# New Workshop Build



## Black TDI Turbo

Note im reposting this in here aswell as in the projects sections as its more appropriate whilst im building my new work shop 

Hi everybody this is going to be a bit of a long winded thread as its going to take time to build both my new garage/workshop and then my new kit car. I have just moved into my first house with my girlfriend about 2 months ago and once decorating inside was done i could concentrate my efforts in my garden  The house we bought has a garage so thought id start my build using my old mx5 as its gone past repair due to rot. I am used to driving mx5's as i have now owned 5 of them and my last one is now my donor for my kit car. The kit i am going to be building is a MeV exocet. See here for more details on these.

http://www.mevowners.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=exocet

Here is my inspiration - 700kg 130BHP  and mx5's are so easy to turbo/supercharge.
I am using the car which i did a build thread on here before, its now past its best so i think this is the way to go.

From this









To this 









I have decided to sell all the parts off my donor first to raise funds for the build but because i was selling so much and making money i couldnt refuse buying my friends mx5 aswell as it is a 1.8 with torsen LSD, and much better condition suspension including rear brace bars. This now means i now have 2 part stripped mx5's on my drive much to the amusement of the girlfriend 

As i started stripping i soon realized that the existing garage is not suitable at all as its far too small. So i decided to stop the stripping and selling and make my new workshop ready for the build.

I thought i would show you all the build as i think it is part of my exocet build as without the garage i dont think i would build the kit. First off here are some pictures of the garden when we bought the house of my auntie and uncle. The garden was awesome and always very well looked after, but far to over the top for us.


















we first started by clearing out the garden and garage and shed to put our things in.


























As you can see much clearer and you can actually see the garden is a good size. I removed all the trees and started work on the 4 large ones in the bottom corner. Once all the trees were removed i started on the main structures.
The existing garage was about 10 foot wide by 16 foot long. This was okay but due to my job i also wanted somewhere to work. So i made a plan and stuck to it.
The plan was to remove the old brick garage and shed and build a 12 foot wide by 20 foot long wooden workshop  I got a company in who said that they would make me a new base for the grand total of £1500 including removing my old garage and shed. However this was too expensive for me, so out with the string, spade, sledge hammer and pick axe and away i went.


















removed old wall









started smashing up the old concrete slab at the bottom of the garden









































lines marked up 13 foot wide to support new workshop

















lets start digging 

























more digging









our dog buster keeping me in check 









now the trench is dug out i marked the depth of the foundations and then leveled with hardcore

























started too remove the old shed which was a fun job, reason being is the trench i am building needs a new wall to keep the new concrete slab in place. So in keeping with keeping the costs down i am removing them brick by brick and cleaning them up to reuse. I know i know its only £100 for 400 new bricks but this is free and also less rubble to remove, plus £100 is a full polybush kit for the new car.

from this 









to this 









to this

























Thats how far i have got so far, not been doing it for long mainly on a night but as im doing it on my own its hard work. Its my 25th birthday tomorrow and on the cards is a half 8 start mixing the conrete and laying the foundations for my wall. Im classing it as a birthday present to myself haha.
I have also organised my new workshop. I was going to get this one off ebay.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=160618134583&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

It works out £1500 including delivery but i have found a local company to me called Woodcraftuk who are going to price match it for £1500 and build it to my specifications. It is going to be as follows

12 foot wide
20 foot long
7 foot to the side walls
9 1/2 foot to the apex
no floor but bolted to my new base
3x2 framework
single side door
4 x 2 by 2 windows down the side
and 10 foot wide double doors on the front

i am going for 13mm shiplap cladding but im waiting for a price on 22mm loglap cladding, this is much much better, very strong and looks better imo.

Well i will keep you up to date on the build. Sorry for the lack of car pics but here is a few of my donor. Im planning on using 1.6 engine and hopefully either supercharged or turbo'd.

my 1.6 old car

















new 1.8 i bought from a friend









Thanks for looking and sorry for the huge starter thread  i'll try to keep it updated regularly and should have a few tomorrow. Cheers Craig.


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## badman1972

Nice going mate, lot of hard work but will be worth it in the end. Will keep an eye on your progress...............oh, and Happy Birthday :thumb:


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## prokopas

Nice progress so far.


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## slim_boy_fat

I love these kind of threads.

Will be watching progress........:thumb:


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## Deanoecosse

looking forward to seeing your build progress mate. I built an MX5 based Westfield over the last 2 years, so if you want some inspiration, have a wee look at my build thread http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=127332
The MX5 is a cracking base for a kit car and the Exocet should be a lot of fun. Good luck


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## Superspec

I built a Robin Hood Superspec in a 9' wide single garage with storage shelving down one side - brilliant fun. Weighed 730kg, 140bhp. Was quick but not a quick as I thought it would be! I reckon you'll be turbo charging before it's been on the road long.

Looking forward to this thread.

Good luck!!
Richard


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## SBerlyn

Looks fab, another MX5 fan here.

Happy Birthday for tomorrow, too - it's my 20th and I'll be sunbathing in one of the London parks with family and a picnic, enjoy the labouring 

S


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## liam99

Subscribe looking forward to seeing workshop/garage and kit car build and Happy birthday.


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## ryand

Great work so far!


