New here. Building 4-car garage

[mechaniac86]

Hi, we've been wanting to build a garage at the end of our driveway for years now. We finally got a contractor who lives in our neighborhood and have seen him doing many projects around the area to give us an estimate.

I just wanted to get some opinions on whether this proposal was a reasonable estimate to build a four car garage.

Please excuse the cell phone pics. The pdf file of the proposal was too large to attach.

Any advise, opinions, and/or suggestions are greatly appreciated!

 

[Richard Cranium]

24x40 long but narrow, are you restricted to that width?

 

[mechaniac86]

The idea was to have a typical 4 car garage but then add another 10 feet in length for workbench, air compressor, etc. We are sort of restricted by width due to the space existing between the house and the property line. Not sure what the widest we can go is.

We've actually already started discussing having it wider. For instance, having about 4 to 5 feet more to the left of the left garage door.

Thanks for the feedback!

 

[36truck]

Go with the 2 overhead doors not the big single one. Otherwise looks good. Price does seen a little high to me. But then I'm not located where you are.

 

[Can I try?]

Welcome, and congratulations on moving forward with your garage build!

I'll be following your build closely, as long as you keep us updated, as I too will be restricted to a long and narrow build on my property.

I'll leave with some friendly advice - You may want to consider uploading new photos of your estimate, photos that obscure your address, for the sake of your own privacy.

 

[K'ledgeBldr]

9' walls/ceilings you'll regret. Do AT LEAST 10' walls and use scissor trusses instead of stick framing the roof. This will allow headroom for a lift and/or mobile gantry. It will be cheaper- materials AND labor.

For the interior; if you like being in a tinderbox by all means keep the plywood ceiling and walls! But if you want something that is somewhat fire-rated, and insurance friendly I highly suggest using drywall for the interior. You may have to anyway if the building is within a certain distance to the property line- has to be a fire-rated wall.

Some of the proposal is a little vague- using the phrase "...to code" leaves a lot to the imagination.

For instance the "slab"; how exactly IS IT being constructed? Is it a separate foundation with slab, or is it a "mono-slab"? What reinforcement is being used? Are there grade beams? Will thickened areas be needed for a lift? Expansion joints? Slab plumbing? Conduit?

Maybe this guy should just stick to "remodeling"

 

[MScott]

Please go to "User CP" and put your general location in your profile. Location has a huge influence on price and building requirements. The answers you get will be much more relevant if people know where you live.

 

[MrBalll]

Looks like a good plan.
Should be a good setup. Especially if you with a 28' wide garage. 24' may be cramped depending on what you have inside.

 

[mechaniac86]

Go with the 2 overhead doors not the big single one. Otherwise looks good. Price does seen a little high to me. But then I'm not located where you are.

Thanks for the input. I'm in Lafayette, LA. Mid-size town.

Welcome, and congratulations on moving forward with your garage build!

I'll be following your build closely, as long as you keep us updated, as I too will be restricted to a long and narrow build on my property.

I'll leave with some friendly advice - You may want to consider uploading new photos of your estimate, photos that obscure your address, for the sake of your own privacy.

Thanks. Done.

9' walls/ceilings you'll regret. Do AT LEAST 10' walls and use scissor trusses instead of stick framing the roof. This will allow headroom for a lift and/or mobile gantry. It will be cheaper- materials AND labor.

For the interior; if you like being in a tinderbox by all means keep the plywood ceiling and walls! But if you want something that is somewhat fire-rated, and insurance friendly I highly suggest using drywall for the interior. You may have to anyway if the building is within a certain distance to the property line- has to be a fire-rated wall.

Some of the proposal is a little vague- using the phrase "...to code" leaves a lot to the imagination.

For instance the "slab"; how exactly IS IT being constructed? Is it a separate foundation with slab, or is it a "mono-slab"? What reinforcement is being used? Are there grade beams? Will thickened areas be needed for a lift? Expansion joints? Slab plumbing? Conduit?

Maybe this guy should just stick to "remodeling"

Thanks for your input. This gives me plenty of questions to ask my builder. The plan is not to have a lift, but I would at least like to have the option later on down the road if it wouldn't cost too much more. What are "grade beams?" And there is no plan for plumbing.

