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Turning my garage into my little machine shop
- Thread starter Brento
- Start date
- Joined
- Feb 17, 2013
- Messages
- 4,406
VERY interesting system! But I think it's probably a bit overpriced. They want $300 for a single door system. You can buy just about all the parts for under $100. Given that you have to do the installation yourself in any case, it seems to me that the "value added" in buying the parts as a kit is NOT worth $200.If you ever work with the garage door open and you need light oh, this is a interesting product that I will probably be putting in my garage Workshop.
Single Track Garage Door Lighting System | Garage Door Lighting
Our Single Track Garage Door Lighting System is an adaptive low voltage LED system that is designed to seamlessly work with any sectional garage door. Contact now!garagedoorlighting.com
You can get the LED strips from Amazon (search for LED strip lights white). Look for 12 volt DC, and avoid any that claim to be waterproof or dimmable. They're under $15 for a 5m (~16 1/2 foot) roll - enough for two strips on an 8 foot garage door.
You can also get 12 volt DC power supplies from Amazon, for example:
The description given at garagedoorlighting.com says the lights come on when the door is fully opened. To duplicate this action, you'll need to mount two spring contacts to the garage ceiling or on one of the door tracks, arranged so they make contact with two metal contact plates on the door when it's fully opened, to send in the 12 volts. The use of "open" contacts is safe and legal with the low voltage involved (unlike line voltage).
Alternatively, I suppose you could devise a loop of wire that runs between the garage ceiling and the door opener arm, to maintain contact between the power supply and the LED strips. You could then use a manual switch between the wall and the 12 VDC power supply to turn the LEDs on and off.
I really like this concept, and may decide to add it to the 16 foot door on the front of my own shop. Blocking light from the shop ceiling has been an occasional irritant when working at night with the door open.
Last edited:
- Joined
- Sep 28, 2013
- Messages
- 4,308
I'd angle the mill so that the table is at 45deg to each wall. You never know when you need the space to hang something off the left side of the table.
- Joined
- Oct 7, 2020
- Messages
- 2,115
I agree hman! I like the idea but it's only been a minor irritant in the past. I have enough room for what I bring in the shop that I plan on hanging a 4' light just below the door when it is open. I have a 20' section of aluminum irrigation pipe that I will hang from either side of the door so it hangs just below the door when it is open. Then hang the light from that.
I have heard positives and negatives with doing that. Positive bc of like you said. But negative because if you need to work on something from the back of the machine then you can hardly get to it.
No pictures tonight but i forced myself after working all day in the heat to do a coat of paint on the last section of the garage. I had to get another gallon of the paint i use for the sheetrock bc i wanted to make sure i had enough. Blasted through a lot of paint. If i could have done it different i would have used a primer first and then used the paint i am using now. Especially before we moved in. Sometimes you cant just plan everything out.
On the plus side. If i push myself for 3 more nights i will be done painting and i can arrange my shop any way i want it as i will be done with all of the painting. But tomorrow is another day.
Cost: 821$
Hours of Labor: 41.5
On the plus side. If i push myself for 3 more nights i will be done painting and i can arrange my shop any way i want it as i will be done with all of the painting. But tomorrow is another day.
Cost: 821$
Hours of Labor: 41.5
- Joined
- Sep 28, 2013
- Messages
- 4,308
I dunno, I've not need to stand behind my machine while using it 
As long as you leave a foot beyond each end of the table when it's at its extreme of travel you should be fine.
As long as you leave a foot beyond each end of the table when it's at its extreme of travel you should be fine.Well the heat has finally broke. I was dead Tuesday so i took that night and last night off. Today i got back to painting. I finished the ceiling and the upper wall. Now for the concrete! I tried to peel up most of the epoxy that was cracking at that one section. Tomorrow night i will take a quick grinder at it and then i will do the first coat.
Tonight i also started cleaning my lathe since i could get to it over the mill. I want to start off with a cleaner slate without tearing it apart and repainting. I did the table and the back gear cover as well as the front of the stand. I dont want to do the bigger things until i have the time to oil and lubricate as these cleaning towels have a good amount of water in them. They do clean great though. They are called Tub o Towels.
Cost: 821$
Hours of Labor: 43.5
Tonight i also started cleaning my lathe since i could get to it over the mill. I want to start off with a cleaner slate without tearing it apart and repainting. I did the table and the back gear cover as well as the front of the stand. I dont want to do the bigger things until i have the time to oil and lubricate as these cleaning towels have a good amount of water in them. They do clean great though. They are called Tub o Towels.
Cost: 821$
Hours of Labor: 43.5
Attachments
Last night i did not do much just scrubbed a section of the peeled area with a steel wire brush to clean the area up more. This morning i started by doing a vacuum job on the last section of unpainted flooring and then stapled the garage door opener back up on the wall. I did a one in a million and stapled right in the middle of the 2 wires. Dont know if i could do that again if i tried. After that it was time to roll away. I think i am finally getting a hang of this painting. 
Tomorrow when i do my final coat i will stitch in and clean up the ends where i have painted before and give it a a finish coat along the areas. If i could id do my second coat later but idk if it will happen. We will see!
Cost: 821$
Hours of Labor: 46.25
Tomorrow when i do my final coat i will stitch in and clean up the ends where i have painted before and give it a a finish coat along the areas. If i could id do my second coat later but idk if it will happen. We will see!
Cost: 821$
Hours of Labor: 46.25