Multiple Car Owners, where do you store your cars?

[Guest Bluestatueman]

I see that many of you have more than a few cars in your collection. I'm sure many of you have pole barns. For those that don't, where do you keep your vehicles? Are you paying several hundred dollars to a storage facility or are you relying on friends and relatives?

[DAVE A]

I am not your typical owner since my cars are so small, but here goes. I have 5 cars in my 2 car garage, 2 in my trailer, 2 in my workshop, 1 at my friends paint shop, and 3 parts cars covered with large tarps in my back yard. I am however, now at my limit and considering buying another pole building. It is far cheaper than storage fees.

[Guest Bluestatueman]

I like your logic! If I sold my four, I could buy eight Crosleys, Austins, or Metropolitans to take their place!

[trimacar]

We bought our house 25 years ago with a one car, built in, garage. I added the maximum our subdivision would allow, a three-car garage, but oversized it and then wrapped it around original garage. Can now hold 6 cars, or 5 and my upholstery table.

I was then lucky enough to be negotiating storage space for a company I worked for, in an old VDO production facility, and was personally offered a 1000 foot garage, plus additional work and storage space in the main warehouse, for less per month than my home utility bill. So, room for another 5 to 6 cars.

My '69 Cutlass is an "outside" car, as I drive it year round (except when there's ice and snow with salt mixed in!).....

Storage is always an issue, and one really needs heated and cooled storage to properly maintain a good car....

[Bhigdog]

Started with a two car garage, added three bays to it then built a separate four car garage. That doesn't count the 3 bay tractor/horse trailer/camper/mower etc garage. Car trailer is in a covered car port type addition on the shop. Nothing is outside. Build it and you will fill it...................Bob

[D Yaros]

Started wit a 2-car garage. Expanded it to a -3 car, which holds 4 cars. I am able to keep 2 cars in the lift bay; 1 on the lift and one on the ground.

[Guest Skyking]

When I moved to Florida in 1994 I thought I was settled in for quite a while. 3 years later my wife wanted to move back to RI to be back near family. I told her that if I move back I want a big garage. I ended up buying a double lot with a 20' X 25' two car garage on it with a full workshop on the second floor. I built a raised ranch with another two car garage in it on the other lot. Both are heated. Now I fit my 3 Mets and my '62 Buick in the rear garage and my truck and wife's Century in the house garage. In the summer I park my truck outside and move the '62 beside my wife's Century. That way it gives me access to the Mets easier. I used to rent a garage when I got my first old car years ago. Back then it cost $50.00 a month. Now if I can't fit an old car home, I don't buy it. If my Florida place had more than a carport, I'd bring a Met there for the winter.

[Mark Shaw]

Ten years ago, we bought a house with a two car garage for daily drivers, but room to add another garage on the other end of the house. We built a 850 sq. ft. pole building onto the end of the house with the same siding, roof, etc. Added a four post lift to hold five cars (two front to back on both sides and one on the lift).

I had no room to work in this shop with five cars in it, so when my wife found a house ten blocks away with a 40X60 metal building on the property, we bought it. We were looking for a rental property anyway. Now we rent the house to our daughter and her family and see them more often when shuttling old cars back and forth to and from the storage building.

[John Byrd]

When we built our house in Alabama back in 99, we had already bought a building and had it moved to where it would become a permanent garage later, and had 5 cars and a few bikes in it. We also had a 4 car concrete block garage and a barn, each with cars in them. We built the basement of the house first when we could, moved the 5 from the temporary building there and made a woodworking shop out of the building to help in building the house. We also built on a two car garage on the building and one on the house, un-done one half of the woodworking side of the extra building, and put two cars and several bikes in there.

We ended up with four cars in that building, two in our house garage, 5 in the basement, two in the concrete building, and always at least 2 in the barn. The open "shed" we built was for 2 tractors. We also had numerous motorcycles in each area. Now that we've moved to Hawaii, we keep 2 in the attached house garage that are precious to us, and 2 "disposable" daily drivers outside - - - which we do not enjoy, but hey, the weather is good. Oh, only 4 bikes to keep in the garage now, and 2 of them are going to be sold. Cars are a big investment, and we always figured keeping them covered and protected was a wise decision and it actually works in your favor when selling. Careful planning, waiting for the right time, (patience) and finding good deals - - especially while we were in Alabama and Tennessee - - served us adequately, but we have slowed and trimmed WAY down. My advise to anyone is to plan ahead about the care of your hobby/ investment whatever it is.