I will look into drywalling the interior.

Also, are there any drawbacks to using scissor trusses instead of stick framing?

Thanks again.

Please go to "User CP" and put your general location in your profile. Location has a huge influence on price and building requirements. The answers you get will be much more relevant if people know where you live.

Done. Thanks.

 

[aptdweller]

The spec for the electrical seems a bit sparse - what will "to code" get you?

I would recommend having multiple 240 v circuits installed as well. A large air compressor, welder etc. are very useful tools to have.

 

[mechaniac86]

Ok, so we decided to downsize to a 2-car garage. 26' wide and 35' long. We also took the suggestion to go with 10' walls instead of 9'. Here's the revised proposal. What do y'all think?

 

[NC-Shaun]

I am in the process myself. Those quotes are crazy high in my opinion.

Have you considered a concrete pad/footer and a prefab garage from a high volume company? You can get a 28x40 for around 15-18k plus concrete/grading.

 

[Radix2]

Ok, so we decided to downsize to a 2-car garage. 26' wide and 35' long. We also took the suggestion to go with 10' walls instead of 9'. Here's the revised proposal. What do y'all think?

Looks like the Hardi and brick are both $3000 a side - why not do all brick...?

 

[matt_i]

Hmm, the drafting + permit went up $400...

I'm curious about that line item...are there detailed framing drawings included in the "architectural package" or does the builder have to fill in all of those details himself to eventually arrive at the layout...despite a seemingly nominal cost up front, if I were building it there would be extra $ added to every step because I'd have to sweat out all the details rather than just building it to match the instructions...

In any case, I'd never proceed with a single bid unless I had just won the lottery.

 

[casmurbax]

I'll leave with some friendly advice - You may want to consider uploading new photos of your estimate, photos that obscure your address, for the sake of your own privacy.

Hi,

I see on the photos in the post that you blocked out your address, but if you looked at some of them in photobucket you still see your address....

Good luck with your build!

 

[K'ledgeBldr]

Ok, What do y'all think?

I think you should get AT LEAST two more bids. I also think this guy's a lil' hokey!

 

[rattle_snake]

I think you should get AT LEAST two more bids.

This. Another option is to price each major piece yourself, since you have plans. That will give you an idea of his markup on things. A few hours spent on quotes could save you $k's

 

[ky-mike]

I didn't see any insulation in the quote. Is it included in one of the lines without being listed?

I think the price isn't out of line for what you are getting. If you were to price one of the "cheaper" kits, you would see that they didn't include all that you have in your quote or would have cheaper and likely less desirable finish materials.

 

[revamped]

That's $65 a sqft. I would think you would have a very nice custom build fully finished with drywall, custom lighting, mud/tape/paint and all. Being in the south, I expected your build to be much less. I am not qualified nor do I understand your area. I am in the northwest and building a custom built 40x40 with loft, 16ft ceilings with 8" concrete stem walls 6.5ft tall and the dried out shell with the plumbing roughed in will be about $47 a sqft with no electrical, no finished interior, drywall, insulation etc. I choose to finish it myself. I expect my entire budget to be about $60 sqft including my lift, 6 220v outlets, fully functioning bar and bathroom, polished and acid etched concrete floor, Hi Bay LED lighting and fully finished interior. That is considered high in my opinion even for the Seattle surrounding area... but we have to pay what the going rate demands here for quality construction...

 

[Stevie-Ray]

Wow that's a lot of money. I don't even pretend to know the difference in pricing between states or even between kits and ordered materials by contractors, but mine was a 24x48 4 car kit from Menards, built by a local contractor in Michigan, vinyl sided to match my house, so no fancy brickwork, but I don't yet have 25K in it including electrical and insulation. I was at the time afraid it was going to cost me around 40K, but was quite pleased when a friend of mine showed me his garage, a bit smaller, and told me the price and guesstimated what I'd have to pay. He was close, but I paid even less.

 

[mechaniac86]

Ok, so I got my contractor to give me a more detailed proposal. Especially, since we had made some changes verbally. Here it is. I appreciate all of the input from this community!

