Tips for working on cars as we age

 Office chairs that roll is my #1 aide.  I can still do a fair amount of work if I'm sitting down.  
 The Rotisserie is my second.  Roll the car to where you can comfortably work rather then bending over or reaching. 
     Accept age limitations.  At 74 I can't work a 12 hour day and come home and put in another 4-6 hours.  So it's weekends only.  
     Big magnifying glass with a bright lite helps me work on smaller stuff. 
  Lay out required tools and parts before starting.  Getting up to get tools or parts after I start really slows progress. 
   
What suggestions help you? 

having things at a comfortable working height is probably the biggest thing for me.

second is having enough light to see WTF i'm working on.

Kids. You can teach them as they help. Start them young as tool runners. 

A lift. Not having to get up and down from the floor is worth every penny. 

Not there myself yet, but I remember being a gofor back when I was a young'un. 

So, second set of hands to get and grab, or call for help when you slip on some spilled oil?

The biggest cause of fatigue for me is getting up and down.  Having the lift to be able to position the car properly has been a life-changer.  I need to get one of those project carts or whatever they're called so that I can have the tools I need right next to me.  Even just rolling my repurposed office chair out from under the lift and to the tool chest is a big improvement though.

Heat.  I can deal with a hot garage in the summer as long as I have plenty of water and the big fan going.  But I can't do the laying on the cold ground touching cold tools to cold parts while shivering.  So having a heated shop gives me so much more capability.

I've also noticed that the older I get the more irritating it is to not be able to find things.  So forcing myself to keep the tools organized is a big deal for me.

Oh, and I haven't found a solution yet, but this whole thing where I can't see as well as I used to be able to is really frustrating.  Lots of light helps, but I'm constantly taking my glasses off, setting them down, then playing hide and seek with them

Having disposable income is the biggest help. Then you can buy lifts, and power tools etc

Toyman! said:

Kids. You can teach them as they help. Start them young as tool runners. 

A lift. Not having to get up and down from the floor is worth every penny. 

 

 

I tried but two was our limit. Both were girls, girly- girls.  Now they are in their 30's with kids of their own and living away from Dad?   
  I guess I'm just a failure ;-) 

In reply to wae :

The glasses thing is simple. I only wear TShirts with pockets. Plus I have a glasses cleaning station. When I sweat ( which seems to be any time I work lately) sweat runs down my glasses and I go to the cleaning station to wipe off the sweat and clean the glasses.  
 In addition I bought many pairs of those cheap drugstore glasses and when I misplace my regular glasses I grab one of those spares.  Now that I'm not blind I seem to quickly find the prescription pair. 
  The ceiling in my shop is only 9' I'm reluctant to get a lift that might crunch the roof and ceiling.  
  The shop is a tuck under. In the winter it's very warm. Maybe even too warm.  In the Summer it's nice and cool.  ( basement cool)  and with boat house doors on the lake side and garage doors on the other side a breeze off the lake makes it very pleasant. 

In reply to frenchyd :

Daughters can do it too. It does help if they have an interest in cars and luck for me mine does. You have to get to them before mom corrupts them. 

Daughter changing the clutch on the Lemons Civic. We are an equal-opportunity team and 3 of our team members were women. If you drive, you help with repairs. 

Daughter changing valve cover gaskets and plugs on her Supercoupe. (With some help from her brother.)

She is older and moved out at this point but if I called, she would come over and help. 

Wanna rent a kid?    
 Like I said I'm a failure,  My late wife corrupted them  with girlie stuff.   

More room to work - which is my biggest problem.  As I get older, my contortionist abilities have reduced.  Added weight hasn't helped... 

With two blown knees, it isn't so much the getting down there (once) , it is getting down there and then realizing that you need a different tool.  I need a garage monkey!

I agree with having the lift, it's a BIG help, and even if you only have limited ceiling height - a scissor lift or MaxJax is worth it.

I also have a hydraulic lift table I use when working on engines and trans out of the car, gets everything at the optimum height and you can roll it under the lights .

Lighting - I bought several of the puck lights from HF, they have magnetic bases, are adjustable, have three speeds of brightness and are rechargeable. You can put light right where you need it and it's super bright. Especially good when working under a car, and you never burn yourself or burn a hole into the seats.

Speaking of lighting - LED shop lights are absolutely the way to go - so much brighter, don't have to warm up to get full brightness when the shop is cold, don't buzz and seem to last well.

Gloves. I remember my dad in his 70's complaining about how easy it was to get cuts and bruises on his hands, now that I'm in my 70's I understand what he was saying. The thick nitrile gloves are fine if you don't want to wear regular mechanic's gloves - they really save your hands. 

I also just get readers from the dollar stores, I have about 10 pairs scattered around the house, half of them in the shop.

