any electricians / builders? advice on garage refurb please

I've recently moved and have some plans to improve the old barn I have into a nice workshop and garaging area. Currently it is all just blockwork, so nice and solid, but a bit dusty so I'm going to start by painting all the walls white to brighten the place up and laying some flooring to stop the concrete floor breaking up with use. There is a mezzanine floor for storage over about half of the workshop area and I was planning on fitting some downlights to the bottom of this to create a low ceiling that I could park a car under to get some good light on it for working on the car or polishing it, etc. I'm after some advice as to whether I can fit mains voltage downlighters or whether I need to go for those low voltage ones? I'm going for the tilting ones so I can vary where the light actually shines. The pics on the DIY sites look pretty similar so what are the pros and cons of each? Low voltage ones seem lower wattage in general so I presume use less power but won't be as bright? Do the bulbs blow more frequently in one type versus the other or anything? The barn has a good roof so it won't get wet inside, but it isn't heated so probably gets a bit damp in the winter so are low voltage lights a safer bet? Are there any 'rules of thumb' as to how many downlights I should fit per square foot of ceiling to get a good light coverage?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by stevie_b

Are there any 'rules of thumb' as to how many downlights I should fit per square foot of ceiling to get a good light coverage?

---

yes, if you can see your thumb its bright enough :D

sack the down lights off mate, they look nice and pretty but I personally would fit (depending on space) a few 5ft or 6ft strip lights, they look shit but give off the best light, make sure you get a nice WHITE COLOUR lamp/bulb though - think its an 840

hi mate

can fit either just there are expensive ti run the mains ones as there usually 50w each...X however many

long tubes are cheaper and a better light...

damps fine running water not so...

plus if its single skin block you could line the inside with a timber and insulation frame if you want it warm in winter..that how i did mine...

Thanks for the advice. I did consider lining the inside and insulating it but I am probably never going to heat it in there so there is no warmth to save. I've got a few strip lights in there already but just fancied trying something a bit different. I've bought 15 20w low voltage downlights and will see how they look. Here is the starting point - will post pics again when its finished:

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j299/2stis/garage.jpg

your gunna get sick to death of changing those lamps dude! least tubes last ages!!!! :D

Im not sure wot 'lamps' your all talking about but please DONT go for the halogen bulbs! They are expensive and blow all the freken time a right pain!


http://www.diy.com/diy/jsp/bq/nav.js...isSearch=false


I would go for strip lights.

looking at that pic mate, I'd mount a few strip lights on the side walls as well to realy brighten the place up

and paint it white too...except the floor paint that grey

I put 2 500w halogen lights, one at each end in my garage, cheap to buy, but not to run, heat the garage too tho

Cheers all. Gives me some food for thought there. I boarded out the bottom of the mezzanine area where you can see those joists in the pic and put the 15 low-voltage downlights in last night. They do the job okay and look quite nice reflecting off a car parked underneath! I went for tilting ones and have angled them to point at the side walls so I think it will look quite good once I get some pictures/paintings up on the walls.

There are two striplights in there as well, so I get a decent spread of light throughout the area.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Lunner

I put 2 500w halogen lights, one at each end in my garage, cheap to buy, but not to run, heat the garage too tho

---

Thanks. I hadn't thought of that before but I bought one the other week to put outside for security lighting so I'll try it out on illuminating the inside of the garage itself first. As you can see in the pic the roof is fairly high so I can mount it quite high up and will probably get good coverage as a result.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by MAXIBOY

and paint it white too...except the floor paint that grey

---

Yes, I'm painting all the walls/blockwork in brilliant white, all the wood in gloss white and the supporting steels in Hammerite smooth white. Some of the smooth blocks can be painted quite quickly but the rougher ones are taking ages to get good paint coverage on them. I've spent many an evening and weekend out there doing it now, and have used up my first 10 litre tub of brilliant white, although I have now put a telly in there too so it is no great hardship other than very cold at the moment. I have pondered shoving the paint in the spray gun and using the compressor for speed, but I'm guessing it will just end up everywhere - I can't be bothered to empty everything out of there first! I won't be needing to paint the floor as I have ordered a load of floor tiles that clip together and will give me a dust free flooring that should last for many years with no maintenance :D

Couple of tips ive learnt from doing things "arse about tit"...

Spray the walls with PVA/water mix with a spray gun. This seals the blockwork and allows the paint to go on ALOT easier.

Get the concrete floor spotless clean using commercial water soluable degreaser, then use a good epoxy 2pac floor paint. There is a guy on ebay sells stuff for £20/5l tin...rrp about £60/5l. I done my workshop with it and its the nuts.

Strips lights defo, as many as you can get hold of....ask around shops that are being re-fitted, I got about 10 units from a place near me for nothing.

Get a space heater :D

Thanks Craig. I'd thought about sealing the walls before I started but figured it was just one more chore, but if I can just quickly spray it all on then that sounds worth a go... What ratio of PVA to water would I want to put in the spray gun tin? Does it only need a thin coat applied all over the wall or am I trying to get a decent amount into all the cracks in the block structure, etc.? Do you go over the top with a brush once its on to give it a uniform texture or anything?

