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Feb 10, 2020 19:01:39 GMT
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Were those tool chests expensive? I'm looking over here, but the cheap ones go from 129 euro's but are only a foot deep (33cm) and the more useful ones I find that are 46cm deep are 199 a piece. So with what I'm looking to do, I'd be out 550 excluding 60 for delivery. Pfff. And then there's the wood to build the actual bench to add. Can't anything be simply affordable for once. It's just some folded metal for gods sake... I doubled up a friends trade card and a 10% off discount I get through work and they worked out about £430 total but the trade discount is very good. The drawers on the main cabinets are 39.5cm deep so not as deep as more expensive ones, but deep enough. I wish they had a middle size drawer as well, my old one did. Halfway between the shallow and deep drawers it was ideal for lots of stuff. Altogether though I like them for the money.
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5S has definitely crept in to my workshop, hence the small parts storage boxes in the racks and the multiple tool chests. I really try to have a home for everything. We are huge on it at work (Japanese company) and it’s a really good habit imo. Laminated worktops like you have though are much easier to keep clean in the first place, but they’re not very lump hammer proof and stink when burnt so I prefer natural wood as my standard work surface, in a more industrial setting. I went with the worktop as they’re relatively cheap, cheap enough to replace in a few years when it’s knackered, and as you say easy to keep relatively clean. The second bench might get a doubled up bit of ply that I would treat, or possibly even a steel top at some point.
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I wanted to make good use of space and have plenty of tool storage so I decided to buy multiple bottom tool chests and build them into a bench. It’s working quite well, but when I forget to shut the drawers properly (and even when I do to an extent) they catch quite a lot of sawdust. They’re just made out of CLS studwork timber and MDF with some worktop on the main one. The smaller ones on castors so I can change the layout a bit or make space when needed. I want to paint the timber at some point, hopefully to make it look a bit posher and more finished. The shelves are filled with stuff already and I’ve added one on the right, I want to put together a little corner unit on the left too. Oh and there’s an LED strip on the bottom of the bottom shelf too which works well. I’ll try and grab a better picture of the whole area tomorrow if I get a minute. It’s not perfect but it’s working well and I’m quite pleased with it. In an ideal world I’d love a proper woodworking bench and a “dirty” bench for car stuff, but I don’t have the space and I don’t deserve a proper woodworking bench yet! In fact in a real ideal world I’d like a garage and a workshop but I consider myself lucky to have a good sized garage at all
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Jan 14, 2020 22:33:59 GMT
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So the MDF top was a curse word idea, and I didn't like the way the roll cabinets were all higgledy piggledy on account of the wheels being sideways and so on. Father dearest was down this way today, so I asked him to pick up a 3m length of proper worktop for me, and I've reused the old MDF top and some more timber to make shelves for the cabinets. There's little stoppers at the backs of them to keep the cabinets in place, and it's worked out well. Apologies for the state of the place, I was knackered after I finished this tonight so I just kind of half tidied up, got the car back in, and shut the door... It's got a bit of an upstand on it made of a bit of spare roof boardbut I did a **** job if it so I'll change it a bit and make it neater when I've time. It helped give me more of an overhang though. and will stop stuff rolling off the back of the bench and into nowhere. What else have I done... mastic sealed around the bottoms of the bearers, which didn't seem to totally work at first, but now appears to be working? Maybe the whole building has settled further? No clue. Still need to bitument paint the bearers though and a couple of inches of the concrete which will hopefully finish that off, but it does seem to be working anyway. I've also fitted guttering, no pictures though. I picked up another one of the shelf units, and put castors on the last tambour cabinet so I can move it about. The last thing on the current list is to change how my pushbikes are stored, they're on a two-up stand that sits on the floor and leans on the wall, but I think I am going to put them both up high to reclaim some floor space. General plan is to put most of the stuff down the right hand side to clear the left hand side and give me a wider effective space. But again most of the stuff is on wheels so I've got some flexibility. I've got rid of the big halfords stack of toolboxes, sold to a mate, and the dishwasher's now actually in the house where it belongs. Now all the storage is pretty much in place I can have a proper tidy up. Dreading it...Will get some more pictures once I've had a bit of a go at it! The back bit as it stands: When I got the MDF cut for my box thing I had some 200mm strips cut out of the spare as well, and I think I'm going to use them for shelves above the workbench.
