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Recent Blog Posts
How to Convert Your Garage into a Home Gym
After reading our prior posts about clearing out your clutter, you may be wondering how to utilize your new spacious garage. One idea for an alternative garage use is turning your garage into a home gym. A garage provides the perfect setting to get a quick workout in, and can be as big or small as your fitness goals are. By building a gym for your home, you skip the commute time, annoying crowds, and steep costs of working out at your hometown gym. Best of all, converting your garage into a home gym removes any excuse for missing a workout.
Step 1- Establish Your Space
Unlike other garage conversion projects, turning your garage into a gym does not require any major changes to the structural aspects of your garage. There is no need to provide any additional lighting, carpeting or insulation if you are just using the garage for sweating and pumping iron. Determining how much space you will need for your gym is up to you and your fitness goals. Your garage gym could simply consist of a treadmill and a weight rack and only take up a small corner of the garage. You could also decide to start parking your car on the street and turn the entire garage into a CrossFit studio.
Famous Garages: The HP Garage
Our blog has gone into detail on plenty of alternative uses for your garage, one of them being a home office. Garages offer the perfect place for entrepreneurs to do business as they provide no cost to operate out of and allow them to work from their home. Even some of the biggest companies in the world can be traced back to their garage-based humbled beginnings. One of the most famous companies to start out in a garage is tech giant Hewlett-Packard. This garage has become so well known that it is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places and is know as "the Birthplace of Silicon Valley".
In 1905, Dr. John Spencer first built his property at 367 Addison Avenue in Palo Alto, California. He added the garage years later, and it first became occupied by Dave Packard in 1938. That same year, Bill Hewett moved into the residence's garage so that he and Packard could begin their business partnership. At the time, they only had $538 between the two of them. The garage measured only 12 by 18 feet, and consisted of just a concrete floor and a workbench. Hewlett and Packard spent their early years developing the HP 200A, an audio oscillator that Walt Disney invested in for his famous hit, Fantasia. This product was manufactured entirely in their garage in Palo Alto. By 1940, Hewlett and Packard had become big enough to move onto bigger and better things, however, the company still pays respects to its birthplace.
DIY Mechanics and Garage Car Lifts
Becoming a "do-it-yourself mechanic" is a growing trend among car owners and enthusiasts alike. For those who enjoy working on cars in a home garage, it can be especially grueling when squeezing between the concrete floor and car for hours on end. For this reason, many do-it-yourselfers install car lifts in their garages. Additionally, car lifts free up space in your garage. If you are a car collector, you can easily shelter two of your cars inside your garage where you would normally only be able to fit one.
Car lifts can run anywhere from $1,000 to $10,000 depending on the type of lift you want. Home lifts operate identically to those found in auto shops, and can be made to fit in most types of garages. However, you should be sure to check that your garage is big enough to accommodate a lift. Ideally, your garage should be at least 22 feet deep, 11 feet tall, and your floor should be made of concrete that is 4.5-5 inches thick.
Tips on Running a Successful Garage Sale
An important aspect of maintaining your house and garage is keeping it clear of clutter. A good tactic is to do this at least once or twice a year. However, when you decide what you want to part with, what do you do with it? Rather than throwing your old belongings in the trash, you can make a profit and hold a garage sale. In the summer months, many shoppers traverse their neighborhoods for the best deals on gently used items. Read below for our steps on how to prepare a successful garage sale and make some money out of your garage this summer.
1. Decide on your inventory
Make sure to rummage through all parts of your house to find any clothes, toys, appliances, or other trinkets that you no longer have use for. Generally, the rule of thumb is if it was stored away in a box and unseen for years, it is time to give it away. Ask your children what clothes they have grown out of and what toys they no longer play with. These can find a new home with a family of young children. Additionally, make sure none of the items you are trying to sell are broken, beat up, or dirty. Visitors to your sale might see these items and be turned off from buying other things.
Keeping Mosquitoes Away From Your Garage
The mosquitoes are out in full force this summer and they like to follow you wherever you go, including into your garage. If you are noticing that you can't work in your garage or get into your car without having to swat away a swarm of these biting pests, here are some tips (non-chemical) to reclaim your garage and enjoy it once again.
1.) Keep standing water away from your garage
Standing water is the main culprit when it comes to mosquito breeding. Make sure there is nothing around your garage that can collect water. Check that your garage gutters are not clogged. Keep grass clippings away from water and rain. Provide fresh water to bird bath and pools. If you store recycling containers outside, drill holes to allow excess water to filter out. Store tires inside since water can easily get trapped inside of them. Check for puddles around your garage which don't dry in a few days and invest in fixing your landscaping. You'll notice that a few changes can greatly decrease mosquitoes from breeding.
