Stump's New 2 Car Detached Garage Project.

StumpXJ · May 24, 2009

This is my first post on here, but I have been lurking, and drooling for a couple months. This site is absolutely the best when it comes to getting ideas.

A little background:

My wife and I have been living in Germany for the past 3.5 years with the US military (as civilian government employee). We are getting ready to move back to the States (June 6th), and have purchased a new home in Atlanta (Decatur) Georgia. We were recently in the states for about 3 weeks while searching for a home to buy, and we managed to find something we were both happy with.

I have a 25x23 2 car garage that I will be using basically as a large one car workshop. I would love to have more space, but living in the city its rediculously expensive to have enough property in order to have a larger building, so I comprimised a little. Because I have a fair amount of equipment that will be going in this garage, this website has been very helpful in determining a good layout that will maximize usable space.

Unfortunately, the garage is beautifully finished inside and out to match the house. I say unfortunately because we have a contractor coming out as soon as we move in to rip the roof off, raise the large door header height, install a 100 amp dedicated service, and reinforce a section of the floor to accept a 2 post lift.

There are tons of pitch on the roof (17 feet to the peak) to allow a big 2 post lift, but we will have to remove the normal atic style truss's to allow a vaulted/open ceiling. The rool up door height is only 7'2", and my Jeep will not fit in it, so I am going to go with at least an 8 foot door, or preferably a 9 foot high door.

The garage is currently wired with two overhead lights, garage door opener, and four duplex outlets. It is supplied by only one 20 amp breaker from the main in the house, so that is definitely not going to work. I am adding a dedicated 100 service to the garage to allow my equipment to be run (lift, small mill, small lathe, welders, compressor etc)

The garage floor is a 4inch slab, but only 2000psi, so I will cut out a section and re-enforce it with 4000psi, 6 inch thick with re-bar for the lift mounting area.

I have been trying to determine a good layout for my stuff, but have yet to get it all finished. Open to any suggestion if anyone has any. The good thing is its a clean slate, and a pretty standard layout.

Here are the pics!

More to come....

StumpXJ · May 24, 2009

Re: Stump's New 2 Car Garage Project.

A look into the attic space. I am going to be giving up tons of storage room by going to an open vaulted ceiling.... but?

This is the color scheme I was *thinking* of going with, but not sure about the black lower. It may be too dark for my liking. I havent seenany other black lowers on garages, so I am not sure. I want to do the tan upper, since that is how the walls will already be painted, and I would like to keep it uniform.

Just playing with some layout options in MS Paint

Back wall, not exactly to scale, but close.

This is what I will be working on mostly: (you can see why I need the extra height. The top of the roof rack/lights is 7' 6")

Let me know what you think about the plan thus far. The contractors *should be starting work the first or second week of June, so I have a little time to make changes.

Red'n'WhiteRebel · May 24, 2009

Welcome aboard Stump. One thing that comes to mind for your place is a jackshaft garage door opener. Keeps the space over your lift open.

StumpXJ · May 24, 2009

Please explain? I have been trying to figure out what to do about the door, as I dont want to have to leave the door closed while using the lift. I looked into the rool up style overhead door, but the wife put her foot down as it wont match the outside like it does now. I agree with her, not to mention this is a brand new door, and it matches, and its insulated quite well. I may have to add a panel for the extra height, but thats ok.

I assume this "jackshaft" style garage door opener just pulls the door straight up? got any links?

~Stump

Red'n'WhiteRebel · May 24, 2009

Mine are Liftmaster 3800. Your tracks will obviously be routed differently to have the door run as high as poss. A good door co. will be able to set you up.

StumpXJ · May 24, 2009

After utilizing the search feature (imagine that) I see what you mean. It appears it certainly should work on my setup. I guess ideally I would like to get the door itself out of the way of the lift, not just the current opener. I dont see any way of doing that other than a roll up style door. Kind of wish the roof line was 90 degrees from where it is now, that way the garage door could follow the pitch line up instead of turning 90 degrees or parallel to the floor.