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Jan 14, 2020 22:22:12 GMT
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Next up was the vice problem. Picked up this on eBay from someone local to work: Plan was to get it sorted and put some paint on it. Was expecting it to be a bit of a mission but it all came apart in about five minutes, and once I got to cleaning it up it was clear it was better than I'd expected. Cleaned it up, stripped the paint, stuck it in some citric acid: Decided not to paint it, I think it looks good as is so I've just greased and oiled it, at least for now. I think it looks the part though. I have put a bit of white on the lettering though. Made a box thing for my box things: Now I can get one of them out without having to un-make and re-make the stack.
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Jan 14, 2020 22:14:41 GMT
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Haven't posted for ages, been a busy bee both in and out of the garage. I just typed out a long post and got an error so hopefully I'll remember what I said. It'll be a bit of a monster post(s) as quite a lot's gone on. I had my roll cabs, some shelves, a few tambour cabinets, and hadn't really settled on a layout. I knew I wanted to make a large bench out of the roll cabs so I got to that: I was quite pleased with this, but had assumed I could fit the castors facing front to back... not so. The MDF top was soaking up everything that touched it (which I know is obvious but for some reason I thought everything would be fine. It made my vice look stupid as well. I was also getting loads of stuff all down the drawers because there was hardly any overhang. So more on those bits later. Because I couldn't settle on a layout I decided to get some more castors involved and made this: So now I can have it in an L shaped layout or make a little mini workshop space at the back which is how I have it now. It's good that I can move it because the segregated area at the back is good for some things but would be in the way when I get to working on the car.
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Had a little look today, not as bad as I thought - prices I'd seen were for 'kits' but clearly much more cost effective to buy the bits. Got my drill and rivet gun out today to rearrange the drawers on one of the cabinets so I can have sockets including deeps stood up in the top drawer in racks. Original layout: Big boy drawer on top: Would really like drawers halfway between these two sizes, but still happy with these for the price. The three cabinets and two side lockers were something like £400 or £450 with a combination of a mate's trade card and my work discount voucher. Would have been out of reach really to get so many of the 'ideal' cabinets.
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Looks really nice. Have a look at fitting a stormguard Stormguard door seal to seal the gap on the bottom of the doors. What blinds did you use? PS get those gutters up I reckon I will get one of those seals, it's so cold lately! Little oil filled rad struggles a bit. The blinds are just cheap ones from Argos, they're a bit curse word but fine for a garage. I am flabergasted at how expensive guttering is! Need to investigate a bit more thoroughly and see if I can get the price down. I will definitely do it though. Still need to seal and bitumen the bearers. Got the next two Wednesdays off using up holiday so I might have to get on that. I've got the bits.
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Bit more progress, quite a lot actually. The electrics and lighting are all completed now. The whole exterior is now painted (apart from one window frame which I'm going to do very soon!) Only one coat but it'll do for now - I will do the second coat section by section when I've time. Got a PIR light on the front, two exterior lights on the side with an outside switch. Outside plug sockets towards the back for mowing the lawn and so on. Things are calming down on the house front too, and it was time to sort out the state of the inside now it's 'complete'. I had a move about of some stuff and settled for now at least on the position of some bits, so I got my cabinets in place, levelled them out properly and used a bit of worktop that won't fit in the new 'office' room at this place. I reckon I will probably put the roll cabs back along the back wall though. The mad tidy up continued, I had a standalone shelving unit that's been in the shed but it was a bit curse word. I wanted something sturdier, bigger, and if possible red... settled on a Clarke one from Machine Mart that I'm actually dead impressed with. The boltless fixing holes are hidden on the insides and the cross parts have a stamped profile to them so it's pretty sturdy, nice laminated shelves as well. Got the bike off the floor too. The garage is finished to an extent now and it's a big relief, really chuffed with how it all turned out. Plenty of bits to do still like weatherproofing the bearers and so on but all the real hard work is done. Got to get that ****ing washing machine into the house but the stupid 80s kitchen means it's going to be a pain in the neck. Running out of excuses now!
