Budget garage workshop build/bodge

[pinchmeimdreamin]

Let me start by saying I am purely a DIYer so don’t expect too much
I love working with wood so decided to update my garage workspace, sadly I’m not a Powerfully built company director so had to be on the cheap.

Garage is 6m x 3.5m with cupboards I knocked up along the back wall, so leaving me 5.5m to play with, I figured I could squeeze in a 3.5m bench down either side.





So bit of searching on marketplace I managed to get 35 lengths of 2.4 mtr 3x2 and 15 lengths of 3 mtr 6x1 for £160 delivered.
Bit of a bonus was he didn’t have 3 mtr 6x1 in stock so gave me 15 x 3.6 mtr for the same price.

So made a start today, basic plan this side is to make 2 x 1.5m benches with Mitre saw in the middle flush with the worktop.






Mocked up the top for the mitre saw section with some off cuts to get measurements right



Drawers and cupboards underneath will decide later as I’m going to build a trolley for my table saw with casters to roll underneath somewhere.

Not bad for the first day I don’t think.

Feel free to laugh at and mock my skill levels, as I said I do it for fun only

[Chumley.mouse]

Watching with interest ….. love a bit of diy.

[jimothyc]

Nice work, looking to do similar to mine. Just need to work out what to do with the rails on the back of my mitre saw. Thinking of maybe a slide out section for when it’s in use.

[pinchmeimdreamin]

jimothyc said:

Nice work, looking to do similar to mine. Just need to work out what to do with the rails on the back of my mitre saw. Thinking of maybe a slide out section for when it s in use.

My mitre saw does slide, that’s it positioned fully back with 2” clearance to the wall, I may actually pull it forward a bit thinking about it, so any wood I’m cutting doesn’t catch on the Drill ( hadn’t really thought about that )

Will do a mock up tomorrow and see.

[Andeh1]

Keep us updated! Looks good.

[TA14]

It would be best to brace it at the rear to stiffen it up. Just 1/4" ply a foot deep would make a big difference to stability, 3/8" even better.

[pinchmeimdreamin]

TA14 said:

It would be best to brace it at the rear to stiffen it up. Just 1/4" ply a foot deep would make a big difference to stability, 3/8" even better.

The problem is, it’s a concrete sectional garage so really hard to get a decent fixing in.

I did wonder if their is a fixing that would grip in the joints between the concrete sections ?

[TA14]

pinchmeimdreamin said:

TA14 said:

It would be best to brace it at the rear to stiffen it up. Just 1/4" ply a foot deep would make a big difference to stability, 3/8" even better.

The problem is, it s a concrete sectional garage so really hard to get a decent fixing in.

I did wonder if their is a fixing that would grip in the joints between the concrete sections ?

Yes, I wouldn't bother trying to attach to the concrete - it's very dense and hard to avoid drilling into the rebar. What I meant was bracing the two horizontal timber beams at the back of your workbench. (you can also do it with a diagonal member but it's much easier and stronger to attach a sheet.

[pinchmeimdreamin]

TA14 said:

pinchmeimdreamin said:

TA14 said:

It would be best to brace it at the rear to stiffen it up. Just 1/4" ply a foot deep would make a big difference to stability, 3/8" even better.

The problem is, it s a concrete sectional garage so really hard to get a decent fixing in.

I did wonder if their is a fixing that would grip in the joints between the concrete sections ?

Yes, I wouldn't bother trying to attach to the concrete - it's very dense and hard to avoid drilling into the rebar. What I meant was bracing the two horizontal timber beams at the back of your workbench. (you can also do it with a diagonal member but it's much easier and stronger to attach a sheet.

Oh I see what you mean, I wissgoing to ad more braces to the rear when I decide which will be cupboards drawers etc, do you think a diagonal brace on each side would be better ?

[TA14]

pinchmeimdreamin said:

TA14 said:

pinchmeimdreamin said:

TA14 said:

It would be best to brace it at the rear to stiffen it up. Just 1/4" ply a foot deep would make a big difference to stability, 3/8" even better.

The problem is, it s a concrete sectional garage so really hard to get a decent fixing in.

I did wonder if their is a fixing that would grip in the joints between the concrete sections ?

Yes, I wouldn't bother trying to attach to the concrete - it's very dense and hard to avoid drilling into the rebar. What I meant was bracing the two horizontal timber beams at the back of your workbench. (you can also do it with a diagonal member but it's much easier and stronger to attach a sheet.

Oh I see what you mean, I wissgoing to ad more braces to the rear when I decide which will be cupboards drawers etc, do you think a diagonal brace on each side would be better ?

You could brace below the bottom rail diagonally to the foot of the next leg. I don't like that solution because trying to get 3/4/5 fixings/large screws in a small area and have them effective is not as good as fixing a sheet however the diagonal rail is the traditional solution.

[pinchmeimdreamin]

Bit more progress today.
Worktop is on, will sand it a bit smoother in the end, first couple of shelves for some drawers I had from an old unit and first cupboard boarded out.

I may need to dip into the budget again for the cupboard doors ( I’m thinking plywood will be cheapest option )

Tomorrow hopefully I can build the table saw table and get the electrics over to that side.

[OutInTheShed]

pinchmeimdreamin said:

The problem is, it s a concrete sectional garage so really hard to get a decent fixing in.

I did wonder if their is a fixing that would grip in the joints between the concrete sections ?

My Dad had such a garage for a while.

The best way we found to fix anything was to cut one of the bolts that hold the sections together, replace it with threaded rod/studding, and either add a bracket on the end or a thin bit of steel in the gap.
This was before 'gripfill' etc was known about in Somerset.