Thanks!

StumpXJ · May 24, 2009

Red'n'WhiteRebel said:
Mine are Liftmaster 3800. Your tracks will obviously be routed differently to have the door run as high as poss. A good door co. will be able to set you up.

Yeah, I will definitely run the tracks up as high as possible. That should keep the amount of lift obstruction to a minimum.

My door is 16 X 8 (maybe more height if I have to add a panel), and it has insulation, AND wood on the outside for trim to match the house. Basically... its heavy! If I raise the tracks as high as possible once the ceiling is open (maybe as much as 5 feet), do you think the 3800 would handle the extra vertical pull and weigth of the door? Do they seem to struggle at all with you more conventional set-up doors?

~James

uniongoon · May 24, 2009

Nice off roader, very nice! My suggestion, after unbolting the crash bars, taking off the wheels and placing them around the garage, you will be saying, Wha Happened to all my space? Working on a gargantuan machine, you need a gargantuan garage. C'mon, your wife looks understanding.

uniongoon · May 24, 2009

All kidding aside, you can save space by mounting your compressor up high, allowing for storage space underneath. I also like mine with the bottom around eye level so I can open the drain without crawling on the floor.

StumpXJ · May 24, 2009

Yeah, I hear ya... The space will go away fast, but I have to work with what I have. My wife already compromised quite a bit on what/where she wanted in the house just to accomodate my need for a garage (hard to find a house with a detached garage in the city limits, for under half a million anyway). If moma aint happy... well you know the rest. I dont want to push it... LOL.

She's letting me add a split unit AC system as well, so I cant complain too much. The space will force me to be organized and clean, which is a good thing.

I like the idea of getting the compressor up high, that would allow some nice space for something underneath. I am also used to having a separate spot for storing lawn work equipment as well, and with this set-up it wont happen. I would add a small storage shed or something, but there literally is no room. The lot is small, and is being taken up by the house and garage. I think I may close in the space under rear house deck and put the mower and stuff under it. I DONT want it in my garage, thats all I know!

bluesman2a · May 24, 2009

Hey Stump... Nice Xj you got there, and welcome to the area from one Jeeper to another. You guys are a little further in-town than we are, but my wife used to teach in Decatur.

A couple of thoughts here:

1) If you haven't already, check out www.southernjeeps.org pretty good local club, lots of XJ people (including a couple of good friends). PM me if you want more info on the local scene.

2) Not sure if you've wheeled much here in the South, but that roof rack will become a PITA in short order, lots of low hangin stuff. Not like a lot of the old-growth forrests in Europe.

3) On the garage door, if you go with a jackshaft opener, you can re-hang the tracks on the door to follow the contout of the roof, so it's only a couple inches off the roof. Gives you more room for the lift.

4) If you're lookin' for garage people in the area... Go North a bit... We speak XJ.

Among other things:

StumpXJ · May 24, 2009

Bluesman, yeah I was drooling over your build thread as well....very nice man! I havent checked out that site yet, but will. I have been on GAtrailriders.com lately, and of course Naxja.org. Thanks for the info, and the welcome, I will definitely look into it.

I would love to be able to follow the roof line up with the door, but the roof line is going the wrong way for me to do that... I think it will still be ok though, once I raise my tracks as high as the front wall/ceiling will let me.

I mainly use my XJ (in Europe anyway) for exploration travel, camping, and some light wheeling. That may change once I get back for good in the South (I am orginally from SC), just not sure what direction I want to go. I have another XJ in Atlanta already, just like the teal one, only stock. I may make more of trail dedicated rig out of it, but not sure yet. The Teal ***** is on a boat and is east coast bound. It should be there when we arrive on the 6th.

