Temporary Garages

In another month or so I have a car coming to live with me that really should live in a garage. I do have a garage, but I can't put the car in there. It's going under the hammer this coming summer/fall and I just can't keep a nice car in an active construction zone. When the garage is done, I'd like not to have an extra building in my yard. This leads me down the road of some sort of temporary garage type structure.
For somewhat less than $1000 I can get a fabric one. My father in law has one and has been using it for the past 5 years and has been happy with it. The upside to this solution is that when I'm done I can take it apart and store it or sell it.
For about the same cost I can get an open sided steel carport. In theory, I can also take this apart and sell it when I'm done, and it provides more top protection but unless I'm willing to pony up an extra $600 or so, I don't get walls.
I could also just mosey down to Home Depot and buy some lumber and some steel and put something together and then take it apart when I'm done. This will cost less, but when I'm done I have a pile of used wood which has no real value.
Any other options that I've missed or experiences with temporary garages?

What a coincidence... I'm in the same boat, more or less. Two cars in my 1 car garage already and a 3rd may be on its way soon.

I'm looking at this one:

http://www.tractorsupply.com/shelterlogic-reg-garage-in-a-box-reg-suv-truck-13-ft-w-x-20-ft-l-x-12-ft-h-1019605

NorthernTool sells the same one but the shipping is a lot and it's truck-shipped and they charge extra for lift-gate delivery. TSC will have it drop-shipped to one of their stores for $85 where I can load it into my car.

My plan is to build a pressure-treated platform so the cars aren't sitting directly on the grass.

That's a better deal than what I was looking at.
My plan was to use a combination of concrete pavers and lumber to create a deck. The world gets squishy when it gets wet here. Really squishy. Does it make sense to put down plastic sheeting before the constructed decking to keep out moisture as well?

Edit: Holy cats! The car I'm getting is small enough to fit in this one with ease! Small Garage

PVC pipe frame work and a few rolls of house wrap?

mazdeuce wrote: That's a better deal than what I was looking at. My plan was to use a combination of concrete pavers and lumber to create a deck. The world gets squishy when it gets wet here. Really squishy. Does it make sense to put down plastic sheeting before the constructed decking to keep out moisture as well? Edit: Holy cats! The car I'm getting is small enough to fit in this one with ease! Small Garage

That might make a nice paint booth...

So, uh... What's going in the garage?

I've got two of those garage-in-a-box buildings. No real complaints. Had a third before these, but it finally died of old age after roughly a decade of use.

Plastic sheet makes an adequate, though not perfect, floor. Run it up wide, fold it back over a board. That way water goes under it (mostly).

Put a board under the feet, les they sink into the dirt. Which is what did in fabric garage #1 here.

Rope along the top tieing the ends together makes it stronger and easier to pick up as a completed unit.

Anchor well. Wind can pick them up. I use crossed rebar myself. They've kited in hurricanes, but have never left.

Don't let the snow get more than about 4 inches deep on the roof. The older the fabric, the more you may want to keep deep snow off. That said, I had upwards of 2 feet on my first one once (out of town when a blizard hit). It didn't collapse.

unevolved wrote: So, uh... What's going in the garage?

Something that rhymes with morsche. . I probably shouldn't start a build thread before I get the car but I might anyway. I scouted out a metal carport dealer in town and will go talk to them this weekend. I really only need the garage to last for a year so the TSC ones are sounding nice. Even if the zippers fail like many of the reviewers said it would still work.

i have friend that just bought one of these for $875.00 it was dented. it took a weekend to set up but it's pretty nice for a smaller car

storageshedsonsale .com/

mazdeuce wrote: For somewhat less than $1000 I can get a fabric one.

Would it be less headache to rent a storage unit or garage for 6 months? Would it allow you to concentrate on the construction and not worry about weather or building code issues?

