Eeny weeny teeny weeny shop

[Jesse]

Hey folks,

I've got what is possibly the smallest shop I've ever heard of - the skinny half of a one car garage (about 6'x18 for the shop). Who here is dealing with similar circumstances, and what solutions have you come up with to get everything to fit? Right now I just bring everything out to the yard under a canopy as needed, but winter comes quick around here, so that won't be a good long term solution.

Here's a list of what needs to fit:

Work bench

9" lathe (table mounted)

8" grinder

12" bandsaw

Benchtop tablesaw

Lumber rack

Benchtop planer

Benchtop jointer

Miter saw

Clamps, clamps, clamps, and also some more clamps for when I need a few extra

Hand tools (chisels, planes, scrapers, mallets, layout tools...)

Shop vac/dust collector

Air compressor(s)

Nail guns

Power tools...

Routers (table and handheld)

Bits, blades, and other miscellany

I think it's possible.

Right now there are two poorly utilized shelves on the back wall, two work benches on the right wall (stuffed to the gills above and below), and the lumber/sheet goods rack just in front of those. The left side of the garage is off limits - we won't even go there!

I'm thinking the first thing is the big shelves in the back have got to go. There are a mess of power tools, some lumber, and some random turning blanks on them. I think this stuff can be organized a lot better if integrated throughout the shop.

Another thought I'm having is to build a woodshed out behind the garage. I'd like to make this multipurpose for both storage and for air drying lumber as well. Does anyone know what kind of issues I might expect from storing wood this way, or have ideas on doing it better?

[PaulMarcel]

Do you have rafters above you? Is there an outbuilding next to the garage?

Typing aloud:

My previous 14" bandsaw was a short saw on a cabinet; it would have been easy to make a new cabinet and bolt the saw to that cabinet. Likely you can do the same with your 12".

Lumber can go in the rafters; some others have posted pictures of that here.

If you get a mobile base like the ones for drum sanders (see this pic). A lunchbox planer fits snuggly in the bottom and you could put the jointer on top. Still easy to use both and when on wheels, you can more easily stow it maybe outside the 6x18. Alternatively, get a benchtop combo machine, though I've heard bad things about the benchtop combos (but the Internet has an echo).

If you want an air compressor for nail guns, compressed CO2 is very small, portable, and can even be used with framing guns unlike many smaller compressors.

Depending on how you build your bench, you could leave a recessed opening the size of a router table plate. Mine comes with inserts for the opening including a 'blank' plate with no hole; I have that one in my table when not in use (it's in a tablesaw wing).

Build the bench with drawers down low and a shelf above that; bits, blades, etc go in drawers, tools (hand & power) go on the shelf.

Rockler has an interesting wall-mounted portable DC. It will keep up with a lunchbox planer and you could put it in about any corner or hung high up.

The reason I asked about the outbuilding is that it would be perfect for lumber storage; maybe not so much sheet goods unless you use them relatively quickly. Just sticker the boards there. If you are air drying really green wood in there, you'll have pretty high humidity in the building, which won't be good for the other dry stuff.

It's all possible; you just have to come up with a layout and set of tools that will work without being such a nuisance that it deters you from enjoying it all.

[usacomp2k3]

I have about a quarter of a 2-car garage (half the wide & half the depth). The tablesaw gets pulled into the driveway, as does cutting down any ply. I built the door split so that I can use the bottom half as an infeed to the RAS or chop-saw. Everything else is handheld tools.

[Onboard]

Andrew Barton’s portable workshop. It may not be what you would want to build but there may be some ideas there. The first set of pictures is the portable workshop, and the second set of pictures show some projects built using the portable workshop. The whole thing sits on a 2'x6' frame on wheels.

[Jesse]

@Paul-Marcel - The rafters are already filled with construction materials. Just built a 4'x6' garden shed to get all that stuff out, but planning to build a wood shed out behind he garage for air drying. I like having the sheet goods and good hardwoods close at hand in the shop.

@AJ Peck - By split doors do you mean dutch doors with the lower cut to the height of the RAS and miter saw tables? Cool!

@Onboard - I like it! I could use a couple tables like these, built to the same height for infeed/outfeed support. The TS, router table, planer and jointer make sense going together on one. The lathe, grinder, bandsaw and miter saw would probably get along nicely together on the other. Some of these could be fliptop too.

Also, I have to balance anything I build in the shop with enough flexibility that I can take all the tools out to jobs every week, and back home for the weekend. I won't be wheeling any fridge sized workstations into a customer's home, so it will be ideal to make everything modular enough that I don't need separate setups for jobsites and the shop. Hmmm.

[usacomp2k3]

Exactly. Works perfectly too. I've got about 5.5' between the right of the RAS & the wall and about 2' to the left before the door. I can chop most any length from there.

[Onboard]

Also, I have to balance anything I build in the shop with enough flexibility that I can take all the tools out to jobs every week, and back home for the weekend. I won't be wheeling any fridge sized workstations into a customer's home, so it will be ideal to make everything modular enough that I don't need separate setups for jobsites and the shop. Hmmm.

