Home DIY

No I just need to take on an apprentice and teach them how to drive a broom.

Just out of curiosity: Are you allowed to use a broom in a commercial workshop? We're not in Denmark due to HSE regulations...

You do a lot your not meant to do in workshops thats for sure. Jealous of the size of that workshop, thats in my '22 plans

Rubber floor scrapers are ok though

You do, but if a HSE inspector shows up unannounced and finds a broom, you might get a fine

The use of a broom is the least of my concerns.

While I have a fucking huge dust extraction system it doesn't play nicely with the planer thicknesser. When I find time I plan to make a cyclonic separator so that it'll work until the then workshop is a respirator required zone while I'm using that machine -hence the big pile of chips on the floor.

There has been attempts to get people to use a vac instead of a broom for a while but, there is a counter arguement that says as brushing is so much easier people will clean up more regularly meaning there will be less dust on the floor that won't get disturbed every time people move around the shop.

That's actually not much mess sometimes when I've spent all day milling stock there is a knee height pile of sawdust infront of the planer.

EDIT. Soft brushes are encouraged as they don't flick up the dust as much.

Actually I've just realised that I'm overthinking things @Dammit you could quite easily make this with halving joints which is a much more approachable method of construction. This would also be doable without joinery grade stock.

Thanks for this, and the longer post before it.

My rough plan is to rent some time and space in a local workshop, there's a Maker Space being put together locally that might work out, which I'd likely contribute some machines toward.

I'll have a crack at a scale version of the doors first - I did a lot of model making when I was an Architecture student that may help here. I have a fair pile of tools from framing out my flat, building the bathrooms, cutting the parquet for the hall etc, but nothing like a thicknesser and so forth, and frankly very little experience of making proper joints apart from some workbenches I made years ago.

and frankly very little experience of making proper joints apart from some workbenches I made years ago.

As was pointed out - quality and reliable door building, like what you want to attempt, lives and dies on the quality of the joinery. Shit joinery. Shit doors.

Regardless of how you feel about how people have opined about your plans, I think it’s reasonable to say it’s be wise to become competent with the requisite techniques before attempting such a tricky project.

I get it, you see the challenge and you are competent in the other aspects of your life so it seems reasonable to give it a go. But I’d liken it to the guy that wants to climb Everest or El Capitan without any mountaineering or climbing experience. You could in theory do either with almost no experience and just prepare extremely thoroughly for the task and still succeed, but the vast majority of experienced participants would recommend you start with smaller steps.

Also, it’d be shit to get to the end and realise you didn’t do the first bits well enough for the doors to be any good. Or you might relish the opportunity to get it right at all costs, no matter how many errors are made along the way, and how much needs to be redone.

When I was a kid, maybe 10 years old, another kid I was kind of friends with was annoying me in assembly at school, kicking me in the back as we sat down cross-legged. Not hard kicks, just annoying. I asked him to pack it in but he didn’t and at some point I snapped and offered him out. This was a big deal, others had heard, and news of our forthcoming fight went round the school. At four o’clock a largish crowd had gathered in the park opposite the school and we both walked into a circle of kids shouting’Fight! Fight!’ He took a few swings, missed, then somehow fell backwards on his arse. I jumped on him, and pinned his arms underneath my knees. He was finished. I didn’t rain blows on him, maybe a slap or two. Eventually, he said the magic word ‘submit’, I let him get up and he walked off as the crowd jeered him. In theory I was the victor, but I felt awful. It was as if I were walking off under the shaming of the crowd and he were the one getting the slaps on the back. It still makes me sick to think of it.

But I’d liken it to the guy that wants to climb Everest or El Capitan without any mountaineering or climbing experience.

The big difference being that if you fuck up Everest or El Capitan, you die. If you fuck up making a garage door, you can have a big bonfire and try again or get someone else to do it. But you don't die.

I've tried a few things in the past I wasn't really qualified to do. Nearly died a couple of times, broke a few bones, but lived to tell the tale. Compared to them, trying to build some garage doors is frankly small fry.

