Out of the way

[Anonymous]

After xmas my little boy and I are going to visit a layout that has been in MR twice before. The system is a three layer full basement HO. When I get home I know I am going to have to move his take down living room system to a permanent one. The problem is, the only place I have to put it is in my garage. I still need to put my cars in there. I was thinking about using a suspention system that I could raise or lower or a wall mount that would fold up. I realy don't want to use a shelf type because he would not be able to use it. Any ideas on what would work well? My garage is 24' X 24'.

[michaelstevens]

[8D][8D]

Park the cars outside !

[:D][:D]

[FThunder11]

I like the idea of a layout in the garage that can be raised or lowered by cabels.

[Big_Boy_4005]

Don't do it!!! A garage is not a place for a model railroad!!! I've tried it, and it was a disaster. A garage is dirty, and the temperature and humidity make it a poor environment. Raising and lowering sounds nice but is very difficult, I tried that too. The layout was too heavy, and tilted as it went up and down. If you want the trains to go away and never be played with, by all means put them in the garage. Beside, if he can't raise and lower it himself, it would be worse than the shelf layout. Try an under the bed hideaway layout until you can find a space inside.

[Anonymous]

I've also seen articles on a layout that folds up against the wall when not in use. I agree don't use the garage unless you can make it permanent and heat it.

[Trainnut484]

As stated above, a garage layout is not a good idea. That crashing sound as your car runs into it because you forgot it was still there would not be good thing.

Take care,

Russell

[Anonymous]

If the choice is living room or garage by all means put it into the garage. Its hard to make a cogent comment not knowing the specifics, eg. how old the boy is, what gauge the layout is, how large, what sort of engineering capability you have, what the climate is in your area...you get the idea ;)

There is no engineering reason a layout cannot be successfully mounted in a garage on a raising and lowering system. Whether it is practical depends on the answers to the above questions.

Good luck

Randy

[Anonymous]

I live in AZ where houses are built without basements so have my layout in the garage. Yes, dust is a problem here in AZ but the garage is insulated, heated and cooled by AC so temp. and humidity is not a problem.

[:D] The wife doesn't mind the train being in the [:D]
[:D] garage either now that her car gets to park [:D]
[:D] in a climate controlled enviroment. [:D]
If you live in an area that gets well below freezing it may not, as stated above, be a good idea to put his layout in the garage. However, If you do put it in the garage you can hinge mount it to the wall and on the outside edge (opposite the hinges) put "weighted" cables on pullies and folding legs. This would make it easy for you or your spouse to lower it and put it away for him.

Here is another suggestion vice putting it in the garage. Buy an old roll-out "hide-a-bed", the type where when the hidden bed is rolled out of under the other it springs up and locks into place. This would put the layout about thigh high. I Don't know if this would be high enough for your "little boy".

[vsmith]

I'm also in the garage, it was either there or nowhere. My garage is 20 x 20 my layout is 8 x 20 but only 5 feet deep where the car is parked. Also mine is tucked under a storage loft, Oh and my layout is G guage so I cant be crammed in there any tighter but some how I'm making it work. Dust and temperature can be a problem, I am finding that the loft overhead is acting like a dust cover and keeping it off my layout, Also I plan on installing a curtain over the front ot further help keep the dust off when not in use.

Some tips:
Park the vehicle most likely to be stored inside and close the door, see how much space there is left. Is there a few feet left over? maybe you can build a shelf type layout or a folded dogbone where the curves are tucked into the corners the straights can be tucked onto the more shelf like section of the back wall where the car would need more area to be parked.

Also hang a tennis ball from the ceiling to a point where it would be touched by the front of your car when pulling in. that way whe you pull in as soon as your car touches the tennis ball, stop, your in and you wont whack your layout.


Another alternative is to build a 4x8 type layout and mount it on hinges to the wall. Using a rope/pulley the layout would hinge on one side and store against the wall when not is use. Just build part of the layout where it would hinge about a foot off the wall so when upright theres space for things on the layout. Support legs could also fold up with it and provide a stop spacer at the top where it might otherwise hit the wall and damage any buildings/scenery on the layout. You'd have to carefull about weight (no hydrocal mountains) and some buildings might need to taken up when not is us, but a fold away system would be a lot safer than a overhead system. I tried a overhead system once, even the most basic board/bench system got VERY heavy very fast. I dont recommend it.

[Anonymous]

I know a guy who parks his Mercedes in his driveway because his trains are in the garage. That shows you where his priorities are. I'm lucky enought to have a basement for my trains, but I know that if I were in his situation, I'd do the same thing.

[nfmisso]

It is workable.

WIth any pulley system, make sure that you use counter weights.

Use 2" foam, with 3/16" luan plywood underneath with 3/16" luan plywood around the sides.

It can be raised and lowered with a garage door opener, and use the safety sensors to prevent mis-haps.

Do not use Homasote® or similar in the garage - it is heavy and is not dimensionally stable with humidity changes.

Have fun.

[bcammack]

www.harborfreight.com often has (relatively) inexpensive 110-volt cable hoist/winch units for around $100. Something like that mounted on the wall, connected to a drawbar that connects the cables at the four corners of the layout can easily raise/lower it at the flip of a switch.

Regards,
Brett C. Cammack

[Anonymous]

Dave Barrow (frequently in MR) made a garage layout the way it should be done. Raise the roof (2nd floor) and build a permanent layout in the new space. A costly solution to create layout space for sure. This will allow the construction of a layout without needing to consider "time sharing" the space with cars or other impedimentia.

[Anonymous]

I wish I could find the post about the guy who found a way to move his layout using a kayak or bicycle storage system. It was on a link in a post.

Sorry about not being able to help more.

DT

Found it!!!!!

http://www.trans-globaltech.com/

Under Markin look for customer story #1

[Anonymous]

Our PSR NMRA Achievement Committeeman Ken Wilson once used a high fixed layout with walkways that could be hoisted into the layout to let the cars come in. The walkways are less susceptible to damage by movement and they are very much lighter than a layout. He had counterweights on the side so that the system was easier to move. The layout track came out of his interior workroom.
Lindsay Smith

[Jetrock]

I put my trains in the garage--but I live in a climate that doesn't go below freezing (though it does get hot, it doesn't get humid.) My garage, however, is too small for my car, so making space for the car isn't an issue.

Would a shelf layout at a kid-appropriate height be an option? It might require a nice rolling seat for you (to avoid back pain from leaning over it) but an around-the-garage shelf could combine the best of both worlds.