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## Black TDI Turbo

Thanks for the comments guys, yeah was a good birthday mixing over 2 tonnes of cement and moving it 20 yards into my garden to lay foundations. Then cleaning over 100 old bricks ready for laying the wall tomorrow haha. Ill post up some pictures of todays work and of the wall tomorrow night when i get chance to upload the photos. 
Deanoecosse - i read your build start to finish as you were doing it, was great and made me want to build my kit car more and more


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## banditbarron

Nice build thread

Be AWARE your local quote is for a shiplap garage where as the eBay garage is Tongue and groove. There is NO comparison the T&G is far superior

Dave.


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## Black TDI Turbo

Thanks for the advice, the place who are making the workshop said i can choose between shiplap and t&g at no extra cost. The outside cladding is not set in stone yet as they are doing me a price on 19mm and 22mm log lap which is much much more superior to both shiplap and t&g. I will get the costs tomorrow so will keep you updated.

Today was a good day for progress, bearing in mind it is me doing the work (never done building work before) and my mate from work came to help teach me brick laying as he made his own brick garage a good few years ago, so it did take us a good few hours but with reusing the old bricks it does take a little longer as the bricks still have some motar on them even tho they have been cleaned but gives the wall more character i think.










































The wall is going to be 4 bricks high until the step in the foundation then 5 bricks at the end of the garden. I know it doesn't look much for a days work but hand mixing 4 x 25kg bags of builders sand with 2 x 25kg bags of cement and laying over 60 odd bricks was hard work especially when it was around 24degrees today. The first course of bricks is always going to take longer as this must be perfectly level as the rest of the wall will rely on this so if the first course is out then the whole wall will be. So we took our time and made sure its right first time. Now this part is done the rest of the wall will go up easily but we had to stop as we ran out of builders sand lol nevermind. We will be finishing it off on thursday night so once the wall is built i can start infilling to start making my level for the new base. Cheers for looking Craig.


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## brightspark

Don't think I would have used the old brick below ground level, but it's taking shape and looking good


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## Elliott19864

Looking good Craig, will be a nice workshop.


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## Black TDI Turbo

More progress last night and only a little tonight as its starting to get dark at 9pm now and i didn't managed to get started tonight til half 7. Just got one more course of bricks to do now then the walls at the required height. Once ive completed that im going to start taking the garage down and in filling the massive hole i now have  Ill try and get some pictures uploaded tomorrow. Cheers Craig.


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## Kev_mk3

did you have to comply with any building regs or get planning at all? great work and looks like ill have to do the same when i find a house


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## Black TDI Turbo

Ive checked on my local council website for the laws on building a shed and i meet all the criteria so should be fine. Its replacing an existing structure aswell so should be fine. Loads more done but just been slow hard work. Managed to get all the wall built and started leveling the garden out. Also started to infill the base and moved all the paving slabs. Need to order some hardcore to finish infilling and rent a waker plate to harden it down before i can call in a company to lay the concrete and smooth is as im not confident enough to do it myself. Garage has also been emptied now and started to remove internal rafters ready to start to demolish it this weekend aslong as i manage to finish off the infilling of most of the base before then. Its slow hard graft and im at work half 8 til half 5 and then straight in the garden til dark now. Shame the dark nights are closing in FAST...

Well here are some random pictures from recent progress.

























































And a quick before tonight









After tonight with lots of slabs to move

















Well im getting the, having to learn as i go along but enjoying it still which is the main thing. Will be a good sense of achievement once done aswell.


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## yetizone

Great thread - looking forward to watching the progress


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## buddy2shoes

Looking like a really interesting project going on here. Subscribed!


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## Black TDI Turbo

Well more progress last night and work wasnt busy today so took half a day today and half tomorrow so i can try and get ready for taking the garage down this weekend. Ive been and spoke to the place who are making my workshop and they've agreed to delay the build until im ready, which works out best for both of us as they are really busy at the moment so its a win win. Ive been moving all the broken rocks and concrete slabs into the founds ready to be smashed up for hardcore and then leveling the garden with all the extra soil i have. Come rain or shine i will complete this build so i can make a start on my kit car  just seems to be one thing after another in the garden so id prefer to have that all finished new fences etc and then make a slow start on my kit during the winter where i can be inside warm instead of out in the rain digging and splodging around in my wellies in the mud  oh how it feels to be a small child again 

Well here are a few pictures just to show you the progress.
























The field behind my house is starting to get overgrown with brambles and it grows through the metal fence, inbetween the gap/no mans land and then through my fence. So ive taken the fence down, fence posts out and laid the spare 3x2 paving slabs across the metal fence to stop growth through. Im then leveling out my garden and the section in between before putting up a new fence across the back.

Also while i was at the woodwork shop i took some pictures of the horse stables which they have built. This is the same materials which i have chosen for my workshop and the same colour staining also which i think looks great.

3x2 frame work throughout
19mm loglap cladding
T&G roof


















































Hope you like, Cheers Craig.


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## apmaman

Impressive!


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## getthewheelsinl

Keep up the good work - the hard graft will be worth it once it's finished!!:thumb:


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## North east Car Care

Cracking work so far Craig


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## Black TDI Turbo

Cheers for the comments guys keep moral up seems like never ending work but will be worth it in the end. Pretty good update today tho with lots done and some mega hard graft. Started at 9 with a help from my step dad to remove the old garage roof. There was 1 layer of corrugated metal coated in bitumen and one layer of newer square ridged metal, so instead of removing the old roof they had just put the new stuff on the top, which made the roof twice as heavy and also took twice as long to remove.

