Garage? Workshop?

I didn’t have to think too much about this when I was living in my old house. I had a workshop that already had a good size bench when I moved in and that I’d fitted out with shelving and power. I also added a separate wooden garden tool store in which to keep things like my ride-on mower and other garden tools.

That’s not the case with my new place because the design doesn’t include a garage and the metal tool store that I’ve erected in front of it isn’t big enough to take all my tools, let alone function as a workshop. So, as I’ll need to empty the storage that I’m renting when the house is complete, I’ll need to have somewhere to put everything, and that’s more challenging than it sounds.

There’s already almost no spare space in the tool store. OK, I’ve got two cement mixers, one of which is in the storage and the other in my tool store, so I’ll need to get rid of one of them. That’ll be a tough decision as one is electric and in great condition and the other motorized and not in such good shape. I’ve also got a rotavator in storage that I’ve hardly used since I acquired it but which I guess I’m going to need when I start doing my garden, together with some other large items.

My barbecue is in the storage. I made a cover for it so it could stand out at Plazac so I guess it can do the same at the new house, but I’ve got lots of other smaller stuff and most of my tools still in there too. I’ll need them when I start doing the interior work in the house, the kitchen and the bedroom floors, so I’ve come to the conclusion that I’ll have to move them into bedroom 3 where they’ll have to stay until it’s eventually time to do the floor in there.

But it’s obvious that I’m going to need a much more permanent arrangement. I always intended to move the existing tool store down to the bottom of my land where I’ve currently sited the caravan and I’ll be able to put my mower, rotavator and other stuff down there. But I now know from living in the caravan that it’ll be totally unsuitable for storing other types of high-value items, such as electrically powered tools, because it’ll get cold and damp down there in the winter and make things start to rust.

So what’s the solution? I’ve been musing over the idea of building a separate garage in the same style and colour as the house and I’m now thinking that like it or not, I’m going to have to do it sooner rather than later. And I mean before next winter. I have in mind a garage that’s large enough for a medium-size car with additional space at the end for a bench and at the sides for shelving.

So I’m probably talking about 6 metres long and 4.5 metres wide. I’ve been tinkering with my architectural design software today (with great difficulty I might add as it’s been so long since I’ve used it, I’ve forgotten how) and here’s what I’ve come up with.

It’ll mean extending the concrete base that I put down for the tool store and also turning it slightly to align it with the house. I haven’t yet worked out its exact position and how far it will be from the house (I’m thinking about 2 meters) so although the above image isn’t precise, it does give a very good impression of the final result. I’ll have a lot to do when the house is handed over so I’ll just have to hope the late spring, summer and autumn are kind if I have to leave things outside before it’s built.

I’d like to do the build myself if I can using what is called ‘parpaing’ (concrete blocks) that are much cheaper than the type used for the house, but I’ll have to wait and see if that’ll be possible. The other thing as well, of course, is that if/when I do go ahead with it, I’ll need to have an electrical supply that I need to arrange right now! So that’s another job, but at least I’ve now got a picture of what I’d like to think I’ll be aiming for 😉