” I think it’s reasonable to say it’s be wise to become competent with the requisite techniques before attempting such a tricky project.“

very sage advice, maybe start with a footstool or a mug tree?

But it looks so easy on YouTube...

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True, but for such a big project, the majority of people don’t want to sink that amount of time into it. It’s not death, but it’s a load of expensive timber and potentially a pretty serious amount of time.

But alas. Schrödinger’s garage doors.

It's something I would love to have a crack at, just for the fun/experience. If I got a functioning set of doors out of it, then along the way I can decide how much that endeavour is worth to me with respect to both time and cash. People spend silly money on their hobbies and fun all the time. Dammit neither drinks nor smokes so has the expendable income and time to do whatever the fuck he wants. The current doors are not going to get any less fucked. And if it doesn't work out, then I imagine a lot of the timber will be able to be used for other projects. I give all my offcuts and failed things to my next door neighbour who makes the street planters and community garden compost bins round this way. Means I don't have to stare at my failures leaning limply against the garden fence. He recently got a load of pressure treated 2x4's that were my daughter's swing, which was big enough for her for exactly 3 weeks.

Also, I imagine the stress/frustration of DIY-ing these doors would be on a par with trying to get anyone else to make them anyway, the way things are going.

It's possible for people to learn techniques as part of the process. I get that it ups the risk of failure or expensive repair, but if you are comfortable with that, and are experienced enough in 'doing complex things' to know the critical moments ahead of time maybe you'll succeed. Either way, You'll learn a shit load in doing it.

Successfully building a footstool will probably teach you very little.

Personally I tend to fuck things up the first time I try them so I would probably start with something else I needed that was along the same lines but at a much smaller scale.

The thing I dread about (external) wood is that you put a shit tonne of effort in to it and then the bastard thing rots because you fucked the finishing up.

Maybe go with uPVC, doubt anyone will get shirty over the tolerance of joints and they won’t rot.

Changing topic, has anyone got experience with installing groundscrews themselves? After seeing @lowbrows garden room being built on them, I fancy those over concrete as if I do it myself, it's about half the cost and I would have thought more environmentally responsible. Also, better airflow etc to help with the wooden workshop/shed going on top not rotting from the ground up.

It doesn't look too hard. Pilot drill with 25mm SDS+ (I'm guessing this is more to check if there's anything too solid in the way - I can source a 1000mm long bit easily enough), then screw in either with a manual tool or one of those big electric braced drill type jobbies (I would start with the former and rent the latter if I find they're not going in). I'm also guessing it might be better to do it over winter when the ground is softer than in summer, or is that a bad idea? Then just stop screwing when level.

Unsure how big to go. As usual, I'm thinking of maybe over engineering it and getting the 1200mm screws. Unless anyone thinks I should go bigger.

Was it @TW who used them for their garden room?

Would rep.

“Successfully building a footstool will probably teach you very little.“

spice rack?

Successfully building a footstool will probably teach you very little.

Perfect way to practise several load bearing through tenons tbh. But each to their own. Lol

I'm sure it's great for that, but the mistakes you'll make doing it won't cover the exciting range of new mistakes you can make with a set of external doors.

Externally mounted spice rack (with doors) it is!

Might teach you about buying rough sawn timber and the process of machining down using planer/thicknesser to the requisite size and making sure its square - may sound easy but there is a definite skill to it.
I do bits as a hobby and own all the machines required and would think twice about building garage doors ( I've already made internal doors ). Its definitely an ambitious first project and would also of advised to start with an easier project....

Luckily I'm buying two garages, so when the doors on #2 are way better than #1 I can a) have a bit of a cry and then b) build Doors v3, Spice Rack edition.

Its definitely an ambitious first project and would also of advised to start with an easier project....

Totally - just have to pick something ambitious enough that teaches you all the stuff you need for the big job - and it has to have a decent chance of failure. Without that you won't learn enough. What you pick would be a choice contextual to the person.

Failing to build a footstool will teach you a lot :)