Ill start with fridays progress as i didnt manage to get anything uploaded. I was trying to get the muddy area all leveled off. I raised the level of the floor behind the shed wall up to the same as the back of the garage, no idea how much soil was shifted but was worth it. Made a small wall with the spare bricks i had in the garden. Just put them down so i can section off the garden and the wasted bit of land between my fence and the scout huts fence behind. I plan on putting up a new fence with new posts so cut the old ones down to make access easier.










































































hes buster again... think this time he was wondering what the hell all of today noise was about 









Well that was fridays job done and i was happy how it turned out. Mainly level but it will settle then will fully level it just needed to keep the garden semi tidy 

Right big job on todays agenda ....................... TAKE THE GARAGE DOWN.... Well the roof at least. Ill let the photos do the work.


















































Well thats it .... half 2 we stopped and i had a tidy and was left to my own devices. Lots of work done and i was happy at where i had got to, decided to cut the grass to keep the garden tidy but ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

My friend from work who helped to build my retaining wall popped round at 3 and had other ideas. Ill let the pictures show what happened.

From this









To this









To this

























































So with that little lot done we have started to in fill the base. As you can see there alot of in fill 
Only problem/concern i have is joining the new base to the cracked old one. Im starting to this how much extra it would take to smash up the old base and then just lay a whole new base the full length of the garden. Im getting a few builder in for costs on laying the new base. If i dont and i join the old to the new because the old base has sagged and cracked i think we will need another course of finishing half bricks on the wall. Oh the joys, thats why me and my friend from work are mechanics and not builders 

Well hope you like it, going to start smashing up the old bricks in the base for hardcore and leveling it and wait for the builder to see what they say about it. Cheers Craig.


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## Elliott19864

Looking great, Craig :thumb:


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## ghost_walker

i think in the long run you'd be better off laying your floor as one piece.

in my own garage it was extended before we bought the house. and the floor and cracked and sunk right across the join.

doesn't bother me as the garage isn't really wide enough for a modern car, but if it was it would really nark me off


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## Superspec

brightspark said:


> Don't think I would have used the old brick below ground level, but it's taking shape and looking good


Agreed, they don't look like engineering bricks, they will suck up water and will be susceptible to frost damage. If you leave them in I would put a damp proof membrane in before the wooden structure goes on.


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## Black TDI Turbo

Yeah there will be a damp proofing going into the base before the concrete and also on the base of the workshop before fitting. 
Ive been pretty busy lately repositioning the fence to keep the next door neighbor happy and smashing up more of the base, planning on having it all smashed up and the last wall and garage doors down this weekend come rain or shine so the builders can do the base next week or the following weekend. Once the base has been laid i need to contact the place so they can start building my workshop which will give the new base plenty of time to cure. Ill post some pictures when i can.


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## ant_s

Looks great!

Can really see how it's shaping up now, looks like it will be a really useable space with how wide it get's at the end of the garden.


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## 47p2

I wouldn't use the old bricks for the hardcore base, they will eventually crumble and breakdown causing problems in the base in later years.


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## Black TDI Turbo

Yeah ive been told that, tonight ive moved out all of the old bricks and started smashing up the old concrete base as this falls into little pieces. Here are some recent pictures.

decided to smash up the old garage base as it was cracked and not the best.

















seen in the picture above the other half of the garage roof which needed to be cut up and then ready to weigh in the metal to recoop some costs.
this made light work of the wooden beams









bit more progress made to the base


























then after speaking which my neighbor she wants to put trellis up with plants on, obviously i dont want plants growing up my new workshop so she suggested just reusing the old fence to cover the gap between the shed and the rest of her garden, so i took the old fence down and put a new post at the bottom and put the fence back up. Looks fine on her side but not bothered on my side as my new workshop will be there so makes no difference.


















well that was progress since last update, after speaking with the builder i started to clear some space on the base tonight and start leveling, removing all the old bricks and just leaving the smashed up pieces of concrete, starting to get there now so should be too long now, just waiting for the builder to give me a date when he can do it.


































should have the skip by friday so i can have a good weekend at it, plans to have everything taken down, wall and garage doors etc and all the base smashed up. 
Cheers for looking. Craig.


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## 47p2

For further information on concrete work have a browse through this website. Lots of information and there is a forum you can ask the experts. This was the site I used as a reference point for the work I did a couple of years ago, I then asked tradesmen for quotes and found that 90% of them were overpricing the job in hand and cutting corners to the point that I decided to the work myself.

The laying of a slab of concrete is a massive job in itself, I laid my floor in 3 separate slabs, (was told by several experts one slab would suffice) and it was back breaking work, the research and planning took several weeks as I had to get it right first time, removing and re-laying 35 tonnes of concrete was not an option and the expense also has to be taken into account.

I originally laid 20 tonnes of type 1 hardcore as my sub-base, it was left for almost 6 months to settle and running over it with the vehicles compacted to so much I had to buy another 16 tonnes to bring it up to the level










3 tonne of sharp sand was then laid on top of the type 1 to prevent the DPM from puncturing









DPM laid and floor sectioned off









Rebar fitted









First section poured and set, rebar fitted to side slabs









Once the floor completed it was allowed to dry for a further 6 months before hiring a grinder and removing the top soft layer. The finished product is an extremely hard surface with no dust.










