....and so it begins (2 car w/ carport and bonus room) - comments/help appreciated

R_Willis · May 7, 2010

*Comments, concerns, suggestions, corrections, etc welcomed*

I've wanted an extra garage from the minute I bought my house ~8yrs ago.
The house has a nice sized 22 x 24 attached, but NOT enough. :shocking:

I'm a car guy, not to mention I have a lot of stuff (tools, mower, bikes, etc) that just need some extra room.

~1.8 acre lot (~125w x 570d)

Have to order my plans still. Anyone suggest how many? County said they only need/want (1) set. Guess I probably could get by w/ two.

23'4 x 25'4 garage with 10' ceilings and attached 12' x 26' carport/patio.
Upstairs bonus room/storage will be 35'4 x 15'6 with 8' ceilings.
Garage will be built with siding, shingles, trim, and windows to match house.

http://www.coolhouseplans.com/details.html?pid=46763

This plan, flipped with the carport on the right. I'm also going to be changing the first floor wall height to 10' to accomdate a future 2 post lift.
The carport will actually be used as a covered patio with beadboard ceiling, ceiling fans, wicker furniture and speakers since I currently have no where out back to sit in the rain/sun.

Have talked with the zoning guy. Garage needs to set 10' from property line. I know where all four corner posts are, but need one set on my line in the middle of the yard since my lot is almost 600' deep. The company that surveyed our subdivision is coming out next week and said it'd be under $200. It's worth the piece of mind to know I'm not a 1' or 2' to close and down the road 15yrs I have neighbors that want to throw a fuss about it.

Talked with the building inspector this morning. He said the footer depth is min of 30".

My father and I plan to do 90% of it. My father is an electrician. Figure we'll need help/pros for the concrete pour, help getting the trusses up (maybe the company I get them from - local - can deliver and hoist them up for $$$), and we'll see what else.

Attached are a couple pictures to start things off....

[/IMG]

JMohn · May 7, 2010

The carport seems like overkill if all you want is a porch or patio. Maybe I don't understand how you're going to use it. Also the dormer looks a little strange to me over the car port. Maybe I just haven't seen enough structures like this.

It seems like you have plenty of room in your yard for a gazebo, low deck, or something. That structure could be more purpose-built for comfort or located for a better view and might be a better fit than re-purposing a car port.

You're already pouring the concrete for that spot and building the roof structure over it, I don't think it would be that much more to extend two walls to cover it.

Good luck with your project!

portcity · May 7, 2010

looks good. i am in the process of building something similar. i love the carport. it gives you a porch, or somewhere to wash and was the car out of the sun but in the breeze. the survey would be worth the piece of mind. the trusses can be worked easy with three or four men. one suggestion i have. i would change the stair plan because they are eating up some space. i would pull them back some against the wall with a platform there. that way, you walk in the garage door and turn right, take one or two steps up, then two on the platform, then to the rest of the stairs. eliminate that top landing. if you need a picture to help explain better, ill see what i can come up with. i think this would save some wasted space

RbrtAWhyt · May 8, 2010

That carport would make an excellent third bay...

Looking forward to pics of the build!

swharris · May 8, 2010

RbrtAWhyt said:
That carport would make an excellent third bay...

I agree. You are not gaining much while keeping the carport. The 2 car will seem very small once you put something in it. If you want covered parking, put the car port/cover off the front. Make it a 3 car or 2 car with extra space.

If it were me, I'd make the above space entrance on the outside of the building. Exterior staircase to a covered landing. Why take up valuable garage floor space with a stairway?? Oh and 10' is not tall enough. 12'min for lift. More would be better still.

Please don't take this wrong...it is only my opinion. Best of luck with what ever you decide :thumbup:

brownfoot · May 8, 2010

I agree with the ceiling height of 12', I accomplished this with a 8" block wall all around and 3' high, then the standard 8' wall on top with a modified truss to gain the height.
If you are looking at a 10' ceiling height now, just build the wall 3 courses (24"), the wall can be finished the same as the house (or could be concrete with the floor poured later)

having the concrete block knee wall will keep all the framing members and interior/exterior walls away from the ground moisture

I do notice on the lot location there appears to be a drainage ditch at the back, is there any plan to pipe it or is there a potential water problem there?

kgmunro · May 8, 2010

I like the plan as it is....what an awesome yardsite!

bazzateer · May 8, 2010

I'd make it a three-car and build the porch area across the back wall.

qdvuu · May 8, 2010

Having direct access between the garage and patio is a must, and something wider than a man door like a sliding door or a rollup door is preferable. It sure is a nice to be able to do some work in the garage and be able to see and talk to your pals who are hanging out in the patio. Or to be hanging out in the patio and being able to look over into the garage and admiringly talk about the project car that's sitting right there. A wall creates a barrier, and even if the entrance to the garage is "just around the corner," having a large opening creates an entire new kind of space that makes life for "garage addicts" much more enjoyable.

