If you don’t have a shop or garage wherein you can engage in woodworking, you’re not alone because a large number of woodworkers around the globe don’t have a ready and dedicated workshop at hand. But this lack of a woodworking shop does not deter them from engaging in woodworking. Remember that if you like something and you’re passionate about it, you will always find a way to do it.
So, don’t wallow in misery and fret if you don’t have a woodworking shop or garage. It will be best to be creative and follow through with your desire to dabble in woodworking by improvising your woodworking shop. Read on if you want to learn tips on engaging in woodworking without a garage or shop.
Alternative Woodworking Areas or Spaces Without a Shop or Garage
The kind of woodworking space you need usually depends on what type of woodworking jobs you would like to engage in. So, if you are still a bit confused as to where to set your woodworking job, it will help to know the following alternative spaces you can use for your woodworking tasks:
Basement
One best alternative for a garage or shop is the basement. The basement usually offers enough space for woodworking. Besides, when you do your woodworking in the basement, you are less likely to disturb others while enjoying a woodworking nook devoid of distraction and interference from other people.
Basement, however, usually comes with fewer windows, and for this reason, it is not the best when it comes to ventilation. Thus, it isn’t best for painting or staining jobs. Besides, basements are not best for moving bulky workpieces.
Balcony
If you don’t have a garage, looking elsewhere in your house for an excellent place to woodwork will be best. The balcony, of course, is another area to consider, making it a good space for woodworking. If your balcony has power outlets and closets, it will be best.
The balcony will spare your living space from being saturated with dust. Besides, it is a perfect area for staining and painting because it is well-ventilated. Nevertheless, your neighbors might howl in protest against you if they are too close for comfort to your house.
Shed Workshop
If you don’t have a garage but want a place wherein you can work without being disturbed by others, you can improvise a shed workshop. You can add one in your backyard, turning this shed into the ideal workshop for your woodworking projects.
Shed workshop has one upside over basement workshop by cutting down on the billows of dust that could affect your home. Makeshift sheds are usually incomplete, so you can add doors and windows to make them look cozier.
If your home doesn’t have an overhanging room or shed, you can quickly build one for your needs and deliver it to your home.
Nevertheless, if you want to make a shed as your project, you can always do so, allowing you to hone your woodworking skills along the way. Double-door sheds ordered from elsewhere are ideal for conveniently moving materials and tools.
Unused Bedroom
If you have an unused or extra bedroom in your house, you can always convert it into a woodworking shop. Of course, you must ensure this room is properly sealed and ventilated so that sawdust and noise will not come out of it.
Sanders and power tools are way too noisy. As such, they could make the life of your neighbors and family members miserable when you’re using these tools. So, it will help if you seal and soundproof the room for the sake of the other house members and neighbors.
Woodworking Inside Your Apartment
You might think woodworking is not appropriate if you live in an apartment. But some apartment dwellers have managed to engage in woodworking without getting evicted from their apartments. If you got a balcony in your apartment, you already have a potential spot for woodworking.
Nevertheless, it will help if you first ask your landlord if it is okay to engage in woodworking on the balcony. Besides, it will be best to check with the homeowner association about your plan.
If it is permissible to work on the balcony, you can use folding tables as your workbench or purchase a folding workbench to maximize the space of the balcony. If you are unsure about using power tools because they are noisy, opt for hand tools that produce less noise.
Outdoor Spaces
If you have a driveway or backyard good enough for woodworking, you can also convert this space into a temporary woodworking space. One advantage driveway or backyard has over enclosed spaces is it is well-ventilated. Besides, it doesn’t have any dimensional limitations or restrictions.
So, if you’re working with bulky or tall materials, you will have no problem rotating or moving those materials. Nevertheless, you must haul back the tools and materials you use after every woodworking session.
Community Workspaces
Another good area to do woodworking is to check out the community workspace, which usually offers an excellent spot to work with and a range of power tools to use. This way, you can save yourself the hassle and expenses of buying power tools.
Besides, members of the community workspace can guide you through the proper use of tools and equipment if you’re a beginner in woodworking. Nevertheless, you can’t just work anytime at community spaces because they have specific work schedules.
Space for Rent
If you don’t have any space in your home for woodworking and have extra money to spare, you can rent a space near your house just to fulfill your cravings. For example, you can rent a garage and satisfy your woodworking itch.
On Craigslist, you can look for an area near you. The rent usually ranges anywhere between $150 to $175. It may be expensive to rent, but it is your best option if the abovementioned prospective spaces are not available.
You should check out the place first before you lease or sign the lease contract to see if it is okay to work inside that place. Ensure it has power outlets and is well-ventilated. Moreover, the site should be near your home to make it more convenient for you to travel back and forth from your home.
Woodworking Classes
If you’re a beginner who wants to dabble in woodworking, it will be best to enroll in woodworking classes to learn more about woodworking. You can get these woodworking classes at woodworking stores, makerspaces, art centers, woodworking clubs, high schools and colleges, and many other learning centers.