Hi,

I see on the photos in the post that you blocked out your address, but if you looked at some of them in photobucket you still see your address....

Good luck with your build!

Taken care of. Thanks!

I think you should get AT LEAST two more bids. I also think this guy's a lil' hokey!

Will look into getting another bid. What made us choose this guy is that we've seen him doing a lot of work in this neighborhood for many years. Everything he does looks good, but I'm no contractor.

I didn't see any insulation in the quote. Is it included in one of the lines without being listed?

I think the price isn't out of line for what you are getting. If you were to price one of the "cheaper" kits, you would see that they didn't include all that you have in your quote or would have cheaper and likely less desirable finish materials.

Thanks. I don't believe this proposal includes insulation.

That's $65 a sqft. I would think you would have a very nice custom build fully finished with drywall, custom lighting, mud/tape/paint and all. Being in the south, I expected your build to be much less. I am not qualified nor do I understand your area. I am in the northwest and building a custom built 40x40 with loft, 16ft ceilings with 8" concrete stem walls 6.5ft tall and the dried out shell with the plumbing roughed in will be about $47 a sqft with no electrical, no finished interior, drywall, insulation etc. I choose to finish it myself. I expect my entire budget to be about $60 sqft including my lift, 6 220v outlets, fully functioning bar and bathroom, polished and acid etched concrete floor, Hi Bay LED lighting and fully finished interior. That is considered high in my opinion even for the Seattle surrounding area... but we have to pay what the going rate demands here for quality construction...

VERY useful info. Thanks!

Wow that's a lot of money. I don't even pretend to know the difference in pricing between states or even between kits and ordered materials by contractors, but mine was a 24x48 4 car kit from Menards, built by a local contractor in Michigan, vinyl sided to match my house, so no fancy brickwork, but I don't yet have 25K in it including electrical and insulation. I was at the time afraid it was going to cost me around 40K, but was quite pleased when a friend of mine showed me his garage, a bit smaller, and told me the price and guesstimated what I'd have to pay. He was close, but I paid even less.

I would like to know what differences there are between the build we are looking at and these kits everyone is talking about.

 

[Stevie-Ray]

Some general contractors will tell you a kit uses substandard materials and to absolutely not go with them. These are the contractors to stay away from as they are already high-priced, and not likely to change. A contractor that has used kits, knows which ones are good, which ones are bad, and which ones are in-between and may need upgrades and will know what those upgrades will be, and will quote those to you at the start. My contractor simply told me Menards kits were good quality, but even better, he had a good relationship with them in replacing materials that may have been missed in inventory, as you are responsible for making sure everything is there when your garage is delivered. Kits are paid for by you, at Menards-make sure you do it during one of their 11% rebate days and you will get a rebate check for the entire amount. This paid for all my electrical equipment. You can "customize" your garage within limits-it doesn't have to be exactly as it appears in the picture, as to number of windows, doors, etc., just ask counter guy. Then wait for delivery, call your contractor, and wait for install. This is what it may look like for a while.

 

[Radix2]

Some general contractors will tell you a kit uses substandard materials and to absolutely not go with them. These are the contractors to stay away from as they are already high-priced, and not likely to change. A contractor that has used kits, knows which ones are good, which ones are bad, and which ones are in-between and may need upgrades and will know what those upgrades will be, and will quote those to you at the start. My contractor simply told me Menards kits were good quality, but even better, he had a good relationship with them in replacing materials that may have been missed in inventory, as you are responsible for making sure everything is there when your garage is delivered. Kits are paid for by you, at Menards-make sure you do it during one of their 11% rebate days and you will get a rebate check for the entire amount. This paid for all my electrical equipment. You can "customize" your garage within limits-it doesn't have to be exactly as it appears in the picture, as to number of windows, doors, etc., just ask counter guy. Then wait for delivery, call your contractor, and wait for install. This is what it may look like for a while.

good points -


For big items like garages there are no such thing as "kits" - at least not with the meaning that they are prepackaged or unique materials. All a garage or building kit is at a lumber yard is a take -off from stock set of plans they have available. It is all picked from the same exact material as any custom plan that comes in the door. Now, if the stock plan is somehow deficient, then the material provided will be as well. But most of these stock plans are just fine - the basic framing is extremely standard, and it will be up to the customer to choose the details - doors, sidings, roof, etc.

the design kiosk at Menards generates a very detailed bill of materials - where you choose everything from the pitch and type of trusses to soffit materials - if the building comes out cheap it is because that was the option chosen.

