Inspiration and advice for new build in 3rd garage bay (20Lx10Wx9.5H)

[Kev0192]

I'm planning to build a garage sim in my 3rd garage bay soon. I'm looking for some inspiration (your garage setups), recommendations, and advice. I'm in SE Michigan.

Dimensions are 20 L x 10 W x 9.5 H

Initially thinking (and wondering) if MEVO+ would work in this space. I would eventually plan to upgrade to EYEXO or the new EYE-Mini probably next year, since I'm starting from scratch, I can't go all out and will need a stepping stone for the LM.

A few questions off the top of my head now:

1. Will MEVO+ work with my dimensions above?
2. I assume I may need to do some work to remove/change the garage opener and rails...? Any recommendations on how to best modify garage door components?
3. How much clearance will I need for swing plane from slide wall? (I'm righty).
4. Floor mount vs. ceiling mount projector/projector models??
5. Your favorite hitting mats and enclosures/screens? (Currently eyeing Carl's place enclosure and screen, no ideas about hitting mats yet...)

That's all my questions for now... might have more come up as conversation gets going!

Thanks so much!

-Kevin
SE Michigan

[wbond]

Mine is in a garage in SE Mi as well. I used a garage installer on the side to change the rails, which you will need to do. You can go to a high mount track system and also change to a side mount door opener to free up the space. Clearance to side wall is going to be swing dependent, a flat swing needs much more room than an upright. You can try this out slowly working your way towards the wall until you make contact, make sure you don't feel cramped or it will impact your swing. Projector placement will also be dictated by your swing path. If you can mount it directly over your target line, you will have no issues, once it deviates from that spot, you have to be aware of your swingplane and where the club can go. Search hitting mats, there is no one size fits all, it's all subjective. Personally i'd go for a fiberbuilt, you plan to hit a lot of balls, and you shouldn't ever have to worry about injury/soreness with that mat.

[Kev0192]

wbond
Thanks for the quick response! I've heard good things about the Fiberbuilt mats so far... I'll check them out. Guess I can at least get started with the garage door issue. Will probably be working on this in phases over the year, to spread out some of the expenses.

[magnets]

I went with a side mount garage door opener to remove the overhead rail and lift system in the center of the bay. I stand in the middle of the bay with the ball under the rails in between bays. this setup only really works for righties though.



for a screen I bought one of the overstock options from Carl's place + some bungies. Then i built a frame out of 2x4's. Here's a video of the build:

I am building it up over time and adding wall/ceiling protection. No projector yet but i mounted a TV on the wall for the sim software.

My next big thing will be to heat the garage before next winter. My garage was below freezing a couple times this winter when i was hitting balls

[Kev0192]

Awesome! Thanks, the pictures and video are helpful. so it doesn't look like the track rails pose any issue there. I guess I might also have to compare for the enclosure going with a metal pipe build vs. wood framing.... How (or) did you secure your wood frame to the garage floor at all?

[magnets]

I didn't show it in that video but i anchored the side posts into the concrete floor with some tapcon screws. Borrowed a friends hammer drill which made it easy

[Tom Howarth]

My dimensions are similar to yours. I have a Carl's Enclosure - 10'0 wide x 8'6 H x 5'0 deep. TrueStrike mat. I really like it, but they are expensive, and you need additional stance sections if you are tall and want to hit a driver. I have had a Skytrak ,for a few years but ordered a GC Quad. I should have the quad in the middle of March. I would recommend a photometric unit vs radar since you need space for the ball to travel with radar. With 20'0 of length (which is a lot) you run out of room quickly. The enclosure needs to sit 12"-16" from the wall, and you should be a minimum of 10'0 from the screen so you have already eaten up 12'0 or so. I am about 12'6 from the screen and I bought a magnet camera mount for a camera to be attached to my garage door. That camera sits about 8'0 behind me which works well. My projector is an Optoma GT1090HDR. It looks great in any light, so I don't need to golf in a cave. Good Luck with your build.

[Kev0192]

Thanks from the reply Tom! I'll take a look at the TrueStrike mats too. The Carl's Enclosures do look really nice. Congrats on getting the Quad. The GCQ is out of the budget for me right now, but I would like to eventually look at the EYEXO, with the MEVO+ as a stop-gap for the first iteration. I've seen a lot of people here going with the Optoma projects. How far is your projector from screen and throw ratios, and all that? Selecting the right projector and figuring out all those calculations seems like one of the tricker parts of all this...

