The Ultimate Garage 8-Point Checklist

If you have the money to collect a few classic or fancy cars, then you can probably afford the ultimate garage to store your cars in to help keep them nice. "No," you may say, "I only have one car that is my baby." But, if it truly is your baby, then you have to keep it in the right environment to keep it in pristine condition. An ultimate garage can range in price, from a few thousand to a few hundred thousand dollars. There is a lot of flexibility in how much you spend, but lets take a look at some of the things that you should consider when designing your garage.

• Flooring - Now, your flooring doesn't have to be so expensive that you push your car out of the garage before starting it for fear of damaging the finish. Settle for something nice and durable like an epoxy coating. Other options include tiles and cushioned mats.
• Lights - You want your ultimate garage to be nice and bright, both to work on your car and to show your car off to friends. Fluorescent is a great option because they put out a lot of bight, low energy light. Natural lighting is also nice, so you could instal windows or skylights. If you don't want the sun's UV rays shining down on your car, you may decide against any windows or skylights, or use shades or darkeners for when you are not in the garage or certain times of the day.
• The air in your garage. Do you spend a lot of time in the garage? Many car enthusiasts do, so you want to be comfortable. This could mean heating or air conditioning, or both depending upon where you live. Also, for storing an expensive car, you would want a dehumidifier. This could be a stand alone unit or an integrated system.
• Plumbing, this includes both running water and the drain system. Do you want running water? Just cold water, or hot as well? Perhaps your ultimate garage needs its own bathroom. What about a center drain in the floor? This can get expensive, but If 'yes' to the drain, check your local regulations. You may have to install a drain with a filter system for the oil and grease.
• Lift system. If you do a lot of tinkering on your car, you may want a lift system in your ultimate garage. You could go with a portable system such as a mid-rise scissor lift, or if you have the money, you may want an in-ground lift system. It is there when you need it, but otherwise it is out of the way.
• Cabinets. There are a lot of nice cabinets systems available for storing everything you need for taking care of your car, many even come with matching tool chests.
• Security. If you spend a lot of money on a nice car or auto collection, it deserves a secure environment, an investment to keep your investment safe! Lots of options out there, so find something that works for you.
• Entertainment. Lets face it, you are probably going to want to spend a lot of time in your ultimate garage working on your car, detailing it, or just looking at it! You might as well surround yourself with extra comforts. A well stocked fridge, stereo surround sound and perhaps even a flat screen TV.

That just about does it, though if you think of something else, let me know. But these considerations are a great place to start as you design your ultimate garage.