Featured Art & Inspiration Time to re think my work space

My tent took off on me a couple of times. Ended up getting some giant anchors from tractor supply

 

I've had a tarp garage for many years. It started out as 10 x 20 but the city didn't like it, so I had to reduce it by a third to satisfy the square footage limits. It's had a few tarps put on over the years, and keeps one very small car and some junk somewhat protected.

The summer before last I bought a 10 x 10 "Shed in a Box" to store parts in. I made a base of pallets with old plywood as flooring. I was pretty pleased with it until we got into the rainy winter season, when it turned into my "Sweat Lodge". Water was actually dripping from the ceiling.
I thought the pallet and plywood flooring would keep it somewhat dry.

 

I agree with @evintho, buy another 10 x 17 for $200.
I would pour a concrete slab so you can anchor the posts. Or at least initially pour a perimeter footing 12" wide and "fill" the inside with 6 mil plastic topped with gravel, (which could eventually be poured with concrete so you can safely use a floor jack, jack stands, etc. and work under the car).
There are youtube videos on skinning these carports. I would skin it in galvanized corrugated sheet, then go next level and cover that with the H/F kit vinyl covering. This would make the 'permanent' building still look like a temporary building for the casual observer-a wolf in sheep's clothing. You could even have a hinged wood door under the roll-up vinyl "door'. When the cover rots in 5 years, get a $100 replacement.
I'd park the car in there and build a "permanent" shed next to it to act as a 'shop'. Check with your city ordinances on size limitations for sheds. Here, it's 120 square feet (10' x 12'). I just built a barn style 10' x 12'. It's tall, so has a small loft area for overhead shelf storage. I did a "dry pour" concrete slab (see youtube for tutorials). I didn't need to shovel Redecrete or water into my portable mixer. The Lowe's driver dropped 80, 60 lb. bags right next to my slab forms, so all I had to do was slit open the bags and pour them in.

 

Buy one of the metal buildings large enough to put the car in and work on it............it will be your best investment. People convince themselves they can't afford to do it, but its just a matter of making up your mind that you will put some money aside just for that purpose and following up on it. Then a few years later attach a lean-to on the side of it to keep the car under. Then as time goes by, put a wall on the outside of the lean-to.......then later add a back end.........and finally even later a front overhead door.

Had a guy that lived on a corner lot near me. Zoning wouldn't let him build an attached garage, so he built a lean-to. Later he added a wall at a time and nothing was ever said about it. People tend to spend a lot of money on unnecessary things. You just have to make it a priority and you can make it happen.

I sure wouldn't trust one of those portable buildings in heavy snow ...........

 

Another portable enclosure like you have would do until you can afford better, in the mean time keep you eyes open for a out building or shed geing sold on market place or other adverti*****t papers.

A friend of mine recently bought a 10 x 20 wooden storage building with a roll up door on one end, a personal door on the side and a couple of windows, plus it was wired and it was a few years old and He bought it for 700 bucks and got it delivered for 200 bucks, a 6 pack of beer and a pizza got a couple of buddies to help get it setting level on Saturday afternoon and he is as happy as a clam. HRP

 

A 500 watt halogen work light like was popular a few years ago will bring the temp of a smaller work area up a long ways from miserable. it is also radiant heat from a few feet away directed at you. I used to have one in my shed so it aimed down at my work bench to keep my hands warm when I was working on the dairy and would take things in my shed rather than work on them in the open air work shed in the winter.

 

I'm looking at 20 ft shipping containers right now to work on my 48 in. The rub is that they aren't all that wide to work on a whole vehicle in.

 

FYI the IBC requires a permit for anything over 120 sq ft. If your City code enforcement officers are one the job and are gung ho they could cite you for a building over 120 sq ft. If you live in the city it could be a problem, out in the country nobody cares. Also the side yard between the property line has to comply with zoning set backs. My advice to anyone building something without a permit is to do it per code. That way if you get cited all you have to do is get a permit.

 

^^^^ where is this from?

 

CXT Explorer portable crane | Konecranes

 

Yea, that can’t be cheap. Probably cost more than a garage.

 

More than a tad supersized for the average guy no doubt, but good food for thought, the steel or wood frame connectors puts it in the ball-park for most with enough yard space.

 

The first question for me, is do you own or are you buying this property? None of my business, but it would factor into any decisions on building. You must be young and tough, cuz' you are definitely roughing it there!