Fire Safety Tips for Your Garage
With summer finally hitting its stride and Independence Day around the corner, many families celebrate the season with cookouts and fireworks. Summer is also the time when homeowners take time to work on construction projects using potentially dangerous or flammable materials. With the summer heat, it is even more important to consider fire safety. However, many homeowners fail to consider if their garage is constructed and organized to prevent potentially devastating garage fires.
According to the U.S. Fire Administration, 6,600 garage fires resulted in a total of $457 million in property losses. Garage fires are especially destructive because they are less frequently detected than traditional house fires and can spread even more quickly. Make sure to consider the following tips when checking to see if you've taken necessary precaution to prevent a garage fire this summer.
#1) Store any flammable liquids in a safe place
Oil, gasoline, and paints are commonplace in many garages and all of these liquids are flammable. If possible, they should be stored away in a backyard shed or anywhere not connected to your house. If the garage is your only option, make sure to store them in small, sealed amounts, away from any appliances, heaters, or lights. Make sure each is clearly labeled.
Endless Rain Brings Flooded Garages. What Can You Do?
With the torrential rains in the recent week, many homeowners have dealt with flooding issues in homes and garages. With more rain forecasted and not a bit of ground soil dry, now is the time to examine your garage structure.
When it rains continuously, the average way your land drains is going to be compromised. Lawns become overly saturated, storm drains become filled to capacity. And unfortunately, water is going to find the lowest point in your garage if it has nowhere to go. Here are some main issues that may be causing your garage flooding issues.
1. Foundation Level
The foundation level of your garage should accommodate a buildup of rain water around it or else water is going to flood in. You should be able to see your garage foundation above your ground level. The higher your foundation, the better chances your garage will stay dry. But detached garages, especially ones built decades ago, may have insufficient foundation height. Installing a drainage system to flow water away from your garage or building a garage with a higher foundation are the main options that can help you solve the flooding problems permanently.
How To Create More Space in Your Garage with Overhead Storage
What do you see when you open your garage door? Is there a chance you might not even see your car because there's no space to park it? If your garage has turned into a storage unit for your bikes, sports gear, and lawn supplies instead of the garage it was intended to be, you can take back a lot of storage space by moving it up above you.
Overhead storage allows you to move what's in your garage, upward and out of sight until you need it. There are numerous options for creating overhead storage depending on the configuration of your garage.
Option #1 - Overhead Celing Storage Racks
Steel overhead ceiling storage racks attach to your ceiling and can be custom cut to fit into the available space of your garage. These steel racks can hold up to 600 pounds each and can be installed by the garage owner or an installer of the product.
Option #2 - Overhead Storage Loft
If you have ample ceiling space in your garage, building a simple loft can give you a second level of valuable storage. Having a qualified contractor build your loft insures your safety and that your loft follows any codes and regulations your city may have. But you can also build it yourself. Instructions on how to build a garage loft can be found online.
Tips on How to Keep Your Garage Cool in the Summer
As summer approaches, so does the hot sun aiming towards your garage. For people who like to work on their cars and projects in their garages, the summer heat can be unbearable. But before you decide to just sweat it out, read about our tips on making your garage cooler.
Tip #1 - Circulate the Air
Forcing the hot air out of your garage and bringing in the cool air is the key. If you have a window, set up a box fan and exhaust the hot air out the window. Another option, though more expensive, is to install an exhaust fan in the ceiling. Since heat rises, an exhaust fan will bring faster results. Even if you don't have a window, circulating the air with a fan and/or raising your overhead garage a foot up, will make your garage cooler. For climates where the air is just too overwhelming hot, installing an energy efficient air-conditioning window unit can bring some instant relief.
Tip #2 - Use Light Colors for the Garage Exterior and Shingles
A Homeowner’s Garage Building Checklist (Part 2)
In part one of our garage building checklist, we covered the first steps in your garage building or remodel process. Today, we look to brief you on the consultation process and preparations that must be made before the garage building process starts.
Meeting with Your Garage Builder, a Primer
So, now you've made your short list of garage builders, and requested your free consultation.
What happens next? You set a time to discuss your needs, get some measurements, and receive a quote. You've recognized your needs, as recommended in part one, so you will be able to communicate them with the person (or people) that show up at your door.
If you haven't read part one, here are some of the things you should consider in building your new or remodeled garage:
- the size and height of your vehicle(s)
- your storage needs
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