# Sorting out my Garage



## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

I moved into a new build house last year. If I am honest I picked the garage first and the house came with it (don't tell my wife! )

I was very firm that the garage was not a place for 'storage' as so many folk seem to do. It was my garage and was for man stuff. So far my wife has mostly abided by this, apart from one or two boxes of stuff.

I have already had a project car in here (see here) which I completed earlier this month. I promised myself though that before I contemplate another one I would sort out the garage and make it a more useful workshop. Apart from the obvious space issues due to the current lack of storage the dust from the floor and walls make keeping any cars clean inside the garage a difficult task. The end up with a fine dust on them after only one night in the garage.

So onto my plan. I wish to do the following in my little spare time over the next couple of months:


Paint walls
Repair cracks in floor
Level Floor
Paint Floor (or possibly use plastic tiles)
Fit a ceiling and insulate roof area
Build shelving
Build a workbench

Lots to do and I have never done most of this before so I will be learning as I go.


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## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

So I started today by moving some things around in the garage to create a clean wall to start painting. I will unfortunately have to move things about as I don't have anywhere else to put the stuff. Not sure what I will do when it comes to doing the floor 

Onto the pics of todays work.


*Messy Garage*




*Very little storage. Plus some crap in boxes still*






*Painting stuff*


*Got £40 off this paint from Homebase. Screwfix had it for £24.99 and Homebase £45.99 for 10 litres. Homebase had a price match though. I was very pleased. Saved me a trip into town to go to Screwfix*


*Bare walls*


*Dust sheet down*


*First coat going on.*


*Into the corner*


*More done.*


*That's as much as I can do without moving more crap. I will do a second coat here first then move things about.*

Paint went on pretty well. Started off with roller then poked at the holes and touched up the mortar with the brush. We'll see how it looks when it dries. Already brightened up the garage though


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## Mani (Mar 14, 2010)

Nice sized garage.

Cant wait to see what it looks like after.


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## mattsbmw (Jul 20, 2008)

you are likely to need 3 coats to get an even finish. As for doing the floor, you will have to do half let that go off, move stuff and do other half.


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## Bartl (Apr 3, 2013)

Can't wait to see the finished result


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## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

mattsbmw said:


> you are likely to need 3 coats to get an even finish. As for doing the floor, you will have to do half let that go off, move stuff and do other half.


It's the screed I am worried about. From what I have read a self levelling compound goes off in 2-3 hrs but I am not sure if I would be able to put stuff straight on it (seems unlikely to me). Painting the floor can be done in stages as you say but I am not so sure about the screed.


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## mattsbmw (Jul 20, 2008)

gingerscotsman said:


> It's the screed I am worried about. From what I have read a self levelling compound goes off in 2-3 hrs but I am not sure if I would be able to put stuff straight on it (seems unlikely to me). Painting the floor can be done in stages as you say but I am not so sure about the screed.


didnt realise you were screeding it as well, yes that will need time to go off, what about one of those self storage units? get the stuff totally out the way leaving time for the screed to go off.


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## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

That's a good idea. I would not need it for long.

I did not want to screed, but the builders have not made a very even surface. Skim marks, gouges and a big crack. I'd prefer a nicer surface I think.


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## alan h M (Aug 1, 2013)

nice garage. 
i would hire a sprayer to paint the wall. it would be a lot faster and would get into all the holes. 


i wouldnt self level the floor unless your going to put in at least 1/2" and a mesh layer for strength. that would cost a fortune. that crack would have to be epoxy bonded to stop it cracking further. 
i would question whether driving vehicles straight onto the leveling compound would tear it apart. 

i would go for the plastic tiles or grind down the floor to level it and paint it


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## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

alan h M said:


> nice garage.
> i would hire a sprayer to paint the wall. it would be a lot faster and would get into all the holes.
> 
> i wouldnt self level the floor unless your going to put in at least 1/2" and a mesh layer for strength. that would cost a fortune. that crack would have to be epoxy bonded to stop it cracking further.
> ...


Thanks for the advice. I had not realised that it would be so weak. I'll have another think then. Weeks away from that point yet anyway.


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## alan h M (Aug 1, 2013)

im not sure if you can get really hard wearing compounds or not. 
anything iv used has been realy soft and could be damaged really easily. draging anything across it will gouge it. droping things will dent it.