Sorry for hijacking your thread but I feel it is vital you get the floor right and so many builders skimp on this area (especially if it's 'just a garage')
Do your own research so that you know exactly what your builders next stage will be, make sure he follows the way the job should be done and if there is anything you are unsure about do not be afraid to ask him questions. Be one step ahead of the game all the time and good luck with the build


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## Black TDI Turbo

Well update for the work i've been upto, filled the first skip straight away so had to order a second which is now full too, managed to get all the garage walls down, smashed up the rest of the garage base and dug out the pit and generally levelled the base ready for the builders. All of the large bricks have been removed and just left all the small smashed up pieces, they have then put sharp sand over the base to give a good level and damp proof layer. Here are some pics, still waiting now for the concrete to arrive so they can get it all laid 


















































































Concretes just being laid eventually as the mixer was an hour and a half late, but alls good now pictures to follow tonight.


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## [email protected]

Looking good bud


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## Black TDI Turbo

Filling the base and starting to Laser level and its starting to take shape now 


















Ive also phoned the company who is making my workshop and told them to start building, they are hoping to get it done for next saturday but they are busy so will more than likely be the following saturday. Wont be long and i can start to build my kit car 

Also bit of an update on the kit car front, ordered and payed for my supercharger which will be arriving end of this week plus got some other parts needed for the conversion too.


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## ryand

Coming along nicely, exciting project you have going!


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## 47p2

Looking much better now :thumb::thumb:


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## ant_s

Looking good mate. Got to keep an eye on this thread and other's like it as i'm planning on doing my own workshop/garage build when my house is all finished inside so need idea's lol.

How are you doing the inside? Keeping it fairly open, or installing cupboard's and bench's etc?


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## Black TDI Turbo

Well the base was completed today with no other hold ups, i left for work with the just finishing it. This was how it stood when i left waiting to be floated again.










And this was when i came home 

























Im happy with it  its just settling and drying out now, need to wait for the base to dry and then cut off the excess damp proof around the edges. So no real updates to post until the end of next weekend when hopefully the new workshop should be built, cant wait now so i can get started on my kit car build.

As for the inside i think i will be putting a workbench at the back with storage space, a bench vice and bench grinder. Will see how i go, to be honest once its built i will be putting one of the mx5's in the garage and finishing the rest of the garden, need to put a new fence all round and new double gates. Ill keep you updated tho


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## Elliott19864

Looks good Craig. Look forward to seeing the kit car build.


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## Ross08

Great stuff!


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## PaulN

Looking great.

Love these build threads... :thumb:


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## Black TDI Turbo

Took a few pictures tonight as its starting to dry out nicely, also roughly laid the old paving slabs at the bottom of the garden to cover the mud to stop our dog going on it and just generally tidy up now until the new workshop is built and i can start getting the new fence put up.










































Im hoping for my new workshop to be done next saturday but i will keep it updated on progress


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## Kev_mk3

cracking work as just caught up with the thread


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## malford

Great work and look forward to the next stage...


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## Black TDI Turbo

Just a little update should have posted this yesterday but didnt get time, anyways... as im always having to be messing around with something and i can go no further with either the garden or my donor cars ive decided to start making the parts for supercharging my mx5 

I bought my mini supercharger which i said before is an eaton m45, it doesnt have a built in bypass valve so you need to get the one fitted to a mini. This is needed for running at idle so the intake air can bypass around so the charger. also i got a 1.6 throttle body for duel set-up for idle issues. I spend a couple of hours making some blanking plates for the charger and throttle body, also made a start on the inlet plate and outlet plates. you can buy these but i decided to give it a go and make them instead, they are in the rough mock up stages at the moment so need lots of adjustments and finishing but ill get there. Here are a few pictures of the work so far.

Throttle body with blanking plate (i got the throttle body plate and the silver blanking plate off a member of mx5nutz and made the others)


































i am removing the power steering on the car so thinking of utilising its brackets etc to make the tensioner, i also have a tensioner off a vauxhall mavaro van which was changed at my work, i seen it has a good idea as its adjustable with a 6mm bolt to create the tension and has a wide range of movement (see pics) also comes attached to a solid metal plate which might make securing easier but will need to check on the engine, so its just there as a maybe for the time being


































mini bypass valve,


















and super charger and plates, the outlet plate i used 1mm thick mild steel sheet, cut out 3 templates and clamped them together, then i seem welded them together and cleaned up alittle with the grinder, not pretty (yet) but functional and saved me the £32.50 that demon tweeks sell them for, as mine was free. the inlet pipe was just a trial to see ideas of how i could make one, to be honest its not the best so will end up remaking it.


















































the second blanking plate is for the PTO used for the water pump on a mini engine so not needed and can be blanked.

Ill add this on the same post as i started making the outlet tonight, ive removed the unneeded mount and started fabricating the outlet, got some 57mm pipe on order so should be able to get the outlet finished tomorrow. Heres a few pictures


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## Martin_HDI

Loving the thread I'm so jealous of your garage build


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## rgDetail

Lovely work fella, work on the blower looks good too :thumb:

Rob


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## Black TDI Turbo

More progress made on my supercharger outlet pipe but also had a bit of a mishap with the charger, some swarf go into the rotors causing it to lock up (this is what i found later on that caused it) so i stripped it down to inspect. Checked the 2 needle roller bearings which were ok as was the front pulley bearing, all seals are ok too and no contaminates in the oil which was good. So a good clean and rebuild and it feels much much better now, turns freely and no scraping noises, part problem was the guy who i bought it off had it stood around for ages with the ports open so suppose it needed a once over anyways  

Ill post some pictures up of the completed supercharger outlet later once ive uploaded them onto my laptop. 
I managed to get the supercharger bypass valve fitted tonight making the hole in the plate on the end, will be easier to describe with pictures.

On a good note spoken to the company who is building my workshop and dates booked for next friday afternoon to come and fit it  cant wait to get a start on the kit car now.


