Is it a good idea to set up and do woodworking in the back yard as opposed to in a garage? It's really the only option I have, since my garage is very small, has no windows, and no electricity.
- posted
14 years ago
Is it a good idea to set up and do woodworking in the back yard as opposed to in a garage? It's really the only option I have, since my garage is very small, has no windows, and no electricity.
Your backyard has windows and electricity?
Seriously, no reason why you can't, but you'll of course be limited by weather conditions and have to put everything away after each session. Outdoor finishing wouldn't be a good idea because of falling leaves, pollen, insects, etc.
B.
Depends on where you are. Arizona, probably fine. Seattle, probably not so fine.
Yes if your a wood carver or whittler, other than that seems impractical to bring out equipment and put away each time, why can't you have the tools against the wall in the garage and move the car and bring out what you need? I've seen many work shops laid out like this in magazines that tailor to the small shop.
Good luck, Rich
Sure, why not? Depending on where you live, it can be a bitch cutting and milling in January snow though.
OTOH, many years ago on my first trip out tot he hot southwest, I was amazed at how many auto shops had no walls, lifts outside, etc.
For the most part, if you can make shade and maintain airflow, the heat is not that bad. During the monsoon season, when the humidity goes up, that doesn't work so well, but up until that point, it's amazing what a little airflow and shade can do for comfort.
As long as you have a way to keep your tools, especially power tools, under cover during bad weather you should be okay. I drag my WorkMate into the driveway and work outside quite a bit when the weather is nice.
Len
Very good idea weather permitting. You get bright light and cleanup is fast and easy. This setup is made easy using wheels and lightweight tables/sawhorses. The garage is a better place for applying most finishes.
No walls eliminates the age old problem of "snow build up" against exterior walls, especially in the desert.
LOL, If you live in Houston and visit Moab when the temp is 110 degrees it feels cool in the direct sun light.
I did that for a few years.. Detached garage had power but no windows and was full of junque.. I found that outside storage was hard on tools, though, so I made a "storage shed" out of old 2x4's and plastic sheeting..
Weather permitting, I do a lot of outside work, especially stuff like sanding, routing and cut-off saw... No DC needed and the house stays cleaner.. YMWV
mac
Please remove splinters before emailing
That's why my table saw is a contractor model that I can move by myself ;-)
The driveway in the back of the house has about 20 feet of shaded area. I make sawdust (cut, rout, sand) outside. I apply finish in the shed that houses the yard equipment (5 foot doorway provides good ventilation).
Cleanup is usually easy - sawdust is organic matter, so just use a blower to move it to the mulch pile.
John
You sound like a good customer for Scott Landis' Workshop book (Tauton Press, available Amazon)
It is a great idea book that touches on a lot of ways to set up shop including facility, storage, systems, etc. He features some of the most beautiful and elaborate shops you can imagine; but also several at the other end of the scale. Some of these include complete woodworking or metalworking shops crammed into buses or owner-built vans. He even covers a fellow who hung a woodturning shop on the bumper of his RV.
One that stands out in my mind regarding your case: A fellow in one of the sunshine states that built a very well equipped and efficient shop in a garden-variety back yard storage building. Don't remember the size (Son has my book) but it was on the order of a 10'x12' metal metal yard shed that he had upgraded to make certain leaks were plugged and he ran electrical to it. The end opposite the sliding doors was a bench with VERY efficiently organized wall and bench storage, an overhead fluorescent fixture and outlets . The remainder of the building served as storage for several floor and bench tools that could be rolled out onto the adjacent patio (the patio was covered). He did most of his work on the patio and rolled everything back end when his work was done.
Lacking metal building you might be able to use your garage in a similar manner. You would have to get electrical service. If the garage doesn't work, you might pick up a used metal shed cheap. As I recall, the guy mentioned above didn't even have a concrete floor. I believe he used pavers.
Your might want to take a look at Scott's book. If you don't want to purchase, some libraries have it.
RonB
I agree with Len, keep them covered. My chop saw is on a stand outside and I even use it in winter in the Yukon at 25 below zero. Sanding outside is also better.
RE: Subject
I operated outside in SoCal.
Lost 2-3 weeks out of a year.
Suggset you construct a 1" thin wall conduit frame and cover with a silver tarp (UV Resistant) as a sun cover.
Hardware to build frame available from many sources.
Cover T/S with its own tarp, same with router station (Mine is NYW).
Keep lighter weight tools under lock & key.
Lew
karmstrn wrote in news:01487c5b-1477-4fd7-927c- snipped-for-privacy@f16g2000vbf.googlegroups.com:
I'm just now getting used to the idea of working INSIDE. (FINALLY got the garshop clean!) I'd roll the TS out to the driveway when I needed to make some cuts and make all the cuts for a project at once. Sanding with a belt sander is still an outside job, there's no real dust collection on it.
Tools don't take up much space when you neatly put them away for storage.
Puckdropper
Boy howdy! Heard of the construction industry? Got no indoor shop!
I'm new at this, but any wood working I'm doing is outdoors cuz I got no PBS laser-guided-air-conditioned-vacuum-dusted-sodium-lighted-roll-up-doored shop. Jes me and the breeze and a few power tools. Don't give me that Yankee workdork crap, either. If I ever talk about making a hand carved bow saw, you have my permission to shoot me in the head. ;)
nb
notbob wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@bb.nothome.com:
Sure they do... At least home construction. They first build their shop and then work in it! Why do you think the first thing they do is put the structure in to put the roof up? ;-)
Puckdropper
TOUCHÉ!
You make a good point. ;)
nb
When I built my house in Ohio, last thing I put up was the sharn (too big to be a shed, to small to be a barn).
If I do it again, an out building with a concrete floor will be the first thing that goes up.
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