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## p1tse (Feb 4, 2007)

alan h M said:


> nice garage.
> i would hire a sprayer to paint the wall. it would be a lot faster and would get into all the holes.
> 
> i wouldnt self level the floor unless your going to put in at least 1/2" and a mesh layer for strength. that would cost a fortune. that crack would have to be epoxy bonded to stop it cracking further.
> ...


How does a sprayer work and can you use the above paint?


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## trv8 (Dec 30, 2007)

p1tse said:


> How does a sprayer work and can you use the above paint?


You don't need a sprayer.

You should water-down the paint for the first (and even a second coat). These coats will be easier to apply by brush as you can work the paint into all the pores of the blocks. Then brush or roller for final undiluted coat/s.....job done :thumb:.


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## GTISnoopy (Jul 16, 2011)

We have similar wall socket layouts. When I did my new builds walls I removed the sockets from the wall then screwed them back together and hung them from the roof with string so they were pulled off the wall. That ment I could get behind them to paint the wall fully. 
Took me 3 coats of paint to do the walls ive done so far. Brease blocks are a pain so much so that when I build my new detached garage im going to plaster the walls. Im not going through this again.


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## alan h M (Aug 1, 2013)

you dont need a sprayer. but it would make it a lot faster. you would still need to water down the paint a bit.. 
sandtex will work great 

you could put all the stuff outside and cover it for a few hours. then spray a few coats. by the time you get all around the start will be ready for more. it would look a lot better because the holes will be completely painted and will look a proftional job. 


if i ever build another workshop i wil paint it first like that. trying to paint around stuff now is a nightmare


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## busterbulldog (Sep 5, 2012)

Plasterboard and skim it all,the end results will be so much nicer.Painted blocks are ok but they dont reflect the light very well.Build cupboards for all the gear. That place has great potential.


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## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

I appreciate everyone's advice. Keep it coming.

So today I put on the second coat over what I did yesterday. It went on really well. Great coverage but I did have to poke at the block with my brush to fill the nooks and crannies. Today's efforts:


*Second coat going on.*


*It was hard work. All done by brush. I had to poke at the block to fill the holes.*


*Nearly finished one wall.*




*Done one wall including above the door.*


*Here is the difference between a first and second coat. I was very pleased at the coverage the Sandtex paint gave.*


*That's as far as I got. One 10 litre tub finished.*


*Looking good I think.*


*I don't think I will need a third coat.*


*The mess I need to move to progress. That's a job in itself!*

That's my lot, probably till next weekend when I get more time.


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## Beatman (Jun 6, 2010)

I'd love a garage of that size, ideal place to work.


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## Ducky (Mar 19, 2007)

If that were mine, I'd have to remove those cable runs to the light/sockets, and paint under them!


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## nbray67 (Mar 22, 2012)

3 coats, nah!
2 coats looks good. You coulda gone to Home Bargains and picked up a 5ltr garden hand sprayer that is sold for spraying fence panels. About £8 I think. It'll definitely speed up the process if the 'poking the brush' into the holes is starting to pee you off!!


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## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

Ducky said:


> If that were mine, I'd have to remove those cable runs to the light/sockets, and paint under them!


I'll do that once I am finished. Got to add a load of sockets round the benches (when I build them). Plus I need the socket for music just now, otherwise painting would be very boring indeed !


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## SKY (Sep 25, 2011)

busterbulldog said:


> Plasterboard and skim it all,the end results will be so much nicer.Painted blocks are ok but they dont reflect the light very well.Build cupboards for all the gear. That place has great potential.


I would never use skim (multi finish) in an unseated area it don't last. Best just plasterboard and tape and easifill the joints and just paint the board.


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## GTIRed (Jan 12, 2007)

Oh, this brings back some memories of when I did my double garage. I used the same brand coatings but applied a sealer coat first to both the walls and floor. What should have taken 3 tubs of paint for the walls according to the info on the tub ended up taking 9 tubs!!! and 3 coats in total but the end product was excellent. It took myself, girlfriend and mate 2 days to do it.

I unscrewed all the wall sockets and electrical conduit and covered them with cling film and simply pulled them away from the wall to get in behind them. Anything that was not moveable just got masked and covered in cling film.

Keep at it as the end result will be worth it.