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Nov 16, 2019 20:28:22 GMT
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I've got one of those Titan drills! I love it. I have no idea how long it will last but I've taken up asphalt, dug out fenceposts, and drilled plenty of holes in concrete with it and it's impressed me a lot.
Nice bolts!
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Nov 16, 2019 17:27:25 GMT
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I miss my silver 106 GTI! Can't believe how much rot was in your one - time hasn't been kind Mine had the same damage on the door, are the door stays prone to letting go? Awesome work on the car, will be watching this one. Some of my favourite cars.
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Nov 16, 2019 17:18:25 GMT
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I think tidy is a bit of an understatement! Looks great, it's got loads of character as well.
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Nov 16, 2019 15:00:15 GMT
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Hi, I was going to suggest bituminous paint on the bearer and the join with the concrete, but as said with it already being wet that would just trap it in and it needs to breathe. However you could put weatherboard onto the shed above it and paint or oil it with the rest of the timber work, that should keep the worst of the rain and weather off of it and allow it to dry out easier. Colin Stupid question... if I just painted the outside on a day when it was quite dry, would it just be able to breathe to the inside, which I wouldn’t paint, or does it not work that way?
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Nov 15, 2019 20:53:45 GMT
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I haven't got gutters on yet which should help quite a lot, but it's rained quite heavily today and water does get in under the bearers.
I do wish in hindsight that I'd known that making the slab the exact size was much better, or that we had used composite bearers or a course of bricks.
Wondering what is best to do - I've seen various recommendations from "don't do anything, just let it breathe" to "cover the whole thing in mastic and bitumen".
I wonder if just a bead of mastic around the outside join between bearers and concrete is best - let the bearers breathe but stop water seeping in.
Maybe a skirt of DPC - although I'm not sure how I would carry this out effectively. Also find myself wondering how I could get a DPC under the bearers, but the bearers are screwed to the concrete and the bottom set of logs are screwed to the bearers!
I do have to remember it's a garage/shed not a house obviously but don't really want to have water getting in.
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Nov 15, 2019 17:39:24 GMT
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Mmmm..........I kinda like that. Need to screed my floor to get it flat but I do like the idea of the warmer floor.....mmmmmm...... PS, the workmat is a jolly good idea - keeps feet much warmer and less fatigue. Workmat £10 from Halfrauds, dunno if they still doing them. It was more to do with reducing impact in case of dropping hammers/heavy objects and the like, because I wasn't sure initially how the boards would stand up to it. But they do seem to take everything quite well surprisingly. I did expect "tracks" where the trolley jacks are being used etc, but there is nothing. With laying the boarding, don't forget to leave a gap round the outside for expansion just like a laminate floor really. I did look into the thicker mezz floor type stuff. We don't have any reclaim places for that near here, and new thick boards were way too expensive for me. I also had a number of normal Wickes ones left over from other projects, so stuck with them. Are they just loft boards Ken?