[39BuickEight]

When we built our house 2 years ago, we picked a lot and driveway configuration that could perfectly accomodate an additional 2-3 car garage at a future date. The house itself has a 2 car attached garage that we use for our daily drivers and kids bikes and the sort. Right now the projects are in Dad's shop. If needed we have more room there, but I don't anicipate having more cars before the garage is built. My neighbors always ask about my driveway as it is different than the rest in the neighborhood, and when I tell them the garage plan they see how it makes perfect sense.

[Scotts_DG8]

A two car garage that I had added on and additional L shaped shop area. I have my 3 old cars and the old van stored in the original two car garage and the shop side has the compressor, blast cabinet, bench,tools, etc. The downside is that to do serious work on any car it is pulled in the driveway and put at the end of the day. The only way the limited situation will change is to elimate one or more of the vehicles which isn't currently in the plans.

[Jon37]

I have but one antique car. Moved to a country house with no garage or shed suitable for storing a 77-year-old car. Needed a quick solution. Bought an enclosed car trailer, used, for $3,000 and the seller delivered it. The county requires me to insure and license it for a small fee yearly. That's my temporary garage until I get a real on built -- at which time I hope to sell my "garage on wheels" to another collector, and get back at least a small portion of what I spent for it!

You asked for "multiple car owners", but I offer this as a possible solution for someone who has run out of garage space for his growing collection and needs to get creative!

Edited May 17, 2014 by Jon37 (see edit history)

[Joe Cocuzza]

I have 6 cars. 2 are in the attached 2 car garage. 2 are in the 28 foot detached shed/garage. 1 is in a 18 foot shed and the last one is in a canopy tent but the car is in a car capsule (bubble).

[Guest Bluestatueman]

I see many owners are using an enclosed trailer for storage. This seems like a versatile way to store a car. Anyone else doing this?

[Jim Bollman]

My neighbor used the trailer approach to storing cars for years. He just kept adding used car trailers as needed and had a small shed style workshop. He eventually freed up some extra cash and built a large building to house everything. I think he was up to 4 trailers when he built the current building. As all of us find out even though he built it twice as big as he thought he needed in only 4 years he has things in trailers again, luckily he didn't get rid of all of them.

[trimacar]

Dollar wise, a trailer is a quick storage solution, but not economical nor convenient .... A trailer at 20 feet by 8 feet is 160 square feet.... Say $3200 for trailer, that's $20 per square foot, and a garage or building can be put up for less than that figure per square foot....

[mrcvs]

Well, I really need a place just like out of American Pickers with lots of outbuildings or a huge storage building, but the reality is I have one in someone else's barn at $95 a month and the other in my garage in a house in a subdivision that the wife complains about all the time. I don't know how the folks on American Pickers seem to have huge storage buildings, a ton of vintage cars, and the ability to afford it all.

[Harold]

I keep one car in the two-car garage that's built into the house, and the other two cars in a second garage in the rear yard that I had built shortly after we moved here. The second bay of the house garage is used for storing stuff. Our daily drivers sit in the driveway year-round.

[Guest Skyking]

I live in the neighborhood I grew up in. Most houses have double garages that are totally filled with junk. One thing that always bothered me was to see nice cars outside in the weather. When I was a kid I delivered papers to these houses and all the old timers always parked their cars inside. This generation for some reason got really lazy.

I would say only 5 percent use them for their cars.

Sorry for the rant.........

[Guest]

I live in the neighborhood I grew up in. Most houses have double garages that are totally filled with junk. One thing that always bothered me was to see nice cars outside in the weather. When I was a kid I delivered papers to these houses and all the old timers always parked their cars inside. This generation for some reason got really lazy.

I would say only 5 percent use them for their cars.

