Restoring a Car at Home

The process of restoring a vehicle is time consuming; however, it is also a great way to escape from your daily life or reconnect with a friend or family member. If you are considering undertaking a restoration project at home in 2014, there are a few things you are going to need before you begin. Since the restoration process is not a short one, you'll have to be organised enough so that you don't neglect any other commitments. You will also need a place to work on the vehicle where you know that it won’t be harmed while you are away. This is when purchasing a garage kit can prove invaluable.

Planning

• Create a timeline- As with any major project, it is important to create a timeline for your restoration. This will not only help you to stay focused, and keep you from slacking off and eventually giving up, but it will also allow you to work time into your normal schedule. Even if you don't have a strict deadline to stick to, take the time to plan out your projected progress and completion date -- it will save you time in the end.

• Set a budget for yourself - It may seem very tempting to go all out to create the car of your dreams. However, set a budget and stick to it so that you are able to enjoy the final product without having to worry about all of those extra bills that somehow ate away your savings.

• See if you need permission- Before you purchase anything for your intended project, check with your local municipality to see if you need any type of permit.

Go Car Shopping

Shopping for your restoration project may take some time, but do not settle for the first vehicle you see! If you have an idea of what model and year you want to work on, look for that vehicle. Do not overspend on the car, though, as this may leave you with a smaller restoration budget than is entirely feasible.

The Work Site

As you are looking for that perfect project car, consider where you are going to be working on it. If you live by yourself and have a two car garage, this question already has an answer. However, if you need to purchase a structure, there are a variety of garage kits available to suit your needs. When looking to purchase one of these kits, consider the amount of space you are going to need for your vehicle, along with your tools and yourself.

Whether you are looking to escape or create lasting memories, restoring cars at home is a process that is well worth undertaking. Before you go shopping, take the time to consider your budget and your final goals. Call us at Fair Dinkum for the perfect place to restore your dream car!

Trying to Turn your Hobby into a Business? You Probably Need a Place to Work

Up until a few years ago, people with crafting talents largely confined their efforts to themselves and the people that they knew: mothers would make clothing for their children; sisters would make jewellery for their siblings and cousins; fathers would make toys for their sons. Very few people actually went to the trouble of trying to sell the things that they created, often because there was simply no good way to market their items to a large audience and owning a shop required a physical location. 

However, advancing technology and Internet connectivity have changed all of that in a few spare years. Where once a small-town crafter would have virtually no way to get the word out about his or her products, sites like Etsy have made it easy and convenient to attain visibility in the global community. People can literally make something, take a few pictures of it on a smartphone, and sell it online to someone on the other side of the planet. 

With these easier ways to sell, many crafters have been able to take what was merely a hobby, and turn it into lucrative income that helps to keep themselves and their family afloat. People who are thinking of taking their skills to that next level may need to upgrade their workspaces to accommodate the larger volume of orders that they are planning to take. And while a spare room can be a decent place to work, it may not offer enough space or be able to handle the messiness of the job. 

That's where garage kits come in. Garage kits are a smart and easy way to create a workspace fit for any project, from steampunk clothing designs and hand-thrown and painted vases to welded lawn sculptures. Here are the three reasons that a garage kit is a smart workspace option.

1. It's customisable- A workshop will need to be designed with the specific craft in mind. For instance, if one is going to make the above mentioned lawn sculptures, having a ceiling that's high enough to accommodate them is a necessity. Perhaps natural light would be useful and skylights and windows located at key parts of the building would help. Tools and equipment will all need to fit inside of the building, as well. Additionally, the structure can be designed to complement the colour, roof pitch, and style of the home that it will share space with, giving it aesthetic (as well as utilitarian) functions.
2. It's Easy to Assemble- A garage kit that can be erected over the weekend is one that a crafter can begin to use right away. If timeliness is an issue, why wait for the weeks that it might take to have a brick and mortar structure put in place?
3. It's a LOT Cheaper- Many at-home crafters are selling online precisely because they cannot afford the upkeep associated with a physical store. If one cannot afford a rental, then having an expensive workshop built may not be fiscally possible either. For those that need to expand their workspaces with a reliable structure, but can't afford anything extravagant, a garage kit is the best solution.

The world of online sales has made it possible for people to get their products to consumers that they never would have been able to reach before. By having an adequate space for crafting, these individuals can expand their offerings and perhaps become the self-starters that they've always dreamed of being.

Garage Kits are an Inexpensive way to invest in a New Structure

Garage kits come with detailed instructions to make it easy for do-it-yourselfers to assemble their own structures. There are a few steps to follow when building from garage kits.

The first thing to do is to decide on the exact size and design and get a quote with engineered plans. In some places, submitting the plans to the local council for approval is required. The site then needs to be excavated and prepared for electric and plumbing and the footings need to be placed or a slab poured. Then, the frame is assembled, the cladding is applied, and the internal provisions and fit-out is completed.

The method of installation and the complexity of the instructions will vary according to the structure type, size, choice of footings and accessories. There are eight main steps:

1. Clear the land

2. Prepare the concrete slab or install alternative footings

3. Attach the sheeting to the frame

4. Erect the wall, prop it up and put braces on either side

5. When the walls are up, the gable end framings, roof purlins and rafters can be installed

6. Fix the apex and knee braces, roof sheeting and gable wall cladding

7. Complete the main structure with cappings, flashings, downpipes and any other finishing touches desired

8. Finally, install the windows, doors and any other accessories that were selected

Garage kits are a low cost way to get a high quality garage and can be easily put up by anyone who has the skills to assemble the parts.

The types of garage kits available can include the following:

• Single, double, triple or multiple car garages

• Custom garage

• Drive through garage

• Enclosed garage

• Enclosed garage with garaport

• Garage with garaport and lean-to

We offer garage designs that are certified to the Building Code of Australia and other government standards. Our steel connections, cold formed steel members, all steel sections, hot roller steel members, foundations and concrete are designed to meet stringent quality assessments. Our designs use CAD software and allow plans to be drawn and printed in minutes, ready for council submission.