Shop cleanup and rearranging still a work in progress.

[dbhost]

A while back I put up a post Cleaning up and rearranging my shop. This post was all about basically a make do solution until I can get the issues with the HOA, the city, etc... hammered out for a dedicated shop building...

Well, I am not sure I have made much progress at all, or at least I did NOT follow the plan to the letter that is for sure!

So how are things going according to my old plan?

#1. Clean up, and tote up whatever is not shop stuff, yard stuff, or BBQ stuff, and get it into the attic for storage.

This is going reasonably well, sort of. LOML is STILL moving stuff over from her folks place that has been in storage for ages. Almost all the sporting goods are out of the shop though.

#2. Build a second pair of saw horses, shorter than the first, to hold the canoe up. Move the canoe to the far side of the house, between the house and the neighbor's fence. Wrapped in a silver tarp to prevent U.V. damage to the boat.

Not done yet, I have been waiting for a sale on folding adjustable saw horses from either Lowes or Home Depot. You know the ones that Stanley makes... I think they are called Fat Max or something stupid like that. I will dedicate the existing sawhorses for this function. This way I get the boat out of the garage, and I get the space back that the non folding sawhorses gobble up. I keep looking, no luck on sales yet. Maybe around Father's day?

#3. Thoroughly clean, and dismantle the plastic shelving units. Some are pretty worn out, the good ones are going to go into the new shed once it is up, but for now, dismantle them, bind them up in a couple of large boxes, or use plastic twine to keep it all together and stuff it in the attic.

I still need to clear junk off of them. Like I said, work in progress.

#4. Remove wall mounted items between end of workbench, and interior door. Move the Mechanics tool box, floor jack, jack stands, oil drain, etc... to this location.

This is a problem. I did some measuring, the tool box simply will NOT fit there. The workbench is too big. Plan B is to build a dedicated workbench / outfeed table for the saw from the Fine Woodworking prints, and dismantle the existing bench.


#5. Add the needed circuits. Ike messed up my arrangements for the power project, I need to get that back on track, including running power down the middle of the garage ceiling, every 36" so that I have 5 rows of outlets that are switched. Total amp draw if I recall correctly for 10 4ft fixtures was under 10 amps. USE ORANGE OR YELLOW SOCKETS AND PLATES MARKED FOR LIGHTING FIXTURES ONLY. In case a future homeowner tries running a 15 amp saw with lighting in place on this circuit... You never know. Pull a fairly high amperage circuit down the outside wall where the power tools should reside. Most likely a dedicated 20 amp 110 circuit. Outlets every 3 feet, spaced evenly with the ceiling outlets if possible, 3' from ground height, GFCI protected. This will provide power to the 110v tools. This should suffice as I am NOT going to ever be running more than 1 power tool at a time. Run a 220v single phase circuit with two sockets about midway down the wall for a potential future bigger table saw, or a major motor upgrade on my band saw. (I have a 220v single ph 2HP motor that would drop in as a direct replacement if I had the power to drive it...).

I have a LONG way to go on this. And the need gets bigger and bigger. With the new HF DC... I need a dedicated 20 amp circuit, on top of what I already needed... I am thinking sub panel time...

#6. Move all the tools benches etc... to the center of the shop. Cover them up with a drop cloth. Clean everything on the walls ceiling, and floors surrounding it, patch whatever isn't right sheet rock wise, prime it with Kilz2, and paint with Bright White semi gloss paint. (Glidden Semi Gloss Bright White, already have it).

I have been bringing stuff in from the walls, painting, them moving back, but this is slow going...

#7. I still need to figure out exactly what I am going to do with the floor. Chances are good, nothing. Probably just grab some of those rubber matts to stand on by each of the major machines, and the work bench...

Still working on the doing nothing idea... Too much paint, and junk on the floor to be worth fooling with at this point.

#8. Once the paint is dry, blah blah...