If you own the property, it would be worthwhile driving around your area and see what others are "getting away with". In our town, they are super lax on code enforcement and you can do almost anything that seems reasonable., even a bit sketchy. If you plan to be there awhile, you gotta be warm and dry when you work, it will make it so much more enjoyable for you. Lots of good ideas from the other guys on here, from reinforcing and tinning in the shelter you have now, to buying one of those prefab tin buildings with a roll up door, or even two containers with a structure built over it.

I once converted a detached carport into garage over a holiday weekend, had all my materials lined up, started Saturday morning, put up the sides and doors and painted it the house color, so by Monday night it looked like it had always been there. I was ready to tell any inspector it was that way when I bought the place, but no one ever said a word. Better to ask forgiveness than permission.

If you are renting and not there for long, that's different, then just try to get warm and dry with nothing permanent.

Just my two cents.

 

A lot of people say to me .........."I wish I had a shop like yours, but I can't afford it".

When I bought this place I couldn't afford it either. It didn't magically appear one weekend because I kept wishing. I doubt wishing will get one for most of you. Mine is sitting there because of a lot of blood,sweat, and effort........mine. If you don't start somewhere, you will never get there.

The old saying........A journey of a 1,000 miles starts with taking the first step kinda applies here. If you convince yourself you can't do something, you probably never will. Younger guy, about 40 bought the house across the street from me. He told me he had lived in a trailer and had terrible neighbors all the time. He said he told his wife that whatever house they bought.........it HAD to have a decent shop area. The building behind the house is about 40x60 and he just loves working in his shop and gradually adding things. We found a smoking deal on some pallet racking and I hauled it home for him. He just bought a 2 post lift and installed it last month. I unloaded it with my tractor at my house because there was more room and shuttled it over to his shop. We have become good reliable friends and he loves the choices he made. Its really all about choosing to actually do something instead of just wishing and waiting.

 

Check out the city codes . A buddy of mine checked the codes where he lived . The city only allowed a 14’x16’ foot print . But there wasn’t a height restriction. He built a 3 story garage in his back yard. He stored parts in the top floor . Cushman scooters on the second floor and car projects on the ground floor. After he built it the neighbors protested to the city . He was called to the city meeting and he pointed out there wasn’t a height restriction

 

I covered my same frame with corigated sheetmetal pannels and now have a more permanent shed. the corigated sheets are very cheap to buy, I'd do that. to enclose your frame.

 

I bet there's one now.

 

I've had those temporary tarp garages before. Frames are usually round tubing - similar to electrical conduit. One of the things that lets them live - joints flex around as the tarp takes wind.

These "might" hold up to light weight steel sheeting, consider how to add some bracing. As you add sheeting it no longer flexes at tube joints and you'll find the weak points.

If youre planning some other build, Check out your local building codes. Generally - "shed" is not attached to foundation, sits on the ground. You can get pretty creative and still meet that.
1) concrete "piers" in the ground few inches off the ground, with base of your wall spanning across, you can skirt the bottom to seal to the ground, and have a gravel floor.
2) wider the building the more you'll spend on "trusses"

If you want low cost, get a pile of deck tear off material. Usually free - if you haul it. Deck boards for wall sheeting, roof sheeting.
Ask the lumber yard for the lumber tarp - its basically house wrap - full of staples - wear some gloves.
"Call lumber" is all warped - but its cheap - sometimes straigt-ish is just fine.
Concrete form lumber is beat up and saturated with concrete, but it makes perfect skirt boards that contact the ground on a pole barn type application.

 

I have one of those 10'x20' canopies with the soft covers also. Sides held up great, but roof area went bad in about 4 years. I stretched a heavy tarp over the roof and got a couple years out of that, then did that again.
I finally went out and bought some lightweight metal studs and stripped the soft canopy off. I framed out the inside with the metal studs to give enough support and areas to screw to and covered the sides and roof with 2 ft. wide metal siding. It's been this way for 6 years now, and should last for decades. I put a ridge cap on the peak to ventilate it, and built double barn doors I framed up with lightweight square tubing and covered with the same metal sheeting. Shot some expanding foam around the areas where there were small gaps. I run a heater in there in the winter when working, so I fed the building with a 30 amp 120 volt circuit and added some lights and plugs.