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## Black TDI Turbo

Well here are the pictures, ill start with the supercharger strip down and inspection


































once i was happy with that yesterday i started on the outlet again tonight, managed to get the by-pass valve attached and all full sealed. I know it looks pretty poor now but with a smoothing of filler on this and all the parts i make i will then get them painted up to give a good finish 










































pipe all welded up so i cut out the bottom of the flat mounting plate with a jigsaw and used a die grinder with stone wheel attachment to clean it up along with a grinder.

next moved onto fitting the all important by-pass valve










open

















closed

















mounted to the charger

























now that the outlet is sorted i can make a start on the inlet now, this is however going to be a little more difficult as i have no way of mandrel bending the pipe unless i buy one or find a company local to me to do it. But ill keep it updated as i go, cheers for looking.


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## PaulN

Maybe you should do a seperate thread for the car bits?

I was all ready for more workshop pics lol


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## PTAV

me too


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## Black TDI Turbo

Yeah sorry about that ive now started a build thread of my kit car so heres the link, ill update the workshop build next friday when they are coming to build it.

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?p=3003584#post3003584

Cheers Craig.


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## Black TDI Turbo

Update time, i am waiting now for the company to arrive to build my new workshop, they say it should only take a few hours to build so ill try and take as many photos as possible during assembly, looking forward to having a relax now, nevermind building my kit car


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## Black TDI Turbo

Its arrived


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## bazves

Black TDI Turbo said:


> Its arrived


Pics or it didnt happen ! :thumb:


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## Black TDI Turbo

Heres some pictures as of half hour ago, had a few issues squaring it up to get the roof on but all sorted now, so a little delayed but better than never 


































































there still on now, roof getting secured with trusses in and looking good 

Ill update soon


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## slim_boy_fat

Looking good!! :thumb:


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## bazves

Excellent man cave!


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## JB052

Are you going to insulate it?


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## Black TDI Turbo

Hi heres the final pictures for you, as for the inside im concentrating on finishing the garden then will start in there, ive been looking at insulating it then plylining the walls but leaving the rafters open for storage space.










































































Cheers Craig.


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## [email protected]

Look good wish i had the space to do somthing like this


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## PaulN

Cracking!!! :argie:

It looks a nice job there


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## paranoid73

Should the side panels not over hang the base to stop water creeping under?


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## Bowden769

paranoid73 said:


> Should the side panels not over hang the base to stop water creeping under?


I would have said so


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## ryand

Awesome.


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## ben-150

Looks good man


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## Black TDI Turbo

paranoid73 said:


> Should the side panels not over hang the base to stop water creeping under?


Yes at the minute the water does seep into the inside as i found out with the torrential down pour we had about half hour after the workshop was built but i knew i still had all the sealing and drainage left to do, however ive been away this weekend so haven't had chance to buy the guttering yet. The only place the water actually comes in side where the frame isnt bolted to the floor on the left side, also there is currently no run off for the base to allow the water to run away so it builds up and flows in.

I plan on unbolting the whole frame and putting damp proof down between the concrete and wood, ill then put sealer around the outside and inside. Then im going to bolt the base down with 2 bolts per frame section to make a good seal as at the moment it is only bolted in the four corners.
I think a new fence should also stop the wind driven rain which the sides get at the minute so still got some sorting out to do. Once i know its fully dry im going to put a heater inside to dry out the moisture and the floor and then use concrete sealer and paint it light grey.


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## ant_s

Black TDI Turbo said:


> Yes at the minute the water does seep into the inside as i found out with the torrential down pour we had about half hour after the workshop was built but i knew i still had all the sealing and drainage left to do, however ive been away this weekend so haven't had chance to buy the guttering yet. The only place the water actually comes in side where the frame isnt bolted to the floor on the left side, also there is currently no run off for the base to allow the water to run away so it builds up and flows in.
> 
> I plan on unbolting the whole frame and putting damp proof down between the concrete and wood, ill then put sealer around the outside and inside. Then im going to bolt the base down with 2 bolts per frame section to make a good seal as at the moment it is only bolted in the four corners.
> I think a new fence should also stop the wind driven rain which the sides get at the minute so still got some sorting out to do. Once i know its fully dry im going to put a heater inside to dry out the moisture and the floor and then use concrete sealer and paint it light grey.


Plans, plans and plans that sounds good mate, looks a really useful size, shouldn't have problem's building a kit car in there i'd guess


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## Audiquattro

It look amazing.....And a lovely place where to work in peace over a car also..
I hope in my future home to realize something like this...
Really Nice ! congrats mate......


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## littlejack

awesome....


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## recarouk

can i just say that looks fantastic fella. really good to see someone getting stuck into the hard graft aswell, and to say you have no previous building experience i think you've made a cracking job of what youve done.


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## Black TDI Turbo

Cheers for the comments, ill post up as i progress. Cheers Craig.


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## Elliott19864

Looks spot on Craig, very useful size.


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## 20vKarlos

this is a great build!!!

keep this up my firend!!


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## Bowden769

where did u get the workshop from buddy ?/


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## tomelmer

Love threads like this really good build there :thumb:


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## borinous

great work there matey


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## MattFletcher

were was that from and how much, looks great!!!