Sorry for the rant.........

I would also bet that when you were a kid most of those same people washed their own cars and cut their own lawns..........sorry for the rant as well.

[Paul Dobbin]

This hobby can sneak up on you over time, but as we aged we adapted with additional garage space.

42 years ago we bought our first 1934 Ford, we had a one car garage and it was for our 1965 Mustang Convertible.

Next we bought a home with a large two car garage and the 34 & the Mustang co-exisited inside.

When the 41 Ford arrived, it lived outside, but when the Model A joined the family, we build a 3 car shop to supplement

the 2 car garage and the 41 was replaced with a Model T basket case.

After that the next 30 years got blurry with lots of cars coming and going. The most kept inside at once was 6, but work space was short.

Now we're a stable household with a 2 car garage and a carriage house for the RV and 5 antique cars and an old motorcycle and a shop big enough to still be crowded. Oh yea, plus two carports and a enclosed trailer to serve as the annex.

My bones tell me it's time to limit my numbers or hire help for routine maintenance. Nah, forget that, Ill be caught up soon.

It's a great hobby and full of nice people with the same disease, and nobody has enough space.

[Guest]

I've been in my new house for a year now, the old house had a 2 1/2 attached garage and I built a four car on the other side of the house. The new house came with a oversize three car garage and I had to build a 1632 Sq ft new garage before I could sell the old house and move. One state away, and a nine hour interstate drive was fun going back and forth. My wife and I were the general contractors on the new garage addition. We had Reliable Carriers move the antique cars (5) and we moved the rest of the house contents and engines, transmissions, rear ends, rollaway tool boxes, press, grinders, welding equipment, 80 gallon compressor, cherry picker, etc. etc. etc., in six 26ft rental trucks in six trips largely by ourselves. The new garage has 10ft walls and 25ft ceiling so we added two four post lifts to work on cars and to stack cars which really added work space. Am I glad all that is behind me.

Now yesterday I drive over to a friends house and his garage besides the three car attached and two car on the side is a garage that's been in Hemming classic car magazine recently and because my friend is into Oldsmobile big time it's called the ROCKET Ranch. This garage houses thirty nine (39!!!) Oldsmobiles! click on the link;

http://assets.hemmings.com/story_image/489671-1000-0.jpg?rev=2

http://assets.hemmings.com/story_image/489741-1000-0.jpg?rev=2

http://www.antiqueolds.org/2009meet/images/06-21-09/used/DSC_3410.jpg

http://assets.hemmings.com/story_image/489771-918-0.jpg?rev=2

And I thought I had it bad!

Edited May 19, 2014 by helfen (see edit history)

[Airy Cat]

My house has a large two car garage and I have a 30' x 50' steel building where I have my shop and store 4 cars there. I have another 12' x 20' steel building where I keep my Jeep and spare Buick parts.

[Restorer32]

I have a friend who rotates his cars thru a restoration shop, 2 at a time. If they all were to come home to roost at the same time he would have no place to store them all.

[Guest Skyking]

I have a good friend that was building a 25 car garage on his property and the city planner wanted to know why so big. He told them he had a lot of lawn furniture. My friend dislikes nosey people.

[auburnseeker]

I have a 24x28 foot heated garage at the house with 3 cars in it used just for storage. A 40x40 foot shop down the road with 2 cars in it. (it's not laid out well for more than 2 cars) A 24 x 24 garage at my old house I bought before I met my wife that has one of my cars and an uncles old car in it. A 20x 20 barn/garage that has one of my project cars in it along with a friends 53 buick convertible that needs restoration (it's for sale) that have both been their for the last 10 years. A heated 20 x 20 wood floor garage that houses one of my other cars that hasn't been touched in 15 years. A 28 foot storage trailer for parts at my shop and a 10x20 storage unit that is full of parts. (I'm in the parts business)

We are buying a house with a 30 x 50 garage With upstairs storage that is suppose to replace my shop and the garage here at the house as we are selling this house. It does have an oversized one car under the house as well.

I can see an addition or whole additional building ((50 x 60) Is that big enough?) coming which will work as the new house sits on 6 acres where this house is on .25 acres.

