Between 265 & 485 SQ/FT The EuroSpekGarage Garage (2 Car in Houston, TX)

[eurospekgarage]

Day 1 of framing! This is so cool to see come to life. Admittedly, this is bigger than I had imagined and planned for. Hats off to these guys who work like a symphony - very little to waste, each person has a job of their own.

 

[eurospekgarage]

While thinking about the space I took a free class to learn Fusion 360 modeling software on Youtube. Highly recommend! I'm sure it's not the best software for this kind of stuff, but it worked for me to get a visual of the space. These were the renders that the architect used to draw up the plans.


The patio/grill area will be a gable design rather than what I have here. This cross section also shows the massive amount of storage space I'll have above the parking area.

 

[eurospekgarage]

Day 2 of framing results.

 

[runit]

Sweet!
Any updates?
Did I miss it? You tore down the existing garage to start from scratch?

 

[eurospekgarage]

Sweet!
Any updates?
Did I miss it? You tore down the existing garage to start from scratch?

Nope, you're right in the thick of the updates!
Yes, the existing garage was torn down to build this one almost from scratch (excluding existing slab).

 

[eurospekgarage]

Day 3 framing updates, finally some shade!

 

[eurospekgarage]

Progress is continuing! Framing has passed inspection and roofing should be installed this week. Next will be electrical, insulation, and OSB for interior walls. I cleaned up the garage and test fit my vehicles to get an idea of space. The S3 Cabrio clone is still with me and I recently picked up a 2019 Audi A4 Allroad prestige. The allroad is parking 2 feet inside the garage while the cabrio's **** is right on the garage door line. Plenty of space for my future tool bench and the maxjax lift. I'm also really glad to have the flat floor so that i can park the cabrio close to the left side.

 

[eurospekgarage]

Wiring has been installed, ready for inspection today. Power to the garage is coming from the electrical panel in the kitchen pantry, from there I have 220V service going into the garage by sub panel. The pantry panel has a breaker that will allow me to shut off the garage entirely which might be beneficial when we go to vacation or if my wife ever gets tired of me spending too much time in there. Plenty of plugs, so many that the electrician asked me if i'm a mechanic by trade. There is also a 220 plug in the corner for welder or whatever else i might need in the future. Boxes are installed up top for LED shop lighting which will have 4 zones: Loft, top ridge, main garage space, and outdoor covered patio area. The lighting above the parking space will be controlled by a switch in the kitchen.



One thing i am extremely pissed off about with my contractor. The framers tied into the main house for the parking area roof. They didn't cover the area and now I have water ingress into my kitchen due to the rain yesterday. This is a huge issue due to moisture and eventually mold build up inside my walls. The framers came back out yesterday to throw on a band aid but it's already too late. I'm really upset because we have a 3 week old baby in the house and I did not want any work being done inside the house, which is what might have to happen. Will update as this develops.

Roofing for the garage and the main house should start tomorrow.

 

[eurospekgarage]

Roof is on! I wanted as light a colored roof as possible to mitigate the absolute oven that is Houston. These are Owens Corning Duration shingles in Amber. Apparently, these shingles are not stocked very often in the supply houses around town.
Black shingles are the standard and it boggles my mind - it's the color that absorbs heat the most! Not sure if black shingles are the cheapest to produce - hard to imagine that it is but I would like to think that I have reduced the heat absorption in the attic/rafter area with these lighter beige colored shingles.

The main house got a ridge vent installed while the garage roof didn't. For the garage, I had the guys put up the exhaust fan from Quiet Cool, a company out in California. I paid for two exhaust fans, one for the house and one for the garage, and ordered them well in advance. Only one fan came, the other got lost somehow in transit. These are not small fans by any stretch so hard to think how one could get lost. After weeks of back and forth over the phone and via email, explaining my situation on installing the fans during the shingle install, they were not helpful at all in helping alleviate the frustration. Needless to say i am still waiting for the house fan to arrive and will have to arrange for the install at some later point, which would have been free had the damn fan arrived with the other one, on time! Oh well.