If I get a space heater are there any pros/cons that you would advise me to follow a specific route of electric/paraffin/gas/other?

Thanks again.

I've got a huge gas space heater, does the job very well, no/low maintenace, and a big bottle (£50) of gas has lasted me two winters.
The diesel/parafin ones are likely cheaper to run, but they are higher maintenance, play up quite alot and can make your eyes water after a while!

As for pva, i think its 50/50..it'll say on the tub though, neil/maxiboy will probably know better. But, yeah try and get it will into the blockwork.
I just brush painted my walls, but itf i didnt have cars/tools/engines in here, i would have likely tried spraying them with water/emmulsion mix.

Thanks for the info Craig. I hadn't really thought about vapours and since I have two young children who might be in there sometimes I'll definitely avoid the paraffin/diesel ones now. Do the gas ones give off anything toxic such that they need to only be used in well ventilated areas? It might be safest for me to just go for electric, or are they not really up to the job? Mind you, I've spent lots of time in there recently and it's been the coldest winter for a long while and I managed okay so maybe I can get away without heating it anyway!

40 litres of pure brilliant white paint now applied - I feel I'm starting to get somewhere with it now, although it will still be a good few nights/weekends before it's done and I can start putting the floor down :(

could paint that in 4 hours using a 12 inch roller for rough surfaces...

hope you not using a brush... :shock:

Yes, using a brush at the mo. :shock: Gradually upgraded my size of brush as I have gone along though :lol: When I get to the bit of the space without all the stuff stored in it I can start using the compressor/spraygun as I won't mind it going everywhere then. :lol:

Do you think I'd get away with a roller then? My Dad keeps telling me to 'use a roller' but I didn't think it would work - there are quite deep indents in the block and even with a brush I struggle to get it all covered well, so I didn't think a roller would stand a chance?

yeah with a rough roller and a paint bucket..

we paint quite a few garages etc..

would be an easier job..

Tried with a roller but it wouldn't get into all the gaps on the blockwork. I was tempted to just slap it all on with a broom but in the end just used a big masonry brush. It took an age, but after 70 litres of emulsion, 10 litres of gloss on the woodwork and 5 litres of Hammerite on the steels I have finally got it all finished and have been able to lay the floor tiles. I'm really happy with the result - even more so now I have just seen again the 'before' picture and can even surprise myself with how much it has changed...

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j299/2stis/grg1.jpg

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j299/2stis/grg2.jpg

It's now a really pleasant place to work. Hopefully all the dust problems are now behind me and the mezzanine level is a really useful place to store all the junk I rarely touch out of the way (there is half a Clio interior up there somewhere!) and I have put in a loft ladder that I can just pull down whenever I need to get up there for something, keeping the lower level completely free of obstructions.

There is a strip light in the ceiling but in the end I did also go for those little halogen lamps in the lower ceiling below the mezzanine. If something is below it they do give a really good light and I have been able to point a few to highlight the pictures on the walls, etc. which I think is a bit more interesting than just strip lights everywhere...

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j299/2stis/grg3.jpg

Now I just need to finish off the space next door to a similar level!

WOW - Well done! Glad u kept the effort up bet ur relieved its done now! 8)

That is amazing! I would honestly die for somewhere like that. I can only dream that one day i will have a man cave like yours.

Love it! Well done. :D

hats off to you mate that is one sexy garage!!!

if i had that i would never be out of there!

just one point, where do all your tools go? and what about a workbench?

or is your car so reliable you don't need them? :shock:

thats one decent size garage indeed .
uber jealous :P

Thats actually perfect!

LCD TV in garage... mintah!

I would paint the remaining wooden beams in white too, just would finnish it nicely

My Missus is allowing me to get a loan on our mortgage for me to build a garage with 2 post lift! Cant wait its gonna be amazing!

I'd be tempted to get a snooker table and bar in there! lol

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by geesus

just one point, where do all your tools go? and what about a workbench?

---

There was a similar area next door - again just blockwork and no windows this time so natural light not so good. I have again painted it all white and put 8x 5ft flouro strip lights up, so now very well lit even at night! I keep all the tools in there, and all the other stuff can be put away in the wall cupboards or in the rolling cabinets that double up as workbench space. I can't find a before picture at the moment, but this is what it looks like now:

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j299/2stis/wshop1.jpg

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j299/2stis/wshop2.jpg

I haven't quite finished the ceiling yet - I'm filling in the gaps between the joists with insulation and then covering the whole lot with exterior-grade plywood and then painting that white so it should be even brighter in there once that is done and the strip lights have more to reflect off.

Target was to get this finished by Christmas, but family car troubles and a few other things derailed me. Still I have finally got it all done not too far in to 2012. The final section of the barn started off like this:

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j299/2stis/grg018.jpg

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j299/2stis/grg019.jpg

And after a lot of blood sweat and tears (and a trip to A&E have my ear stitched back on after I put a crowbar through it :oops:) it now looks like this:

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j299/2stis/grg023.jpg

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j299/2stis/grg021.jpg

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j299/2stis/grg022.jpg

Now that's finished I can crack on with working on the car!

looks cracking mate!!!! :D have to pop over with that bumper and have a look fella!!

Nice job that. well done.