Reckless Regal Phase 1 - The Shop

[ArthurJGuy]

I've modified many cars over the years both for myself and my friends, and due to renting and always having to be mobile I never really could settle in. I found myself with a crappy work environment using a $300 Craftsman toolbox which really limited my abilities. So after we purchased a home and my wife started bugging me to get another toy, I told her we are going to do this one the right way.

This is what I started off with. It's your standard 2 car garage, about 450 sq feet. It's dirty, there's clutter everywhere, and I hated it. I realize it's not massive but it's perfect for a 1 car operation and we live in the 'burbs so it's really all you can get. The garage was only a few years old here so to say it's lacking would be an understatement.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/m2FBdY6a5zmOrgE8_sgUpZkAkhR9IPfoSGQd1J7Q-1.jpg


The first phase was to take advantage of the space above the door. I'll need the space for storage of various things during the garage remodel, storage of car parts later, and my wife has a stash of stuff in our closet that's going up here also.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/wuDESPE0jKFI89OkkRoXHTTJbEN8hNv3VhkP1WAs-1.jpg


Next up was the lighting. I knew I'd be working out here so I optioned the house with florescent lights overhead when we built it, but they were on a separate switch. When I opened the door coming home at night all I got was a lame 55w bulb. So, I replaced the garage door switch with a home-link enabled switch with motion detector, and the light for the florescent with a home-link switch. Now any time you walk in the garage or the garage door moves the florescents kick on and you have plenty of light. As a bonus, I can control the garage door and lights from my phone now.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/5pU1D9bVWN6zzoQk7xRDWjQzfWCap_1gsjovsISu-1.jpg

[ArthurJGuy]

The next phase was to get power in to the garage. Residential garages are not designed for much more than running a leaf blower so only having 3 outlets spread out among 2 walls and the ceiling wasn't going to cut it. We added a single 110v GFI, a dual 110v down stream, a 220v for air/welding, and a 220v for A/C to be installed later.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/CWufk8K_t6b19X5KKpPPLkLBmi23zWPKNTxZGKmf-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/bGPHI5awkp1aw4DEP9_Q3I1wPaJa4MuxP0VFezwM-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/t51JZtGidPtMLYVpyiAo52BR2JZTIzHk8tVHjCBi-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/jkQ0_SbWK52XFgfHYBJzMbrmaVT0rVH9sKQmVbQN-1.jpg

[ArthurJGuy]

All of the electrical work (and my wife hitting a wall) left me with quite a bit of drywall patch work. After getting everything patched up and textured I went to work on repainting the garage. I wanted a garageish theme, semi-gloss for light reflection and for easy clean up. Side note, if you need to get a straight edge on a textured wall, frog tape is well worth the money.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/rJQi0VBLQLYirr3PEnNRh7bEpU4awZmaDsLlnJio-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/s0U423skSU5sQRYuxlfdfeNiSLShmfGg7UgXC3Wr-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/H0l7Np5waTvjXMAxKh4ZOdz1yWsW3UXQ4bqeQvD8-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/uJL1X40NHFiwGY05WHwjL0o57GfsEUKhYvMcVwG9-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/r1f6epGWayedIJR5ws4pEXk6vR_nJB1pOSBsLRVK-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/r81pylg3AjI9gZzyw88DIjk75dBvB9toS7FPHRfk-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/hH4CiPm0yzeY9QGmJO8wL281H44FNyQhSSpwRS63-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/balt1ndnGg_SV1a7SmYuim8EY5BtNJ5oQnXOPgRZ-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/yhzdMUFrDKy3qmH3VQZGGkMtWW_5HQfv_TZkhDny-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/2kHzGr9kPheQcTq5j092ZP0cwfwKafX_ATpLZlhO-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/s3MbBEemf2FhuePGy9xVGFfTWZQFbA8yO_oOfqhC-1.jpg

[ArthurJGuy]

One of the major killers of my productivity in the past was the weather. I'm in Vegas so it's not abnormal for it to be 110º+ in the summer and the garage feels a solid 20º hotter than that. So I picked up a Frigidaire 12,000 BTU through the wall air conditioner and got it installed. This thing is amazing, it's been in the low 100's and it's not hard to get my garage into the 70's in just a few hours.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/wFgDKN2NOxdwOWEiZdai4irSbzxn9Qj8CRioZWag-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/8jUncVoyEv08GydvnJpQl2z5GFY88rYGh7KBP6m_-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/K7DvYSPrbaJIRckRNW3HXvhAAwsInAVfesB7hBIE-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/whyvWWFl4bFkDKoOXbW7RUfHqt58vrbPCEFniD2x-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/aL0axjurPwp2Ee4PLYNqMgHlASICOiAfNYiASE1O-1.jpg


