Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[Rick]

Morning all,

I need to find a replacement stereo/radio thing for the garage, the existing one was donated to me by a pal about 20 years ago. For some reason it takes an age to warm up, despite not having a valve in sight, so it's time to find a new (old) one.

What creature comforts do you have in your garage/shed/car port etc, to make an evening's tinkering a little more agreeable?

RJ
_________________
Rick - Admin
Home:https://www.oldclassiccar.co.uk
Videos:https://www.youtube.com/user/oldclassiccarRJ/videos
OCC & classic car merchandise (Austin, Ford ++):
https://www.redbubble.com/people/OldClassicCar/shop

[Bitumen Boy]

Best thing I ever did in the garage was to fit a sink in one corner. Cold water only, and it comes from a stream further up the mountain so it runs brown with silt occasionally, but it makes a hell of a difference to be able to wash your hands as necessary during the course of a job - and of course there's no trailing of greasy handprints between the garage and kitchen sink.

Another thing that's really made a difference is a dehumidifier. Once upon a day I ran two electric heaters up there to try and control the condensation that would drip from the roof, but the dehumidifier has cleared the problem altogether while using about a fifth of the electricity. Even though it's not as warm in there just being properly dry means the cold is much less noticeable which makes working in there a lot more comfortable.

[MikeEdwards]

It's always frustrating when things like that fail at this time of year, when the car boot sales aren't on. My stereo on the garage is from one of those, £2 for a radio, CD and cassette unit. Only trouble is, neither the CD nor the cassette deck work, the latter is particularly annoying as I've got a big box of old home-recorded cassettes that I'd like to go through before I decide if I can throw them out.

[kevin2306]

I have one of these

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/180W-2CH-12V-Car-Audio-Home-Small-Hi-Fi-Stereo-High-Power-Amplifier-for-CD-MP3-/191666305522?hash=item2ca033b9f2:g:~kMAAOSwd0BV0qCG

But mine also takes a memory card onto which I have lots and lots of music.

It was cheap as chips and Together with a pair of ebay bargain BOSE speakers (£5) sounds great.
I did have a CD player linked into it for a while but found the dust cased issues with playing them.

Kevin

[peter scott]

A fan heater and (not shown) and piece of cardboard to lie on.

Peter


_________________
https://www.nostalgiatech.co.uk
1939 SS Jaguar 2 1/2 litre saloon

[BigJohn]

Other than a blow heater and CD/radio, my most used bit of comfort kit is a microcel yoga mat SWMBO was chucking out, it is waterproof, slightly padded and warm to lay on. My other thing is a lump of foam to put under my hip bone.

[Ashley]

That looks as bad as my murderously heavy Healey 3000 engine Peter. It has to go in shortly in the cold damp garage.

[peter scott]

Hi Ashley,

Yes, similar size and lots of cast iron.

Peter
_________________
https://www.nostalgiatech.co.uk
1939 SS Jaguar 2 1/2 litre saloon

[Rene]

When i did build the new workshop i have a central heathing radiator(big one) installed and connected to the central heating in the house 6 meters away.
This keeps it moisture and frost free,last week it was below 10 degrees celcius and in the workshop 10+c.
Further i installed a woodburner for when i am working,keeps it nice and warm.
At a secondhand shop i bought a stereo cd/radio for 10 euro wich goes on simular with the light/power switch.
And most important a coffeemachine bought for 25euro from a builders company that went broke.........
Telephone/internet connection and two decent garden chairs that folds and a barstool by the lathe and milling machine because of my poor back.
So the workshop is a nice place to be,alone or with a mate drinking coffee,smoking cigars,eating cupcakes and debating over if this bolt is original or not..........oh,,,,,,,,and sometimes do some work also
René

[ukdave2002]

I have a MW radio to pick up 5 live, the main station I listen to during weekends in the workshop.

Hot and cold running water with a sink

Economy 7 storage heaters that provide warmth at the weekend during winter, with a large halogen heater its on wheels for local heat and to speed up paint curing.

I built a workshop extension last year, this now houses machines like the lathe , mill, drill press etc, it also has the compressor in, and I have just bought some pipe and fittings to plumb air around the workshop..all plastic and push fit I'll report back on how well it works !

Dave

[badhuis]

After years of lying on my back on earth floors and cold sheds, I took the opportunity to make it as comfortable as possible. Extended my garage some years ago and installed hot/cold water, wc, central heating plumbed to one big garage heater with fan, insulated concrete floor, insulated double walls, my old Marantz receiver bought new with my first earned money in 1978 - still sounds very good, 4 post lift, electric garage door remote controlled. Sounds very luxurious and it is, but installed it all myself so costs were not bad at all.
_________________
a car stops being fun when it becomes an investment

[ukdave2002]

[ka]

We designed the house, and it was an ideal opportunity to have a toilet and hand-basin that was accessible from outside as well as from the garage in a separate room inside the garage. We have a lot of grass to cut, so the odd comfort break without trailing through the house creates a lot less mess. My other home comforts are the H-Fi system that feeds through four speakers, but for me the best part, are the knee cushions fitted in the Dickies overalls, always there when you kneel, never having to look for the kneeling pad.
Living in such a balmy part of the country, I have not extended the heating into the garage, but with it being newly built, insulated and attached to the house, it has a temperature around 7-10 degrees C, (temp gauge in modern), with no issues of condensation as the temp is reasonable consistent.
When we were in Nottingham, I also heated the detached garage with storage heating, but up here find a good set of overalls, and a 'get on with it' approach more than warming enough!
_________________
KA

Better three than four.

[baconsdozen]

I do all my work outside without a garage.
I upgraded recently and replaced the cardboard I normally lay on with plywood.
_________________
Thirty years selling imperial hand tools for old machinery(Now happily retired).

[emmerson]