New storage racks for the garage

[Jerry]

I am getting my new garage ready for some storage as we move and downsize to half the size of the previous house. The good news is that the garage is now larger. A 28 X 60 metal building. I would like to know if any of you have some great storage racks or cabinets that you have put in that will organize the place.

Jerry

 

[PC]

I love industrial wire shelving. You see it used a lot in warehousing, manufacturing and commercial food service. It's rugged, easy to set up, easy to reconfigure and stays clean. In addition to placing items on the open shelves or in boxes you can also hang stuff on hooks. It comes in a variety of finishes, chrome, epoxy paint, galvanized and stainless.

The American made products like Intermetro or NEXEL are the highest quality and come in a huge variety of shapes and sizes but are priced accordingly. Offshore manufactured knock-offs are much less expensive. They're available in fewer configurations and are of reasonably good quality.

American stuff is available from Industrial House, The Container Store, Griot's and any number of industrial suppliers. Offshore products are available at Costco, home centers and chain stores.


PC.

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[Jerry]

good links on the storage racks. I already have 3 of these and they are full. I am trying to decide to buy more open racks or go with something that has a door so you don't have to look at all my junk. If I get it organised to start, it may stay that way.

 

[Bugeye58]

[ QUOTE ]
If I get it organised to start, it may stay that way.

[/ QUOTE ]

Dream on, grasshopper!!!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif

Jeff

 

[PC]

I keep the small stuff in plastic storage bins. They provide high storage density but they're still easy to get into when stacked no more than two high on a shelf (one high is preferable). Being translucent you can tell what's inside them if you're up close but standing back they look fairly tidy on open shelving. They do a good job keeping out dust and rodents.

Cabinets can be preferable for some items. There are tons of outfits advertising "garage cabinets" these days. Must be an in thing. When you actually look at what they're selling it's usually the lowest grade particleboard cabinetry. Looks tolerable at a distance but not sturdy enough for serious gearhead use. Any cabinetmaker can build decent quality melamine coated or paint grade MDF or plywood cabinets at a reasonable cost.

For closed cabinets I would tend to lean toward metal, especially for flammable chemicals. Industrial metal storage cabinets can get pretty pricey. Sometimes you can find good deals through industrial liquidators. Office grade metal cabinets aren't as sturdy but are generally stronger than cheap consumer cabinets. Look for an office furniture liquidator for used units or check with Office Depot, Staples, Costco, etc for new ones.

For drawer storage I like to use steel tool chests and roll-aways. They're rugged, portable, reasonably priced at Sears and Home Depot and there's no installation. I line the drawers with the ribbed vinyl floor mat they sell by the yard at Home Depot, Lowes, OSH, etc.

If you mount casters on the wire shelving you can pack them tighter together because you don't need to allow enough space to walk around each one. Just roll out the one you need and roll it back when you're done. (Here in earthquake country always remember to lock the casters.)


PC.

 

[Jerry]

They are pouring the concrete on Wednesday of next week. Then we have to put up a front wall and hang garage doors. I think half the place will be used for extra funiture storage for awile. We are moving from a large house to one half the size.

 

[Jerry]

Well, I now have a concrete floor, boy is concrete expensive right now. Everybody says we are shipping it to China and that raised the price.

How many of you paint your garage floors?

I bought some used Rapid racks. 8 feet tall , 6 feet wide and 30 inches deep for $120 each. They will hold 600 lbs per shelf. I think I will go with the plastic bin idea also.

We finished putting up the front wall so we can get the garage doors put on. Then we will move in in about two weeks and have someplace to put all the extra stuff we accumulated in the last 10 years from the previous move. What fun, it was 101 degrees yesterday when we were working. I finally told my wife at 4pm that we were quiting, I can't survive that heat.

Jerry

 

[Ken G]

Jerry's question about painting garage floors spurs me to ask whether there is anything you can use to seal concrete against oil drips, preferably without huge amounts of preparation. I have trays under my car, but oil manages to escape. I spent hours a year ago cleaning off the oil, but it's back. It would be nice to be able simply to wipe it off.

Ken G, 1925 Rover 16/50 (San Francisco)

 

[tony barnhill]

"...something that has a door..."

In my garage I have a 20x20 room that I use as a clean room...a local apartment complex was updating so I bought all their old kitchen cabinets...hung the uppers all around 3 sides of the room over work benches...over time, I've removed most of the doors because they blocked my being able to just look up to where something was stored, be it a tool or part or whatever....eventually I think all the doors will go

 

[Jim Weatherford]

My garage project... now I have a 8'X 8' World Class Darkroom, 8'X 16'Enclosed Storage and the remaining square footage is now my garage and work space.

I have been purchasing used wire rack storage for about 6 months and I now have enough for my planned storage. I have paid from $40. to $8. per unit, all of them fully serviceable, exactly what I wanted. Plastic storage bins with tops serve for dry storage as well.

 

[78Z]

I have all my tools in an old dresser than the wife deemed too ugly for the house. Works reasonably well. We also have two metal shelving units that I use for parts, paints, etc.

 

[Jerry]

I bought 7 racks for the new garage. They are 30 inches deep, 8 feet tall, 6 feet wide and have 5 shelves. They are all full already. Those cabinets I had in the old garage must have held more than I thought!

I think the problem is the household stuff that my wife says goes to "storage". I told her that storage= garage and there is not enough room for the extras.

No more car stuff till it gets organized.

Jerry

 

[Yellowdog]

[ QUOTE ]
It would be nice to be able simply to wipe it off.


[/ QUOTE ]

Ken,

There are dozens of products on the market for garage floors and most of them get a bad rap because the prep work was not done right. Sort of like that new $5,000 paint job on the car, without the right preparation, it will look like one of Earl Schieb's $29.95 specials. Remember him? "In by 9, out by 5"

I have seen the new Behr system (3 steps I think) used in a friends shop and while it is a bit time consuming, it appears that it might hold up.

Several years ago I designed a building for UPS and they had a rather unique system. A mixture of linseed and mineral oil was mopped out in a thin coat. They would then run a heavy, high speed floor buffer over it with a very rough textured pad. This was no lick-and-a-kiss buffing, they actually burned the oils into the concrete. The result is a floor that is very easy to clean and that vitually nothing sticks to. Only problem seemed to be that they had to re-buff about once a month or the floor would get very slippery when wet. I have know idea why that made it less slick, one would think it would make it worse.

I did this to all the garages and shops at the houses we have owned since then and I can attest to the fact that it works. Since I did not have all the truck traffic, I only did the re-buff thing about once a year. Not maintenance free, but what is?