Your garage is more than just a place to park your car, gentlemen. Whether it’s space for your hobby, a shrine to your glory days, or a haven for your favorite sports team, the garage is the perfect place for a sanctuary away from the everyday troubles of life. Let us help you elevate your man cave with these lighting suggestions.

For the Amateur Mechanic

So maybe you do park your car in the garage. If you think weekend tune-ups are fun and you love the smell of motor oil in the morning, then your garage may not need a complete overhaul. Aside from rolling tool boxes and that coveted hydraulic lift, shop lights provide high-powered light when you need it. The convenience of a pull chain switch and the suspended mounting separates shop lights from standard troffer or wraparound fixtures. Strip fixtures can also be chain mounted and tend to outshine shop lights when you compare lumens. However, you would need to wire the fixture to the nearest light switch to control it. That may cause some annoying or awkward situations when your hands are full or dirty. For car troubles that require your hands to be free, a portable LED work light can illuminate your undercarriage. Some LED work lights can run on standard 120-Volt power or your 12-Volt car battery; other lights are cordless with rechargeable batteries for easy use.

For the Hobbyist or Handyman

It doesn’t take much to create a functional space for your hobby, like carpentry or building models. A few tables, a corkboard, and some seriously organized drawers or shelves could be enough for you. Along with shop lights and portable work lights, you can use LED light bars under shelves to eliminate dark spots and shadows on the tabletops where your projects come to life.

For the #1 Fan

Section off a space in your garage, add a comfy couch and TV, then you’ve got yourself a man cave ready for this year’s game season. However, if you really want to prove you’re a die-hard fan, you need to go big or go home. Recessed lighting makes the space feel bigger, since the light fixtures aren’t taking away from the ceiling height. Track lighting can highlight that signed jersey or framed paper napkin from your favorite sports celebrity. Don’t forget about the trophy case of memorabilia from your own athletic days. LED tape light can be applied to the underside of every shelf to provide an extra glimmer to that high school championship trophy.

For the Gamer

Whether you like MMOs or need a place to perfect your poker game, your gaming sanctum deserves lighting worthy of the task. You want bright and even light so floor lamps with shades that cast light upwards are your best option. This uplighting technique reduces glare on your game table or TV screen. For devoted gamers, using LED strip lighting to backlight your TV can save you from strained eyes and unwanted retreats while trying to best your high score. Don’t forget about the rest of the room, like using track lights with narrow beams to highlight your favorite posters and collectibles. Colored LED rope light or color-changing RGB tape light along the edges of the ceiling as cove lighting would be a fun and unique addition to your gaming oasis.

Your bright ideas, questions about lighting techniques, or other ways to use that space in your garage for more than just storage are welcome in the comment area below. Your next DIY project could be on our Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or Pinterest, so check back often for updates. Our 1000Bulbs.com staff is on call at 1-800-624-4488 to make your lighting upgrade easy.