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Nov 13, 2019 22:51:48 GMT
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Hoping I won't, it's one more thing to run. Managed to get a coat of paint on the whole building bar the doors and frames today, and also she's in! Really happy with how much room there is with the car in. Next up... blinds, electrics, security upgrades, finish the paint. A million more things after. Security wise I'm not happy at all with it currently, the door and window frames are essentially sandwiched in by the outer frames which are screwed on. I understand why, it's so they float in the aperture to let the cabin expand and contract, but the fact is you could open (remove) the man door at least with a screwdriver in near silence. I will put a load of coach bolts through all the frames which will mean at least they won't be able to get in quietly. I've also ordered a long throw gate lock for the barn door, and I think I will fit either a much better lock or a door bar on the side door as well. Helpfully though the garage is way out the back and there are some quite good gates obscuring it with gruesome spikes all over them. We're looking into CCTV as well. The blinds will at least make it so the insides aren't visible as it looks quite flash with all the cabinets, although the only one with any tools in at the moment is still my original stack!
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Nov 13, 2019 18:31:28 GMT
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That looks really nice, I wonder if being thick wood they are a bit warmer inside compared to the prefab or single brick/blockwork garages? When I was younger we had a concrete garage that then got insulated, and we had a timber cabin (but with a wood floor) that we used for motorbikes at the next place. They definitely hold heat in better and they have a bit of natural insulation due to the thickness too. That's what made me go for this one over concrete prefab, my dad had a lot of condensation in his before he insulated. The cabin at the other house was quite cosy when you had the heat on a bit, and we never had any condensation in there.
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Nov 12, 2019 17:23:22 GMT
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Ah, good plan with the fall on the slab, that will help a lot. It's the standing water that rots the wood bearers, so with a fall and also guttering it should remain reasonably dry. The oil/paraffin mix will keep the bearers waterproof but will still let them breath (bugs also hate oil/paraffin) so should keep them reasonable as long as you re-treat regularly. Keep them well oiled and it should stop any water getting up to the main building wood. If you don't mind the bearers being black then old engine oil works even better as the carbon protects the wood. The bearers will actually look better black as its going to be a grey building! How fortuitous! Will definitely do that, thanks. Hopefully between that and the decent DPC under the slab (the slab is surrounded by crushed up asphalt and hardcore also for drainage and I will put some nice pretty shingle on top when I can), it will be ok. Hopefully! The building is now essentially complete, the roof is finished, the only actual bits left to do are the little diamond thingers and I want to add a shut to the right hand door for the left hand door to close against. I also managed to get a coat of treatment on one of the walls today and hope to carry on tomorrow weather permitting.
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Nov 11, 2019 18:15:03 GMT
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I would recommend Sadolin Superdec Superdec paint for the outside - looks good & seals well - not cheap mind, but good things never are. A bit late now but brick bearers are the way to go - those will rot in 5-10 years and need replacing. Also a DPC course on top of the bearers is preferable. You can oil the bearers with 50% clean engine oil & a bit of paraffin - do this twice a year and it will keep most of the rot at bay. I've got my treatment already, Bedec Barn Paint on the inside and Osmo Country Colour on the outside. It's similarly well-reviewed as SuperDec (and similarly expensive ) I wish I had put DPC under or on the bearers now, but as you say it's late for that. I wonder if there's any way I can get it under there - however the bearers are attached to the floor and the cabin is attached to the bearers. I will do as you suggest with the oil/paraffin and hope for the best. 5/10 years is a long time to work out a solution! Maybe if they do let go at some point I will work out how to jack the whole thing up and replace the bearers with a course of bricks.I suppose that if the bearers are past it, it would be possible to remove parts to enable lifting of the building and sliding under of bricks. That can be a problem for future me though! There is DPC under the concrete though, and the outside of the slab where the cabin sits is done with a slight fall all the way around the outside edge, so here's hoping that not too much water sits, but rather runs off. Guttering is certainly on the list of things to do in the near future. I'm also going to install a louvre vent with flyscreen at each end under the overhang so the building can breathe naturally, and I have an oil filled radiator in there which I'm going to be running on a timer to hopefully just keep it at a workable temperature to look after the building and the stuff inside it.
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I don’t think I could be more envious! Amazing space
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