[Tom Howarth]

My projector is about 8'2 from the floor and around 7'0 from the screen (plus/minus). Use projector central's calculator to get a rough idea, but don't hang anything until you play around with the dimensions. My projector fills the screen really well. There is maybe 8 or 9" open at the top, but you really don't notice it. I had to move the projector back 4-6" and up a few inches to make it work.

[Kev0192]

Thanks Tom! That's helpful, and I appreciate the pictures too!

[AgileMike]

Congrats on getting started. You are going to love it. My first build was in a 3rd garage bay, so I've got some advice for you:
1. Yes, a Mevo+ will work great with your dimensions. If you want to hit driver, you will need to offset your tee slightly. I have lefties that played with me, so I just teed off with a 3w. It's not a big deal I felt.
2. I left the garage door rails intact and just removed the opener. Since I rarely opened the garage door because I had a simulator set up, I just opened it manually. No need for an side opener if you won't use it much.
3. See answer to #1 above. Yes, you will need to offset to hit driver, but not other clubs.
4. Ceiling mount projector for sure I feel. I had the BenQ TH671ST. It's a great 1080P project with a perfect throw ratio, IMHO. I now have a BenQ TK700STi. It's a great 4k projector but doesn't have as good of a throw ratio for sim golf I feel.
5. I would recommend the GungHo Golf DIY enclosure with their Birdie Impact screen. Pay them to sew the velcro onto the screen material. I had issues with bounce back (balls hitting top/bottom/side rails) because I didn't have the velcro sewed onto the impact screen. I would highly recommend the Holy Grail hitting strip with turf (cheap stuff from Home Depot or better stuff from Costco). Don't waste $700 on a huge stance matt, IMHO. And you need to put down turf or you will golf balls bouncing all over the concrete after they hit the impact screen.

There are lots of good retailers for sim golf stuff, however, Ron at GungHo golf is very helpful, especially with the DIY stuff, so I really recommend him.

Good luck and have fun with your build.

[Kev0192]

Thanks for the detailed insight Mike!

Good point on #2. I can probably save a bit of money that way, I have no problem manually opening it (when I rarely will anyway).
Glad also I might not have to offset for ALL clubs by the sounds of it, which is nice.

Thanks for the specific projector models too, I'll check those out! I'll also look at the GungHo system as well as the mat. So many good choices!

[wbond]

Kev0192 are you hitting towards the garage door or towards the 9.5'H section? If it's away from the garage door, highly doubtful that you're going to be only offset for a driver. If you only have a 10' width and you are trying to hit in the middle of a screen, mark a spot on the floor 5' from the wall to represent the ball location and see for yourself. You most certainly will be hitting the wall behind you(and the garage door rail as well) on the back swing/follow through with more than just driver.

[Kev0192]

wbond OK! Thanks for the helpful advice... I definitely have some measuring and testing to do before deciding, but most likely, I think most people recommend hitting towards the 9.5H wall.... Just wondering if there is a specific reason why it matters??? Some people think that hitting towards the garage door with the MEVO might cause metallic interference. I'm not too worried about losing functionality of garage door itself, so if I can hit towards it without interference than that might help be avoid the offset a bit more?

[MTgolfer]

I have a third bay golf Sim set up. It has worked fantastic. I hit towards the door, so I had to make several adjustments. I had the garage door rails moved up and got a side mount door opener. I now use a retractable screen. This works perfect for me as it is easy to move up and down. We still use that garage door for a lot of stuff. I use a mevo plus and have never had an issue with hitting towards the metal garage door. I ended up hitting towards the door instead of away from it due to my backswing. That way my backswing is going into the open garage instead of the wall behind me. I am set up hitting into the middle of the screen, so not offset at all. I would’ve had to scoot far enough away from the garage wall that hitting into the center of the screen would not have made sense. Have fun with your build.