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## Owensy

Brilliant mate!!! :thumb:


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## Black TDI Turbo

I got the workshop custom made by a company in hartlepool, there called www.woodcraft.co.uk, i found a workshop the same on ebay for £1500 and they price matched it after some haggling, then when deciding on the type of wood for the cladding there was an extra cost for the log lap, it cost me £1650 but when they were here the owner said that they had totally underpriced the job and if anyone i knew wanted one making it would be £2000, but thats supplied, delivered and erected so not too bad, base in total cost me £1000 so with the addition of new latches and locks that ive fitted and bolting each panel every foot all way round and some clear silicone, also buying guttering for both sides tomorrow which is £100 i think all bits and bobs ill be all done for £3000 which im more than pleased with as my quotes for a smaller base than i have built were coming in at around £1500 on its own. Need to buy fence panels and posts yet but now need to wait til pay day at the end of the month.


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## vfr

Should the website not be this?


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## Black TDI Turbo

ah yes sorry missed the uk parts off


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## Darlofan

It was all going well until you mentioned Hartlepool


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## vfr

This looks a decent workspace. My only concern would be that after them coming and installing it, you then have to go around and unbolt, reseal and add extra bolts to make it water-tight. Should it not have been sealed as part of the installation?

The kit car that you're building looks fun!!


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## Black TDI Turbo

due to the cost this i what i asked for to be honest, on there part they did a great job in doing what i asked for at a very very reasonable price as ive hunted around and couldnt find anything of the same size and materials for anywhere near the price i paid, the ones i seen were well over £3000 so im happy.



vfr said:


> This looks a decent workspace. My only concern would be that after them coming and installing it, you then have to go around and unbolt, reseal and add extra bolts to make it water-tight. Should it not have been sealed as part of the installation?
> 
> The kit car that you're building looks fun!!


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## Black TDI Turbo

Hi all, just a little update for the workshop build, i had a water leak problem on the side next to the wall but i think i've cured the problem now with some rolls of flashing and silicone sealer, however now i have a damn leak on the back and other side walls now,  luckly this is only very minor that can easily be delt with i may even use the same idea with the sealant and flashing on all sides. Ive had a week off this week also so decided to get the fencing done to give the garden some privacy again, also stop the bloody wind howling through.

I got the fence delivered saturday afternoon so made a start painting them. I bought some cuprinol sprayable as i borrowed my mams boyfriends earlex hv 3900 paint spray system and it was an absolute doddle, so quick and easy, no paint wasted and easy to clean the gun afterwards. I used one and a half tubs to paint 8 panels on both sides and 8 posts, Only downside is that the paint is £15 a 5 Litre tub but worth it in time saved.

I also went and bought some bags of postcrete, now this is a little expensive but my god is it worth it. Its the first time ive jused the stuff and it works great, wickes is by far cheaper than BnQ as if you buy over 5 bags at wickes the prices drops from nearly £6 a bag to £3.71. I bought 8 bags to set my fence posts and i would recomend it to anyone. It was easy as,

dig hole,
put in post and level,
pour in water,
pour in bag of postcrete,
stir with big stick,
recheck level and hold for a minute or so,
go dig next hole and by the time thats done its set rock soild.
It really is great stuff, suppose you could mix your own with a setting agent in it but just for sheer ease of use this works great.

I do advise if putting a 6 foot fence up a helping hand could be handy as i did this on my own so when fitting the fence panels at the bottom where the soil is i raised the panels up so the moisture isnt draw into the bottoms of the panels, however raising the panel, lining it up, setting with spirit level, drilling pilot holes, then screwing the fence together did prove to be fun at times especially doing it on a windy day lol but i managed. I still need some finished pictures of the side next to the garage where i have angled some fence panel to cover the gap down the side on the garage and also of the bottom of the garden as it is all painted now. I did it on monday and finished off on tuesday as i was waiting for one more panel to arrive.


























































































Ill get some finished pictures tomorrow and put them up, just need to now sand and paint the old garage doors and hang them as a set of double gates on the side of the house to full enclose the garden. That should be a real fun job


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## ant_s

Any more updates on this


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## Black TDI Turbo

Hi all panels have been painted just not yet managed to get any pictures up, im in the middle of concrete sealing the floor ready for painting. Ill take some pictures today and get them posted up tonight. As for the garden thats all that will be done until next year now. So should be starting the strip down of the donor car ready to build my kit car.


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## Black TDI Turbo

Hi guys just a quick update, here's some of the workshop/garden as it stands now, ive concrete sealed the floor outside the workshop to stop any moisture penatration which has work well and siliconed all stopping all water leaks i had. Ive not had chance to start work on the inside due to it now being dark when i get home from work and i need electrics in there soon as. Ive finished all the fencing just need to put the posts up and hang the double gates and get them painted. And as far as the outside goes that will be it this winter until i deck the bottom next year. 
Im getting a friend in to do the electrics so will be ran from the fuse box in the house to the workshop, then its own board inside and 2 sets of double strip lights, and a few double sockets put in. Also i want a security light fitting to the top of the front apex with motion sensor. 
Well ill update as i can but progress is now slow as im stuck on working in the dark and also waiting for other people now, here are some pictures from tonight.










































hope you all like it as im very pleased with it. Hopefully this weekend i can get the floor painted inside ready to move one of the donor cars in


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## IanJW

Hiya, have just been reading your thread, doin a great job! Wondering what floor paint you are going to use, I usually specify Watco paints for domestic projects (architect by trade) as they are reasonably priced, good quality and have some pretty colours!
http://www.watco.co.uk/watco-concrete-floor-paint.html


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## Russ and his BM

Hmmmm, this rather put me off, though:

This floor paint is not recommended for areas where cars may stand for long periods.


