Moving beyond "controlled chaos"

Patrick Simpkins is a 29-year-old law enforcement professional from Tazewell, Virginia. He contacted me through Instagram because he wanted to share his garage project with others. Tazewell is a small town located in southwest Virginia and Patrick points out it is one of those sleepy country towns with more cows than people!  In addition to working as a full-time detention officer at the local jail, Patrick runs a detail business out of his garage and has plans on creating the ultimate home garage/detailing studio. I shot Patrick some questions about his garage and future plans, and I'm happy to share his responses along with some photos of his current setup and screenshots of the various products he plans to upgrade his space with. 

Garage vitals

My garage was built in 2001 with my home as my home is a split foyer style home with my garage located under the master bedroom. It's a standard 2 car garage that measures 23 feet deep and 25 feet wide. The builder did a fine job designing the garage as I would only change a few things, like adding a drain, different location of garage button openers and a couple more outlets. The garage already has water ran to it with a sink and the HVAC system was routed in there so I'm able to work in my garage all year long. One of the previous home owners had installed some custom made shelves, which have been great but aren't ideal.

Moving beyond "controlled chaos"

When I purchased the home in 2015, I didn't really have any plans for it as I do now but a friend came by one day with his pressure washer and foam cannon (first time I had ever seen a foam cannon) and I was instantly blown away and my obsession began. So I instantly started researching things for the garage to make it tailored to my needs. I came across Matt Moreman's YouTube channel in his early days and I was hooked from there. Since then I have started my own detail business and my collection of supplies has grown, but now I want to make it look more appealing than just a standard garage with junk scattered every where. Or as I would call it "controlled chaos."

In pursuit of the dream

Being that I work in law enforcement, I needed a place to escape and just unwind and my garage has become the exact therapy I needed. I love everything about my garage except I haven't got around to doing the project sooner, but we all know life goes with things going on and making sure the finances are there to complete it, cause I'm the type of person I'd rather just take a week and get it done rather than just do one project every couple of months of so. 

By the end of the summer/beginning of fall I will begin my complete overhaul of my garage. I will be adding new overhead lights, Swisstrax flooring, metal shelves, the custom install Kranzle pressure washing solution mounted to the wall, all of which I'll be ordering from Matt at Obsessed Garage. I'll be adding a complete wall mounted cabinet setup from NewAge Products which i decided on their Pro 3.0 Series 12 piece set with matching sink to replace the one I currently have. Along with all that will also be adding new chemicals and tools from multiple places. Everything will be a mix as I believe in using the best tool/chemical for the job and not just sticking to one brand. 

Planned upgrades

Advice for others

If I was to pass on any advice to anyone wishing to detail in their garage as a hobby or professionally, I would say take your time and do the research and find what best suits your needs all around. It doesn't have to be the most expensive items but what you like and want. At the end of the day it's your garage and that's all that matters. I want people to enjoy the space and have fun in it. Be the garage your friends want to build theirs like.

I'm very keen to follow Patrick's garage project. He has pinpointed a variety of high quality items that will definitely propel his garage to the next level. I appreciate Patrick's point about creating the garage your friends want to build theirs like. It doesn't necessarily mean going out and buying the most expensive equipment you can find, but making sound decisions about what things will make the most positive impact and allow you to realize your goals. 

​I want to thank Patrick for reaching out and agreeing to have his garage featured on my blog, and I think a major takeaway from this project is that Matt Moreman has a long reach in the garage world and no one is immune to his power and influence!  

If you or someone you know is interested in having their garage story featured on my blog, click here to contact me.