These classes are often once-a-week classes that last for several weeks. This way, you can easily fit your scheduled classes into your daily routine. The course usually consists of a project set you need to complete throughout your course. The classes, likewise, are graduated classes which mean you move from lower skill levels to higher skill levels.
Essential Factors to Bear in Mind When Looking for a Woodworking Space
When searching for a woodworking space, you must consider several factors that could help you find the best working space, given your limitations. Below is a rundown of these essential factors to consider:
Space Available
The first thing you should consider is the available space to work in. Given the tools and workpieces you will bring into that place, does it have sufficient space or elbow room to maneuver around? If you rotate your workpieces and tools, will you hit and damage the walls? Is it cozy enough to allow you to work with ease and comfort? All these questions will help you zero in on the best available space for your woodworking hobby.
Height of the Ceiling
Ensure that the ceiling of the place you are eyeing is high enough to let you walk inside without stooping or banging the lights. Besides, it will help if you imagine how your project will fit into this space. Thus, if you built a wooden bed inside that space, would it fit into it without hindering you from working? The ceiling should be high enough to allow you to stand comfortably and set your project within the space.
Power Tools
Another consideration you should bear in mind is the power tools you will use. If you are only using manual tools, you will be fine hauling those tools inside your chosen woodworking space. Yet, if you will stuff the space with a bandsaw and table saw, you might be in trouble if your room is cramped and restrictive.
So, before you settle in for a particular workspace, ensure that you can tag along your power tools without damaging them due to cramped space.
Dust Collection
Another factor to consider is the amount of dust your power tools would produce while you use them. Billows of sawdust can be a problem if you don’t have an efficient dust collection system. These dust billows can even cause your neighbors and family members to complain about your woodworking.
Thus, you should make an extra effort to install an efficient dust collection system to minimize dust billows. Besides, it can save you from the hassle of after-cleaning and helps you avoid maladies associated with dust inhalation.
Lighting System
When engaging in woodworking, you need to see your material and tools correctly. This means your workspace should be well-lit to enable you to make precise measurements and cuts. You will need a good lighting system when working with delicate and smaller projects that require detailed attention.
Remember that when engaging in woodworking, you not only need good lighting for precision work. It will help if you also have good lighting for increased safety while working. You might trip over, for example, if you don’t see your way inside your workshop well. Besides, you might step on screws or nails or fail to find your tools when needed.
Workbench
Another crucial factor to consider is your workbench. Your workbench serves as the pivotal point of all your woodworking activities. As such, you should have one. This workbench is usually made of wood and should be durable and sturdy.
You can build a workbench or purchase one. It should have clamping mechanisms or a wood vice for convenient working with your materials. Besides, it should have the correct dimensions to fit into your workspace.
How to Improvise Your Woodworking Projects
If you’re a beginner in woodworking, and you find yourself without a garage or shop, you must be a bit creative and improvise your shop whichever way you like. To fill you in on how to do it, you can check the following tips on woodworking sans a garage:
Research your Project Type
You may be unsure about the project you would like to engage in. In such a case, you can research woodworking projects within your skill level. Woodworking offers myriads of projects, and it will be best to work within your skillset at the start.
If you still don’t have a permanent woodworking shop, choose only those projects that are easy to work out and refrain from challenging tasks that need more elaborate and powerful tools. Besides, figure out your materials before you work on a project. Are the materials available to you?
Once you’ve determined the project type you can engage in, you can figure out where you will situate your woodworking space. Take note likewise of the materials and tools which are not yet within your possession before you zero in on a particular project type.
Necessary Tools
When choosing a project, you need to check if you have the necessary tools to work out your project. List down the tools you will need. If you don’t have the required tools, you can rent tools or purchase them. Moreover, you can check online about the best tools for your project.
If you are unsure about the tools you will use or are wary of using them, you should do some research on them. Check the manual to inform yourself how to safely handle the tool. Always remember that your safety is foremost when you are engaged in woodworking.
Choose Plywood and Dimensional Lumber
If you don’t have a convenient woodworking shop wherein every tool is already set for use, you will find it hard to buy raw logs. Besides, you will find it hard to reduce lumber to the necessary dimensions if you don’t have a planer and jointer. Thus, buying dimensional lumber and plywood for your projects will be best.
You can buy dimensional lumber in sizes of 1x2s to 1x10s. These lumber pieces are already pre-planed; thus, you don’t need to work on them to reduce them to the necessary dimensions. You can engage in myriads of woodworking projects using plywood and dimensional lumber.
Conclusion
Although having a dedicated woodworking shop is necessary to allow you to engage with ease in your projects, the lack of it should not deter you from fulfilling your desire to become a legit woodworker.
As mentioned above, you can use any vacant space in your home if you don’t have a garage or shop. Besides, you can also rent a space if you have enough money. You only need to be more creative in finding ways to satisfy your woodworking craving.