I also decided to insulate the garage door to try to keep the heat out as much as possible.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/DvEcMX8tAdlfx5zik4XQeZYa4ybOyuHlHKGQSRBy-1.jpg

[ArthurJGuy]

One of my other annoyances with track homes is the control joints on the garage floor, I hate cleaning them and dealing with them so they needed to go away. A little foamcore backer rod, a little Sikaflex, and boom no more control joints.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/aM9HW5VYxt3GKfVZP4xS6AppjiI9X8lo2R8q1vgc-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/Ff5HzzTtEuhOxYGpyBONTW6r8yiP8eWHQ1zNDafi-1.jpg



I couldn't leave it like that, and I wanted to protect the concrete, so I put down an epoxy coat. I started with a good pressure wash, followed by a muratic acid etch (the good stuff ,not the powder the home depot floor kits include), followed with another pressure wash. I used Rustoleum Industrial (solvent based, not water based) and put down two coats, follow by a coat of clear with the anti-skid additive. I had to buy flake that had the colors I wanted and I went full retard, this is four bags of flakes.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/u2RX4mrhbUC72t7QMgEdqU8Y1PGyJo0_DvN5V06l-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/gVweak7AldlM42JZ8I5ZXGUHpvktvx6D2E6aPPFL-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/iOB1uhqMQR_C8Py82dprzNFb8ar_zk4iE45Fwrle-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/vGuKy_gKe06yOt3W0zz96bN2H1jY4B6GvVejqQu2-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/psd1NFXbRmapf2YK_DE6zWzsrmJXdPcT0QSbJyF6-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/uv_tKhQWmEQMRxrRQGazgv94gN9IlZvAxjcEupLF-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/BdEQb8gv6KK1TZdlywmf_iLwa5i7Vo1dVH_qPYCF-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/j7jN4j52bj7ZbUd4mHgB6pJ9cIjlOR7GI3zOGQRg-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/Ir_D1ghkBmGrRMGGvzLJVy5CSCikrwzq2IcPZTK1-1.jpg

[ArthurJGuy]

The epoxy has had a few weeks to cure now so I'm starting to move my stuff into the garage, I'm also finishing up painting all the edging and trim pieces. This is my most current update as of now.

I wall mounted a 27" TV and picked up an Android USB stick for it. This gives me internet access to look up anything I may need without having to clean up and go in the house and it also gives me access to my music library or streaming services. (Ignore the wiring, it's still a work in progress)

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/_6f19AS68LruNXueIfGjnMq6bGVJPu5GaYcLor7m-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/889d3ANSmfCAAzTp3Cf6ZbyYK4rrZq156MrpCXh5-1.jpg



I also picked up three Craftsman HD wall mount cabinets for storage. The cabinets them selves are decent but everyone I dealt with was a pain in the ass and they were surprisingly hard to get ahold of.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/9wBkvs38nIWamvsza6W8rA1ae8QBQJNKWXsT3o4U-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/0wu_U517UWDGjnygrvr17DU87Y67nWh66Gn5nBlT-1.jpg



My latest purchase just this past weekend is this Craftsman 19 drawer tool box, no more portable $300 box for me! I need to adjust the casters so that it sits level but I still have to finish some paint work first, so it'll come soon.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/UcyIBarRLIPHH8PfPLfahejQiC1LaQyPu0Xc3kP2-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/iLZb6Bq2XfOglvWtGn854K6gAF1O_PY9qInlTjct-1.jpg

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2015/06/5IoBPpLDZZvvfgumaEa1ekNqjRL36tNP6ptU9DG6-1.jpg


That's all I got for now.

[aps63]

Looks like a great start to a new project. Make your next purchase an air compressor. You'll never know how you lived without one. By the way, great color combo.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2014/10/MySpace_zps91faf526-1.jpg

[daredvl22]

Looks great. I remember when I laid down a fresh coat of epoxy, flake, and anti-slip on my floors. They're still holding up well, but after years of dragging rear-ends, transmissions, etc. etc., they're starting to look a little rough. Maybe it's time to redo them!

Love the color scheme!