I have a specific question for you concerning your lift. Seeing my XJ, with the roof rack and roof top tent on 6.5 LA lift, do you think I will have issues regarding getting the vehicle high enough to work underneath it without hitting the crossbar? I am about 6'1" tall, and am a little concerned about my roof height with the cross bar. I was considering going with a floor mounted crossbar, but have reservations about the obstruction on the floor and not having the added strength at the top of the pillars.

What lift do you have? What are the specs on it? Did you go to the Greg Smith place in the area?

Thanks again, hope to see you out and about!

autoist · May 24, 2009

Why not leave the garage as is & just punch out the rear wall and add onto it? Them momma can have a place for her car without bothering your projects...

bluesman2a · May 24, 2009

autoist said:
Why not leave the garage as is & just punch out the rear wall and add onto it? Them momma can have a place for her car without bothering your projects...

I was thinking the same thing. Looks like you could put in another bay between the house and garage. This would make it an ATTACHED garage, which has some benefits (read easier zoning). If you turn the gable 90*, you could get more room for the lift. Look at how we did the addition on my original bay, it may give you some ideas. AND you could keep the finish on the inside of the existing garage. You will also probably wind up SAVING money by not having to tear up your existing concrete.

StumpXJ said:
I have a specific question for you concerning your lift. Seeing my XJ, with the roof rack and roof top tent on 6.5 LA lift, do you think I will have issues regarding getting the vehicle high enough to work underneath it without hitting the crossbar? I am about 6'1" tall, and am a little concerned about my roof height with the cross bar. I was considering going with a floor mounted crossbar, but have reservations about the obstruction on the floor and not having the added strength at the top of the pillars.

What lift do you have? What are the specs on it? Did you go to the Greg Smith place in the area?

I've got a Rotary SPOA-10. The specs are on the company website.
None of the vehicles I've had on there yet have had any issues gettng the vehicle to full height on the lift stops, this includes XJ's with racks. I'm pretty short, but there are several friends who work in my shop that are 6+, they have no issues.. If you want, you are welcome to swing up before you do your own lift and throw your XJ up to take a look on the list.

As for floor-plates, I would *NOT* buy a lift with a floor-plate, they are a HUGE pain as you move things around under the vehicle.

I actually HAVE been to Greg Smith, love the place. Remember when you go, that ALL prices are highly negotiable, work them. Had I seen their lift before buying the Rotary, I would have "settled" on one of them, but I'm happy with the Rotary.

wrigh003 · May 24, 2009

I'd lose that window facing away from my house, or reframe it into a smaller one that is higher off the ground. That will open up another 3 feet or so where you can park a workbench/toolbox/service cart AND keep it so you can see what's going on with entrances to teh garage from your deck. Might keep the new neighbor a little happier, too, if you're going to be doing a lot of grinding/lathing/milling in there...

Cool looking place- pretty new?

StumpXJ · May 25, 2009

autoist said:
Why not leave the garage as is & just punch out the rear wall and add onto it? Them momma can have a place for her car without bothering your projects...

There isnt any room on the property for expansion. The rear of the garage is about 3-4 feet from the property line. Where the retaining wall is, is the end of it.

My wife has understood over the past 8 years or so that she will never be allowed to simply "park" in my garages/workshop. Unless when we get to retirement age, and we have the huge property with an attached, and detached, then it will happen. She is ok with that at this point.

bluesman2a said:
I was thinking the same thing. Looks like you could put in another bay between the house and garage. This would make it an ATTACHED garage, which has some benefits (read easier zoning). If you turn the gable 90*, you could get more room for the lift. Look at how we did the addition on my original bay, it may give you some ideas. AND you could keep the finish on the inside of the existing garage. You will also probably wind up SAVING money by not having to tear up your existing concrete.

I've got a Rotary SPOA-10. The specs are on the company website.
None of the vehicles I've had on there yet have had any issues gettng the vehicle to full height on the lift stops, this includes XJ's with racks. I'm pretty short, but there are several friends who work in my shop that are 6+, they have no issues.. If you want, you are welcome to swing up before you do your own lift and throw your XJ up to take a look on the list.