The flip side is that there are really no discounts to go with a stock design either - although since they are based on simple designs they will be less expensive than more complex custom design. And in any case the builder will have to review and adjust the choices the lumberyard makes while doing take offs from any plan.

 

[darwyn]

The price you are looking at is about the same as I am looking at, but I live in NY. I would have thought that Louisiana would be cheaper.

 

[69gp]

just my 2 cents. If you have room on the outside of the far end of the garage you might want to at least frame for and overhead door. That way you can always just roll a car out if you need the space inside the garage,.

 

[Stevie-Ray]

For big items like garages there are no such thing as "kits" - at least not with the meaning that they are prepackaged or unique materials..

Very true, "kits" in the way I and most use the term, is simply used to describe what is shown on websites of various Home supply stores that carry garages. In fact the term probably shouldn't be used at all, since many unscrupulous builders will say not to go with them, then turn around and get their materials from the same source. You are certainly not held to the exact standard of what is in the picture, other than codes, and may change nearly anything, upgrade, etc. Comes in handy if you know what you are looking for or have a friend that's a builder. Mine was supposed to come with 4 windows-I dropped 2 off that, actually making it a little cheaper, for example. You may go with a wider overhang, etc. They called up the garage online I wanted, I made the changes I wanted, selected the color of siding and roofing, I paid, and they gave me a delivery date. Then I covered it and it sat in my yard til my builder could get at it.

 

[mechaniac86]

Ok, so I finally got a bid from another contractor. The plan we came up with is a little different. Now we are looking at a 36' wide and 30' deep garage with a 10'x30' "porch" with a metal awning.

Here is the proposal. Even with 300sq/ft more concrete, this bid is about $20k less than the fist contractor's. However, the first contractor's proposal included roofing the house too which came out to about $10k.

I also have a rough drawing of what we're looking at to give yall a visual.

Also, someone had mentioned that I would "regret" having 9' foot walls. This contractor was very interested to know why someone would tell me that. Any reasons why we wouldn't be happy with 9' walls?

Thanks again everyone

 

[mechaniac86]

Okay, so we've decided to go in a different direction. Our neighbors just had a steel building erected in their backyard, and we've been talking their builder about doing something similar. We're thinking something like this....

upload an image

We want to put a lift in the middle bay. My other neighbor works for carquest and is going to sell us the lift. He gave me a minimum ceiling height of 144 inches. But he didn't find any specs on what type/thickness of concrete needed. Does anyone have experience with installing a lift in their slab?

Thanks

 

[polizei1]

144" is 12', which is usually the height of a 2-post lift, which is why everyone was telling you not to do 9' ceilings.

If you're looking at a specific brand lift, go to their website if they have one and it should list the required specs. If you're not sure or can't find that specific manufacture, you can compare Rotary and Bendpak specs. The specs will change by the size of the lift, so without that information it's hard to say. If you're planning on a lift, it's probably smart to pour a 5" slab at 3k+ PSI. http://www.asedeals.com/blog/concrete-requirements-for-bendpak-lifts.html

It's been noted here that a 4" slab may not actually measure 4", it could measure 3 1/2- 3 3/4", so I would play it safe and pour thicker than the minimum specs.

This is just my limited knowledge from reading these forums, you should consult the lift manufacture for true specs.

 

[rburke65]

I thought some of the 2 post lifts required 12' 2" of height.

 

[mikegt4]

My garage is almost identical to the OP. I have a carriage door on the back wall to one side which allows a "drive through" in my left lane. The door is full ceiling height so I can get a tall RV or boat/trailer in from that end. The added bonus is flow through ventilation which makes working comfortable on hot days, something to consider for any garage in the south. I see the OP shows a double door on the back wall so someone is thinking ahead.