I had an idea for how I wanted to lay this out. A LOT of my thinking changed once the BT ended up in my shop, with the extension table, larger dust collection requirements etc... I am working a MUCH more detailed sketchup diagram right now that shows both the 4", AND the 2.5" dust collection runs. I am thinking the ONLY 2.5" runs are going to be for top side of the table saw, and the workbench. I MAY run one for the benchtop tool setup for the jointer and planer.

You can see the latest sketchup of my workshop ideas below... I don't have ANYTHING in there for power and the 2.5" plumbing isn't there yet, but you get the idea...



One of the things I am learning is, that unless you have all the time and money in the world to work on this right off the bat, it sure seems like a LOT of changes are taking place. New tools that weren't in the orignal plan are now in the shop, changes in power requirements and such hit me pretty good. And the myriad of projects that I am working on gobble up too much time and free space to dedicate much to actually finishing my shop...

I would love to invite a couple of my friends over one of these saturdays with some beer and pizza and have a work and B.S. party followed up by a Poker night... That would help me at least put a bigger dent in this project!

[smorris]

I've been trying to cleanup and rearrange my shop for a year now...the operative word is trying. Good luck!

[dbhost]

Yeah, thanks...

I KNOW I am making progress in a lot of areas, but it feels like I am getting further and further behind as I discover other junk that needs to happen...

[Ed62]

I KNOW I am making progress in a lot of areas, but it feels like I am getting further and further behind

Five gallons of gasoline and one match should take care of your problems. Rest assured that we can all relate to trying, but still getting behind with a job like that.

Ed

[Uncle Cracker]

The good thing about doing it one step at a time is that you will never be lacking an excuse to piddle around in the shop... Your diagram looks good and operable, but I can tell you that you will eventually want a dust collector drop for your lathe... I cannot fathom how I got along without one for so long on mine, and it took a nasty allergic reaction to make me see the light.

[poolhound]

I would love to invite a couple of my friends over one of these saturdays with some beer and pizza and have a work and B.S. party followed up by a Poker night... That would help me at least put a bigger dent in this project!

Count me in although the drive might take me all of Saturday

Edit - Actually make that the whole weekend as I just realised you are nr Houston thats 1214 miles...

[LinuxRandal]

This post was all about basically a make do solution until I can get the issues with the HOA, the city, etc... hammered out for a dedicated shop building...
How long is that estimated to take? reason below
This is going reasonably well, sort of. LOML is STILL moving stuff over from her folks place that has been in storage for ages. Almost all the sporting goods are out of the shop though.

I don't mean to sound cruel, but if it was left over at her parents for a long time, does she/you really need it? (coming from someone who thought they were facing some estate issues)


Not done yet, I have been waiting for a sale on folding adjustable saw horses from either Lowes or Home Depot. You know the ones that Stanley makes... I think they are called Fat Max or something stupid like that. I will dedicate the existing sawhorses for this function. This way I get the boat out of the garage, and I get the space back that the non folding sawhorses gobble up. I keep looking, no luck on sales yet. Maybe around Father's day?

Never seen them go on sale. I gave up and spent the $20 a piece, and decided I was a fool for waiting. They came in that handy as they hold more weight, and fold up for storage.

#3. Thoroughly clean, and dismantle the plastic shelving units. Some are pretty worn out, the good ones are going to go into the new shed once it is up, but for now, dismantle them, bind them up in a couple of large boxes, or use plastic twine to keep it all together and stuff it in the attic.

From above. If your shed is going to be a while, put them all in a garage sale. When you build your shed, get a few extra 2x's and build your shelving to your needs. Use the money for your sawhorses.

This is a problem. I did some measuring, the tool box simply will NOT fit there. The workbench is too big. Plan B is to build a dedicated workbench / outfeed table for the saw from the Fine Woodworking prints, and dismantle the existing bench.

Garage sale, or CL your existing bench. You could even do CL with your shelves.

After the hospitalization, and thought of my father passing and dealing with all his stuff (and trying to merge part), I am in a serious cleaning out mood. Mine is also going slowly, and I have spent NO time in the shop (still making up for living over there for months).