As for floor-plates, I would *NOT* buy a lift with a floor-plate, they are a HUGE pain as you move things around under the vehicle.

I actually HAVE been to Greg Smith, love the place. Remember when you go, that ALL prices are highly negotiable, work them. Had I seen their lift before buying the Rotary, I would have "settled" on one of them, but I'm happy with the Rotary.

You are right about being able to add on to the right side of the Garage, but thats about the only room for expansion. That would probably fly like a lead balloon though, as we both really like having a deck off the rear of the house. Also, we looked high and low for a house with an actual detached garage as apposed to attached. I really dont want it attached to the home, so that probably will not happen either.

If I could throw my junk on your lift, that would make my decision MUCH eaiser. I REALLY would appreiciate if you can let me do that, at your convienence of course. I can shoot you a PM in a few weeks. Thanks!!!!

wrigh003 said:
I'd lose that window facing away from my house, or reframe it into a smaller one that is higher off the ground. That will open up another 3 feet or so where you can park a workbench/toolbox/service cart AND keep it so you can see what's going on with entrances to teh garage from your deck. Might keep the new neighbor a little happier, too, if you're going to be doing a lot of grinding/lathing/milling in there...

Cool looking place- pretty new?

Not a bad idea about the window, but a fair amount of work, just to gain a litle space (with the inside/outside being totally finished). No one lives in the house behind ours yet, so I will be sure to be outside grinding and welding when potential buyers come out to look at it.....just so they know what they are getting into...LOL.

The place is brand new, we will be the first to live in it. It was finished in February of 2009.

Here are a few shots of the actual house:

This gives you and idea of the room we have (or dont have) the rear of the garage has a small retaining wall, and thats pretty much the end of the property.

Thanks for the ideas, keep em coming.

Kevin54 · May 25, 2009

The place is brand new, we will be the first to live in it. It was finished in February of 2009.

Is that a "virgin" brand new house or a complete redo on an older house? Either way...I think it looks fantastic :thumbup:

Any interior shots of the house? Any particulars? Full basement? Square footage?

StumpXJ · May 25, 2009

Nope, its a virgin new construction/new home. Its a Craftsman style, so it looks older like the other homes in the area.

Here is a gallery with plenty of interior stuff.

http://gallery.me.com/meghanramsey

Its 2000 sqft, 4 bedrooms, 2.5 bath. No basement, corner lot on a dead end street with a park at the end of it.

Thanks for the compliment! ~ James

Red'n'WhiteRebel · May 25, 2009

StumpXJ said:
Yeah, I will definitely run the tracks up as high as possible. That should keep the amount of lift obstruction to a minimum.

My door is 16 X 8 (maybe more height if I have to add a panel), and it has insulation, AND wood on the outside for trim to match the house. Basically... its heavy! If I raise the tracks as high as possible once the ceiling is open (maybe as much as 5 feet), do you think the 3800 would handle the extra vertical pull and weigth of the door? Do they seem to struggle at all with you more conventional set-up doors?

~James

My doors are 9' wide by 8' hi, insulated. The 3800 has no trouble lifting them and operates quietly. You are dealing with more weight for sure so I think I'd call a pro and get his opinion.

bluesman2a · May 25, 2009

Red'n'WhiteRebel said:
My doors are 9' wide by 8' hi, insulated. The 3800 has no trouble lifting them and operates quietly. You are dealing with more weight for sure so I think I'd call a pro and get his opinion.

Remember, the garage door opener does NOT open the weight of the door. If a door is properly balanced, the weight of the door itself shouldn't be an issue. Worst case scenario, when you add another panel, you have to change springs to counterweight the door properly.

StumpXJ said:
Also, we looked high and low for a house with an actual detached garage as apposed to attached. I really dont want it attached to the home, so that probably will not happen either.

