Garage Envy No More... (sort of)

[surfguitar58]

I live in a nice 200 year old house in a quaint seaside town, which has its benefits, but unfortunately I am without a garage, until now!

I have always had a serious case of garage envy when you guys show pics of your nicely appointed workshop/garage bays with lifts, neatly organized tools and classic racing posters (I'm looking at you, Certified). Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever had a decent garage to work in. When I lived in San Francisco I remember replacing the drive shaft on my bimmer with 2 wheels on the curb in front of my apartment, only to see a shiny black pair of police boots and a voice saying "you can't do that here".

Enter the "garage in a box", my new 16' x 20' sort-of waterproof garage tent! It may look primitive, but with a plywood floor an some Harbor Freight jackstands, floor jack and creeper I feel like king of the back yard mechanics! I've already installed my Pertronix distributor and coil, installed my uprated fuel pump, fitted my customized boot box, done a bunch of overdue regular maintenance items and I'm zeroing in on my intermittent starter problem. This may seem like a real snooze to those who tear down and rebuilt an engine before lunch, but it is zen bliss for me.

Cheers,
Tom

[Certified Lotus]

Congrats Tom! Any type of garage is a sports car enthusiasts cherished environment. Now all you need are two chairs and a small refrigerator for beer when friends come over so you can talk about all the work that is going to be done 

If you ever come to Princeton I will donate a sports car poster for your new garage!

[Rosco5000]

Looks great!  One word of caution if it gets windy make sure you have some ground anchors in.  Ask me how I know...  I had a really flat side on my Austin Mini roof from one of those mounted to a 2X10 base board like you have.     I have used them a lot since and it is a great place to keep the elements off your car.
Ross

[BDA]

Congratulations! That will be much better place to work on your baby! Hopefully soon, you can graduate to permanent building!

[dakazman]

 That should keep you warm and dry and maybe air conditioned. I wish I had that when I was building my house. The real question is when is the big screen going in?  16 x20 Wow!
  Your Europa looks to be in  really nice condition.
Dakazman

[surfguitar58]

Actually I misspoke, it is 12' x 20', not 16' x 20'. Still feels like the Taj Mahal to me.
t

[4129R]

Looks great!  One word of caution if it gets windy make sure you have some ground anchors in. 

My one has ripped badly on the roof where the cover passes over the roof poles, and the entrance flap has also ripped badly, due to wind damage.

Do not expect it to last long, or be waterproof.

[surfguitar58]

Looks great!  One word of caution if it gets windy make sure you have some ground anchors in. 

My one has ripped badly on the roof where the cover passes over the roof poles, and the entrance flap has also ripped badly, due to wind damage.

Do not expect it to last long, or be waterproof.

Points well taken. I don't expect this thing to last through a New England winter. Fortunately a friend has a climate controlled storage garage I use for winter storage. The smart thing to do would be to disassemble it in the fall and put it back up in the summer. Also to lay a sacrificial tarp over the top of the tent to keep UV damage at bay. My friend in Maine (where they get a lot more snow than here) says he gets about 5 seasons out of these by tarping over and adding carlins (structural cross members), otherwise they just collapse under the weight of snow.

As for anchoring, I am staked all around, but the driveway I'm in is crushed stone, and stake or screw anchors provide minimal holding. I have been thinking I would augment with sandbags, but again, not winter storm worthy.

Tom

[dakazman]

A potbelly stove install that would take care of the snow buildup. We tarped over an aircraft one year,  actually a parachute,  up north and got the aircraft out after cracking a wing spar . We kept heater units going 24/7.
Dakazman

[surfguitar58]

Pot belly stove, wide screen TV, beer fridge and chairs, I like how you guys think! 
t

[Certified Lotus]

No TV in my garage. But I have a rockin sound system built in 

[gideon]

Surf, I have a similar, but smaller, tent for my lawn tractor, snow blower, etc.  It has stood up just fine to at least 3 northern NJ winters (maybe more, I forget).  I didn't do anything to protect it other than putting it up, and occasionally checking the ratchet straps.  I just let the snow sit on it.  It does have one rip in it now over one of the roof poles that I should probably patch.  I'll get at least 5 years use out of it, and at that price it's a bargain.