[dbhost]

This post was all about basically a make do solution until I can get the issues with the HOA, the city, etc... hammered out for a dedicated shop building...

How long is that estimated to take? reason below

Wish I had a good answer to that...

This is going reasonably well, sort of. LOML is STILL moving stuff over from her folks place that has been in storage for ages. Almost all the sporting goods are out of the shop though.

I don't mean to sound cruel, but if it was left over at her parents for a long time, does she/you really need it? (coming from someone who thought they were facing some estate issues)

Your not being cruel, but the problems are what they are... I am having to delicately help my wife sort through what is precious memorabilia, and what is to be either sold, or donated to Goodwill or the church. One thing to keep in mind is that we have been working on migrating her stuff in since the wedding, which isn't that long ago. We had to go through the purge my old junk stage fist..

Not done yet, I have been waiting for a sale on folding adjustable saw horses from either Lowes or Home Depot. You know the ones that Stanley makes... I think they are called Fat Max or something stupid like that. I will dedicate the existing sawhorses for this function. This way I get the boat out of the garage, and I get the space back that the non folding sawhorses gobble up. I keep looking, no luck on sales yet. Maybe around Father's day?

Never seen them go on sale. I gave up and spent the $20 a piece, and decided I was a fool for waiting. They came in that handy as they hold more weight, and fold up for storage.

The ones I am talking about retail for about $60.00 / pair. Stanley Adjustable Folding Sawhorses. I want 2 pairs.

#3. Thoroughly clean, and dismantle the plastic shelving units. Some are pretty worn out, the good ones are going to go into the new shed once it is up, but for now, dismantle them, bind them up in a couple of large boxes, or use plastic twine to keep it all together and stuff it in the attic.

From above. If your shed is going to be a while, put them all in a garage sale. When you build your shed, get a few extra 2x's and build your shelving to your needs. Use the money for your sawhorses.

The shed will be a while. Current economy is killing me... Not a bad idea to pitch these shelves into a garage sale, or better yet, Craigslist....

This is a problem. I did some measuring, the tool box simply will NOT fit there. The workbench is too big. Plan B is to build a dedicated workbench / outfeed table for the saw from the Fine Woodworking prints, and dismantle the existing bench.

Garage sale, or CL your existing bench. You could even do CL with your shelves.
After the hospitalization, and thought of my father passing and dealing with all his stuff (and trying to merge part), I am in a serious cleaning out mood. Mine is also going slowly, and I have spent NO time in the shop (still making up for living over there for months).

I hadn't considered selling the original bench on Craigslist... Not a bad plan.

There are plenty of items I can put on CL...

[LinuxRandal]

to quote: "The ones I am talking about retail for about $60.00 / pair. Stanley Adjustable Folding Sawhorses. I want 2 pairs."


How tall are these? (couldn't clearly see the height)

These are what I have, and remember, you can adjust the height somewhat by screwing/adding a board to the top.

http://www.amazon.com/Crawford-Adjustable-25-Inch-34-Inch-Sawhorse/dp/B0009WG5ZI/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1238382703&sr=1-11

They were $20 locally, and I ended up with five, to use as supports for low level scaffolding. (as well as the typical use)

[dbhost]

Are those Crawfords any good?

I see those in Home Depot all day long...

[LinuxRandal]

I've been very happy, but maybe we should start a thread in tool talk to try to get more input.

[poolhound]

to quote: "The ones I am talking about retail for about $60.00 / pair. Stanley Adjustable Folding Sawhorses. I want 2 pairs."


How tall are these? (couldn't clearly see the height)

These are what I have, and remember, you can adjust the height somewhat by screwing/adding a board to the top.

http://www.amazon.com/Crawford-Adjustable-25-Inch-34-Inch-Sawhorse/dp/B0009WG5ZI/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1238382703&sr=1-11

They were $20 locally, and I ended up with five, to use as supports for low level scaffolding. (as well as the typical use)

I have a pair of them (the stanley ones) and they are great. They adjust from 30"-37". I recall getting them at the Borg afew years back and IIRC I paid a lot less than $60, I think they were on some special deal.

http://www.stanleytools.com/default.asp?CATEGORY=ZAG+SAW+AND+WORK&TYPE=PRODUCT&PARTNUMBER=060622R&SDesc=Stanley%26%23174%3B+Adjustable+Sawhorse+%2D%2D+Twin+Pack

[dbhost]

Been a long while since I had updated this thread...

