Workbench crowded - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: RoGeorge
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 04, 2024, 04:45:39 pm
content: Mine developed so many piles and layers, that it will take days to sort out all the mess.Do you just throw all the parts from the desk in a box, to sort them later (if ever), or maybe use some other strategy? How often do you clean the workbench/lab?

author: AVGresponding
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 04, 2024, 04:53:27 pm
content: Are you trying to trigger my PTSD?I usually manage to motivate myself to tidy my bench when it becomes an avalanche risk

author: globoy
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 04, 2024, 05:04:41 pm
content: You can often tell how hard someone is working by how messy their lab desks are. It's like the wanna-be artists who create a beautiful studio and then never use it as opposed to real working artists whose studios are often a mess and usually in whatever space they could find.I tend to let things get messy during a project and then clean-up between projects. Usually left over parts go into a box for that specific project (important for client projects). Some left over parts go into a set of large overflow boxes that I look into when I just need to find that one component. Strangely enough I also clean if someone will be coming over to my lab or before I go away on holiday (I like to come home to neatness).

author: soldar
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 04, 2024, 05:11:36 pm
content: I have a serious problem with this. Any horizontal surface is soon covered with all sorts of things to the point where it is impossible to work on it.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 04, 2024, 06:40:27 pm
content: Yeah, I suffer the same problem.Mercifully, at work I’m just finishing up a big project, and that will both figuratively and literally free up some space. I had some downtime while waiting for delayed parts to come, and I did use that breather to tidy up a bit. Still nowhere close to where I want it to be.At home is a different scale altogether. I don’t even know where to start tidying up that disaster. :/

author: Sal Ammoniac
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 04, 2024, 06:59:46 pm
content: Jim Williams seemed to have the same problem.

author: jonovid
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 04, 2024, 08:48:48 pm
content: suffer the same problem

author: tom66
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2024, 09:04:02 am
content: I don't feel so bad now about my cluttered office!!

author: the Chris
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2024, 10:22:45 am
content: It is mainly because of the feeling that one will forget about proceeding or even finishing a project once it leaves the desk.Leaving each one on the desk at least for some time will make sure it has been given a fair chance of completion.

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2024, 11:31:52 am
content: I used to be a clutterer but nowadays I keep my workbenches clean with a strict one project per work area policy. A clean work environment is a productive work environment. Excess part go into a donation box to enable hoarders who are not in recovery like me

author: David Hess
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2024, 11:39:37 am
content: Quote from: RoGeorge on June 04, 2024, 04:45:39 pmSometimes, but more often I rely on the theory of superposition; lower layers are older.I try to clean as I go, and if I cannot find something, clean until I find it. I am still organizing my work area after moving, part of which is detail cleaning my parts cabinets.

author: temperance
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2024, 11:48:36 am
content: If something can not be found, start cleaning up until you find it.

author: tszaboo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2024, 12:10:52 pm
content: I've reorganized my garage this year with used Euroboxes. It's not cheap, but going from a selection of random plastic/cardboard boxes to nice stackable plastic boxes was totally worth it. I even organized it thematically, I have a 600x400x200 box for plumbing stuff, two for electrical, several smaller ones for tools, etc...I'm going to order ESD Euroboxes for storing stuff for my electronics. A 300x200x120mm ESD box is like 5 EUR, so even if I order 20 that's only a 100 EUR. One project per box. In the end I have to order different sizes, but I already measured it out and though about it. And it's a standard, so it will be available for the years to come.

author: soldar
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2024, 12:51:12 pm
content: I build shelves, workbenches, boxes, etc from scrap particle board, pallets, etc. Pretty much for free and made to fit in the spaces I have. It just takes time but I have plenty of that and I have been doing it over the years anyway.For smaller things I use shoe boxes. For larger things I used plastic crates which I have picked up for free and I also build some boxes with scrap wood. I am particularly fond of the "Japanese-style" box which has a lid held in place by a wedge. They are simple and easy to make, strong, easy to handle, completely rectangular so they stack up well. I love them.

author: pqass
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2024, 01:07:08 pm
content: Clear shoebox + wire shelves = organizedI also have "double-wide" shoeboxes and double-height for larger items.All test equipment at eye level on the wire shelves.Narrow (depth) and wide desk pushed up against the shelves.