Not a bad idea about the window, but a fair amount of work, just to gain a litle space (with the inside/outside being totally finished). No one lives in the house behind ours yet, so I will be sure to be outside grinding and welding when potential buyers come out to look at it.....just so they know what they are getting into...LOL.

TELL ME ABOUT THAT ONE!!! The wife and I looked for almost a year to find our place, and we're not even as far in-town as you guys are.

On the window, I think all the other stuff is a nice added bonus, but the REAL reason you would want to do it is for security. A near ground level window, hidden from view of the house is the PERFECT entry for a thief. Personally I'd just frame the whole thing in. I'm not a fan of people seeing inside my garage.

StumpXJ · May 26, 2009

Bluesman, you have a PM.

bluesman2a · May 26, 2009

StumpXJ said:
Bluesman, you have a PM.

Back atcha sir! We'll get you hooked up.

wrigh003 · May 26, 2009

bluesman2a said:
On the window, I think all the other stuff is a nice added bonus, but the REAL reason you would want to do it is for security. A near ground level window, hidden from view of the house is the PERFECT entry for a thief. Personally I'd just frame the whole thing in. I'm not a fan of people seeing inside my garage.

Nice looking place- my 30-year-old ranch is getting jealous- I can just about feel my place getting set to break something out of spite. :thumbup:

I am just thinking about security. The spare space along the sidewall won't net you much if anything in terms of storage space, but I think I'd sleep better. A couple pieces of Hardie siding, 4 2x4's, scrap of plywood, tube of caulk, and a gallon of paint and you're set- the paint will probably even match easy if it's only been up for a few months.

krooser · May 27, 2009

How do you know the garage slab is only 2000 psi? Just wondering.

I'd be more inclined to just spread the load by using two larger 1/2' steel floor plates under the lift... it would spread the load and be easier than installing new concrete. I'd rather have my lift on 2K concrete if the concrete is large than cut out a 4X4 section for stronger concrete...IMHO.

Remember that the concrete specs are recomendations... they are there to satisfy the lawyers. My shop has 4" 3500# with fibermesh, no rebar, no wiremesh and it's been in place and working for years without problems. I have friends with lifts set on 50 year old concrete... no idea of the specs. they have not had any problems.

I'm not saying that you should not be safe... but I sure wouldn't worry about that slab... I'd be more concerned about buying a lift with thick steel...

StumpXJ · May 27, 2009

krooser said:
How do you know the garage slab is only 2000 psi? Just wondering.

I'd be more inclined to just spread the load by using two larger 1/2' steel floor plates under the lift... it would spread the load and be easier than installing new concrete. I'd rather have my lift on 2K concrete if the concrete is large than cut out a 4X4 section for stronger concrete...IMHO.

Remember that the concrete specs are recomendations... they are there to satisfy the lawyers. My shop has 4" 3500# with fibermesh, no rebar, no wiremesh and it's been in place and working for years without problems. I have friends with lifts set on 50 year old concrete... no idea of the specs. they have not had any problems.

I'm not saying that you should not be safe... but I sure wouldn't worry about that slab... I'd be more concerned about buying a lift with thick steel...

I asked the builder specifically what PSI the concrete in the garage was, and he said he *thought* it was 2000 psi. I honestly am not sure if he knows, but???

Is there a way to test it ?

Anyone else have any input on whether they would trust a "regular" garage floor (if they didnt know what psi it was) with a standard 2 post lift?

While it would save me time, and money, I dont want to skimp out if I REALLY need to do it.

~James

krooser · May 27, 2009

StumpXJ said:
I asked the builder specifically what PSI the concrete in the garage was, and he said he *thought* it was 2000 psi. I honestly am not sure if he knows, but???

Is there a way to test it ?

Anyone else have any input on whether they would trust a "regular" garage floor (if they didnt know what psi it was) with a standard 2 post lift?

