I am thinking of laying up my 1981 Ford Minster Limousine for the winter. I can either leave it out in the cold with a breathable cover over it or put it in the leaky damp garage.
Which is better do you think? Is it better off outside where it has air flow or inside where it wont get rained on directly.
Put it in the garage but leave each end of the garage open so that air blows through and keeps any damp air moving. This works really well (from personal experience)
The garage is a bolt together concrete monstrosity with an asbestos roof. My garden is on a slope and the previous occupants thought it wise to site the garage where the run off from the driveway flows straight into the garage. In the recent heavy rain there was two inches of water slopping about at the far end. Next year (subject to funds) the garage will be demolished to make way for an extension to the house which will include a
2006 05:11:58 GMT and decided it was time to write:
My old garage was about 24'x13' and I found it an awkward size - only big enough for just one car and a lot of (but never enough) rubbish. Make it a few feet wider if you can, so you can put two cars in it and keep the old garage for storage of rubbish.
What clever bunnies. Thanks for all your advice. Will have to investigate both those readymade GRP pits and try to find the cost of a decent lift. Many many pennies I expect.......
Just had a look on Ebay. Decent second hand lifts available for about £500. New ones about £1500. Three phase seems to be cheaper than single phase so will probably wire up a converter and go for that. Most seem to be strong enough to lift my 2 tonne Minster high enough to get another car underneath without lifting off the garage roof. Can't wait to build the garage now....
Using a convertor for a three phase motor is more expensive and not so good as specifying a single phase type in the first place. It's only really useful where there is no three phase supply available and the machine is only available with a three phase motor.
But I'd investigate putting in a three phase supply if at all possible.
Things I wished I'd done while my drive was dug up...
But I didn't, so I went for a variable frequency drive to run my laycock four-post lift off a single phase supply, having first established that the motor could be configured to run in delta.
I considered fitting a single phase motor, but it does start under load (hydraulic pump) so decided against it. Next project is to convert a milling machine to run off the same converter (by swapping plugs, not at the same time)
The four post lift is one of the best tool investments I've ever made: apart from the obvious "under the middle of the car" jobs, like swapping the viscous drive on a Range Rover transfer box recently, it makes jobs like brakes and suspension so much easier. Even engine compartment jobs are so much easier with the car a foot off the ground (apart from the Mk VI, where it would be easier if it were a foot below ground...)
Coulddn't agree more. I have a 3200kg single-phase 2-poster, I can lift anything from a saxo to a landrover 110 with ease, leaving full access to the underside and suspension on any vehicle. Less floor space taken up than a 4-poster, but the 4-poster makes welding sills easier. Personal choice, at the end of the day I s'pose. Badger.
I have been told that the solution to a 3-phase motor run from a convertor that won't start under load is to connect another one running free into the circuit. I'll leave it those who know about these things to explain how and why - or say that it's a load of cobblers.
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