[MTgolfer]

Thanks! It has been a work in progress for the last couple of years and has changed a lot from where I started. Currently, I have motorized rollers from Metech. I added an Eagle screen from Gung ho that is 11' wide and about 9' high. This is mounted so the garage doors go above it. I also recently changed up my hitting setup. I put down 1" foam tiles and covered them with turf. I have a "Holy Grail" hitting strip from gung ho on order, but have made a DIY one for now. Optoma 1080P short throw projector. Also recently bought a gaming PC and picked up the E6 connect basic subscription instead of using the free courses on my iPad. That is not necessary, but graphics are a big improvement.
I started with a screen on a curtain track and a CCE hitting mat from Costco. That worked great too! My new setup is pretty damn sweet though comparatively. I do really like the Mevo+. It has improved drastically with software updates since I bought it.

[MadMax2021]

This is really great and thanks for your explanation. If you were off center, presumably the sidewall wouldn't have been a problem in the other direction. The reason I ask is that the garage bay I'm looking at is on the other side and would still like to hit out towards the door.

[deepakvrao]

What screen is that, and what is that black material at the top and the right?

[friedT]

Hi - I did a garage set up with a Mevo+. It works great. If you are on a budget, I can tell you a few places I saved some cash.
1. I got a clearance 8 X 8 screen from Carl's place. It showed up and it was perfect as far as I can tell
2. Don't waste cash buying a new projector. Find the one you want, then go on eBay and buy last year's model. My view was that this was going in my garage. i got an Epson short throw projector for $250 and it works perfectly.
3. Hitting mats are a preference. FiberBuilts are great. If you never have to move it, get the puzzle mats, put green artificial turf over them and then just get the hitting strip from FB or whoever you choose. In addition to saving a few bucks, it will look fantstic.
I used EMT to frame the screen, attached by brackets. both of which I got at home depot. They worked perfectly. I attached the screen with ball bungees.
4. I did get a new jackshaft garage door opener so the tracks are out of the way.

Good luck. I also enjoyed doing the build, not to mention the satisfaction of knowing I did it myself

[Kev0192]

Thanks friedT, sounds like a great setup and smart ways to save some cash!

[Brettster]

friedT - that is a great way to save money. Which Epson projector did you go with then?

[friedT]

I use an Epson PowerLite 530. Its a 4 X 3 short throw projector I got off eBay.

[friedT]

[deepakvrao]

Nice. How did you attach the emt tube to the brackets?

[friedT]

I used 1" EMT conduit clips. They are in the picture, but you have to look carefully to see them. Sorry I didn't see this for so long. What did you wind up doing?

[friedT]

When I am done hitting balls, I roll up the mats, tie them with bungee cords and put them behind the screen so they are out of the way, and unhinge the small shelf on the right. Have had zero complaining from Wife, except when I leave the set up out for an extended period and I tell her to leave her car on the driveway. That earns me a scowl.

[Tpcthirdbay]

Kevin - I'm brand new to this forum and after scrolling multiple pages, this is almost exactly where I'm at and I'm curious how things are going for you now - have an update?

Available space (third bay) is 12' wide x 18' long x 9' high, but I have two poles that are immovable and I have garage rails and motor that are in the way. I hope to be hitting away from the door. In order to leave ~18" of cushion behind the screen (tentatively Carl's premium 10w x 9h), I need to be 8' from screen and of course 8' from Mevo, so not too much room to play with and therefore leaves me a bit concerned about ricochets and accurate Mevo readings. Any experience with that?

Next on my "to get" list will be a projector, and from the calculators I've played with, I need to figure out something with that garage door motor so there's not a shadow being casted. It' ~5' from the screen. I'm also not going to be hitting precisely in the center of the screen. Any thoughts/recommendations, flaws in my thinking?

Hope it's going well for you!

[deepakvrao]

I went with a side mount garage door opener to remove the overhead rail and lift system in the center of the bay. I stand in the middle of the bay with the ball under the rails in between bays. this setup only really works for righties though.



for a screen I bought one of the overstock options from Carl's place + some bungies. Then i built a frame out of 2x4's. Here's a video of the build:

I am building it up over time and adding wall/ceiling protection. No projector yet but i mounted a TV on the wall for the sim software.

My next big thing will be to heat the garage before next winter. My garage was below freezing a couple times this winter when i was hitting balls

Nice. How did you secure the screen to the 4*2s?