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## IanJW

Sorry, should have been clearer, follow the Toughcoat or Epoxy Gloss Coat links, we used the Epoxy in a motorcycle workshop and it stood up pretty well.


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## sfstu

looking good...:thumb:
hows about a water butt for under that drainpipe..? with a filter tis good enough for rinsing car off..?
rgds stu


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## Black TDI Turbo

Just a quick update on my build, ive got my floor sealed and painted and it been drying for a week now, still waiting on a price for the electrics to be fitted. I used solent industrial floor paint which i got from cromwell tools. Was on offer at £35.99 instead of £50.00 but i know someone who got me discount so managed to get 2 tins for £35. I used 1 full tin on the first coat as it was fresh concrete so soaked it up quite quickly and then 3/4 of a tin on the second coat. Im pleased with it and it seems pretty durable. Its been curing for a few days so the longer i leave it without anything on it the better. Heres some pictures.


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## ant_s

Looks good, and love the fact your using the roof rafter's already lol.


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## Black TDI Turbo

Right i got my quote for the electrics, not too bad but i dont really know how much it should be, im getting it cheaper as im paying cash so its not going through the books in his company as hes doing it as a favour to my mams partner as its his good friend, plus he owns the company and he has a very very good reputation for quality work so hes not known to be the cheapest around but his work is guaranteed to be of a very high standard. 

The work that will be done is as follows, 

wire from house fuse box to RCD box inside the house,

SWA ran out and along the house,

chase through the concrete path then recovered with concrete,

wire ran down the side wall and into the garge, for this he said he will drill straight through the brick and then drill downwards through the garage floor to meet both the holes, then he will run the wire through so it looks neater from the outside and he said less chance of knocking the cable,

a fuse box inside the garage,

light switch,

3 double plug sockets, 1 at the front next to the fuse box and light switch and two on the back wall

then two large single strip lights,

The price includes all the parts and clips, wiring, lights etc, and if i want 2 more light, fitting, its the price of the lights plus half hours labour. Also if i need to add anything later (fridge, freezer, washing machine etc...) he said he is running it as a ring main so i can add more to it without any problems.

So i would think for 4 single lights it will be around £400, or i can use use single strip lights on a 3 pin plug socket and add them myself. 

So id just like to ask your opinions of this, is it good, bad, expensive? This is my first house so all of this is new to me ive near done house electrics before so dont know where to start, car electrics are alot safer 

Cheers for any input


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## SteveyG

Black TDI Turbo said:


> wire from house fuse box to RCD box inside the house,


RCD should be in the shed really. The SWA needs no RCD protection, and if the RCD trips you have no lights. Regulation 314.1


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## isctony

quick question, have you thought about insulating the shed? foam insulation between the wooden uprights and then clad in sheets of wood (plywood?), screwed to the uprights. My thoughts on this are that obviously it would be warmer in winter but it will also help to protect your detailing products from the harsh cold weather outside...


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## F1 CJE UK

Looks good, nsulating sounds a good idea


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## Black TDI Turbo

Hey guys yeah thought about it but that will have to come later once funds allow, ive been on fitting a wardrobe and workbench and generally tidying up as im waiting on the electrician to come in when he is free. Ill try and get some pictures uploaded as soon as i get chance.


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## Black TDI Turbo

Little update on the build, before the electrician comes to do his work i thought it would be best to sort of the workbench and units in the garage so he can run the wiring in to where i want it. I have been searching for some used kitchen units but to no avail so decided to build my own for now. I got a wardrobe from my girlfriends mams that was going to be thrown out so thought i would use that for storage and ive made a bench, I still need to make some doors and also put some more storage shelves up. Its much tidier in there now tho and once the electrics are in im moving one of my mx5's in to start strip down over winter.


















































































As you can see i still need to board out the roof space and use that as the main storage space and need to sort out my tools and maybe put up a tool board on the back wall but its a start  hopefully will be able to get lots more done once i have electric as im stuck to a few hours on weekends now while we still have light.


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## polt

looks good mate


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## Black TDI Turbo

Finally moved one of my 5's into the garage tonight,  here some pics just to show the space avaliable, sorry for the poor quality waiting on the electrician to bring me light  ill take some better ones this weekend.

I was actually very shocked at the space, I didn't realise it was that big inside until i finally got my car in, haha no wonder the mrs was never impressed nevermind ey


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## Black TDI Turbo

Hi guys today seen me spending another small fortune in 4 x 4x4x2.4m fence posts, met posts for concrete, rawlbolts, frame fixings, 16" gate brackets and a few drill bits so that i can get my double gates put up. Sick of having a wheely bin to stop my dog getting out, i'm going to do it tomorrow hopefully so ill make an early start i think need to get a friend over to help with holding the gates when i fit them then once all that is do they need to have the paint stripped off and then repainted, this isn't my main concern and if i had more time (better weather and light nights) i would have done this first. Ill try and get pictures as i go tomorrow


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## ant_s

Coming along great now, making me want to build mine now but have to wait til my house is done!  lol, how's that for priorities?! lol

Does look a very good size for working inside, the size i'd want really, so will remember when I build mine.

Regarding insulation, it may be best using something like Kingspan, it's more expensive but don't have to worry so much about damp getting in there then.


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## Black TDI Turbo

Well i spent today fitting my gates, i had help today from my step brother as the gates were very heavy when joined together. All went well took from 10 til 3 but never fitted gates before so bit new  all sorted tho. Just need to panel the posts and get it rubbed down and painted. Well here goes


































































































































I have reused the old garage doors which are only about 5-6 years old, there in good condition so just need a rub down and repaint.