The garage exhaust fan comes with a plug and a transmitter to a battery powered control remote. I am excited to try this out when electrical inspection is passed and see if i can exhaust out the hot air up top in the 18 foot rafters.

The roll up garage door will be installed in a week.

 

[TX4runner]

Sorry to hear about the rain in the house. I walked into my garage this evening and it said 105. Any relief would be beneficial. Nice move with the lighter color.

 

[eurospekgarage]

Thank you! Rain in the house thankfully dried out - confirmed with FLIR camera and moisture meter. Just need to replace some trim and touch up some paint.

Indeed, the heat here is unbearable

Sorry to hear about the rain in the house. I walked into my garage this evening and it said 105. Any relief would be beneficial. Nice move with the lighter color.

 

[eurospekgarage]

Final electrical inspection is tomorrow, so the lights and switches were installed today. Finally, there is power to the garage!
Zone 1 - top ambient lighting (what I'm calling it, anyway) to show off the big tall space. I imagine this will be used when overall light is needed but without all the lights on.

Zone 2 - loft storage lighting


Zone 3 - Main work area lighting


Zone 4 - shaded patio lighting (these are a little too white for my tastes, will swap them out for yellow later).

And all together!


Plugs are on 3 circuits spread out across the garage, dedicated circuits for future mini splits, as well as garage door and exhaust fan. I ran this fan while up in the loft space and quickly felt relief from the heat as the fan did its job.

Finally, it's starting to feel like a real garage again! Next up: spray in insulation, walls, paint, and then garage floor.

 

[boyboi]

i think having different lighting circuits is a great idea so you don't have to blind yourself at night when you are running in for just a quick second. Which long tubes did you go with? i am in the market for some 8' strips but haven't been able to decide what to get.

 

[eurospekgarage]

i think having different lighting circuits is a great idea so you don't have to blind yourself at night when you are running in for just a quick second. Which long tubes did you go with? i am in the market for some 8' strips but haven't been able to decide what to get.

Agreed! In the first version of the garage I was lucky enough to have 2 light switches for the exterior that I was able to use to have an extra zone, but hopefully this new garage lighting arrangement will play out as I had designed.

The tubes I went with are the following: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BQS4CL1?tag=atomicindus08-20

I have no past experience with them but looking at them now in operation they seem to be great. Hope you find the same if you go with them.

 

[Gordonjuan]

Zone 4 - shaded patio lighting (these are a little too white for my tastes, will swap them out for yellow later).

There's no ability to switch color temperature on those? The reason I'm asking is we just put some recessed lights in that had a switch for 4k, 5k, or 6k Kelvin. Really nice to see what was what and have my wife tell me which one we're using.

Garage looks great! The thought it being out in it right now without A/C though...ugh.

 

[eurospekgarage]

There's no ability to switch color temperature on those? The reason I'm asking is we just put some recessed lights in that had a switch for 4k, 5k, or 6k Kelvin. Really nice to see what was what and have my wife tell me which one we're using.

Garage looks great! The thought it being out in it right now without A/C though...ugh.

I asked the electricians about a color temperature switch while they were putting them on - they said no but they don't speak any English. I'll go up later to see for myself

 

[TX4runner]

Those lights look like the same design as the Barrina's a few of us bought from Amazon in the past. I've had mine for almost 2 years now, and they have held up great, and definitely make it bright inside.

 

[eurospekgarage]

Those lights look like the same design as the Barrina's a few of us bought from Amazon in the past. I've had mine for almost 2 years now, and they have held up great, and definitely make it bright inside.

Amazing, good to know!

Also, those puck lights in the parking area do not, in fact, have a color temperature setting, sadly. Any recommendations on good outdoor puck lights that emit a soft yellow glow?