My "Retirement Garage"..

JohnZ · Jan 1, 2006

We built our retirement home in 2000 (wife designed the house, I designed the attached garage - good plan

); it's 58' wide x 44' deep x 12' ceiling, all clear span, with my 16' x 16' "retirement office" in one front corner. Daily drivers park in front of the "office", the rest is my shop; has heat, A/C and power separate from the house. Have had ten homes in the last 35 years, all with 2-1/2-car garages (with drivers parked outdoors, projects inside), decided to do the last one right and enjoy it - the only way we're leaving here is in zipper bags :thumbup:

ChucksCrib · Jan 1, 2006

I've seen a couple of those pics over at corvette forum before....havent I? :headscrat

You did a great job on the garage

Satatic · Jan 1, 2006

Man that camaro looks good.

keperkey · Jan 1, 2006

How about some exterior shots? I would love to see how that big of an attached garage blends in with the house.

Donzi4me · Jan 1, 2006

Now that's my kind of retirement....

Good job... :thumbup:

l_bilyk · Jan 1, 2006

thats real nice. what did you paint the floors with?

RonBou · Jan 2, 2006

Awsome!!

RARE-ASC · Jan 2, 2006

nice!!!

JJ_ · Jan 2, 2006

wow now that is SOME garage!

JohnZ · Jan 2, 2006

ChucksCrib said:
I've seen a couple of those pics over at corvette forum before....havent I?

You did a great job on the garage

Yes, I drop by the C1/C2 Forum over there every day. Thanks! :thumbup:

JohnZ · Jan 2, 2006

Satatic said:
Man that camaro looks good.

Thanks - it's all-original, unrestored, and unmolested - just turned over 34,000 miles last summer; bought it from the original owner six years ago.
:beer:

JohnZ · Jan 2, 2006

keperkey said:
How about some exterior shots? I would love to see how that big of an attached garage blends in with the house.

That was a difficult part of the overall design of the house; we went through five or six different front elevation designs with the architect before we agreed on one that effectively disguised the garage and worked with the overall appearance; the large window in the front of the garage that breaks up the expanse of brick on the front wall actually resulted in a partial cathedral ceiling on the inside.

Considering that the house is 3300 SF and the garage is 2500 SF, it worked out pretty well. The architect named it the "Garage Mahal" after working out the 62'-long front-to-back custom trusses to meet my requirement for clear-span inside the garage with no columns or internal walls. We wanted a ranch (after 35 years of colonials), which made the house 142' long, so I had to get a lot much larger than we wanted, but I wasn't going to design and build our last home and not get the garage/shop I always wanted. My (very supportive) wife designed the house, and her only rule was that the garage couldn't be larger than the house. :thumbup:

JohnZ · Jan 2, 2006

l_bilyk said:
thats real nice. what did you paint the floors with?

I had Home Pro Floors (www.homeprofloors.com) do the floor with their "Classic Floor" system; they steel shot-blasted the slab and poured two coats of 2-part industrial epoxy resin, 24 hours apart, with the second coat tinted the light gray/taupe color I wanted. The slab is insulated and moisture-barriered; put down 10-mil poly first, then covered it with 4'x8' sheets of 5/8"-thick high-density closed-cell foam with heavy foil on both sides as insulation and a secondary moisture barrier, and poured the reinforced 4" slab over that. The floor is warm and dry even in below-zero winter weather. Turnkey job was $1.92/SF six years ago, and worth every penny.
:beer:

bmwpower · Jan 2, 2006

Wow, nice place. I like the look. I bet you have fun cutting that grass...

6t7gto · Jan 2, 2006

keperkey said:
How about some exterior shots? I would love to see how that big of an attached garage blends in with the house.

from the collection of cars, i have a feeling this garage is not going to dwarf the house. :bowdown:

absolutely beautiful!

david

pics already up.
i have to learn to type faster. :sad:

428 · Jan 2, 2006

That's just not fair.

I think I'm gonna be sick. :sad:

Wolverine · Jan 2, 2006

Oooops!

Very nice!

DaveL. · Jan 2, 2006

Absolutley stunning residence,John. Our home was built with same idea but on a 1/2 scale of yours!