My total number of cars that I own is 8 not including a 49 merc I bought for my Dad which he stores with his cars. Although I'm currently storing 10. I got lucky and a friend locked me in at a 75.00 a month rate at the storage unit before he sold it.

Edited May 19, 2014 by auburnseeker (see edit history)

[Binger]

I have a 40'x60' concrete building that is tall and has a loft in it for spare parts. It is divided in half by a wall and the loft. Half is insulated and heated that is work shop the other half is "the cold side" used for storage. My Grandmother Binger named it "The Annex" back in '82 when my dad and gramps first bought it. Eventually My folks built a house on the lot in front of the annex and added 5 spaces of garage to the house and there is an enclosed trailer too. There is a bit more space than cars but its nice having a clear workspace for welding painting and so on.

[Guest]

I have a good friend that was building a 25 car garage on his property and the city planner wanted to know why so big. He told them he had a lot of lawn furniture. My friend dislikes nosey people.

My wife and I actually wanted a bigger garage, however the city said ( even with a 25ft setback at the back and a 7 1/2 side yard setback ) that we had maximized our square footage footprint! I found out that on my old house if I would try to build that today the planning department wouldn't let me....not because of setback's or anything like that. Only because I would have exceeded my lot to structure ratio......like who cares????

[Barry Wolk]

I ran out of room long ago at home. I have a 3-car attached garage with a storage lift in the third bay. I was paying rent all over town and noticed the 5,000 square foot block and brick building next to where my business is. I paid about $40 a square foot, less than half of new construction costs. I rent out a few spaces and that covers utility and taxes. When I officially retire I'll sell off the bucket trucks and lifts and rent out that space to cover all my costs.

[Guest Skyking]

My wife and I actually wanted a bigger garage, however the city said ( even with a 25ft setback at the back and a 7 1/2 side yard setback ) that we had maximized our square footage footprint! I found out that on my old house if I would try to build that today the planning department wouldn't let me....not because of setbackk's or anything like that. Only because I would have exceeded my lot to structure ratio......like who cares????

Rules and regulations, don't you love them!!

[Guest Bluestatueman]

I am also using a few friends to store everything. Fortunately it's not costing me a lot of money. I would one day like to have everything in one location. That way I don't have to shuffle things around every time I want to work on a car.

[Dandy Dave]

Too much old iron to save. Never enough space. I have a garage door going into my basement of my raised ranch, ( that I installed years ago.) and so many tools that there is no space for cars there at this time. Also a pole barn 32 X 100 stuffed full, and other stuff outside. Time to sell some me thinks. Now if I was smart, I would unload some of the stuff that is in the pole barn, Get it fixed up proper, get a decent shop in one end and rent space to other car guys with no room so it would be easier to pay the taxes and insurance around here. But the sentimental value to me for some of this stuff makes it hard to let go. Rustitis, What a disease. Messes with your better judgment of what you should be doing vs. keeping the odd ball thing that Uncle Joe owned just because. Ohhhh Gooodddd, the guys in the white coats.... Run, ... Hide... Under the bed. They won't find me there...Dandy Dave!

[Guest AlCapone]

I have several cars stored in many places. This is very inconvenient. Hopefully I will soon close a deal on a property that has two 40 x 60 heated buildings.

wayne

[Dandy Dave]

Oh, Did I say my next building will be 50 X 100 plus... never enough room. Dandy Dave!

[cahartley]

I have a 40' × 80' × 12' sidewall pole shed. When I was ordering the building I told the sales rep I wanted a drafty building. I've seen what happens in NOT well ventilated pole buildings and it's not pretty.

He suggested an end to end ridge vent and fully vented eves. There are two 10' inside sliding doors at both ends.

The floor is 6" of road mat.

I have yet to see any signs of hoarfrost on anything after the first winter when the road mat dried out.

The shed was filled, mostly with OLD tractors which belonged to me and a couple friends.

Now it's housing 6 cars and several tractors.

I also had a 10' × 16' office built within the shed.......I spend more time there than in the house.......

Edited May 30, 2014 by cahartley (see edit history)