author: brabus
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2024, 01:20:13 pm
content: Quote from: tszaboo on June 05, 2024, 12:10:52 pmBelieve it or not, I use the exact same boxes and logistics in our small company. One box --> one project, clean desk policy (including the test bench!), minimum storage space.My life changed in the very moment I started working this way: I spent years over crowded, overfilled benches and accumulating TONS of useless semi-used components. Then I snapped and threw all the old stuff away.Messy benches must remain a thing of the past. It's not the '70s anymore.

author: dietert1
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2024, 01:40:49 pm
content: I don't wait to do the cleanup but try to avoid huge piles of things. Rarely it happens that i can't find something i need and i know it's there. Then it's time to tidy up and i take my time to separate out some junk.We have a huge amount of reusable antistatic plastic bags that are nice to keep things in order. I can put a circuit board and some parts into the bag, close it, stuff it into a drawer or a box and later take it out to continue.Another method i adopted in order to support work on previous projects is writing little work protocols or reports in the PC. Sometimes i have been using this forum for the same purpose. Even after years i can find it, remember where i stopped and try to continue. Right now, during the last two weeks i am working on a project i started in 2021.Regards, Dieter

author: soldar
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 05, 2024, 05:35:25 pm
content: My workroom and bench are such an untidy mess that I would be ashamed to show to anyone. But being anonymous here....

author: jonovid
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 06, 2024, 10:01:52 pm
content: Quote from: nctnico on June 05, 2024, 11:31:52 amI have good intentions of one project per work area policy But-projects get held up because of all manner of reasons. so multiple projects sit waiting for that missing component or mini or sub-project completion needed for the 1st. example a test jig or testing circuit. sometimes its just that more research is needed before a project can proceed further.as for the number of work areas that is limited because - family members - space available as the number of plastic storage tubs that can fit in a room is also limited. stacking plastic storage containers also has its height limits. as weight on the plastic lids at the bottom. steel shelving maybe an answer.but it need to be of modular design covering all walls in the room floor to ceiling. but then family may disagree.

author: G0HZU
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 06, 2024, 11:02:51 pm
content: Quote from: Sal Ammoniac on June 04, 2024, 06:59:46 pmI've seen various images of Jim's bench and I think it has been preserved in a similar state as a kind of shrine at Linear tech.If you look past the clutter, his bench is actually laid out very efficiently in terms of access to the test gear. Mine is very similar with an L shaped work area, but mine is mirrored compared to Jim's layout. The crazy thing is that it would only take about half an hour to put all those dev boards into some kind of storage system. Then his bench would be very similar to mine, although my test gear is mainly RF stuff. Some homemade shelves would have helped a lot as well. I made my own custom shelves and they have transformed the work area.To store old dev boards (and I have many...) I use large biscuit tins and then put these inside huge drawers that live under one of my benches. I have storage tins for LNAs, oscillators filters etc.I still have to spend a fair bit of time battling against the build up of clutter. In my case, it's usually coax cables and wires and previous test boards and various RF adaptors and attenuators that gradually build up a layer of clutter. I try and tidy up most days, but it nearly always looks a bit untidy.I have a few rules that help maintain a good working area and these rules are:No hand tool storage on the main work bench.No component storage bins on the main work bench.No more than a few old dev boards allowed on the bench at any one timeOnly a few items of test gear live on the bench all the time. Most of it is stored like sardines in another small box room and I only retrieve it when needed.Always leave some shelf space clear and always try and put away stuff that won't be needed for a few days or so.This lets me fit three work benches into my small work room and on a good day they can all be fairly free of clutter.