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## organisys (Jan 3, 2012)

gingerscotsman said:


> Thanks for the advice. I had not realised that it would be so weak. I'll have another think then. Weeks away from that point yet anyway.


For the floor, you could consider a 'high build' 2 pack epoxy resin floor paint, which will fill in alot of the uneven texture of the floor. IT might take a few coats if the surface is bad though.

http://www.watco.co.uk/watco-high-build-epoxy.html

http://www.regalpaints.co.uk/product/high-build-epoxy-garage-floor-paint-GPaint03.html

http://www.watco.co.uk/watco-resiflow.html


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## busterbulldog (Sep 5, 2012)

SKY said:


> I would never use skim (multi finish) in an unseated area it don't last. Best just plasterboard and tape and easifill the joints and just paint the board.


It should be fine as long as theres no damp,but theres nothing wrong with your method.


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## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

So I have made a little more progress. Got about another third of the garage done over the last day.


*Where I started off*


*First coat going on by hand*


*First coat finished. Coverage is good I think.*


*Second coat finished as far as I could. Unfortunately I ran out of paint.*

The difference with this time is that I hand painted the lot. The roller just did not get into the gaps and I had to go over with the brush anyway. I used more paint this way but I figure this will last a long time so it worth getting a good finish. Not planning on doing this again for some time.

Got more paint now and some polyfiller for the cracks in the concrete floor slab. I'll move onto the floor once I am finished the walls.


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## alan h M (Aug 1, 2013)

looking good


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## p1tse (Feb 4, 2007)

Wow two big tubs and still not done


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## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

I have made a fair bit progress since I last updated this.

I'll start with the floor.



You can see the concrete slab has cracks in it. Perhaps I am too pernikity about this but I don't fancy painting the floor and seeing the cracks in future and thinking I should have fixed it. So I have bough some filler for the cracks and will fill in as I go.


*Fills in well and barely visible.*


*More floor repairs*

Onto finishing off the walls.


*I had all this crap to move to get at the final wall*


*And removed.*


*Dust from walls and floor*


*Ready to begin.*


*I am getting good at this* 


*Finished wall*


*I am very pleased. Really brightens it up.*


*Looks quite bright from outside. That's before any new lights.*

Will move onto floor next.


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## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

Some pics of some nice shelves and a tool trolley I got from halfords.


*Pretty good for £15 each I thought!*


*This was only £40. I got the display model. Still retails for £150 elsewhere.*


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## tones61 (Aug 21, 2011)

looking good there matey,
when we did my garage we pva'd the walls with 2 coats,then rollered on 3 coats of white,push harder on the roller to get the paint into all the nooks and crannies,







:buffer:


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## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

I like those shelves.


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## tones61 (Aug 21, 2011)

:driver:


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## Kev_mk3 (Sep 10, 2007)

I painted a unit with that sandex paint the other week - 2 coats is enough just slap it on


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## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

I have made some progress recently. Finished repairing as many of the cracks in the floor as I could reach. I then sealed as much of the floor as was uncovered. Then managed to obtain some very nice metal racking for free from a shop that was shutting down. I have an entire stock rooms worth!! Also managed to swap an old set of HID's that I had kicking about for 10litres of Tile Red Leyland heavy duty floor paint.


Sealed Floor




Ready for Paint


Painting Started.






Done for the day.

Paint went on reasonably easily and this much did not even use half of the first tin. I expect the second coat will need less. I am guessing as the floor was sealed the concrete soaks up less paint.

That's it for now.


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## RobTex (Apr 5, 2012)

That is really coming along nicely. The red paint is looking great and it appears that you will have no shortage of shelving!


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## shudaman (Sep 12, 2010)

Nice and shiney!


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## Mark.T (Jan 11, 2014)

Looking good so far 

We're planning to have an extension on our house in the next few years. As part of this, the garage will be demolished and replaced with a bigger (water tight) one. I'm planning on having my low level shelving on casters so that they can easily be wheeled out cleaned behind. I store most things in translucent plastic boxes or in cupboards.