Actually I stumbled upon my own thread, and I thought, gee, I should catch up on this... So here goes nothin'...

#1. Clean up, and tote up whatever is not shop stuff, yard stuff, or BBQ stuff, and get it into the attic for storage.

I kept buying totes, and LOML kept putting her craft stuff in there and shoving it in the shop. Big Lots had a cheap sale on Rubbermaid totes here a couple of weeks ago, I bought a BUNCH of them, and have started toting stuff up. I have a LONG way to go, but I am getting there...

#2. Build a second pair of saw horses, shorter than the first, to hold the canoe up. Move the canoe to the far side of the house, between the house and the neighbor's fence. Wrapped in a silver tarp to prevent U.V. damage to the boat.

I have the second set of sawhorses. They are the folding, telescoping metal ones from Lowes. I have yet to actually move the boat outside since I am still waiting for Stump Out to do its thing so I can get my fence back up, so my neighbors don't try to steal the boat...

#3. Thoroughly clean, and dismantle the plastic shelving units. Some are pretty worn out, the good ones are going to go into the new shed once it is up, but for now, dismantle them, bind them up in a couple of large boxes, or use plastic twine to keep it all together and stuff it in the attic.

See the explaination of the totes above... This is in progress. But has a LONG way to go.

#4. Remove wall mounted items between end of workbench, and interior door. Move the Mechanics tool box, floor jack, jack stands, oil drain, etc... to this location.

In progress. Original workbench is now scheduled to receive 6'6" rear legs, an upper shelf, and the peg board from the wall. It will also be shortened from 8' wide to 6'.

#5. Add the needed circuits. Ike messed up my arrangements for the power project, I need to get that back on track, including running power down the middle of the garage ceiling, every 36" so that I have 5 rows of outlets that are switched. Total amp draw if I recall correctly for 10 4ft fixtures was under 10 amps. USE ORANGE OR YELLOW SOCKETS AND PLATES MARKED FOR LIGHTING FIXTURES ONLY. In case a future homeowner tries running a 15 amp saw with lighting in place on this circuit... You never know. Pull a fairly high amperage circuit down the outside wall where the power tools should reside. Most likely a dedicated 20 amp 110 circuit. Outlets every 3 feet, spaced evenly with the ceiling outlets if possible, 3' from ground height, GFCI protected. This will provide power to the 110v tools. This should suffice as I am NOT going to ever be running more than 1 power tool at a time. Run a 220v single phase circuit with two sockets about midway down the wall for a potential future bigger table saw, or a major motor upgrade on my band saw. (I have a 220v single ph 2HP motor that would drop in as a direct replacement if I had the power to drive it...).

No progress on this whatsoever. No money to do it at this point so it sits in the to do pile until cash becomes available...

#6. Move all the tools benches etc... to the center of the shop. Cover them up with a drop cloth. Clean everything on the walls ceiling, and floors surrounding it, patch whatever isn't right sheet rock wise, prime it with Kilz2, and paint with Bright White semi gloss paint. (Glidden Semi Gloss Bright White, already have it).

Pending getting the fence material and plastic shelving out of the garage.

#7. I still need to figure out exactly what I am going to do with the floor. Chances are good, nothing. Probably just grab some of those rubber mats to stand on by each of the major machines, and the work bench...

I have a slow start to it, but I have picked up a Craftsman Anti Fatigue mat. Saw the ones at Woodcraft afterwards, not bad... Sams Club has the lock together ones that you see in Kids play areas on the cheap I may consider picking up a couple packages of those...