In reply to Datsun310Guy:

No, it would be a huge hassle to keep the car off site. I don't have any building codes to deal with so anything goes. Between my wife and I we'll be driving the car 2-5 days a week. Once the kids start school next fall I'll have 7 hours a day to get the real garage in shape. It's my reward for being a stay at home dad for 11 years.

mazdeuce wrote: That's a better deal than what I was looking at. My plan was to use a combination of concrete pavers and lumber to create a deck. The world gets squishy when it gets wet here. Really squishy. Does it make sense to put down plastic sheeting before the constructed decking to keep out moisture as well? Edit: Holy cats! The car I'm getting is small enough to fit in this one with ease! Small Garage

not that this affects you .. but what is it about Hi and Ak ?

NOTE: This product is not available for online purchase or shipment to the following states: HI, AK

mazdeuce wrote: Edit: Holy cats! The car I'm getting is small enough to fit in this one with ease! Small Garage

I chose the more expensive one for a couple of reasons. The framing is 1 5/8" vs. 1 3/8" and the design of the roof looks like it should shed snow a bit better than the smaller one which has less of a roof pitch.

The base of the legs would be on something to keep them from sinking as quickly and I also plan to bolt the legs to the platform base.

I'm not 100% sure about putting down plastic. Any water that does get under the base I want to drain away, not puddle and evaporate up into the bottom of the car. There seems to be a fine line between keeping moisture away and keeping proper air flow.

My hope is this will be temporary for a couple of years until I can build a proper shop in my back yard.

Off-site storage is an option as well since there is a facility not far from me. It'll depend on cost.

I don't have to worry about snow.
I do have to worry about hurricanes.

How about a shipping container?

A little more money, but can ALWAYS be resold for pretty much the purchase price.

Or converted to a paint booth, parts storage, MiL apartment, dog pen, man cave, etc.

In reply to SVreX:

In my case, not possible - I'd need a crane to get it over my house and into my back yard. Access is tight to the point where even my E30 is tricky to get back there. Plus, let's face it - they aren't exactly attractive. I can get away with a temp garage (my neighbor has had a huge one covering a boat for as long as I can remember) without upsetting anyone. I'm not sure a shipping container would fly.

My hope with the temp garage is that both my GT6 and the (fingers crossed) Mini can fit inside, thuse leaving my garage open for easier car service. Plus, it would be nice to move the lift into the back of the garage during the winter so I'm not parking over it and dripping salt/slush on it.

I had one from Sam's Club a few years back. I paid $240 for the 20X10 model, and it lasted between 5-6 years. UV exposure finally did it in (the frame was really strong but the plastic was thin), but I definitely got my money's worth out of it. It handled some pretty impressive snow loads during the NE weather, but I was always good about knocking the snow off after the storms were over. The roof was starting to rip easily, and new covers were about the price of a new temporary garage (frame and all). With a Hurricane was coming, I proactively took it down.

When I had it, I built a platform for it out of railroad ties and pressure-treated plywood. With a gravel driveway, it made it much easier to actually do work in it, but it sounds like that's not what the OP would be using it for.

The better ones will give you a much better lifespan, but you'll end up paying much more for them up-front. Only you can decide if the extra quality is worth it for your purposes.

I don't know about handling the weight of a car, but I have a shed without a floor that I got plastic pallets to use as flooring, with a layer of treated plywood on top. You would still need some sort of ramp, but air flows nicely, and condensation issues are gone.

mazdeuce wrote: That's a better deal than what I was looking at. My plan was to use a combination of concrete pavers and lumber to create a deck. The world gets squishy when it gets wet here. Really squishy. Does it make sense to put down plastic sheeting before the constructed decking to keep out moisture as well? Edit: Holy cats! The car I'm getting is small enough to fit in this one with ease! Small Garage

I had one like this to store my truck, mowers, etc. It's great as long as you anchor it down real good. I didn't and a bad storm almost destroyed it. I didn't have any issues with rain or snow load and it was easy enough to erect, but anchor it real good if you ever have any big wind.