Building new garage - Need advice
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Matt M PA
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Yep! The background is a bit Photoshopped..but that's it. In fact, the under construction pictures are of my garage.
v10enomous
Enthusiast
Black Moon
Enthusiast
Wow Things are expensive in CT. Mine is a 40x40 with a 3 ton HVAC, Bathroom, 9,000# lift, 12' and 16' doors, epoxy floors, wall stripes, surround sound, lcd tv and it ran me $32,000 in TN.
SkyBob
Enthusiast
Thanks for posting that. I damn near fainted when I read $130K was spent on a garage.
v10enomous
Enthusiast
I imagine in Tennesee you can get a fabulous garage with a pretty nice attached house for $130K
Black Moon
Enthusiast
v10enomous
Enthusiast
It might have wheels on it but yes you can
I don't see any wheels on these
Your housing dollar seems to go a lot further than in LI or NJ...9072 Weeping Cherry Ln, Memphis, TN, 38016 - MLS #3199849 - Single Family Home real estate - REALTOR.com®
Page 2 | Memphis real estate & Memphis homes for sale | Single family homes,Condos,Townhomes,Co-ops - REALTOR.com®
Black Moon
Enthusiast
I don't see any wheels on these
9072 Weeping Cherry Ln, Memphis, TN, 38016 - MLS #3199849 - Single Family Home real estate - REALTOR.com®
Page 2 | Memphis real estate & Memphis homes for sale | Single family homes,Condos,Townhomes,Co-ops - REALTOR.com®
Very true. You can buy a nice house in TN for what you are probably paying in taxes.
jmillsUT28
Enthusiast
Those are in Memphis, I would never live in Memphis but those are some great prices!! To get a house like that in east TN you will be paying around $225K.
Jersey Jeff
Enthusiast
Floor drains - I did not knowing that I would not be washing vehicles in the garage because spray would hit the walls. I do have a squeege (no way I spelled that right) for when I pull in and minor water may drip after washing. I have an epoxy coated floor so nothing gets absorbed into concrete and evaporation takes too long. I also have motion detectors and smoke alarm (it is heated so it was required) and a walk through door as well as the 2 large garage doors. Phone jack, coaxial cable and I added extra outlets up high for the car on the lift when I hook it up to the trickle charger in the winter.
GlennSullivan
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Jon
I built a 48 x 30 garage a few year back, the car area is 36x30 and I get 5 cars in there, 6 without much "walk around" space. I can provide you lots of input and I'm in mid-westchester, so you can come and check things out if you want. Posted a few pictures below.
I built a 48 x 30 garage a few year back, the car area is 36x30 and I get 5 cars in there, 6 without much "walk around" space. I can provide you lots of input and I'm in mid-westchester, so you can come and check things out if you want. Posted a few pictures below.
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2snakes4us
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Very nice garage...love your workspace.
v10enomous
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That's perfect with the cathedral ceiling... I like the garage door tracks... Great Job !
GlennSullivan
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Thats one of the key things, imperative if you are going to do a high lift. Do a cathedral ceiling, the special tracks that allow the doors to follow it and the jackshaft opener that mounts on the face of the wall instead of suspended fron the ceiling where it will interfere with the lift.
The ceiling does not need to be as high as mine, I have a second floor in the "non car" area of the garage.
I bought a higher height and capacity lift so I could accomodate our 3 SUVs for service and occasional repairs.
Would you guys believe that in the town of Huntington it's against the code to have a lift in your garage? Hard to believe but true. People still do it, but apparently a few years ago a slew of new codes went into effect. Two reasons were cited for these new codes. Building illegal accessory apartments was the number one reason for the 15' height restriction, There were some fires etc that occured in these uninspected not to code apartments popping up everywhere so thats how it was dealt with.
Apparently people were also doing some shade tree mechanics out of their homes so the no lift code. I'm finding out some amazing things as we do the preliminary groundwork.
Another interesting tidbit. Code only allows up to 300 square feet per car. So if I want a 750 sq foot garage, I have to put in three garage doors. Since that is absolutely out I have to temporarily partition off 150 sq feet and call it "storage" or work space. Then after final inspection take down tthe partition. Sigh.
Apparently people were also doing some shade tree mechanics out of their homes so the no lift code. I'm finding out some amazing things as we do the preliminary groundwork.