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## sfstu (Aug 3, 2010)

what a great finish you've got on that floor...:doublesho:thumb:

loveing the way you've painted right up to all the stuff stacked to the side..:lol: 
that racking looks hardcore too, look forward to seeing more....:thumb:
rgds stu


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## TheGruffalo1 (Dec 11, 2013)

sfstu said:


> what a great finish you've got on that floor...:doublesho:thumb:
> 
> loveing the way you've painted right up to all the stuff stacked to the side..:lol:
> that racking looks hardcore too, look forward to seeing more....:thumb:
> rgds stu


He's even painted some of the box. :lol:

Love the Red and White (Might be because I'm a Sunderland fan).

Good job! :thumb:


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## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

Thanks for the comments guys. You weren't the only ones to notice I painted round the boxes. My pals gave me a right slagging for that. I was just trying to use all the paint left in the brush before I cleaned it. Oh well.

So I have been busy. Mostly working to be honest, but when I get a chance I get back to sorting my garage.

Firstly I managed to get some nice shelving courtesy of my brother. He worked for a major retail chain that was closing his store (sadly he was made redundant) but he did manage to acquire me the shelving from his stockroom. Looks great in my garage.


Nice shelves


Lovely shelves

They came with some nice boxes too. I have more but that's all I built for now. I was really chuffed with these, especially as they just fitted behind the rails of the garage door. Feels like I am making good use of this space now. Will bolt them down later on. This is temporary for now.


Mess to move


More mess


Moved mess

As with the other side I had cracks in the concrete slab to fix.


Cracks


Filled cracks

Then onto sealing the floor. The Ronseal floor sealant is lasting really well.




More sealing


Sealed

Then onto painting the first coat.






Looking good


Slight colour mismatch. This is because the original side got dusty and dirty whilst moving the stuff around.


Second coat going on.


Second coat finished.

The paint is taking 4-5 days to dry in the cold weather so I am now stuck till the my next day off once its dried.

I have a strip about 75cm at the back of the garage that I still have to seal and paint. After this its on with building the shelves proper, bolting them to the floor then thinking about building a workbench. My aim is to have it usable for summer again so I can maintain my car / get a project to work on.

That's you up to date!


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## TheGruffalo1 (Dec 11, 2013)

Those shelves are good and as you say they fit in perfect. Really looking forward to seeing this finished.


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## shudaman (Sep 12, 2010)

Those shelf's are awesome and with all the boxes would cost a lot of money!


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## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

The shelves are made by EZ-rect. They were used for storage of CD's and DVD's. The boxes were used similarly. Looking at the same ones on the web they retail for £000's so I got a bit of a bargain. Got three bays of deeper ones that I have still to put up. Probably put these along the back wall.


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## RobTex (Apr 5, 2012)

That is coming along nicely. The floor paint and trim are looking sharp and those shelves look made to order.


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## Rollinlow (Sep 25, 2013)

Looks good every week I say I'm going to sort my garage but somthing always comes up. I'm going to make it my main mission now lol


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## Palmer02 (Jul 7, 2012)

Looking good


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## Dan_Mol (Jul 3, 2012)

What have you filled cracks in with can't even tell on painted floor?


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## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

Thanks Guys. Cracks are filled with Pollyfilla exterior filler. Fills well and dries really hard.


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## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

I have made some progress since I last updated this. Pictures can do the talking.


Putting on the sealant on the last bare patch of floor




Now some paint






Painting complete!!

I was very pleased indeed with this. The paint gives a nice finish which is reasonably robust.


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## gingerscotsman (May 21, 2007)

So now that the painting was done I moved on with getting the shelving up and getting the garage cleared as much as possible.


First of the deeper shelves going up.




I had left the bottom shelves off at this stage so I could drill holes in the floor to bolt the shelves down.


More of the thinner shelves.










Starting to clear things out and get stuff on shelves.


I am thinking about building a bench on the right side of the garage.








The car fits in !!!!

Am am pretty pleased with this now. Feeling more like a garage should do, with space to do man stuff.

Still need to build a bench and get a shed for the garden to get rid of rogue garden things that don't belong in my garage.


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## chr15rey (Jun 17, 2008)

Looking Good, could you use a Lidl/Aldi bike hoist to lift the mower into the roof?

Gives a little more floor space & only takes second to get it down.


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## foggy4ever (Apr 17, 2014)

Don't forget to leave enough room for a bar and a pool table.


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## Ducky (Mar 19, 2007)

Looks great, that shelving you got out of the shop is perfect! :thumb:


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