On another note spoke to the electrician who is doing the garage and he said he should be able to do it 15th of December.


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## [email protected]

any update chap? Enjoying reading this...


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## Black TDI Turbo

Hi sorry for the lack of updates recently, ill try and got some pictures uploaded but the electrician has now been in and i've got lights now , ended up getting 4 single 5 foot strip lights but i can put more in if needed. Ive also braced the roof at the front to fit my kick boxing bag for training.


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## Elliott19864

Looking great craig, plenty space.


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## Kev_mk3

glad i caught up with this fantastic work


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## Black TDI Turbo

Hey guys  finally an update on my garage build, i paneled the gate posts which makes them look nicer just need to rub them down and get it all painted still.










































like i say just need to clean them up and get them all painted and they will be sorted, drilled the floor aswell and fitted drop bolts for security and to stop the gates moving in the strong winds.


























































had a bit of a tidy up and put tools in the cupboard in draws all labelled up so i know where things are


































I also got a kick boxing bag for christmas so needed to hang that, had a few options but i knew i needed to brace the roof, ended up using a 3x3 fence post with 14mm threaded bolt and a heavy duty spring to hang it, idea being the spring takes most of the force and stop shaking my garage to bits 










































And all done  and works a treat started stripping down my green mx5 aswell, removed everything off the body that's metal and has been weighed in with a car i had from a part ex so just ready to remove the body now  things are now starting to come along. I still need to fit a security light up on the outside of the garage.


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## w00044

How did you get on with sealing the garage to the base so no water comes in?


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## Black TDI Turbo

All sorted now thanks  i sealed inside and out with the silicone and the drainage really helped. The main issue was the surrounding concrete was drawing in all the moisture when it was raining. As the concrete got saturated with water the water seeped through the concrete and made the floor inside the concrete damp and thus look like it was leaking badly. I used thomsons water seal on all of the outside concrete and now the water cannot go into the floor and just sits in puddles or runs away. Inside the garage i painted it with industrial grade floor paint from cromwell tools, was supposed to be £49 for a 5ltr tub but managed to get 2 for £35 as i know someone in there and was old stock so they just wanted rid. After 2 coats on the floor it was all fine. no leaks no damp patches, no flaking floor paint all is good


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## brinks

I've only just seen this build, excellent work. I'm very jealous as I don't have any garage at all.


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## ant_s

Looking great now, could I ask a favour and ask how wide the Tarmac at the side of your house is? It's just at my house, I'm going to end up with a small drive on the side and wondering how useful it wil be, but not sure if it is the same size, or less than yours.


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## Black TDI Turbo

I think its 8.5 foot but id have to check tomorrow, its easily wide enough to get me leon down and be able to open the door to get out, as for working down there it would be tight but doable


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## ant_s

Thanks, when I go up the house tomorrow I'll measure up and see, I think it's around 8ft.

It's just I'm planning on making it a car port, and will only be used to keep a car covered overnight, because in the garden I'm building a big workshop, probably similar size to yours


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## jeff t

Hi, been reading your thread with interest, I have a wooden garage and been storing my volvo for 20 years .I wrote a thread for the volvo owners club that might be of interest to you.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I have a 460 which goes off the road for 6 months over the winter, and agree that the tyres should not be going flat put mine up to about 40psi and they stay like that all winter. Push mine back and forwards every week though.I plug mine into a battery conditioner that keeps it spot on.
Carcoon storage systems do a great spray tin of protectant for spraying on any metal or ally, use it on my brake discs and all you do is drive the car to get it off.Over the winter every 2 to 3 weeks or so if it is a fine day I will drive car out off garage and let it warm up to temp, cool back down and put back away.
The worst thing for a car is standing on a concrete floor because when it is realy cold outside(frosty, snow) warm air gets trapped under the car and cold air from the floor cause condensation on the underside of the car.
Alot of people say mine does not till the next time its realy cold and they have a look and see it does.Covered my floor with viscreen and then laid 3/4 marine ply on top and its been spot on.
Drafty garages are also better than a sealed up one as it keeps air moving which helps stop damp, air bricks or vents around the bottom are great but also you need them at roof level as well. 
Won the volvo owners club northern show at wetherby this year with my 460 so a lot off these things must be working well, had the car 20 years and been garaged all the time.
Cheers Jeff.


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## jeff t




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## jeff t

Store my trailer tent in the garage aswell


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## Black TDI Turbo

Yeah i have vents at the top on either ends, good work on the volvo looks very clean. Dont think i could deal with the wind howling through those floor vents tho


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## Black TDI Turbo

Just measured it for you there, its 9ft wide down the side of my house so might be a bit of a squeeze 8ft but still worth doing. My first plan was to build a car port off the side but it wasnt wide enough to work on car to repair them so i decided best just using the funds to build the garage.



ant_s said:


> Thanks, when I go up the house tomorrow I'll measure up and see, I think it's around 8ft.
> 
> It's just I'm planning on making it a car port, and will only be used to keep a car covered overnight, because in the garden I'm building a big workshop, probably similar size to yours


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## ant_s

Thanks, I've got a feeling mine is going to be waaaay to narrow then, but we'll see.


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## Black TDI Turbo

Added a security light to the garage at the weekend which also helps for working outside.


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## slobodank

very nice place, i like it...


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## ffrs1444

Good work top thread


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## craigblues

Pictures all hidden due too your too popular.


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## Domel

jeff t said:


> Store my trailer tent in the garage aswell


this is awesome !


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