Dave

gerry · Jan 2, 2006

Why is there a step up to your tool boxes? Is this intentional or just happen when the gararge was built? Love the office area!

car guy · Jan 2, 2006

Holy cow !! It's nice to be the king. You must have had a great job to retire and have all that. I do believe you will be the envy here. Everything is gorgeous !! Love the yard too. Those are the floors I want- just can't afford them. Are they durable, or you don't roll a jack around on them? The car collection is incredible- great find on the Z. Love the "Magnum 308" Are those plates real on the wall?? I have "YUD LUZ" on my Z-28, and " OBSESD" on my van. Again- incledible property- Nicely done.

JohnZ · Jan 3, 2006

bmwpower said:
Wow, nice place. I like the look. I bet you have fun cutting that grass...

Haven't owned a mower in 15 years; it's two acres of grass, and mowing it is so low on my priority list compared to other things that keep me busy that I don't even think about doing it. I have a service that takes care of it - same guy does my snowplowing in the winter.
:beer:

JohnZ · Jan 3, 2006

Donzi4me said:
Now that's my kind of retirement....

Good job...

After 38 years of 50-60-hour weeks in the toughest part of the automobile industry, I figured I earned it

Thanks!

JohnZ · Jan 3, 2006

gerry said:
Why is there a step up to your tool boxes? Is this intentional or just happen when the gararge was built? Love the office area!

I had the "step" put in so I could hose down the floor without getting the tool chests wet (they're Craftsman ball-bearing service carts without the casters installed, my kitchen guy made the bench top that's bolted to them). Had the "step" poured 60" deep (instead of the usual 30") so there's adequate stool and walk space to move back and forth in front of the benches without stepping up and down to/from the main floor.

The office was a key part of the design - I'm out there just about all day every day, and wanted the same conveniences there I'd have in the house.

:beer:

JohnZ · Jan 3, 2006

car guy said:
Holy cow !! It's nice to be the king. You must have had a great job to retire and have all that. I do believe you will be the envy here. Everything is gorgeous !! Love the yard too. Those are the floors I want- just can't afford them. Are they durable, or you don't roll a jack around on them? The car collection is incredible- great find on the Z. Love the "Magnum 308" Are those plates real on the wall?? I have "YUD LUZ" on my Z-28, and " OBSESD" on my van. Again- incledible property- Nicely done.

I spent 38 years in Product and Manufacturing Engineering with GM (21 years) and Chrysler (17 years), retired in 2001 after six years as the Viper Plant Manager. The floor is indestructible - nothing bothers it, and I do a lot of work out there. The plates are all real, matched to current and past cars I've built/restored over the years.

:beer:

ponjohn · Jan 3, 2006

John is that a real Grand Sport?

Nice place. I would move out there if I had a garage like that.

John

joecaver · Jan 3, 2006

Wow !!! now that's a garage. :beer:

JohnZ · Jan 3, 2006

ponjohn said:
John is that a real Grand Sport?
John

Nope, I wish it was! I built it in 1995 from a raw tube frame and raw one-piece race body shell from D&D Corvette in Akron, Ohio (now out of business - GM shut down all of the Grand Sport kit manufacturers four years ago). Had C4 suspension and brakes, coil-overs all around, and I built a stout 383 for it; only weighed 2340# soaking wet - fun machine!
:3gears:

Hot Rod · Jan 3, 2006

The house shop combo is outstanding! The only thing I would not like is Air Compressor inside.

car guy · Jan 3, 2006

John- I guess you did work for it. Great job. Do you still have the GS or Cobra?? Was that the Viper plant, as in Dodge Viper??. So you can jack up cars on that floor without cracking the finish ?

JohnZ · Jan 4, 2006

Hot Rod said:
The house shop combo is outstanding! The only thing I would not like is Air Compressor inside.

I don't use the compressor that much (don't do painting or major bodywork any more), so it's just occasional use; I have it mounted on car body mount cushions, so it's relatively quiet and doesn't transmit noise or vibration into the house (the kitchen is on the other side of the garage front wall). When it's running, you can barely hear it in the kitchen. :thumbup:

JohnZ · Jan 4, 2006

car guy said:
John- I guess you did work for it. Great job. Do you still have the GS or Cobra?? Was that the Viper plant, as in Dodge Viper??. So you can jack up cars on that floor without cracking the finish ?

Built the Cobra in 1994, sold in 1997 - built the GS in 1994-5, sold in 1998.

Yes, the Dodge Viper - also built the Prowler from 1997-2001. We also built the Viper V-10 engine from the bare block up; only assembly plant in North America that built their own engines (and still does, including the engine for the SRT-10 Ram pickup).

