Please help with organization, shop setup, etc...

[Konstantin]

Hello everybody.
I have this problem, I am very disorganized in my shop, actually our shop, my father´s and mine. Being both hardcore ADHD we take little time in shop cleaning and organization. We continuously search our tools in the mess of our workplaces, breathe dust that is rarely cleaned up and transfer the waste around the rest of the house while we walk from one room to another.
I do make attempts on cleaning up my space and buy shelfs to organize my stuff, my father on the other hand is reluctant and rarely finds time to do the chores.
I am beginning to worry about my health from breathing the dust and respiratory complications on the long run that could come up with such abuses. Respiratory masks work but the dust is virtually everywhere in the house.

Productive time is being wasted in pointless searches for a chisel or any other tool that should be withing arm´s reach by the bench.

While I am trying to come up with a system that will work for me ATM and later drag in my father into it, I would ask you about your organizational methods.
A picture is worth a thousand words, so if you have links to a well organized shop it would be nice, if its your own place then perhaps you could explain further about your setup.

My father and I are bow makers, we make bows for stringed instruments like violin, viola, cello and double bass. Our selection of tools are different from a regular woodworking shop. The tools we use are small and medium sized, we don't have a this huge selections of 20-30 chisels like those I see in woodworking magazines.
The materials we work with are hardwoods such as pernambuco, ebony, snake wood, brass, abalone, steel, silver, gold. We also have a lathe for turning the metal parts.

My idea of a setup is to have everything closed in drawers, cabinets and such, so the dust wont land in areas that are difficult to clean up, and the resistance to clean up the shop will be minimum. Though I haven't been able to do it, either out of my own resistance to bring about order or other issues.

Advices are welcome.
Thank you.
Konstantin V.

[Flow]

One thing you may try as we did in our shop assembly area is make shadow boards. Goes back to the old peg board in your garage idea. These are on a smaller scale either mounted to each bench were the tools are needed or on a rolling cart. Outline of the tools and color inside the shape is a visual when something is missing.
I am into hobby wood working and invested in a Jet dust collector and overhead air filter. I had a relative working there and got a great deal but still something everyone should look into.
Good Luck

[mxtras]

Check out this site:

http://www.garagejournal.com

Scott

[thkoutsidthebox]

Just putting stuff into drawers is not a great solution for dust. You need to get it at its source. Invest in a good dust extractor, and make sure to check that the filter goes down to a low enough filtration value. Consider it your most important tool.

Its the dust you cant see that'll get you, the dust you can see gets caught in the mucus of your nose and throat. The really really really small stuff can be exhaled from the lungs. But the medium small stuff from .3microns up that still cant be seen will get clogged in your lungs possibly giving you cancer (Lung or nasal variety) when your dad is long gone (Hopefully not for along time please god).

Check out these sites:

http://billpentz.com/woodworking/cyclone/Index.cfm (The guru of wood dust collection)
http://www.vwa.org.au/des_dangwd.htm
http://www.nclabor.com/osha/etta/indguide/ig19.pdf
http://www.woodweb.com/knowledge_bas...the_Woods.html

Re the tidiness. I find a big MDF board attached onto the wall is great. Then use long nails or screws to mount every variety of tool or accessory in easy reach. For heavier tools use L-Brackets onto your MDF instead of screws/nails.

Then everything that is not likely to be needed regularly put into drawers or presses, or onto shelves. If putting a lot of stuff into presses/drawers, label them until you get used to whats in each one then you wont need the lables anymore.

You'll find your work much more pleasureable if not routeing for every second tool every few minutes, and if not brushing dust out of the way every time you want to pick up a tool...And you'll find your old age more pleasureable if not getting chaemotherapy and permanently attached to an oxygen tank!

Labled pigeon holes or/and drawer dividers are also great for keeping track of stuff like nuts/bolts/nails/screws/small tools etc etc

Once you get into the habit of putting stuff back where you took it from its no problem. Its just the need to remember at the start and build the habit. Some people prefer to do all the tidying at the end of the day. Some prefer to do it as they go. I prefer to do it as I go since I hate working for hours then not being able to find something I used before lunch only a few hours ago! Then a good sweep up at the end of the day aswell. But its a personal preferance. One thing is certain, you'll be happier walking in the door in the morning to a clean shop. Not spotless, but neat and tidy is pleasant.

Remember These Words:

"Theres a place for Everything and Everything has its Place"

[ZipSnipe]

Your just gonna have to break down and spend a weekend of organizing and cleaning the shop. I,ve learned to include cleanup as part of the job. I wish I could find the link to this guy named Randolf, his shop is to die for , he says he cleans up after every job, it looks great to customers and it makes starting the next job easier. Oh here it is I found it , this shop should be inspiration to everyone. http://www.randolphsmachineshop.com/
Randolph's Shop is the working shop of a machinist and welder whose hobby fortunately overlaps with what he does for a living.

[dertsap]

you may need to organize in a way that will suit you and your father , make it easy for him to return tools to their proper place ,
we get set in our ways and habits and dad probably won t be changing his anytime soon,

[Konstantin]

Well yes, this weekend I did broke down and started the cleaning.
I remembered that I have a Shopvac vacuum cleaner and then I remembered why I stuffed that thing far away, every time I used it, it would fill the air with dust and my throat will itch and my back will itch and tingle, and I get a whole allergic reaction.
So I installed 2" PVC tubing to my workbench and to my fathers and put the vacuum cleaner on the outside. It works. The noise is lower and the dust is actually being extracted out of the room instead of making a dust tornado inside the room. We do not produce large amounts of dust on a regular basis, just when we need to saw a piece, or when I use the band saw, which isnt very often. I see the main use of my installation is to clean up with less resistance of setting up the vacuum cleaner and stuff.

The shopvac might not be the best substitute of a cyclone system but it was there and nobody used it. I have read a bunch about vacuum cleaners and the next upgrade to the shopvac will be a HEPA filter upgrade.

Thanks everyone for the tips, I do need to discipline myself as I have done many of the suggestions in the past but haven't taken it to a routine level and always fell short.


Thanks again.
Konstantin.