Reconfiguring my little shop ... maybe.
 

So I have a small shop at home, 18'x28'. Not wide enough to get two cars in, and not tall enough to put a lift in. But at 28' deep with one vehicle in there I have plenty of room to move all around. Like is always said, build the biggest shop you can, and this one is exactly the biggest it could be with the city codes.

After putzing around in it for several years now I think there are a few things I would have done different, isn't that always the way?

I have a man door on the back side and a 14'x8' insulated garage door on the front side. The one thing I really dislike is that when Im in the shop with the garage door open the whole shop is open to everyone that drives or walks past. And I don't like having my projects parked out in front when Im busy with other stuff inside the shop.

I have parking and access on the back side (where I only have a man door now) and Im considering moving main access to the backside. Ill leave the garage door on the front but make it stationary so it cant be opened. Definitely will look better if I leave it that way.

So if I add a garage door to the rear I wont be able to have a full 14' door due to trees and such. Which Im fine with. Ill move the man door over a little and just have a garage door that isn't as wide.

So long explanation just to ask what would be a minimum width for a garage door. Would 10'x8' be a good all around size? I feel like I could work with that. Or maybe even a little narrower. I have no idea what size a single car garage or even a two car garage using two doors widths are.

Appreciate any input. Right now Im battling a little with my honey over doing this at all. It kind of messes with her view of what's going on behind the shop haha.

Re: Reconfiguring my little shop ... maybe.
 

10ft doesn't sound narrow...but if I pull my dd truck in my buddies garage with his 10ftrs I feel like I'm gonna break both mirrors off...8ft definitely to narrow....I like 12ft doors...its what I have on mine...

Re: Reconfiguring my little shop ... maybe.
 

My garage doors are 9 ft wide x 7 ft tall .

Re: Reconfiguring my little shop ... maybe.
 

Regulation travel lane width is 10', that's plenty wide.

People started calling 'entry' doors 'man' doors and I can't get used to it. I wonder where that got started?

Re: Reconfiguring my little shop ... maybe.
 

I'd say stick with your first theory which is also my theory, build it as big as you can.

Re: Reconfiguring my little shop ... maybe.
 

I would put in the widest door that will fit which will enable you to come and go at an angle if necesarry, I too agree that 9 and 10 foot doors seem narrow when diving through them

Re: Reconfiguring my little shop ... maybe.
 

10' would be my minimum but I would put as wide as I could get. Like Randy said, if you have trees near, it will allow you angled entry. I would also reconsider is disabling the original door. Even if you don't intend to use it all the time it is still nice to be able to have in case of emergency or for ventilation on hot or smoky days. You could even build a screen enclosure so no one could walk right in.

Re: Reconfiguring my little shop ... maybe.
 

As discussed go as wide as you can. Even a couple extra feet can come in handy getting a mower (or something else) out while a vehicle is parked inside.

Re: Reconfiguring my little shop ... maybe.
 

8'door shouldn't be a problem really!
Back when,most home garages had them,and people still managed to get their huge fullsize 50's cars in and out
I have all 10' roll-up doors,except for one 10'x10'-6"high barn door to get my motorhome in.It's tight.
You might consider a barn style or sliding style for more inside room.
With a door at each end,you never have to back up!
Only downside is the doors ruin usable wall space!
Mike.:chevy:

Re: Reconfiguring my little shop ... maybe.
 

With a small shop like this having two opening doors is an luxury that I can not use. I lose too much valuable space by not being able to use two entire walls for anything but an opening.

Re: Reconfiguring my little shop ... maybe.
 

Go with the same thought as the over all size of the shop. The bigger the door the better. Heck do away with the man door are put it on the other end in the old garage door. Just swap them out if you can with a little help I'm sure that you could do it in a weekend.
Buy a door opener for the garage door so you can open it from the house as you walk towards it are have the code box installed on the backside some place.:chevy:

Re: Reconfiguring my little shop ... maybe.
 

I have a 10 foot roll up door and the opening is 9 foot (not 10 ) I can do okay with that opening because I have lots of room on one side when pulling in and the drivers side I have 3 foot to the wall ..so what I do is pull in ,,at a angle and that gives me more room.

If you have west coast mirrors ,,best you measure them and see how much room it takes ..

Re: Reconfiguring my little shop ... maybe.
 

Moving the roll up door from the front to the rear would be easy enough, I have a brother that is a builder. But I don't have the real estate in the back to be able to use a 14 foot door. And then the front wouldn't look esthetically as nice as it does now. I would put my work bench along that wall.

I only call it a man door because that's what the builders called it, and what the city required. Cant have just a garage door on a stand alone building.

One thing I did put in to save space is a really nice garage door opener. Its drives the shaft. No weird chain or belt system that extends in to the middle of the garage. When the door closes it also has a solenoid that pushes a shaft in to the track of the door so it cant be pulled open. I would just move that to the new door but leave the tracks on the old door in case the next person that owns our home wants to have the door useable.

I dunno though. I was talking to my honey about it again and she is in push back mode. Maybe if I do a few things around here she has been wanting done she will give in =)

Re: Reconfiguring my little shop ... maybe.
 

You went about that all wrong with the wife. It was suppose to be an idea you had because it would allow her better access to the shop for what she needs. Lol

Re: Reconfiguring my little shop ... maybe.
 

All the wood working tools, table saw, skill saws, miter/chop saws, routers etc etc are in the main house two car garage. Years ago I showed her how to use all of those tools because I was tired of her constant changing things around the house (thanks HGTV) and wanting me to be the one building stuff. So now she does it. And I don't mess around in her garage and she doesn't mess around in mine LOL.

Re: Reconfiguring my little shop ... maybe.
 

Doesn't matter if you use it all are not really. The door is there to look out into the yard are whatever not really has to be to fit 2 vehicles into. You can buy a screen wall for most common size doors and have it in when your working and it's nice outside. Think of it as a window to see all the nature around you and anything else that is happening.:chevy: