Garage Remodeling/Upgrading Feedback.

[TDinDC]

So, I'm in the middle of my garage remodel, but today was the first day that I could actually pull the Taycan in, and I'm really happy with the floor pattern for the RaceDeck floor that I chose. I used red to show the edges of the garage doors and the back wall, and the Taycan camera guide lines line up perfectly. Also, it's now easy to see how close you are to the front with the higher contrast than the previous floor. The jacks mounted to the wall also serve as a visual guide (I'm impressed how little space they take up, and they have wheels on the bottom so I can just unclip them from the wall and roll into place when I want to use the jack).

I can't wait until the work is finished and both the NewAge Pro Series 42 in. Red Wall Cabinet are installed across the back wall and the artwork is in place (and all of the crap is out from around the side of the car).

Huge bonus is that now I have a full car lift and rather than storing my spare rims/tires for both Porsches above the garage doors, they are now stored about 2" above the floor of the garage. With each year and each new Porsche (with heavier rims/tires), the need to climb up a ladder and overhead press them into the rack by myself became more of a hassle. I'm not weaker, I'm just lazier . . .

P.S. Funny how in the top picture the camera makes the dark 3 1/2' tall garbage bin on the right of the car look like a column . . .

 

[Hawk]

With my taycan coming end of summer I'm in the middle of garage makeover. Amazing timing and topic!
Was thinking of slat walls to hang stuff (tools ladders bike) with some stud mounted shelves for bigger items. As someone mentioned I may avoid a wall tire shelf and instead keep them on the ground to avoid lifting. Not sure yet about cabinets if I use shelves or buckets that hang on the slats. Lots of design options!

 

[TDinDC]

Thanks to remodeling in another part of the house, I no longer need to use the garage for much storage, which is a blessing. Each time any of my cars have been damaged it has been in my own garage when people were trying to get something or something falls off a shelf. I’m trying to avoid that all now, although I capitulated with the bikes as it is handy to have them in the garage.

 

[TDinDC]

I thought I would provide a mid-way update. Floor and walls are 90%. I'm waiting for the wall cabinets (4 x 42" red metal cabinets) that will be installed on the back wall lined up with the doors (i.e., the alloy floor tiles). Until then, I have a few boxes sitting around that should not be there.

I am also going to install a motorized lift for the Porsche speed roof box so that I can just store it there, back the car in, lower the roof box and be ready to go.

After that, I will install some garage art and call it a day.

I wrapped my Alexa echo speaker in Saran Wrap to keep it from getting dusty. I can't think of a better solution.

One thing I learned while playing around with this is that the chin spoiler is the part of the car that extends the farthest, so you can use that reliably in the camera and know that you will not damage anything above, and the same thing goes, remarkably, for the bottom of the license plate, which gives me a lot more comfort now using the cameras.

 

[satchurator]

@TDinDC I have the GarageSmart system and am mostly happy with it. I have the Universal XL lifter for my Porsche Performance roofbox, the multi bike lifter, powerdrop and airdrop.

 

[TDinDC]

@TDinDC I have the GarageSmart system and am mostly happy with it. I have the Universal XL lifter for my Porsche Performance roofbox, the multi bike lifter, powerdrop and airdrop.

That’s what I’m installing! What’s the minimum distance I can count on when using the Universal XL lifter with Porsche Performance roof box from ceiling to bottom of roof box when fully lifted? Thanks

 

[satchurator]

That’s what I’m installing! What’s the minimum distance I need for the Universal XL lifter with Porsche Performance roof box?

By distance do you mean the length of SmartTrack? The extension of the lifting frame? Let me know and I shall happily measure anything you need. I'll grab some photos too.

 

[TDinDC]

By distance do you mean the length of SmartTrack? The extension of the lifting frame? Let me know and I shall happily measure anything you need. I'll grab some photos too.

Thank you so much for taking the time to help. So, I’m concerned about clearance for cars other than the Taycan CT (e.g., a full size SUV). My question is about the dimension between the ceiling and the bottom of the roof box when you have lifted it up as high as you can. I plan to subtract the dimension you give me from the ceiling height to determine maximum clearance for other vehicles. I imagine that the measurement may vary based on how roof box is attached to the lift, so any hints on that would be appreciated. Many thanks.

 

[satchurator]

Thank you so much for taking the time to help. So, I’m concerned about clearance for cars other than the Taycan CT (e.g., a full size SUV). My question is about the dimension between the ceiling and the bottom of the roof box when you have lifted it up as high as you can. I plan to subtract the dimension you give me from the ceiling height to determine maximum clearance for other vehicles. I imagine that the measurement may vary based on how roof box is attached to the lift, so any hints on that would be appreciated. Many thanks.

@TDinDC Attached are a couple of photos, and I shall share some measurements and tips.

My garage ceiling is 11 feet high over a lightly sloped floor. As shown here, my roof box is 44 inches from the ceiling at its lowest point. It could probably be raised another 2 or 3 inches.

Some tips:

• The Porsche Performance Roof Box is slightly nose heavy, and the Garage Smart Universal XL Lifter doesn't come with a counterbalance mechanism. In one photo you can see a moving blanket on top of my roofbox - that's there as a counterbalance. I have a couple of black photographers sand bags that I plan to use with carabiners as proper counterbalance next time I have the roofbox down.
• You'll see that I don't have the roofbox centered over the car. That's mainly because of space constraints on the ceiling and for clearance relative to the garage door opener. I can still reverse in, lower the roofbox onto my roofbars, and slide it onto center. Because it was off center, it actually makes the other accessories (powerdrop and airdrop) more accessible. So I'm happy with that offset.
• Finding ceiling studs / rafters is much harder than wall studs. I suggest you get some neodymium magnets to locate drywall screws and use those as your guide.

I hope this helps! Looking forward to seeing your finished project!

 

[TDinDC]

@TDinDC Attached are a couple of photos, and I shall share some measurements and tips.

My garage ceiling is 11 feet high over a lightly sloped floor. As shown here, my roof box is 44 inches from the ceiling at its lowest point. It could probably be raised another 2 or 3 inches.

Some tips:

• The Porsche Performance Roof Box is slightly nose heavy, and the Garage Smart Universal XL Lifter doesn't come with a counterbalance mechanism. In one photo you can see a moving blanket on top of my roofbox - that's there as a counterbalance. I have a couple of black photographers sand bags that I plan to use with carabiners as proper counterbalance next time I have the roofbox down.
• You'll see that I don't have the roofbox centered over the car. That's mainly because of space constraints on the ceiling and for clearance relative to the garage door opener. I can still reverse in, lower the roofbox onto my roofbars, and slide it onto center. Because it was off center, it actually makes the other accessories (powerdrop and airdrop) more accessible. So I'm happy with that offset.
• Finding ceiling studs / rafters is much harder than wall studs. I suggest you get some neodymium magnets to locate drywall screws and use those as your guide.

I hope this helps! Looking forward to seeing your finished project!

Thank you very much for taking the time. I’m actually considering offset as well. How much of an offset do you have? Is it really easy to swing it over into place?

 

[satchurator]

Thank you very much for taking the time. I’m actually considering offset as well. How much of an offset do you have? Is it really easy to swing it over into place?

It's about three feet off of the center-line of the garage door / parked Taycan. I had to place it there to avoid the PPRB bumping into my garage door opener.
Lowering it and 'swinging' it onto the car is doable - it was a bit tricky until I got the knack of it.

Here's what I do:

• I lower the roofbox until it's about 3-4 inches above the car, still offset.
• I have towels placed on the panoramic glass, around the roofbars btw.
• I push gently on the side of the box, to bring the center-line of the roofbox over my roofbars, while simultaneously lowering the lifter using its 'fine tuning' control, until it makes contact with the roofbars.
• I lower some more to give the lifter cables some slack, then slide the roofbox further on so it's definitely fully supported by the roofbars, even if not perfectly centered on the car.
• I then carefully remove the lifter straps. At this point if I had my counterbalance sandbags on the lifter frame I'd have to remove those too. I then raise the lifter out of the way.
• From there, it's just a matter of centering the roofbox and completing the install.

For uninstalling the roofbox, it's almost the same steps in reverse, except:

• I don't try to put on the cover, or get the box perfectly balanced on the lifter while it's still atop/over the car.
• Instead, I attach the straps, get the box lifted off the car, then remove the car.
• Then I lower the roof box down onto the floor onto a moving blanket. Give it a clean if necessary, add the cover, adjust the straps and tweak for balance so that it hangs level.
• Then I raise the roofbox up to its storage height and it's there until the next use.

This is a lot of detail, but it's not as hard as it sounds. I can do this solo without any trouble. With a second adult it would be trivial.

I'll share a warning that my first time around with this, I was figuring things out and I had some moments where I was clambering around unwittingly making contact with my clothing on the side of my weeks-old Taycan. This resulted in some light scuffing on my paint and much cursing. I went back to my PPF installer and got that scuffing fixed, upgrading from my original front PPF install to full car PPF coverage. Lesson learned: wear your detailing ninja attire - soft, zipperless clothing, and have a small step stool to help with reaching stuff.

This would all be slightly easier if I had the space and clearance to mount the lifter dead center over the car, but then I'd be clambering over the car to reach the airdrop every few weeks - so I'm happy with the compromise.

 

[Tsingtao]

I’m about to remodel my garage, and I wanted to hear from others about things that you have done to your garage that you really like, things that you have done that you regret, and things that you wish you could or would have done.