Another interesting tidbit. Code only allows up to 300 square feet per car. So if I want a 750 sq foot garage, I have to put in three garage doors. Since that is absolutely out I have to temporarily partition off 150 sq feet and call it "storage" or work space. Then after final inspection take down tthe partition. Sigh.
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Black Moon
Enthusiast
What a bunch of crap Jon. Thank God we don't have those restrictions here or I'd be in court or jail. A man should have some lattitude when building on his own property. Let me know if you need anymore drawings.
Sal
Sal
In some states, the garage door installers are NOT allowed to have the doors go up vertically unless it is in a true commercial place....the problem with going straight up, IF the springs snap ( and they have been known to do this !!) then the door comes down like a guillotine !! We have to be constantly SAFE....soon we will have to wear helmets when we drive our cars...
Chuck 98 RT/10
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Chuck 98 RT/10
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v10enomous
Enthusiast
A buddy of mine in Whitehouse Station NJ built a 50' x 100' x 16'h man cave on his 7 acre equestrian property which already had 4 or 5 buildings including the turn of the century house. They give him all of the permits and he constructs a gorgeous barn style building that fits the character of the property and everything... Radiant heat, single post lift, the whole enchilada... 3/4 of the way to completion they halt construction and tell him to take it down because he was creating too high of a percentage of impervious ground condition.
It took him almost a year to get the stop order reversed and he wound up not being able to pave the drive and approaches to the doors...
I really dread the thought of dealing with these kangaroo court municipal people.
I'll see if I can get some pictures of the garage. It's muscle cars and old British motorcycles with a great collection of automotive and bike signage.
It took him almost a year to get the stop order reversed and he wound up not being able to pave the drive and approaches to the doors...I really dread the thought of dealing with these kangaroo court municipal people.
I'll see if I can get some pictures of the garage. It's muscle cars and old British motorcycles with a great collection of automotive and bike signage.
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Matt M PA
Enthusiast
Finally got a pick...not a great one...but shows my (new to me ) 96RT. (The GTS is in the house garage.) It's on the 4 post, and you can see there's as much room in front as the back.
The garage is 26' deep.
The Excursion usually parks on that lift and that's a whole other story! It's hard to see in the picture but that lift bay allows the lift to go to full height. The other two bay's ceilings are 9' which allows full use of a midrise.
The garage is 26' deep.
The Excursion usually parks on that lift and that's a whole other story! It's hard to see in the picture but that lift bay allows the lift to go to full height. The other two bay's ceilings are 9' which allows full use of a midrise.
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GlennSullivan
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Jon
I agree that is total crap. Just because some people break the law, that means no one can have a lift in their garage? I'd need to either move out of town or get the law modified.
lots of site work. took down 25 trees, new 50yd driveway with stamped concrete. had to actually raise ground level 3 feet with 450yds of process/dirt for drainage purposes. had an electric gate put in as well. whole back yard got resurfaced as well.
I agree the actual structure is nothing to build. 2 X 6's, plywood, siding, roofing is very standard.
the site I picked for the garage unfortunately needed significant prep work/clearing,
sometimes this doesn't directly come to mind when thinking about cost.
We have some preliminary drawings underway now, and then after we approve the plans are going to the architect. Contacting various contractors now, for demo, framing etc. Have settled on 28' wide x 26.5' deep as the most usuable area within out 750 sq feet limitation. Even if I could, I would not go wider than that as the property is only 50 feet wide but 200+ deep. (Older section of town, thats how they did it back in the day). I would go deeper if i could but it is what it is. By my calc with the Viper in 3-4 feet from the garage door it still leaves 7-8 feet in front so that should be enough for a work bench etc...
I'll update as we go with some pics for fun. One change I decided on after researching is I am going with (2) 10' wide doors x 8' high. I have 8' wide now and when I laid out the small difference between 8' and 9' I was not impressed. I think the 10' wide will just be nicer for not only pulling in and out but just the wider open space when they are open.
I'll update as we go with some pics for fun. One change I decided on after researching is I am going with (2) 10' wide doors x 8' high. I have 8' wide now and when I laid out the small difference between 8' and 9' I was not impressed. I think the 10' wide will just be nicer for not only pulling in and out but just the wider open space when they are open.
