Am I crazy to commute an hour to my shop?

[mikedc]

What the title says.


I'm considering renting shop space 60 minutes away from me. I'm in the suburbs and it's way out in the boonies. Is this a crazy idea? (I have a few days a week off work and I would go out there for the whole day, maybe spend some nights. I'm not trying to squeeze in shop-time on weekday evenings after work or anything.)

I have lived in somewhat rural areas before, but I'm not used to locating the base of my car-hobby operations so far from an urban center. Are there many unseen pitfalls & expenses to this beyond the long commute? The place is not far from a SMALL town, but it's way out from anywhere with an airport and a baseball team.


The first thing that occurs to me is that I would need to devote more space to storing raw materials & shop supplies, since it's a bigger trip to go get them. Anything else?

[prosuperstar]

First and foremost I would spend a week in that area in a disclosed location, possibly a hotel motel not letting anyone your close with know where you are. Visually inspect regular local activity flow,and common everyday events. I'd also monitor traffic entering and leaving the area making sure to take notice to the license plates counties or states, that way you can get an idea of how widespread the areas information travels. After getting a good personal view I'd look into personal connections in that area being careful not to give too much information about why you are there, what you posses and why your weary. If possible I'd have a wireless surveillance system installed that you can monitor on your smartphone, laptop and home computer directly in sync with whatever home security company is in the area. All of this is just precautions to take when your that far away from very valuable assets.

[mikedc]

I'm not really too worried about theft at this point. The shop is in an industrial park and I know someone who has kept stuff there before. Theft is always a possibility, but it could have just as easily happened when my stuff was stored only a few miles from home too. You're never really safe. Not even when it's in your own backyard.

[SparkyRnD]

I would say look for something much closer. An hour away means minimum of two hours drive time, which cuts into your time at the shop. That also negates being able to easily leave work, go to the shop, and return home in the same evening. Look for storage facilities near you that have 20x30 bays and card / keypad access. Many of the units that size also have electricity, so you can have lights and run fans or other tools. Another benefit of a closer location is you can easily drive by to check the lot, your storage door, lock, and make sure everything is as it should be.

[Neil B]

I did this when I was living in San Francisco. Shop space was not affordable in the city so I rented a space in Fairfield, CA which was about an hour away. When I went to Fairfield to work on the race car, it was an all-day commitment. These were my 'shop days'. It forces you to plan your work and compress lots of activities into a single session. I did this for several years. My shop neighbor was a chassis dyno operator and he looked after things for me when I wasn't around. The only drawback for me was when I had to drive north to Fairfield to pick up the car and trailer and then head south for a race - that added a few hours on each end of an already long race weekend.

[DRJDVM's '69]

Sounds like it will get old real fast....

[andrewb70]

Sounds like it will get old real fast....

Agreed!

Andrew

[wayne70]

Yes it will get old quick, and the price of gas going up it will dig a deep hole in your pocket.

[Tig]

Sounds like it will get old real fast....

x2 nuff said

[Twentyover]

Man, I have trouble walking 150 feet down to the barn!

[BonzoHansen]

Too far

[Featherburner]

The commute will be a built in excuse not to go work on your junk! Find something closer.

[TheJDMan]

The only way it would be worth the drive is if the rent is stupidly low.

[mikedc]

Thanks for the feedback everyone.



I would love to choose something closer but the deal just isn't there. Everything closer is literally 2x the money for only 50-70% of the space. Even those places are still 20-40 minutes from my home, and in much worse overall shape than the 1-hr shop.


I have already lived with a 1/2 hour commute to my last shop and it didn't totally ruin the usability of it. I am seriously considering going the full hour.

[Mr.VENGEANCE]

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

[Neil B]

I don't share the popular opinion here. Do what you've got to do. It was my only option in San Francisco due to rental rates. It can be done, so don't let it keep you from your passion. Just be prepared for all-day shop days to minimize the back and forth.

[04ctd]

i think planning is the key.

i have totally change my work paradigm. i used to list stuff out for a week, then stop at Advance, pick up stuff & wait, and then go home, change clothes & start work.


NOW, i make a LIST of all the jobs/work/little parts.

log onto www.advanceautoparts.com and order everything shipped to the HOUSE.
and when i get home, i eat, change clothes, and then get to work. and i save several hours.

and if you are over $100, you can get $20~$30 off the total by googling coupon codes.
you can save enough that way to pay for gas, and not waste time at parts store on your off days

what about family time? home maintenance?

do what you gotta do.

[JEFFTATE]

I wouldn't do it , unless you have no other space available .
The 2 hr drive will kill your productivity ..