#8. Once the paint is dry, the DC system plumbing will be run along the right side (as seen from the front) wall, just above where the new electrical runs will be made. This will run the entire length of the shop wall, ending at a 90 degree bend just prior to a blast gate and a 20 foot hose out in the driveway for car cleaning...

Boy did this ever change. Yes the side of the garage we are going to is the same, but I have since upgraded to a full on dust collector. The 2.5" stuff is now relegated to the shark guard and work bench top.


#9. Move the workbench, and auto tools back to where they came from.

Gotta move the other stuff out first...


#10. Put all the lumber temporarily along the left wall.

Again, gotta move other stuff first...

My #11 changed. I owned the BTS-21 when I originally wrote this, so my numbering from here on out changes.

#11. Move BT3100 to center of shop, oriented front / rear in the shop.

Done.

#12. Build proper woodworking workbench, at outfeed height for table saw, position behind saw.

Done.

#13. Remove bench top tools from stands, mount on mounting boards, and stow those mounting boards on a Rubbermaid closet rail and bracket system.

I am mounting the planer, jointer, sander, and bench grinder to this. I do NOT want to mount the CMS to this as I feel the support extensions offered by the CMS stand are priceless. Need to figure out what to do with it when not in use though... These are currently mounted on the left wall. All of this will migrate to the right wall when that space is cleared, the wall insulated, power run, drywall patching done, and paint completed...

#14.Obtain floor model drill press, and drill press accessories.

Done that. Mounted up small storage shelf for bits and such above the DP as well. Will repurpose mobile base from sander to DP as it will be one of the few remaining floor model tools I have left. Every thing else is bench top or handheld and in a storage system.

#15. Move band saw to space along right side wall.

Again, this will move when that wall is ready...

#16. Move lathe to just inside right side garage door.

Pending availability of the space.


#17. Build on lathe storage and ballast.

Simple shelf with holes to hold items without a case, and a couple of 80lb bags of QuickCrete. Done but fugly.

#18. Clamp storage needs to be re-assessed. IF at all possible, I want to build a rack similar to the one Suwat Phruksawan set up for his clamps. I need to figure out how to do this, AND allow for space to rack up 12 3/4" pipe clamps. (I don't have that many yet, but I have projects in mind that at LEAST 8 will be needed, but 12 would NOT be out of the question. Large china cabinet project for LOML...). The clamp racks will likely still be where they are now, but quite possibly they could end up on the wall with the other stuff if I can figure out how to make it fit.

Done. Not as fancy as I had originally envisioned. I simply moved the existing stuff down, mounted a shelf above for addtiional storage, and mounted spring brackets for the pipe clamps. It works really well, even has space for my box of rags, and a little cleat to keep it from sliding out at my head when I pull rags from it.

#19. Handheld power tool storage.

This has been mostly, but not entirely placed on a shelf mounted up 6' 2" (just over my head so I don't bang my skull into it) and houses everything except for my Hitachi Routers. Those will go on top of the upcoming shelf on the wall side workbench.

I realized that my plan keeps changing as I read, learn, get more shop time and fiddle around with what works and what doesn't.

The scariest part of all of this effort, is that LOML keeps saying that as soon as we can afford it, my shop will be moving into a dedicated shed / workshop. This should prove interesting...

[dbhost]

Update 10-14-09

New layout ideas. I think I am on to something here...

[dbhost]

And progress to the goal of that actual design...

Table saw and workbench moved into position. (Trust me, they are under the stuff there, rearranging the shop tends to bring all sorts of junk out of the corners!)


The new, heavier duty 24" deep x 36" wide plastic shelving is in place by the water softener...


The tool stacker is set up, albeit on the wrong wall, but it's set up...


The small parts bins, and overhead shelf are in. (Sorry, older pic, the bins have been rearranged so they line up, and the router bit case opens with no interference.


The 55 gallon Thien cyclone is done. The shop vac / 20 gallon cyclone has been moved to under the table saw extension wing.


While I admit, it is disasterously messy in there right now, it is almost joyful to see the progress moving forward. My lovely bride doesn't quite get why I am doing all these shop projects, but they will be worth it, to both of us in the long run...