storing lumber

[kellyj00]

I've got a two car garage that I've dedicated about half of to be my wood shop. I have fairly high ceilings and plenty of wall space.

I'm at a loss as we're trying to get the garage organized and I'd like to keep my lumber in there. I only have about 50 pieces of 2.5" molding at 8ft or so long and no boards over about 10 ft long, most is

2x4's and scrap.

How can I efficiently store this stuff? I'd hate to put that much weight on shelf brackets or hang it from the ceiling (namely because I don't wear a hard hat) Ideas?

[Stoutman]

This is how I do it:

[Chris Friesen]

I use this system:

use the 14" double brackets. My vertical standards are every other stud, with the last two standards on adjacent studs.

My garage is attached, so the shared wall uses 2x6 studs. The vertical standards are attached to these studs with two lag bolts and three large screws each.

Chris

[SWDeveloper]

The closer to the floor, the better. Or, you can store it outdoors, under cover and up off the ground. My lumber storage include a rack I built from ShopNotes plans. It includes 4x8 sheet goods storage. The rack uses black pipe, 2x4s, and 3 shelves. All the weight is directly transferred to the floor

[HotRdd]

Could you actually store lumber outside "Under shelter" without problems of humidity and warping?

[J.]

My overhead garage storage consists of 2x4 frames suspended from the ceiling via threaded rod. The rod is thru bolted to the bottom of the frame and to 2x4 crosspieces nailed between the ceiling joists. The rod permits the top of the frame to be snugged up to the ceiling resulting in a very stable overhead storage. I use 4 frames for 8 foot boards. I store nothing less than 5 feet long overhead. All the long scraps go in a garbage can in the corner. Really short scraps of hardwood go in plastic buckets. Short scraps of softwood are used to start campfires or just get tossed in the trash.

J.

[e-mail] wrote:

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Storing lumber is wasteful. I buy exactly what I need for each project so there are no cut-offs hanging around taking up valuable space. If you are careful, like me, and don't make mistakes, you won't waste money to buy any extra for that reason either. My method makes it much easier keeping the shop organized at all times. When I'm done for the day, I just return all my tools, like the tape measure, to its designated space, turn the light out, and I sleep well knowing everything is ready for the next day.

[Don Fearn]

" [e-mail]" opin'd thus:

I wouldn't store lumber in my garage; the humidity and temperature variations are too great. Instead, I have a separate "Man Garage" (my wife's designation) where I have my woodworking tools and lumber storage. I try to keep it at the same temperature and humidity as the inside of the house, which is no mean feat here in Minnesota, but with a ceiling-mounted furnace for the winter and a window air conditioner for the summer I've kept it pretty close . . . .

I use heavy-duty shelving (that I got at Menard's) bolted to the wall studs so it won't collapse.

-Don

[Don Fearn]

"Edwin Pawlowski" opin'd thus:

Oh my. Wood that I were that organized.

But . . . but . . . but . . . that sounds BORING!

One of the most fun things to do is go buy lumber for a project. I buy most of it from a retired cow-orker, Myron, who has a tree farm and a huge shed full of all kinds of wood. I'll go there to buy some cherry, for example, and come back with the cherry, some white oak, some maple, some spruce, and a few other odds and ends he had laying around that looked interesting. What did I buy those pieces for? For a song, usually, and for whatever project that they appeal to me for.

Once in a while when I don't feel any inspiration, I'll go out to Myron's and say "whattaya got?" It doesn't take long before I have another project in mind because of an interesting piece of wood that Myron had laying over in the corner of the shed . . . .

-Don (sorry to call you boring, Ed, but I couldn't work that way)

[Patriarch]

Don Fearn wrote in news: [e-mail]:

I doubt Ed works that way either...

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Did the part where I said I never made a mistake give it away?

[Don Fearn]

"Edwin Pawlowski" opin'd thus:

I think I've been had . . . .

Not for the first time, either.

-Don (need to pay attention better)

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Truth is, one time I did have some wood left over. I made a complete dining table, eight chairs, and a hutch. When it was complete, I had a piece of a

6" wide board that was 12" long. Poor planning on my part.

[B A R R Y]

I would have returned the extra material to the dealer.