Conference vmsnet::car$note:carbuffs

    I'm considering building an extension to my house which would
    include about 10 feet of additional garage length. One possibility
    would be to put a pit in the floor (like they have at Jiffy-Lube).
    
    First off I wonder if anybody has tried this? I had a friend who
    put a second door at the back of his garage and then had
    two short iron channels out the back that gave him the same effect,
    but his back yard sloped down in back which made it easier.
    
    What I'm thinking right now is that the pit would need to be about
    six feet deep and basically the width of a car, and in this
    case it could only be about maybe 6 feet long. One question is
    how to get down into it--perhaps a circular staircase off to one side?
    Or maybe just a ladder. Also there would have to be a grating or
    other cover for the 99% of the time when it's just being used
    as a regular garage.
    
    Probably this would be poured concrete; is a regular forms guy
    going to be able to set this up or do I need to do it with a built-up
    form?
    
    Maybe I should ask this in the HOMEWORK notesfile...
    
    Thanks for any comments.
    
    Doug.

    
    	Bolt a metal ladder to the front edge of the hole and you can
    	climb right down there, as long as you remember that you have
    	to park the car far enough back to be able to access the lad-
    	der.
    
    	And as far as covering it with a grating, do you know how heavy
    	a 6'x5' grating capable of supporting a person would be?  I'd
    	suggest a pair of wooden "doors" that can be laid side-by-side
    	and supported such that they're even with the floor ... maybe a
    	few 2x4's imbedded into the concrete that span the width of the
    	pit would be sufficient.
    
    	And why can it only be 6' long?  If you're able to park a car
    	in the garage it must be at least 15' long/deep, right?
    

    re .106
    
    If you're in MA (which STARCH:: implies), check the building code
    ... I seem to recall that even installing a drain in a garage
    violates the code because it might encourage a DIYer to drain waste
    oil into it. I'd expect there to be some regulations about oil
    capture and the like. 

    
       "Grease Pits" and such are no longer allowed in most residential
    municipalities.   Collected vapors is why. I looked into this 5 years
    ago when building my garage. The answer was null and void homeowners
    insurance.
    
    -john

    Ok, so much for that idea. I still like the theory of having
    a second door at the back of the garage, assuming the back
    yard slopes down adequately...which it doesn't in my case...
    
    Thanks.
    

How about really high ceilings and putting in one of those duel-post electric
lifts :-)

bjm

    I haven't checked the local building codes yet, but I was told these
    pits are illegal in residential properties.  However, I have investigated
    putting one in, and know someone who has.  Here is what I learned.

    First, you want to make it very long.  This allows you to reach all parts
    of the car, and climb down into the pit easily with the car already in
    place.  You can build a cheap wooden ladder at one end.  As far as width,
    make it about 6-12" narrower than the distance between the insides of the
    tires on your narrowest car.  The depth should be such that you are 
    comfortable working on the average vehicle.  To deep and you'll have to
    reach too high.  To shallow and you'll have to stoop over.  My optimal
    heights is around 5'10", and I am 5'11".  You'll need something on the
    far wall to line up with so you don't drive into the pit while your 
    pulling the car in.  A helper to direct you is useful until you get used
    to it.  Put a lip around the outside of the pit as shown below so that
    you can put in floor inserts (3/4" plywood with 2x4 backing when you are
    not using the pit.  A couple of slots in the inserts will make them easy
    to lift out.

          -------
		|
	concrete|  here is where the platform will sit.
		|_____
		     |
		     |
		     |   Pit area


    A pit, regardless of where it is installed, is considered a hazardous
    area according to the code.  This is because heavier vapors will fill 
    the pit.  Potential problem are ignition of the collected vapors leading
    to a fire, or your own suffocation when you climb down into the pit.
    Hence, you need to provide ventilation to the pit.  The code gives the
    necessary cfm of the exhaust fan and is computed based on the volume of
    the pit.  All electrical items in the pit and in the exhaust ducting
    must be explosion proof fixtures.  This usually means the fan, any
    electrical outlets, and the lights that will be installed in the pit.
    If you haven't priced them recently, explosion proof fixtures are usually
    three to ten times as expensive as normal components.  The exhaust fan
    needs to be activated whenever the pit is being used, and whenever some
    event that causes the introduction of heavy vapors is going on in the
    garage, such as paint spraying, welding, a car running, etc.  This is the
    case even if you're doing it on the other side of the garage.  

    All this being said, my friend has pit that was poured by the owner
    without knowledge of the town.  He has a medium sized muffin fan to
    exhaust vapors from the pit.  None of the lights, fan, or electrical
    outlets in the pit are explosion proof.  He has never had any problems
    in over 15 years.  However, I myself would spend the extra cash for the
    safer componentry.  You can pick up explosion proof items at auctions 
    and in surplus catalogs for reasonable prices.

    Cheers,
    --Dave

    I was told by the local building inspector that NO openings in the
    floor of the 'Wal-Mart Annex' (AKA my garage) are allowed for vapor etc
    reasons. I am 'allowed' to bank the floor to one side and let
    everything wash/drain out that way. I had wanted to put in a Septic
    tank in the middle of the garage so that all gunk/junk would be
    captured there and the water outlet would be filtered. BzzzT Nope!
    I was even told that to sell my house with the garage under, I would
    have to seal the floor drain that makes washing cars nice in there...
    
    Steve

    People may be interested in visiting the following web site for the
    Ultimate Garage, which is a mailorder supplier of garage equipment,
    tools, and storage cabinets:
    
    http://idt.net/~steved3/design.htm