R_Willis · May 8, 2010

swharris said:
I agree. You are not gaining much while keeping the carport. The 2 car will seem very small once you put something in it. If you want covered parking, put the car port/cover off the front. Make it a 3 car or 2 car with extra space.

Basketball court will be right out in front of the garage. In one of the pictures you can see the concrete square/anchor for the pole on the left.

Why take up valuable garage floor space with a stairway??

In order to get an extra ~700sq ft of storage/space upstairs. Don't really want an ugly staircase on the outside. Just my IMHO.

Oh and 10' is not tall enough. 12'min for lift. More would be better still.

10' won't cut it? I know the minimum height for the lift I'm considering from directlift says 9'3", but I understand that's the top of the pole and you wouldn't possibly be able to fully raise the car.
http://www.directlift.com/HR8000-Two-Post-Lift-P51C8.aspx

Thanks for the comments and suggestions.

R_Willis · May 8, 2010

brownfoot said:
I do notice on the lot location there appears to be a drainage ditch at the back, is there any plan to pipe it or is there a potential water problem there?

Yep, going to be piped in and backfilled. Wanted to do that for awhile now anyway.

kgmunro said:
I like the plan as it is....what an awesome yardsite!

Thanks!

pcutt said:
Having direct access between the garage and patio is a must, and something wider than a man door like a sliding door or a rollup door is preferable. It sure is a nice to be able to do some work in the garage and be able to see and talk to ......................

Definately something to consider.

Red05GT · May 8, 2010

I'm seeing alot of people building the covered porches in conjunction with their pole
barns and garages. In reversing the plan maybe move the stairs to the left end, and
put the double door to open up to the porch area. And since you asked us to help you
spend your money, I would add a third bay making the total building 26' x 48'. I would
slide the building to the left that extra 12' to more closely align with the existing drive.
Run a trench to the building and install a frost proof hydrant while you're running the
electric.

D.J. · May 8, 2010

My vote is also for the three bay and make the porch off the back waal or something.
Just my $ .02
D.J.
________
GLASS BONG

DIC · May 8, 2010

D.J. said:
My vote is also for the three bay and make the porch off the back wall or something.
Just my $ .02
D.J.

DITTO................ :thumbup:

MikeinLA · May 8, 2010

Call me crazy, but if I was a "car guy" (which I am) and I had a piece of land like that, I'd be going way bigger. This is your chance to build that dream garage and I just don't think 2 bays will cut it when you talk about also storing a lot of toys in there. I would sit down and really think into the future about what my needs might be. Do you want space for a project car? Do you ever intend to get into woodworking? Do you have any crafts or hobbies that you could use room for? Would you like a "hang-out space" inside for you & your buddies in the winter (I grew up in Ohio, it gets cold)? Think about your future needs and then build with them in mind. I do like the look of the building and the upstairs storage though. Just.....BIGGER.

Mike

PS - The foregoing opinion is worth exactly what you paid for it.

R_Willis · May 9, 2010

While a lot of people are saying bigger Bigger BIgger BIGger, I agree! But, funds dictate the ultimate size, right?!

egads74 · May 9, 2010

3 is better than 2. Cold, rain and snow and bugs do that car port in. how many bugs come to the lights of a carport? heat loss from under would discourage me (if heating).

the roof cutting into 2nd story kills that space... putting walls on that space and more floor joists is cheaper than adding space anywhere else.. roof just gets bumped up... losing the dormers would recover a lot of the cost. The second story would be usable space other than a center isle that you could walk down... calc it out and see what little in a once in a lifetime project it costs... just my 2 cents.

larry_g · May 9, 2010

A couple of observations and questions. Your a 'car guy', can you define that a bit better. Are you a collector who needs storage space and a place to show off your toys and party with the buds, Are you a mechanic who rebuilds and restores and needs more of a shop to work in? Somewhere in the middle or above and beyond? To me the building you have presented is a place to store cars. You have not enough room to get serious with the mechanics end of things. I would love to have your building. It has lots of potential as a man cave espically with the carport/patio as you describe. That makes the patio door suggestion very applicable.