While it would save me time, and money, I dont want to skimp out if I REALLY need to do it.

~James

Maybe you could ask the builder who supplied the concrete and give the supplier a call... it's worth a shot. Ask them what they typically use in garages.

Not sure if they could "test" it to be sure. I wouldn't worry about it myself... the lift won't go anywhere even if it's not 3K concrete... you might have a crack or two afterawhile.... you can address it it then.

As I said.... my friends have lifts installed over old concrete.... nobody has any idea what concrete specs they have but no one has had any problems.

StumpXJ · Jul 10, 2009

Ok, dragging this one back up from the dead.

My wife and I have been back in the US now permanently for about 5 weeks, and have closed on the house, and started to settle in a little. Our House Hold Goods shipment (everything we own, including garage goodies) is due to arrive from Germany at the end of this month. My plan was to get the garage modifications done and finished before that stuff gets here, for obvious reasons.

After getting several contractors to give me quotes on what I wanted done, we finally settled on one, and they are supposed to start demolition of the ceiling area on Monday. They will be raising the ceiling height to 13feet to accomodate a lift, and adding a 100 amp service panel to the garage. The rest is up to me. My Jeep actually fits in the garage as it is, with about 2-3 inches of room to spare at the door header, so we are not doing anything with that. I am also going to put the lift directly on the concrete that i have instead of cutting out and adding a reinforced section. I hope this doesnt come back to haunt me later, but time will tell.

I will post photos of the work, and hopefully this will be done within the next 2 weeks, my contractor assures me it will only take 1 - 2 weeks tops. Hope he's right!

~James

StumpXJ · Jul 14, 2009

Contractors were here a few hours Monday, and most of the day today. They (2.5 guys) got a fair amount of work done, and I am happy with the progress thus far. The bulk of the hard work is done, just a little framing to finish up, then the electrical gets done, and finally the insulation and sheetrock. Once that is finished, I will re-install the door, and make it go straighy up into the newly created pocket. I just ordered a Liftmaster 3800 earlier in the week, and it should do the job nicely. ($299.00 on Amazon, not a bad price.) Plus, I have this brand new 1/2hp liftmaster that I can sell to someone to make for some of the money spent on the 3800.

On to the pictures

Monday morning they came out and tore down the sheetrock on the original ceiling to get a better idea of what exactly they were working with. They were here for about 2.5 hours, and they were done here for the day (They are finishing another job down the street). They also got the permit monday, and had a small dumpster delivered.

The roof was stick built, not prefab trusses. This apparently is better for the type of work I am getting done.

Garage door guys are coming out Tues morning to remove the door, opener, and tracks. I cant do it by myself (door weighs over 400 pounds), and I dont have my tools from Germany yet, so the pro's get to do this one.

Pulled up to the house this morning (Tuesday) since we havent moved in yet, and saw they had delivered most of the framing material and new LVL beams.

Two huge 16 inch LVL beams that will run from the front wall to the back wall on the side of the pocket. Contractor said it was a little overkill... sounds good to me.

They showed up at 8am on the dot, and started working. They put in 2x12's for collar ties, and the new pocket ceiling is 13 feet from the floor and approximately 17.5 feet wide. There will be small knee walls, about 3-4 high, this will provide a nice storage space in the eaves.

Here is the progress.

No turning back now, this was the old support beam in the center.

They got the first half of the new 16 inch LVL's installed (two of them sandwiched together make one beam) and called it a day at about 6:00.

More pictures tomorrow, they should have all of the framing complete by midday.

~James

wagonmaster · Jul 15, 2009

Lookin' great there! Where in Decatur? My wife and I grew up there. Headed back in a year or so....

bluesman2a · Jul 15, 2009

Looking good there James, sorry I hadn't responded to your PM, things have been crazy around here. And yes, the offer is still open if you want to come up and take a look/throw your junk on my lift.