author: EPAIII
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 07, 2024, 06:06:39 am
content: And I thought my electronic benches were bad. Thanks a million for posting that photo.Quote from: Sal Ammoniac on June 04, 2024, 06:59:46 pm

author: EPAIII
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 07, 2024, 06:44:15 am
content: I use wall mounted shelves in my garage shop. They have standard shelf depths of 12"/300mm and 16"/400mm. They are on rails so the space between them can be adjusted.On the shelves I use cardboard bin/boxes. They come in multiples of 2" width (51mm) and are the same depth as the shelf. They make similar plastic bins, but the cardboard cost less and the un-assembled ones take up a lot less space. I am able to keep five different sizes, no six when the 16" deep size is included.In those bin/boxes I use both cardboard mini-bins and plastic bottles from my prescriptions. The Rx bottles are, in a sense, free: I just toss the empty ones in a bag until needed. The ones my pharmacy uses have a child-proof lock that is easily cut off with flush cutting wire cutters.For small parts I have found these "bead" storage boxes in the arts and crafts area at Walmart. They have 24 screw top bins and the entire box fits vertically on a shelf, only taking up around 1.25"/35mm of space. And they are made of clear plastic so everything is instantly visible when I pull one out. They make very efficient use of space for a small price per bin. They are a common item in the arts and crafts stores so are easily available there and on the internet.My system is both modular and inexpensive.

author: SiliconWizard
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 07, 2024, 07:19:45 am
content: Yes, that's when you realize that your own lab is not so bad after all. It even looks tidy. Thanks.

author: iJoseph2
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: June 07, 2024, 10:18:52 am
content: I try to adopt the approach of keeping my home in a reasonably re-saleable condition. It's not perfect but its not bad either.Whatever's lying around will either get boxed up and put into storage or thrown in the bin when the time comes.When I got mine you could see it was on and off the market for a few years, but an identical one (well..mirrored and a slightly smaller garden) was snapped up in a couple of weeks for significantly more. The main difference was the clutter.

author: Mortymore
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 07, 2024, 03:24:16 pm
content: I read somewhere that Jim Williams had is desk in mess intentionally so when visited by other engineers they could never devise in what he is working on. But he knew well were everything sits

author: schmitt trigger
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 07, 2024, 03:40:58 pm
content: Quote from: soldar on June 04, 2024, 05:11:36 pmNot only horizontal surfaces. Vertical surfaces also become crowded, although not as much.Speaking of horizontal surfaces….. the ceiling is pretty much empty. Do you think I could attach a scope over there with Velcro? ;

author: schmitt trigger
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 07, 2024, 03:50:49 pm
content: Another messy workplace legend was Bob Pease. I was fortunate to have it seen personally during a visit to Nat Semi in the mid-90s. I can tell you that looking at his desk is similar to viewing El Capitan at Yosemite Park. No photo, no matter how large the resolution, can compare to witnessing it personally.

author: G0HZU
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 07, 2024, 06:41:47 pm
content: I think the important thing to always bear in mind is that the workspace is there for the operator and not the clutter or the test gear. A lot of people make the mistake of cramming way too much stuff into the main workspace, they typically try and find a place on the bench or the shelves for almost every piece of test gear they own. This creates a huge and wide stack of test gear. Very impressive to look at, but most of it will end up out of immediate reach. Then they try and add tool storage and component storage. Adding lots of databooks and other literature to the main workbench is bad, because it also eats up valuable space and it can be a fire hazard, especially if stacked above electrical items on the workbench. A small fire or flame could soon cause a fireball if there are lots of databooks stacked above it.When I look at the 'show us your workbench thread' or look at various youtube videos, the person often ends up with a free work area of about 50cm x 50cm on an otherwise huge workbench. They no longer own the workspace, it becomes owned by the test gear and the tools and component storage bins. Add some project hardware to the 50cm x 50cm space and all the free space is gone...I've made all these mistakes in the past, and I've since realised that it's much better to relocate the clutter and unused test gear to a compact storage area, even if it means regular trips to fetch and return it. This creates and maintains lots of space. The difficult bit is then to not get lazy and let the space fill up again with clutter.

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 07, 2024, 07:39:53 pm
content: I agree. I have seperate shelving for test equipment and I only put the equipment on the bench I actually need for a project. Once a piece of equipment is no longer needed, it goes back into 'storage'. This saves a lot of space at the work area.

author: dietert1
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 07, 2024, 08:07:43 pm
content: Maybe the images of those "VIPs" just demonstrate that the workbench wasn't very important for them. I'd guess they spent more time elsewhere, talking to others.Or they wanted it as a quiet place where others wouldn't feel comfortable.The confusion can also be meant to deter spies and thieves. I knew people who thought like that and would put piles of old stuff on top of the interesting things, just in case.Regards, Dieter