Pythonpete
Enthusiast
I think I'm almost as excited for this as you are. I can't wait to see it.
v10enomous
Enthusiast
That sound awesome!!! With 26.5' deep you could actually park a car across the front with wheel dollies if you wanted... Makes me wonder if anyone makes a wheel dolly with the jack built in that's wide enough and low enough for a Viper... Did you settle on ceiling and exterior height and roof pitch ?
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Someone brought up floor drains...when mine was still in planning stage, (in Ohio) the local area said NO to floor drains without a catch basin of some type to catch oil and chemical runoffs instead of going directly into the sewer system, very expensive and hasd to be cleaned out regularly !!
I am a contractor and have worked with concrete quite a bit, so here is my 2 cents regarding the floor of your shop.
FYI - CONCRETE
Aaron brings up a critical point - you must have steel in your concrete floor. Rolls of Wire grid laid out AND 1/2 inch re-bar laid out every couple of feet tied together with wire and laid to sit in the middle of the pour height. Even better to lay 3/4 inch re-bar along the length/location of where your vehicles will be driving in and out for structural stability which reduces cracking. Make sure you pour a minimum of 5" thick concrete(6" to 8" for heavier vehicles and equipment) and don't be a cheapskate and mix and pour your own concrete. Spend the extra couple hundred dollars to bring in a concrete truck which will have the exact spec. mix with proper moisture content, proper consistency of product, water purity and with air entrainment for maximum load capacity and crack resistance. Concrete is a science not a hobby. IMPORTANT - if you hire out the install of your concrete floor then you must be there watching the pour process - too many unscrupulous contractors skimp on the quantity of concrete laid to save themselves money! You will never know if the concrete is only 3" thick and not 5" unless you ever were to jackhammer it up. They can fool you by pouring 5" at the front exposed side and fill in the middle with gravel or even garbage brick and debris - yes this happens alot more than you think! In my opinion, unless you absolutely must wash your car inside, you don't need a floor drain. You should however allow for conduit and pipe entrance below and through the concrete into the corner of the shop where you will likely be putting in services such as water and hydro. If you do this - it is hidden underground instead of wires and pipes coming out of the ground outside and into the exterior wall of the shop. Your FFE (finished floor elevation) of your concrete floor should be a few inches or more above the existing ground grade outside. Grade the surrounding exterior soil surface away from the slab at minimum 6 - 10 % to allow water to sheet drain away from your slab. If your ground has a high moisture content - you may want to install 4" poly drain pipe around and below the bottom grade of your concrete slab to flush out water via an exit pipe away from the building. This allows for any ground water and hydrological pressure to escape and not sit under your slab. Do not pour concrete over topsoil - make sure you have a consistent and stable compacted base, either of clay subgrade, sand, or gravel underneath the slab. You may want to consider laying a thick sheet of plastic or vapour barrier on top of the base underneath the slab before you install the re-bar and concrete. Concrete is hygroscopic - meaning it will attract water from the wet soil underneath and can conduct it through the floor - making your concrete slab moist - even on dry days. Nobody wants moisture lurking underneath their car. Once the concrete has been laid, most people can't wait for the concrete to dry. It is a common misconception that, to set concrete, it dries. The longer the concrete stays wet - the better the concrete cures. Concrete setting is a chemical reaction dependent on water. Drying out the concrete prematurely results in a sub-par cure. Once the concrete starts to firm up - apply water and keep wet for as long as you can - even for days. You can also put a moisture barrier or tarp over top to lock in the moisture. The hardness of concrete, the longevity, and resilience is dependent on a proper cure.
Now for the hard part.
The first thing people want to do - is to paint or seal their concrete floor and get the vehicles parked. I understand. Unfortunately - the concrete won't be fully cured for about a year. As the concrete cures it releases salts trapped in the cement from the curing process - you will notice a whitish haze forming on top of the slab. This is called efflorescence and is completely natural. A pre-maturedly sealed or painted concrete floor traps this efflorescence and results in the floor flaking, chipping or bubbling under the seal. Wait as long as you realistically can before sealing the floor.
Now - just a short opinion on adding 220 volt. Do it. If you ever want to run a welder or heavier machinery - you will want it. Even for the sake of re-sale value - it makes a difference.
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