dubber's double

If you are active in the garage community there is a good chance you are familiar with this garage. "Dubber" is a fellow garage and detailing enthusiast that I have known from the onset of my garage hobby. He agreed to share his garage experience by answering some questions about his garage and sharing some photos of his pristine space. He has created an immaculate environment and openly shares his passion for his Volkswagen vehicles via social media which I faithfully follow. His journey to this point is proof that paying attention to your garage and following through on your vision will pay off in the end. I find his garage story inspiring and seeing him take his love of detailing to the next level is further proof that creating a clean and efficient garage can reward any car lover with new and exciting opportunities.
dubber's double
  • Attached double garage
  • Built in 2012
  • Interior dimensions: 18'8" x 20'2"
  • Garage door dimensions: 16' x 7'
  • Ceiling height: 9''3 - 10''3
  • Garage Journal thread (August 2014 - present; 530,000 views)
  • Instagram: @cleanwagen 
Owning a home with a garage had always been a goal of mine since I was a kid. As much as I strove to ensure I had appropriate accommodations for myself I wanted the same thing for my car, whichever car I had at the time. When I purchased my first home at 26, a garage was as much a requirement as a bedroom. For a few years, keeping it clean and organized was all that was ever done to that garage. That was, until I stumbled upon www.garagejournal.com while awaiting a delayed flight at the Newark airport in December 2012. I can honestly say that this changed my garage ownership experience completely. I had always been active in online car forums as the simple act of sharing ideas and information was always something that I enjoyed.  However, this site took that to a whole other level. For the next month, I must have spent all downtime (and at the office) reading through and absorbing as many threads as I could. This also led me to establish connections with members who certainly shared my new passion and imparted their experiences to my benefit. Rick's established double garage became a point of reference to which I tapped regularly. As with a few others, an online friendship developed and long term bond was established. Always happy to answer questions seemed to be a common theme with most GJ members. The wealth of knowledge and depth of insight was incredible. I also couldn't believe the variation of members that all came together to comment and offer suggestions in support of one another's garage journeys. This gave me encouragement that I too could start my first thread even if it was only for a small single garage. Fast forward a year and that garage ended up getting stripped and received a complete makeover that I was quite proud of. 
You can learn more about the single garage that put dubber on the map by clicking on the link below. Here are the stats on his previous garage space: 
dubber's single
  • Attached single condo garage
  • Built in 2012
  • Interior dimensions: 10' x 19'
  • Garage Journal thread (January 2013; 315,000 views)
This did, however leave me yearning for larger accommodations. Next up was prepping and selling my single which enabled me to make an offer on the new home and dubber's double came to fruition. ​Upon closing the deal for our new home I already had a plan of action in place. Having no specific design software, or experience to speak of, I crudely mocked up my own vision using Excel to plan the layout of my cabinets and bulky items. One thing was certain, I would use lessons learned in my tight single to help maximize use of space in my new double. Race Deck Free Flow flooring tiles, lots of lighting, freshly painted walls and extreme efficiency were to be my primary pillars.
The process started by taking down the existing home-made shelving, patching what felt like a thousand holes and applying some fresh paint. At this point a small budget meant that I would be slowly piecing together my cabinets and tool boxes one sale at a time. Electricity was expanded into the garage a couple of times to accommodate new additions such as a Dewalt 16 Gallon compressor and later a heater. Smaller projects also brought many hours of enjoyment throughout the process with such items as adding insulation panels to the garage, along with adding frosting to all windows and revisions to the layout. The original intention of the space was a place for me to enjoy while detailing my cars along with a hangout spot to share with friends and family. The ability to always park two cars was also a must. This past summer the focus of the space morphed again but this time the change was with its use.  I decided that I would start to take on customers with the creation of my side hustle, Clean Wagen. Detailing cars is a passion born of my enjoyment of my own vehicles and ensuring they always look their best. I truly love being able to again enjoy the space I have created while also creating a business that allows me to use it. Looking ahead, I would love to get hot water piped in and upgrade the garage door to a more stout piece. 

Final thoughts

A massive thanks to Dubber for agreeing to share his story on my garage blog. A highlight of this garage obsession has been getting to know guys like him, and bouncing my thoughts and experiences off him knowing he is going to provide me with thoughtful feedback. I agree with the complimentary words Dubber shared regarding The Garage Journal.  It is a remarkable community of garage and automotive people and I owe a lot to the collective community that consistently and genuinely supports its members. I highly recommend you check it out if you haven't already done so. Stay tuned for more garage stories in the near future!