If you haven't already been, I'm also happy to show you where to find the local Greg Smith Equipment and Pull-a-Part yard (they have TONS of XJ's constantly rotating through).

Oh, one other thing, not sure what code is down there, but I got gigged on my inspection cause I didn't have an access hole framed in, you might want to ask about that.

StumpXJ · Jul 15, 2009

Bluesman, yeah, they are framing it in as we speak 30" X 48". I got them to throw 6 sheets of plywood up there as well, I will need all the storage I can get! It will require a huge ladder, but it will be nice to throw bulky seldom used stuff up there.

I havent been to the Greg Smith place yet, but saw where it is on the map. There is one fairly close to me. I would like to come to your place before I go up there and buy something I dont want/need. I also just swapped a Rubicon Tcase into the XJ, and needed to get a part or two at the pull a part ( I went to the east and south place). Cool place, gotta love those prices! I will shoot you a PM to see when you are free, but right now I have to go out and run some wiring before the sheetrockers get here.

Wagonmaster, we are right off North Decatur Rd/Lawrenceville Highway.

More pictures later....Thanks guys!

~James

BrokeEF · Jul 15, 2009

Wow looks great man, keep us up to date.

Sean

JMURiz · Jul 15, 2009

Great idea and execution, the change will be amazing...it'll feel like the garage is 75% larger with all the open space overhead.

StumpXJ · Jul 15, 2009

It already does feel 10 times bigger than it was. They guys are just finishing up the framing, then I have to go outside and run all the electrical before the inspection. Once that is done, the sheetrock get hung and finished. Then I have to decide on paint and put down some epoxy on the floor.

More pictures later after they get done, they tied it all in nice and strong, this thing is beef now! I also managed to get 23' x 8 feet of storage flooring in the attic space, its only about 4-5 feet in height, but it will help tremendously. Just have to buy a ladder that will get me up to the 13 foot mark!

~James

autoist · Jul 15, 2009

2 things:

Why did they run those beams alongside the walls?

Can you add to the front of the garage, making it 2 cars deep?

StumpXJ · Jul 15, 2009

Autolist, I am not an engineer, nor a carpenter, but my understanding is that because the normal ceiling joist's were removed, as well as the LVL that was is in the center, the new beams on the outside edges were added to do what those things were doing. Namely supporting the weight of the roof, and providing stability to the front and rear walls. It may make more sense with the below pictures now that everything is all tied in. I can say for sure that the garage is a MUCH stronger structure now that it was. The Contractor went above and beyond to make sure everything was tied in as much as possible, not to mention to two LVL's are designed to hold a lot more weight than they currently are.

I have zero room for expansion on the garge. The back wall is about 3 feet from the property line, the left wall is 6 feet from the property line/neighbors driveway. The right side is about 6 feet from the deck on the rear of the house, and the front has a double car driveway that is only about 20 feet long before it hits the street. The lot is a city lot, long and narrow (50 X 150). So, there is no room for anything else. I wish it werent the case, but I have to work with what I have.

Here you can see the newly installed 100 amp service. It is fed from the house, and was much easier (and cheaper) than running a separate service. I have gas appliances in the home, so the 200 amp service in the house was more than enough to be able to borrow some juice.

A very exciting picture of the underground feeder / 2 foot deep trench. It was HOT today, glad I wasnt on the end of that shovel!

StumpXJ · Jul 15, 2009

Still on the to do list (within the next 1- 1.5 weeks):

Finishing rough in on the electrical (I am finishing this tomorrow, ran out of daylight today),

pass inspection (hopefully Thursday)

insulation guys come out (contracted)

sheetrock gets hung (contracted)

sheetrock gets finished (contracted)

Re-hang door, new tracks to go up as high as possible, install 3800 door lift (contracted/I am doing)

paint interior (I am doing)

put epoxy down on the floor (I am doing)

bluesman2a · Jul 16, 2009

StumpXJ said:
sheetrock gets hung (contracted)

sheetrock gets finished (contracted)

Re-hang door, new tracks to go up as high as possible, install 3800 door lift (contracted/I am doing)

One thing I got stuck on, assuming you are doing/thinking about it in this order....