None of my kids/grands/great grands live nearby but I have recruited a neighbor kid from time to time. It's not as easy to do as when I was a kid as they're not out playing like we used to, you have to get lucky to find one.....

well,

But I do have back problems.

A lift and heat/aircon have helped in a huge way.  Nitrile gloves are a biggie as well. 

General keeping the shop clean and organized. Making it so you have to do less "where did I leave that?" through proper storage and labeling.  Store things up off the floor. (I have ADD and this has been te challenge for me)

You have a good point with proper seating and mobility. If you are going to be standing in one spot for awhile, consider anti-fatigue mats they do make a difference. 

I need to figure out the best way to change my shop over from florescents to LEDs. Is it just removing ballasts and inserting bulbs, or should I just get new fixtures? 

Apexcarver said: I need to figure out the best way to change my shop over from florescents to LEDs. Is it just removing ballasts and inserting bulbs, or should I just get new fixtures? 

There are some very helpful discussions on this forum for specifics on what to get. Looks like simply replacing the fixtures is easiest. I ended up getting some Barrina LEDs from Amazon. Black Friday/Monday got me eight 4ft single tubes for $54. As you know, the LEDs draw much less power so you can add a lot of light!

Lots of other good tips for the weekender who's no longer supple, fully-visioned, and impervious to temperature shifts! Thanks, everyone.

I've got one of these:

I like it better than an office chair. It has adjustable height, but the best part to me is the tray on the bottom. If I'm good about setting my tools there while I'm working, they follow me around, and I don't have to get up and down. 

Regarding reduced vision...

Use it as an opportunity to improve a bad habit. Add good lighting and magnification, but don't just scatter extra pairs of cheap readers around the shop. Buy some of these:

They are reader safety glasses!

They are reasonably priced (like $20).  Cheap enough to have a few pairs around.  And you can finally start wearing those safety glasses that you should have been wearing all along!

When my vision started having issues, I bought a few pair. They are fantastic!  Now that my vision is a little worse, I can't use readers any more. But I learned the value of good safety glasses, and now I don't hesitate to spend the money it takes to have good prescription bifocal safety glasses. 
 

I wear them continuously. It's a great habit I'm glad I developed. 

Go to a buffet, load a plate and land.  Eyes bigger than your stomach?

I do that (nowadays) with cars.  Easy-Peasy, pull the body, shorten the frame, rebuild the engine ....

Now I see the project but spend more time putzing and staring.  Is there a cure?

A friend of mine works on cars on a hoist frequently. He had his optometrist make a pair of glasses with the reading prescription on the top and the distance on the bottom.

DeadSkunk (Warren) said:

A friend of mine works on cars on a hoist frequently. He had his optometrist make a pair of glasses with the reading prescription on the top and the distance on the bottom.

I've talked about doing this. Would be great in so many situations.

I have stopped buying projects. I have two race cars, a classic pickup, a bus and two motorcycles. I have decided that i will stop buying and selling and just play with what I have. I am old enough not to want to do any more frame off's, weeks crouched in a cramped space welding a cage, grinding rust etc. The worst of that is behind me on all my toys and i plan to ease into old age by doing simple improvements and upgrades that are within the abilities of my arthritis and ruined back. So i guess my answer is that i am adjusting my workload to suit my reduced abilities.

I only need glasses for reading and close work.  For glasses and wrenching, these were a game changer for me.  No matter how sweaty or what contorted orientation you place your head, these stay put.  Then, they can easily be moved off the face and down on the neck, close at hand when needed again.   Clic Magnetic Glasses

bearmtnmartin (Forum Supporter) said:

I have stopped buying projects. I have two race cars, a classic pickup, a bus and two motorcycles. I have decided that i will stop buying and selling and just play with what I have. I am old enough not to want to do any more frame off's, weeks crouched in a cramped space welding a cage, grinding rust etc. The worst of that is behind me on all my toys and i plan to ease into old age by doing simple improvements and upgrades that are within the abilities of my arthritis and ruined back. So i guess my answer is that i am adjusting my workload to suit my reduced abilities.

You sir,   have much more common sense than I.  I just acquired two old Jaguars. One 38 years old and one 50 years old.  
     The 38 year old is being prepared for my 16 year old granddaughter who is attending college.  
 The 50 year old will get an engine transplant ( from a 6 to a 12 )   To tow the race car. 
    Of course I have to finish the XJS V12  tribute to Group 44 race car. Following that I plan on scratch building a series 1 XKE with a V12 race car.  

    
 

My main limitation is now getting down to the floor and back up again.  I try to plan it by figuring out something I can use to pull myself back up. Typically a chair or a bench.  
    My wife has a pair (2) of pinchers to pick up things from the floor.  I think I should buy a couple of pairs (4)  and spread them around the shop so anything I drop I can pick up rather than getting down and getting back up.  

Here's your dream 

The cost is very prohibitive though. (something like $20k)