It may be a long shot, but if you can find a copy of America's Best Home Workshops 2010 (by Wood magazine), on page 129 (don't torment yourself by looking at the shops prior to this page), is an article called "The Complete Shop on Wheels". Unfortunately the author does not seem to have any pictures or information on the web. If you can find a copy, on page 131 he shows a workbench he created for jobsite work. He can set up several tools on it depending on what he needs to do and it has collapsible extension wings on either side of the middle section. The whole table folds up nice and compact. It may be something of use for your jobsite work (????). Page 132 , 133 & 134 show his table with various tools mounted on it.

[TheNehlsEnd]

While I can't say that I have your problem, at least at this time. I had a friend who's shop was smaller it was a 6x10 or 12. He was faced with your dilemma. His solution to the problem was to add on a 4x4 room if you could call it that. He had so much stuff in there on shelves sort of like a tool crib. Surprisingly this opened up his work area a lot. Everything sat on shelves and was all with in plain site.

[areynoldsre]

I've got a similar problem. I have an 'inside' shop space 12x10 (not part of a garage, but a weird little part of the carport that a past owner framed in) and a carport area about the same size which is enclosed by a fence and a gate. I don't have as many tools but I've got a lot of scrap lumber (plywood mostly) and not a real good storage solution.

My game plan so far has been to put every big tool on a mobile base and to improve my storage. I use the inside space mostly for storage and move tools out the carport area when working. The problems with this are time and weather. I always have to add 30 minutes to any work to allow for moving of tools. Since most of my work area is outside there are a couple of months of the year I can't work. I am in California so it's not as bad as some you that live with that thing, what's it called, um snow?

There is a small side yard next to my shop that I've been thinking of building a lumber storage shed but I'm still a bit unsure about that. I could solve part of my storage problem by just finishing a project or two.

[PaulMarcel]

As another thought, I've seen some ridiculously efficient worksite vans complete with shelves, work areas, holding areas, "power/air" centers, etc Not to suggest moving into a van; that would be so 70s. But that's an even smaller space; yes, they work outside the van, but many times the open end of the van has special attachments to make quickly-deployed work surfaces. The best ones I've seen were in European vans, which fit in the glovebox of American vans.

[flairwoodworks]

In a recent issue of Canadian Woodworking magazine, there was an article about a shop that is less than 5' high (crawlspace). The woodworker is 6' tall. He sits in an office chair.

[Stampy]

Here's the link to my shop it's 10 x 16 on the outside there's a few pictures further down that might help you out.

Not sure why it's not showing up in the list of topics?

Cheers

Stampy

[Jesse]

Thanks for all the input so far! I've made some huge mental leaps in the past few days figuring out how to make it all work.

@Onboard - I don't have that magazine (maybe my local library does?), but can visualize what you mean. I'm doing built-ins more and more these days, and have invested in a Rousseau stand for my table saw (http://www.rousseauco.com/model2745.htm). I use it much the same way, and am also adding a router plate in the extension table. One of my upcoming projects is shelving in the van with a slot for the folded stand to tuck away in.

@Gregn - As I have done more research on similar small shops, I've become much more optimistic about fitting it all into the tiny space. It is now looking like I don't have such a bad space afterall. I guess it's all relative

@Andrew - I definitely feel your pain for all the time lost to repetitive tool setup and teardown! At first I was opposed to the mobile bases because it seemed the entire space would be overflowing with a sea of tool bases. I've since seen the light of making combination mobile bases/workstations. More to come on that.

@Paul-Marcel - Properly equipping my van will be a big piece of this project. I'll try and remember to take some before and after photos to share for this as well.

@Flairwoodworks - I'm 6'4", and luckily do not have to worry about headroom. That story makes me feel really grateful for the space I've got!

@Stampy - Nice shop!

Well, the plan at the moment is to use 3 mobile workstations:

Workstation 1:

Tablesaw and router in Rousseau stand on a mobile base (footprint about 30"x54"). Shop vac (my only dust collection so far) and bin for blades, bits and attachments will sit on a shelf below. This station will stay set up in the shop, and easily breaks down to go to a job.

Workstation 2:

Lathe, bench grinder, bandsaw and drillpress. I will use the current bench that the lathe is mounted to (base about 66"x24") Lathe goes on one long side, grinder on the short end, and bandsaw and drill press on the opposite side from the lathe. The table will spin 360 on locking casters to get to the lathe when needed. Underneath the tabletop is room for air compressor, nail guns, and power tools.

Workstation 3:

Planer, jointer and miter saw. The base will be about 24"x36". The planer will sit low in the center of the base and can be used from there. The jointer (6" benchtop model) and miter saw will sit at the top on opposite sides, so I just rotate the base 180 to get to each. I will mount them each so their tables are at the same height as the tablesaw top. This way I can use the tablesaw/router table as outfeeds or work supports.

Having everything on casters will let me put in some shallow shelves on both walls (having half the garage, I only have 2 walls available) for hand tools, jigs, etc.

I'm getting really excited about this now! It feels like it's going to work great! One of the best parts is I don't have to invest much to make all these changes since I'm basically putting what I already have on wheels. I picked up a bunch of 3/4" plywood, and some 3" locking casters today for about $80, and that should be about all I need.

I'll try to remember to post some before pics in the next couple days. I'd like to document this project the whole way through