traditionally have had for as long as I can remember. We are downsizing CONSIDERABLY before moving in, but still "have stuff" that needs storing. Does anyone have websites/plans/ideas where I can start looking for my needs? I'm not a DIY guy but can cut/nail/screw stuff together at an average level. I've done some searching (YouTube mostly), just was hoping for some different ideas. Thanks in advance.
Brian

I am a big fan of the Gladiator system. They have a very nice 8’ work bench, tool box cabinets on casters that fit under workbench, GearWall Tracks that we just installed. Just Google it to see what all they have.

[Yellowfin123]

Originally Posted by brian1785

I'm going to have the luxury of a new, 3 car, deep garage next year and want to be able to make sure it has plenty of storage all around the sides for my gear, plus a workbench. We won't have a basement which we traditionally have had for as long as I can remember. We are downsizing CONSIDERABLY before moving in, but still "have stuff" that needs storing. Does anyone have websites/plans/ideas where I can start looking for my needs? I'm not a DIY guy but can cut/nail/screw stuff together at an average level. I've done some searching (YouTube mostly), just was hoping for some different ideas. Thanks in advance.
Brian

wondering what your version of "deep" is? my 3 car is 32 wide x 24 deep and #$@ sure not deep enough, not sure if your building but if you are change the plan a little cuz there aint a garage big enough

[brian1785]

Originally Posted by Anonymouse

You said you are putting in a workbench anyway so install an easy pitch stairway running up the same wall the work bench is on.
One end will be a little cramped by the stair rise but if it's long enough that shouldn't really be a problem - use it for cabinet drawer storage.

You can REALLY help yourself out by having the trusses used for the roof built with beefed up bottom chords (2x6 or even 2x8) that when covered with 3/4" REAL plywood (not OCB oxboard composite) will be as sturdy as an honest-to-goodness floor & capable of carrying an immense amount of stored material.
Try to use a truss design that allows for large open spaces, not those "W" strut trusses that drop a mid-chord right into your face every 4'.
By using a heavy bottom chord an interior gambrel design is greatly facilitated while keeping a normal-looking gable roof outside - if that's your preference.
For true stability you should consider a support beam and at least 1 column underneath to support the longer spans of a deep 3-car garage anyway.

The point is, consult and design AHEAD, to maximize overhead storage and avoid some shaky pull-down ladder system.
Using oversized bottom chord members isn't REALLY very much more expensive and the design options really open up for the few extra bux invested.
On the plus side there are some snazzy fascia, soffit, & gutter design choices involved with a deeper bottom chord too.

Yer gunna spend THOU$AND$ on a new garage and then scrimp on a couple hundred bux worth of lumber for the roof trusses and cheat yerself out of an entire floor above the garage?
Come on man...do yerself right.
It's way cheaper to add a couple feet of width or length from the jump than to figure you need a couple of extra feet of space and don't have it, then try to build creative solutions (usually expensive as heck) to configure enough side space and work area that won't ding your vehicles.

(An extra foot of height overall for the walls & a taller 9' garage door would come in handy for pulling the boat in too.)

Lots of great information here. Thanks Anonymous!

[brian1785]

Originally Posted by Yellowfin123

wondering what your version of "deep" is? my 3 car is 32 wide x 24 deep and #$@ sure not deep enough, not sure if your building but if you are change the plan a little cuz there aint a garage big enough

Good point Yellowfin. I'm going to be able to keep my 19' Yarcraft hooked up to my Tundra Crewmax when I back in and have space left over. It'll be about 50' deep and about 40' wide. To some that may not be deep/wide but to me that'll be a ton bigger than what I've always had. You're right, there's NEVER enough space when it comes to a garage!

[Yellowfin123]

must be a detached garage 50 x 40 huge for an attached lol . im still brewing over not making garage bigger when i built this house and am gonna sell build another or add another detached for boat , mowers, junk etc. ive got alaskan 2000 with long tandem trailor and the boat motor has to stick into the laundry room about bout 10 inches and cant shut the door and told the wife "sorry baby" but thats the way its gonna be no way boat goin outside

[brian1785]

Originally Posted by Yellowfin123

must be a detached garage 50 x 40 huge for an attached lol . im still brewing over not making garage bigger when i built this house and am gonna sell build another or add another detached for boat , mowers, junk etc. ive got alaskan 2000 with long tandem trailor and the boat motor has to stick into the laundry room about bout 10 inches and cant shut the door and told the wife "sorry baby" but thats the way its gonna be no way boat goin outside

Nope, that sucker is attached to the house. It's the only part of the house I requested "a say" in. Everything else she has total design control over. Pretty good compromise I think! Thanks!

[Yellowfin123]

wow 50 x 40 attached your gonna be set! in hot springs everything gonna be built on slab prolly like where im from originally in socal and built here in no missouri, no basement means not much storage . when i built i was rushing around thinking about everything accept the garage. the 2nd mistake i made was i did the standard 7 foot tall doors and that was a big mistake cuz i had the room to move the header up to have 8 foot tall doors, with todays suv's and trucks you need the height to get in! that something to check out. funny how garage's keep getting bigger cuz americans just have more crap now days the new homes going up nowdays have 4 car garages unlike my parents house built in 1950 with a little single car garage

[Yellowfin123]

oh i forgot, whats the trend around here is instead of drywalling the walls and ceilings and paint to make as pretty as your living room people are putting in osb plywood then paint, now you can throw in nails and screws anywhere to hang stuff and no more car door dents in drywall and can bang around more , blow out cobb webs with hose, etc. any decent carpenter can make the seems butt tight im for sure gonna do that on next house