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Starting plans for new house. Attached, will be, while not my dream garage, should be a pretty nice space for most car guys. The largest footprint the builder sees feasible is 22' x 40' x 12'.
So I need advice on hoists, floor thickness, power, gas/heat, lighting, and things I haven't even thought of. Great information hitting the search button, but would like to get a fresh perspective.
Thank you very much, for you input, appreciate your time!
Have the inside walls done in plywood rather than gypsum board, much more useful for hanging stuff later.
Also, run a 1" PEX line and a 4" PCV rigid pipe under the foundation and into your basement so later you can add a single point-of-use water heater and sink if you desire. without excavation after the fact. PEX won't burst if it happens to freeze, a good feature if the garage gets cold in the winter.
For electrical, make sure you have at least 60 amps of service to a sub-panel 100 amps even better and a generous number of outlets above countertop height.
There are some really nice inexpensive through the wall split ac/heat unit now designed for DIY install, pre-charged ready to go. Split AC /Heat
Windows are always nice to have,
Make sure the fascia above the garage door is reinforced internally with 4x4 blocks in case you want to add a basketball hoop later.
Electrical outlets on each wall and on the ceiling.
Include a 220vac circuit in case you want to use that voltage with a lift. 220vac operates faster.
I would make one of the garage doors high lift; meaning the track runs as close as possible to the ceiling so it would go over the top car.
I would consider wall mounted door openers; definitely not chain drive; Liftmaster or equivalent would be my recommendation. Very quiet and smooth and gives you maximum space over the car.
If you live where there is snow, I would etch some lines in the concrete that can help drain out water. After I put in a garage floor, the water tended to pool underneath. Make sure the slope of the garage floor moves the liquids out.
Confirm concrete thickness is consistent with installing a lift.
If you're going to install any flooring in the garage, do it before you move all your "stuff" in.
If I was building from scratch, I would consider a door from my garage to the outside. I have to open the 9' garage door every time I go out that way.
I'ts difficult to see in the photo but in the corner is my wall mounted Liftmaster unit. You can also see the flooring I installed about 15 years ago.
Tell us more about what you want to do in there and where you live. Choice of lift depends on what you want to do. So do things like floor coverings. Location matters - I've got a heated floor, but if you're in Arizona or Florida that's probably not a good investment.
That said, the liftmaster door opener is always a good idea :-)
I install a 2 post lift. you'll need at least 11 foot and the floor needs to be 4" thick, 4000lb mix. If your just going to park on it 4 post is good but If you want to work on it easy get the 2 post. also put radiant floor heat in, even If you just install the tubing and add the heater later. If you install a 2 post just mark the floor so no tubing will be where the lift will be mounted. with the 4 post no need to mount it to the floor.
Last edited by wallra; 03-08-2019 at 09:32 PM.
Reason: added
One thing I did was vinyl siding like wainscoting up from the concrete like four ‘ish feet. Whatever the standard height is. Easy to clean and gouge and dent proof. Plywood above that is painted and electrical outlets up high. Building a garage is great fun, enjoy and congratulations.
I am just about to start drywalling my new garage / shop in the next few weeks and here a few points that were absolutes when I made the final design selections (some may be repeats from other members above). I currently have a 3 car garage so only needed 1 additional stall and shop area.
* Minimum interior dimensions: 14’- 0” x 34’- 0”
* 15’ finished ceiling height so I could install a 4 post lift with 84” lift and get my tallest SUV under it if needed. I chose 4 post because it will be primarily for storage but will have 2 sliding jacks so I can still pull all 4 wheels for some winter “activities”
* The ceiling height gave enough room to install 2 ceiling fans when fully lifted
* 100amp sub-panel.
* 220/240 plug for use with lift or welder
* 6 ceiling-mounted 2’- 0” x 4’- 0” LED panel lights
* 4 wall-mounted 1’- 0” high x 4’- 0” wide LED panel lights (approximately 36” above floor) for detailing or added light while working.
* All 110/120 plugs are mounted in double boxes allowing 4 plugs at every location
* Cat7 Ethernet
* Mini-split A/C
* 5” reinforced and heated slab using Thermosoft 220/240, 15amp in-floor cables, thermostat controlled (in PA)
* Substrate: 6” limestone, then 3” limestone sand, then 2” foam board insulation
* 2” foam board on all foundation walls down to footer
* 9’- 0” high rise door with side-mount opener
* 6’- 0” wide door in rear side to allow access to shop / storage area
* Reinforcements in wall (behind drywall) for mounting of 50’- 0” capacity reels for 3/8” air hose and extension cord
The only remaining items to select are the floor tiles, padding, cabinets, and paint color!
The heated floor is exceptionally nice, even though the lift now means I don't spend much time lying on the floor to work. Make sure your builder pays attention to underfloor and especially slab-edge insulation. 993pbug's example is very good.
Radiant slab does mean that you have to plan very carefully for a 2-post lift or other items that require bolting to the floor. I chose a 2 post a few years ago because I was pretty sure I'd be dropping an engine and/or trans. It was the bee's knees when I dropped the engine and trans this winter.
The planning did make it easy to place a 240 outlet in the ceiling above one of the posts, making it very simple to wire up. Other considerations:
240V/50A outlet placed for a car charger is also useful if you end up with a big welder
Plan for a compressor and air lines, even if you don't have one now
Interior hose bib is super useful - I spent part of the winter detailing my wheel wells, and with a big plastic catch basin you can hose things off freely
Pay up for hose reels - the Eley garden hose reel and *** air & electric reels were stupid $ but hopefully will only be spent once
Plan for benches and storage. I combined my main bench into a support for high storage. A rolling bench is also very useful, especially when dropping a Porsche drivetrain
Choice of flooring depends on hobbies. Epoxy looks great but is easily damaged if you weld. I used a good silane/siloxane treatment which doesn't change the color or finish of the slab but makes it pretty resistant to staining.
I also endorse mining garagejournal.com for wisdom, there's a lot of experience there.
03-08-2019, 02:24 PM
New Garage build, please advise.