Have used all manner of jacks, jackstands, transmission hoists, pedestals, steel-wheel engine stands, etc. and none have ever even chipped the floor - it's apparently indestructible. :thumbup:

73survivor · Jan 4, 2006

Beautiful garage and cars. I plan on starting my retirement garage in the spring. I hope it turns out as nice as yours. Any words of wisdom you can give me before I start would be appreciated. Thanks

Hot Rod · Jan 4, 2006

JohnZ said:
I don't use the compressor that much (don't do painting or major bodywork any more), so it's just occasional use; I have it mounted on car body mount cushions, so it's relatively quiet and doesn't transmit noise or vibration into the house (the kitchen is on the other side of the garage front wall). When it's running, you can barely hear it in the kitchen.

Grate Idea!! :rocker:

jimbo · Jan 4, 2006

Retirement Looks Great, Enjoy.

JohnZ · Jan 5, 2006

73survivor said:
Beautiful garage and cars. I plan on starting my retirement garage in the spring. I hope it turns out as nice as yours. Any words of wisdom you can give me before I start would be appreciated. Thanks

If you're building from scratch, I feel the four most important issues are:

1. The floor slab - for long-term durability of the floor finish, it's essential to have a 100%-effective moisture barrier under the slab so ground moisture can't migrate through the concrete to the surface. Mine is double-barriered and insulated under the slab, and the floor is warm and dry all the time.

2. Insulation - Nothing costs less in the long run than good insulation in the walls and ceiling, to keep it comfy at low heating cost. I built the house and garage with 2x6 framing to get maximum space for insulation, so I have R-28 in the walls and R-58 in the ceiling, Andersen Thermopane windows with Low-E glass, and 1-1/4"-thick steel/foam/steel sectional doors with tubular seals between sections. It gets COLD here during the long winter (and 90's aren't uncommon in the summer), and the super-insulation package really does the job, both for heating and air-conditioning effectiveness.

3. Ceiling height - Go with 12' if you can - that will give you adequate height for proper use of a lift, and will allow use of "high-lift" sectional doors so you can fully open the garage door over a car at full working height on a lift.

4. Electrical - Install a separate breaker panel just for the garage, with 220V for a compressor and/or welder, and you can NEVER have too many 120V outlets; don't forget ceiling outlets for cord reels and drop cords - keeps cords off the floor. Install at least one outdoor outlet adjacent to the garage door(s) so you have power in the driveway when you need it. Run all the phone wires, cable, and ethernet wiring before the drywall goes up.

You only get one shot at doing these things right, and that's when you're building it; you can't go back and add them after the building is up, the slab is poured, and the drywall is done.

:beer:

73survivor · Jan 5, 2006

I'm building from scratch. Plan on building 44 x 48 with 14' ceilings. I already have a 24 x 28 and a 12 x 24 workshop. This will be my play/show garage.

1. What materials did you use under the slab for insulation? I'm in PA and it gets cold in the winter. I didn't insulate my first garage under the slab and now regret it.

2. I'm going with 2 x 6 walls and 6" of insulation.

3. 14' high ceiling so I can get my RV in.

4. I plan on putting lots of outlets in and of course satelite tv, phone, computer and any other modern necessities I can think of. Do it right the first time. I learned that the hard way. Theres an old hot rodder's saying that theres not enough time or money to do it right the first time, but theres always plenty of both the second time. I intend on doing this one right the first time.

JohnZ · Jan 6, 2006

73survivor said:
I'm building from scratch. Plan on building 44 x 48 with 14' ceilings. I already have a 24 x 28 and a 12 x 24 workshop. This will be my play/show garage.

1. What materials did you use under the slab for insulation? I'm in PA and it gets cold in the winter. I didn't insulate my first garage under the slab and now regret it.

I put down 10-mil poly sheeting as the primary moisture barrier, then laid 4'x8' sheets of 5/8"-thick high-density closed-cell foam with heavy foil on both sides on top of the poly; the mesh and slab went on top of that. Don't recall the name of the insulation sheets (it was six years ago), but a home center or building supply house will have it - it was about $8.00 a sheet at the time (25 cents/sq. ft.).

:beer:

B.C. · Apr 21, 2006

MY NEW FAVORITE GARAGE. WOW!!! :drool:

stioc · Apr 21, 2006

Yep, when I grow up I want a gaarage like JohnZ or BoostAddiction's, period.

SCOOTER · Apr 21, 2006

Russell said:
Yep, when I grow up I want a gaarage like JohnZ or BoostAddiction's, period.

Don't we all want that................ :beer:

My "Retirement Garage"..

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