Make sure you have your 2-wire for the LM 3800 run for your door sensors, cable tension sensor, and locking solenoid before you sheet-rock it all up and have to run the wires on top.

JMURiz · Jul 16, 2009

StumpXJ said:
Autolist, I am not an engineer, nor a carpenter, but my understanding is that because the normal ceiling joist's were removed, as well as the LVL that was is in the center, the new beams on the outside edges were added to do what those things were doing. Namely supporting the weight of the roof, and providing stability to the front and rear walls. It may make more sense with the below pictures now that everything is all tied in. I can say for sure that the garage is a MUCH stronger structure now that it was. The Contractor went above and beyond to make sure everything was tied in as much as possible, not to mention to two LVL's are designed to hold a lot more weight than they currently are.

I have zero room for expansion on the garge. The back wall is about 3 feet from the property line, the left wall is 6 feet from the property line/neighbors driveway. The right side is about 6 feet from the deck on the rear of the house, and the front has a double car driveway that is only about 20 feet long before it hits the street. The lot is a city lot, long and narrow (50 X 150). So, there is no room for anything else. I wish it werent the case, but I have to work with what I have.

Agreed, those beams will help with the roof load and help a LOT with the front-to-back rigidity. The lower 1/3 rafter ties will stabilize the side-to-side movement. On mine the builder did an 'enough to pass code' job so I had to go back and add extra supports to make my structure more rigid.

Looks like you have a good builder and that garage will go nowhere for a LONG time. Also, you get some mini shelves out of it and soffit to run light wires.

I am also with you on the down-fall of a city-sized lot. My lot is ~100'd x 50'w and cramming a 550 sq/ft garage on my land and making it look 'right' was a chore.

StumpXJ · Jul 16, 2009

JMURiz, yeah I am VERY pleased thus far with the contractor ("Garages For Atlanta" if anyone is interested). The owner and crew has done everything they said they would do, when they said they would do it, and most of the time are constantly adding to and improving on the original plan. They clean up/sweep every day and dont seem to mind me hanging out watching. The owner even lent me tools and ladders while I did the electrical work. Its not finished yet, and I dont want to jinx myself, so I hope it continues until its done!

StumpXJ said:
Still on the to do list (within the next 1- 1.5 weeks):

Finishing rough in on the electrical (I am finishing this tomorrow, ran out of daylight today) FINISHED

pass inspection (hopefully Thursday)

insulation guys come out (contracted)

sheetrock gets hung (contracted)

sheetrock gets finished (contracted)

Re-hang door, new tracks to go up as high as possible, install 3800 door lift (contracted/I am doing)

paint interior (I am doing)

put epoxy down on the floor (I am doing)

Got the electrical finished / roughed in. Man, I used to do this for a living in my late teens early 20's, and it wasnt that hard then. Now that I am in my 30's and added some pounds, I didnt think I was going to make without falling off the ladder from heat exhaustion....lol.

I got it finished though, two 30 amp/240 volt receptacles at each end of the shop, and one more in the ceiling for the lift. Six flourecents (8 footers) in the 'bay' area, on two separate 20 amp circuits and one along the back wall for workbench space. One on the front wall outside for a motion flood, 14 receptacles on two separate 20 amp circuits around the perimiter, and thanks to bluesman, all of the my doorbell wire for the garage door opener (totally forgot about it, thanks for the heads up!)

I am spent. Georgia heat is no joke, especially crawling around in a yet-to-be insulated ceiling.

Inspection is tomorrow, then the insulation and sheetrock guys.

~James

Stump's New 2 Car Detached Garage Project.

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