My Garage Build - 21 x 21

[65Stang]

The wife and I purchased our home about a year and a half ago. It did not even have a garage, but there was an existing storage building or shop off the back alley (there is a gravel alley along the back of the house that divides the block in half). The shop was 28' by 13'. I punched a hole in the end on the alley and turned it into a shop. The pic below is of the back area of the house, there is a storage building adjacent to the existing shop/garage.

Back outbuildings at time of house purchase.
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This is what the shop looked like after I added the garage door, removed all the garbage, sheathed the wall w/ OSB, and built a work bench in the back. The garage door opening is where the firewood was located in the first pic.
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The back yard area always seemed to be a waste of space as we had a private side yard/deck and front yard as well. So, over the course of a year and a half, I planned ways to added a garage in the back. Last summer, I was able to proceed...

 

[65Stang]

First things first, I designed my garage. I found that per code, I could build a structure up to my property line on the alley side as long as there were no openings on that side. So I designed my new garage to be connected to the existing shop with the main garage door opening onto my property and not the alley.

Got all the permits taken care of and off I went. I didn't take a lot of pictures at the beginning, but I tore down the storage shed next to the existing shop first and removed the concrete slab and sidewalk in the area.

My wife is a heavy equipment operator, so we rented a small backhoe and went to work on the slab. In the pic below, the area with the vapor barrier is the garage and the bare dirt area in front is the driveway pad. I had to size down the garage to fit, outide dimensions were 21' x 21'.
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Picture of alley.
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Tying into the existing shop slab.
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[65Stang]

I ran into my waterline at the far end of the parking pad. The old line was in bad shape and I even found remnants of an older waterline. So, as with all projects, I took a small detour and replaced the waterline. I also sheathed the line in a larger PVC pipe since it would be buried under 8" of concrete. This way, I could replace it if I ever needed to.

Old Pipe.
View media item 683New pipe.
View media item 684Water meter.
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[Old61]

Lookin good! Keep the updates fresh.

 

[65Stang]

Reinforcing bar prior to pouring slab. I have hopes of one day parking a tank in my garage...

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[65Stang]

Concrete was poured/placed next, this was one part of the project that I was able to stand by and watch.
I then poured a perimeter curb around the garage and started on the wall framing...

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You can see in the pic below the doorway that will connect my existing shop to the new garage.
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Walls are up, building paper on, and started siding.
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[65Stang]

My dad helped me put up the roofing trusses, which was actually simpler that expected. Next, I sheathed the entire roof, framed in a small roof to tie the existing shop roof into the new one (not pictured), and put on the roofing. I had reroofed the house earlier in the spring and purchased enough for the garage so they would all match.

The garage sure seemed small before the concrete was poured, but after it wall all framed, it definitely seemed larger, especially since it was taller than my house with the 10' ceilings.

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[65Stang]

Next, I trimmed out the garage, painted the outside, and applied the gutters and such.
View media item 693I also cut in the doorway to the existing shop, while at the same time managing to hit myself in the face with the handle of a 6 lb sledge. Say "ouch"... Very stubborn framing... thank god for sawsall...
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[65Stang]

I next had to replace the sidewall between the garage and the house that I had ripped out.

First, I tapped into the waterline and added a house bib at the corner of the garage, need to wash the toys every now and then!!
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Since the sidewalk was flush up against both the house and the garage, I needed a way to drain water, so I buried corrugated piping under the sidewalk with drains in the sidewalk to collect water from the downspouts and such, seems to have worked very well.
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[65Stang]

Sidewalk complete...
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[65Stang]

Next up, garage door and basketball hoop... necessities....

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[65Stang]

I then proceeded to build out my shop (not the new garage, existing shop that I attached the garage to). I put in a gyp ceiling, removed all the crappy shelves, build nice storage shelves with sliding doors, build a wood storage rack, a rolling work bench, etc.

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[65Stang]

And basically, here I am as of today.

Pic of the alley looking at my old/existing shop/garage and the new attached garage.
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Toys in their new home...
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All said and done, this only cost about $14,000, so I am pretty happy. Only, I have not finished the interior at all and currently have no funds to do so, but that's the way it is sometimes. But, when I do get the funds, I want to finish it out the way I have always wanted. A nice garage, hang pictures and signs, etc. I have a shop that is now a bigger work space since my cars are in the garage, so I have quite a bit of space.