Now if this is a working shop start to fill it up with compressors, welders, benches, tool boxes and storage for all the collection of parts then your woefully undersized. If you are seeing this as a working shop then consider getting rid of the double garage doors as you will only get serious on one car in that size of a building. I would use a single 12' door to move projects in and out and the rest would be tools and equipment.

Another thing to consider is running the ridgeline of the roof parallel with the length of the property. That way if you can add on in the future you won't have to deal with to much roofing issues. If standing on the drive way leading back to the shop drive in on the endwall nearest you, put the patio on the right to serve both the house and shop, and another covered area in the back, with gravel floor possibly, for storage of the ****. As time and money allow convert back area to shop area. That ditch is unfortunate and would have to be delt with if the shop eventually expands into that area.

lg
no neat sig line

51rider · May 13, 2010

Wow! What a great space you have :bowdown:

I agree with other posters, I think you are failing to maximise on the roof space. Could you not use a Gambrel style roof on the garage & thus maximise the roof void? An example of this style can be seen in this thread: http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=28505

Alternatively, a mansard style roof would also make better use of the space and still permit window openings. It just depends whether you would be restricted by local planning/permits in the use of a differing roof style.

Whilst I hear what you are saying about the stairs, I think you are missing a trick not having them outside & are losing garage space as a result. There is a thread on here that has an external staircase, it's either 'The Shrine' or 'Tx Saltbox' I think. The space under the stairs has been used to hide/store a load of yard equipment very effectively.
Maybe you could resite the stairs at the end of the carport area or accessed via the carport unless you want to keep it clear to drive through. You wouldn't lose so much 'shop' space that way.

Looking forawrd to see how this one develops.

R_Willis · May 26, 2010

Welp, survey company has been out and placed the stake for official side of lot.

Slowing things down already a bit though, gonna do a bit more research and see if this is the plan I need/want.

I'm considering using one of the "RV" type plans, should be perfect for a lift. Anyone done that? I'm already eyeing: http://justgarageplans.com/3601/plan-detail/2802.php

blkhonda1991 · May 26, 2010

just how much space do you need upstairs? you can flip that plan to put the man door towards the porch and utilize the area over the porch and the first bay as second floor and then frame the roof of the other bay with vaulted trusses which can give you the clearance you are desiring for a lift. i really like the style of the garage

TRC51 · May 26, 2010

Love the look. I like the porch/patio/carport idea, but I will give you a quick summary of my build. I came to this site for some ideas on how to customize a 14 x 24 SHED I was going to have plopped on my lawn. By the time the suggestions stopped flying around this board (and from what I read), I ended up with a 24 x 30 full on garage (you can look up my build if you like). All I can say is, take the advice for going bigger. Yes, funds do dictate, but I didn't have the money either and I went bigger piece by piece and MAN was it worth it. Remember, you are only going to do this once (most people do anyway), so make sure you get everything you need. I am very happy I went big and spent the extra coin. It was about double the cost total, but I got 20x more building.

That said, I would get rid of the carport and make that the third bay... and make it a high bay. Then you can keep the standard 10ft ceilings in the other two bays and put the lift in the high bay. What that also allows you to do is have an access to the loft area through the high bay area.... and then use the lift to bring larger items into the loft over the other two bays.

THEN, once you get the garage complete and money starts to settle, you can simply build a carport off the side of the highbay if you want. At that point it's just a roof and a couple of posts that the local building code need not know about.

Now that would make me jealous.

BTW, I am also a car guy, as well as other stuff like mowers, motorcycles, snowmobiles, toys, etc. Know this.... they fill up fast!.... and I haven't even gotten the car yet.... and I also have a 22 x 22 attached! GO BIG! LOL

R_Willis · Jun 21, 2010

blkhonda1991 said:
just how much space do you need upstairs? you can flip that plan to put the man door towards the porch and utilize the area over the porch and the first bay as second floor and then frame the roof of the other bay with vaulted trusses which can give you the clearance you are desiring for a lift. i really like the style of the garage

This is what I'm going to do.