I’m thinking flooring types, wall types, car door protection, charging, accessories, storage options, lighting.

For example, one change I am contemplating is removing the current parking stops that are anchored into concrete and using a scale painted on floor near back wall that you could see from rear view/front view parking cameras. On the one hand, the parking stop is foolproof, but it does create an obstacle on floor for when the car is not there or cleaning (or rolling jacks/lifts). Thoughts?



Having studied architecture, I’ve always thought it a little odd that many people focus solely on the front entrance to their home while neglecting the entrance that many homeowners use the most: the garage/side entrance.

As a result of other remodeling, I no longer need so much storage space in the garage, so I want to make it a much cleaner, calm space, but I still want it to be practical.

In any event, any advice based on your experience would be appreciated.

Thanks

This is a great thread, and now that I have discovered someone on the forum who has at least studied architecture, I will share my latest OCD garage remodel experience with the hope of finding some advice! For the last 90+ days, I have been googling the sh*t out of the internet looking for some really cool porcelain floor tiles (like those used at my local Porsche dealer). And I eventually found a company called Autostone (https://autostoneusa.com/porsche/) which appears to be the source of floor tiles for Porsche and many other dealers. The problem however is that I have e-mailed and telephoned these cats about getting tiles and when they learn that I am interested in only 800 or so square feet of tile they lose all interest and politely blow me off. So the big architectural question is: Who makes 24X24 inch porcelain floor tiles either similar or identical to the tiles at Porsche dealerships (other than Autostone)?

 

[satchurator]

This is a great thread, and now that I have discovered someone on the forum who has at least studied architecture, I will share my latest OCD garage remodel experience with the hope of finding some advice! For the last 90+ days, I have been googling the sh*t out of the internet looking for some really cool porcelain floor tiles (like those used at my local Porsche dealer). And I eventually found a company called Autostone (https://autostoneusa.com/porsche/) which appears to be the source of floor tiles for Porsche and many other dealers. The problem however is that I have e-mailed and telephoned these cats about getting tiles and when they learn that I am interested in only 800 or so square feet of tile they lose all interest and politely blow me off. So the big architectural question is: Who makes 24X24 inch porcelain floor tiles either similar or identical to the tiles at Porsche dealerships (other than Autostone)?

Perhaps you could find a dealership that has recently renovated and has surplus?

 

[TDinDC]

This is a great thread, and now that I have discovered someone on the forum who has at least studied architecture, I will share my latest OCD garage remodel experience with the hope of finding some advice! For the last 90+ days, I have been googling the sh*t out of the internet looking for some really cool porcelain floor tiles (like those used at my local Porsche dealer). And I eventually found a company called Autostone (https://autostoneusa.com/porsche/) which appears to be the source of floor tiles for Porsche and many other dealers. The problem however is that I have e-mailed and telephoned these cats about getting tiles and when they learn that I am interested in only 800 or so square feet of tile they lose all interest and politely blow me off. So the big architectural question is: Who makes 24X24 inch porcelain floor tiles either similar or identical to the tiles at Porsche dealerships (other than Autostone)?

There are hundreds of suppliers of similar tiles. The trick is to go through a design professional. The manufacturer is blowing you off because they typically sell wholesale at big volumes. But, someone out there is buying at big volumes and then reselling to smaller jobs. The key is that if you are not licensed, these supply sources likely will not speak to you either. Also, suppliers are hyper local. Result? Hire an architect or designer (even if through a flooring company) and they can get you exactly what you want. This will actually be cheaper than you likely could buy direct even if they were willing to sell to you. I hope this helps.

 

[TDinDC]

@satchurator and all:

So, my total garage height at the relevant point in my garage is 102.5", but let's say 102"

From the smarter home website, they say that the the XL lift requires 9.5" for the mechanism itself (let's say 10"), plus the height of whatever is being lifted, which, in this case, is 17.5" -- let's say 18" -- for the Porsche Performance Roof Box.

That means I need, in theory, only 28" from the ceiling, which in turn means that I would have 74" clearance. So, for a small SUV, like an RX500H, I would have 6" of clearance between roof of car and bottom of roof box, but I could not park a full size SUV -- Range Rover -- in the spot.

I think that means I should not do this, as I would hate to be unable to park whatever vehicle I choose here.

Now, if I installed the lift exactly in the center of the garage, I likely would have plenty of clearance for cars in both spots BUT the box would be a hazard as I am taller than the clearance and thus would likely hit my head all of the time.

I think I need to find a different option . . . Anyone know of any other way to store roof box that facilitates installation?

I actually think it would be great to install on the side wall and have some sort of "arms" that you can lower, or install" to facilitate sliding the box over to the car.