 

[TejasBimmer]

Only 14K....not bad for the amount of work that was conducted!
Great job!

Oh yeah - Nice Stang and Cobra!

 

[GDA]

Outstanding work so far and truth that things can be accomplished on a limited budget.

Cool Mustang and very cool Cobra. Did you build or buy the Cobra. I would like more details on that please.

 

[67restoproj]

Well done How long did it take to build?

 

[65Stang]

Thanks!!

The Cobra is a Factory Five Racing roadster that I built a couple years ago. It's basically a new car (no used parts), has a 351w, and goes like stink. Here are the build pictures.
http://bmfouts65.shutterfly.com/8

Talking to the wife the other day, and she was very very adamant that we will be putting a lift in the garage at some point... just about brought a tear to my eye... sniff.

 

[65Stang]

Well done How long did it take to build?

I started demo of the existing shed and concrete around May of 2008. Actually started the ground work end of May. Got the garage door on in mid-September 2008, so basically 4 months with me most of the work, wife helped paint a little and helped with the ground work, neighbor helped frame/lift the walls, father helped with the trusses, and another neighbor helped place/finish the concrete. Siding, roofing, trim, most of paint, piping, gutters, roof framing, etc, I did whenever I had a free moment.

 

[cletus66]

Nice cars, nice garage, and excellent thread. It is a bummer when the project pictures don't get too far past the ground breaking.

 

[JMURiz]

Quite and upgrade, a larger garage AND a large shop...all on a budget!

Good work.

 

[autoist]

Just what I like - rambling, wandering garages where each area has its own character!!

 

[Omphaloskeptic]

Congrats! I'm amazed at what you were able to build for $14K! Granted, the shop was already there but rehabbing it and building the garage for that amount blows me away. I live in King County, Wa. and I'm wondering if that alley rule applies here? Good planning shows in the result.
PS Give you wife lots of loving; you've got a keeper!

 

[65Stang]

Congrats! I'm amazed at what you were able to build for $14K! Granted, the shop was already there but rehabbing it and building the garage for that amount blows me away. I live in King County, Wa. and I'm wondering if that alley rule applies here? Good planning shows in the result.
PS Give you wife lots of loving; you've got a keeper!

Thanks Omphaloskeptic, I am also in King County, Fall City to be exact. The rule applies as long as it's a county recognized alley. Mine is shown on the County iMap viewer. Whereabouts in King County are you located?

It also helps that I am in the Construction industry and am into woodworking, so I sorta knew what I was doing and also was able to create my own plans that the Country fully accepted during the permit process. Also, the only thing that I actually hired out and had to pay labor for was the concrete finishing, and although I think I overpaid for the labor, it was still cheaper than if I had gone direct to a concrete finishing company. Actually, the crew that did mine was part of a company that I know and I just paid each of them cash and bought the concrete direct. I figure the finishing the interior will cost about $1,000 or less to complete, including wiring, lights, cabinets, bench, drawers, sink, etc.

 

[Omphaloskeptic]

As I PM'd, I'm in the Northgate area of Seattle. Its been a long time since I've been out to Fall City; I imagine that area has built up considerably as has the whole East side.
Even though you may have overpaid for the concrete finishing labor, I'll bet they did an excellent job for you. Good luck on the finishing touches and keep us all posted with plenty of pics. Looking good!

 

[txusa03]

Very nice work. I have a question. The new house butted up against the old workshop roof. Water will be running down the old shed roof right into the side of the new garage. How did you address that issues? Being that you are in construction, you know what you are doing and I am curious as to how you address that issue as that wall on the new structure will gets lots of water from the roof of the old structure.

 

[65Stang]

Another thread resurrected!

I built another roof line between the existing roof and the side of the new garage. This new roof had its peak perpendicular to the existing shed roof. Basically, the roof of the new garage continued into the peak of the existing roof, except is just stepped down.

 

[txusa03]

Hehehe, honestly I was redirected to this thread from your other thread.

I still do not understand how the two roof are tied together by looking at first photo of post #13. In any case, it is a great build and thanks for sharing.

 

[JMURiz]

Good stuff, that'll help a lot more with water flow.