With the help of Shawn Rainey (others suggested him on here), my plans have been modified and are ready for submittal.

I'm waiting for my zoning approval currently, before moving on to getting a building permit.

Hope things get moving here....

blkhonda1991 · Jun 21, 2010

R_Willis said:
This is what I'm going to do.

With the help of Shawn Rainey (others suggested him on here), my plans have been modified and are ready for submittal.

I'm waiting for my zoning approval currently, before moving on to getting a building permit.

Hope things get moving here....

awesome

good luck!

R_Willis · Jul 20, 2010

Well, four quote later.

I got two for stick built and after seeing a buddy's garage/barn over the 4th of July weekend I got two quotes for post/frame (but with normal finishing vinyl, shingles, etc).

Menards, Home Depot, and two local lumber yards.

All four quotes were within ~$500 @ around $16k. So, I guess it's going to be a minimum of $16k.

Just trying to decide which way to go. Post frame would help me save some serious money on foundation costs and probably make the build (for dad & I) a bit easier. Downside being harder and probably more $$$ to finish out the inside (however that would be down the road).

Daniel Dudley · Jul 21, 2010

I am a big advocate of pole barn construction, but I would bite the bullet on this one, and go for stick frame. I would also suggest at least a couple of feet wider in the garage area. I know it will make a great deal of difference later on, from personal experience.

Nice garage. I would be happy with that.

Jey · Jul 21, 2010

your land to me begs for a nice 60x40 pole barn with 12 foot walls.

Finish as needed.

You say that funds dictate sizing, which i completely agree with. Just remember that being said, it's cheaper to do it the right way the first time. If you want it bigger, or you want something else, maybe just get a shell up this year, and cement work next year or something? It's always better to wait and do what you actually want, rather than just what you can afford currently.

musgofasta · Jul 21, 2010

Looks good man! Where are you in the Cincinnati Area - I'm east of the city in Anderson. Heck of a yard you have!

Colin-Roberts · Jul 21, 2010

any pics of the updated plans?

R_Willis · Sep 6, 2011

Updated Plans now:

http://www.mediafire.com/?au3pg0krz38irtd

brslk · Sep 6, 2011

Link no worky.

TWX · Sep 7, 2011

If I was going through the effort to build a building capable of supporting a lift, I'd make sure my ceiling was high enough minimally to allow me to stand under a full-sized van on that lift. That'd guarantee enough room for a full-sized truck, a muscle car, a sports car, or any other thing short of an RV that one could want to put up on a lift. It would even be better to give it a couple more feet so if a Class-B RV is ever an option in the future that it would fit.

Rosco · Sep 7, 2011

Not sure if you have thought about it but my plan is similar and I put a 1/2 bath under the stairs in the garage. Probably the best upgrade for the money. Also, I built an apartment above in my bonus room. I settled on one 8' wide dormer on each side upstairs which is large enough for another bathroom and a walk in closet on the opposite side.

Really like your plan and great site!

R_Willis · Sep 8, 2011

Rosco said:
Not sure if you have thought about it but my plan is similar and I put a 1/2 bath under the stairs in the garage. Probably the best upgrade for the money. Also, I built an apartment above in my bonus room. I settled on one 8' wide dormer on each side upstairs which is large enough for another bathroom and a walk in closet on the opposite side.

Really like your plan and great site!

Man, I'd love to have a bath, but I'm on a septic system (out front) and the garage is out back. So, between the hassle of getting water out there and all..
Wish I could, easily.

musgofasta · Sep 8, 2011

Where are you in the Metro? I want to be your neighbor!

Awesome!

Rosco · Sep 9, 2011

R_Willis said:
Man, I'd love to have a bath, but I'm on a septic system (out front) and the garage is out back. So, between the hassle of getting water out there and all..
Wish I could, easily.

I am on septic also, but luckily the slope and location of the tank made it possible. If I were you I would still rough in the plumbing.........you never know about future plans. I have seen garages with a home-made septic system (55 gallon plastic drum and 50' of leech line) for sink and toilet use only.

....and so it begins (2 car w/ carport and bonus room) - comments/help appreciated

Well-known member

Member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Banned

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member