Homeowners tend to take immense pride in the upkeep of their property, and for that reason a lot of them end up wanting to build something resembling a home workshop. This is no easy task, as you’ll need to designate space for the shop and then set it up as a place where you can work on projects and do repairs. But even if you don’t want to build an extension to your home or set up a standalone shed in the yard, you might be able to address your desire for a workshop simply by making some changes to an existing garage.
Clean Up Your Storage
The first order of business will be to maximise the amount of space available in your garage. A lot of us have relatively spacious garages that are cluttered with junk. Sometimes several years’ worth of accumulation of said junk! Doing a thorough cleaning and getting organised with storage can reveal just how much space you have and enable you to set up a work shop your own way. In a piece on organisation tips for a garage, DIY & Crafts focuses largely on the ideas of hanging racks and verticality where storage is concerned, but there are also some nice tips there about how to make the area look and feel a little more comfortable as well.
Collect DIY Equipment
Storage doesn’t much matter if you don’t have the proper tools and equipment to actually bother storing! This means making sure that you have a thorough and properly maintained toolkit, as well as any and all additional accessories for your projects. For instance, if you plan to do a lot of woodworking you may want a power saw and sanding materials. Screwfix describes a wide range of usefuls tools that can even be used for an variety of jobs, no matter what you’re looking to do in your new workshop. And there are any number of additional power tools and accessories that might come in handy for a variety of jobs. Do some thinking about what you’d like to use the workshop for, and stock up on the materials you need.
Address Electricity
One of the only drawbacks to using a garage as a workshop is that it might have inadequate electrical outlets and overhead lighting. Both of these details are mentioned by Lifehacker in an article specifically about transforming a garage into a workshop, and both need to be addressed before you can get a whole lot done. Yes, there are some crude solutions like bringing in high-powered lanterns or running extension cords around the perimeter to charge your equipment as needed. But as the article recommends, it’s best to actually solve these problems by installing additional power outlets and, if necessary, permanent lighting. You’ll be glad you’ve done it if you start spending significant time in your new workshop.
Don’t Forget Comfort
You don’t have a whole lot of space to dedicate to comfort—after all, you aren’t building a lounge—but a few little touches to make the workshop more enjoyable and comfortable can go a long way. For instance, you might want to invest in a stool with a back and armrests rather than a typical workbench chair. You might also consider smaller things, like a miniature refrigerator stocked with refreshing beverages, or a sound system to keep you entertained while you work. In short, the focus should be on productivity, but a little touch here or there for your own satisfaction can make it that much more fun to get to work.
