9 ft or 10 ft Garage Walls?

[1921runabout]

Hello Everyone,

I've been getting closer to building my 24' X 30' garage and am at the point of starting the framing. We poured the slab in early November. Trusses are built, 8/12 pitch with 10' of front loft space and the remaining 20, scissor truss with 4/12 interior pitch.

I've given this alot of thought and have read and looked at many projects here.

I had always planned on going with 10 ft walls but am now thinking 9' walls may be good. My greatest concerns, will the structure look too tall, and is the extra 1 ft worth the extra expense in materials?

I am going with an 8'X16' garage door.

I'm looking for some feedback.

Thanks

 

[marklandon]

go 10 you will be able to spin a 4X8 plywood ezer with out hitting the roof

 

[Coolerman]

Extra height is good if you plan on a vehicle lift, or if you work with long materials that you need to stand up. I would opt for the extra height.

 

[stonesfan68]

Go large.

 

[KPSquared]

I was going to go 10', then I went 12' then I went 12'6". . . I still wish I had 14 or 16 just cause.

If you can, go bigger. More room is more room.

I don't think you'll find anyone on GJ that will ever pick the lesser of any two options when presented. . .

No man in history has ever uttered the words, "Darn, I built my garage to big"

 

[Kevin54]

A lot depends on how tall you are ALLOWED TO GO. If you plan on installing a lift later on, go tall. 10' at least with scissor trusses, 12' or more without.

 

[pattenp]

I highly suggest 10'. Do you have a stem wall or is the bottom plate on the slab? Since studs come in 8' and 10', are you going to be cutting 10's to get the 9' wall? If so, why not just do 10?

 

[aka Larry]

FWIW, my neighbor has the same 40'x40' building I do, except he has 12' walls and mine are 10'. I asked him why he got 12' ones before I built mine, and he said he made them taller so his future lift would fit. When I told him he could have simply put the lift in the center, using the pitch to gain the extra height needed, he really had the "SOB, why didn't I think of that"! look on his face.

 

[NHBandit]

I would go 12' in case you ever want a lift. You say "my garage is bigger than my house" like it's a bad thing.... I went 12' AND scissor trusses just because.

 

[Lurch67]

Bigger is better, unless your footing the bill.

 

[Falcon67]

I went 8, had I known the place would be as easy to heat/cool, I would have gone 9'. BUT - to save siding material, I would have run the rafters long on the eves and run a 6/12 pitch (instead of 5/12) to box the eaves at 8' to maintain external appearance with the house. Not a problem - if I put in a 4 post, I'll just make a big "attic stair" hole over the lift location and use the rafter space for clearance. I kept the total volume of the conditioned space low to reduce heating and cooling costs over time.

 

[Steevo]

I went with 10' walls on top of 18" foundation stem walls, ending up with 11'6" inside.
I wish I had 14'

 

[burleyfarm]

I highly suggest 10'. Do you have a stem wall or is the bottom plate on the slab? Since studs come in 8' and 10', are you going to be cutting 10's to get the 9' wall? If so, why not just do 10?

Agreed, If I had it to do over again I'd go taller. I have 9'5" clearance and wish I had more. If you use 10' studs, add the top and bottom plates and stem wall you'll be closer to 11'. Since you said you have scissor truss for the lift area, 10+' should get you where you want to be.

Unless your attaching to the house with height issues, I'd go at least the 10 if not 12' studs.

 

[1921runabout]

I appreciate the comments.

The garage is detached from the house, over in a back corner of a double lot. The lot is lined with tall trees.

The walls will sit on the slab, no stem walls. If I go with 10' walls, the finished wall height will be 10' in order for the material to work. If I go 9', I will do the same, finished wall will be exactly 9'.

The scissor truss height in the center of the room will be right about 13' with a 9' wall, 14' at center with a 10' wall.

 

[Falcon67]

Get a 10' 2x4 and tie a rag at 9' and 10'. Stand it up where one corner would be and go look from the front of the lot(s). Perspective from a distance with the shop at the back of the lot will likely reduce the "apparent" height in relation to other nearby buildings. The trees will also help to obscure the building dimensions, especially if they are taller.

Also think about the construction and the extra effort/machinery that may be required to get materials to the 10' If there's no problem with that, then work from the looks.

Also, all the popular exterior siding comes in 8, 9 and 10' but you'll likely have to special order anything over 8.

 

[77thor]

Bigger is always Better.

 

[Brad54]

Go 12-foot... It'll clear a lift, and you can then also put shelving up along the ceiling and get a lot of additional storage... and if you put a closet, bathroom or even an office out there, you can have a storage loft above it.
In fact, if you got creative, you could run a storage loft along one whole wall, and set your benches, shop equipment, etc, under it and have plenty of head room.

-Brad

 

[PAToyota]

The walls will sit on the slab, no stem walls. If I go with 10' walls, the finished wall height will be 10' in order for the material to work. If I go 9', I will do the same, finished wall will be exactly 9'.

Go with a 2' stem wall so that you can hose things down without getting the framed walls wet.

I went with a 2' stem wall and 8' walls. My biggest regret was not going at least 12' so I could put a lift in.

 

[Cryptic1911]

I would go at least 10ft. If you never plan to have a lift, or you would put it in the center, then 10ft would be fine. If you'd put a lift nearer to an outside wall, I'd go higher if possible. We did ours 12'9 because we couldn't vault it (room upstairs) and it clears everything perfectly.

 

[Vinci]

Go at least 10'. My walls are 8.5' and it's a massive PITA to move a 4x8 sheet around.

 

[trainer]

I went 9' Seems like a good compromise between appearance and functionality.

 

[Fireball027]

I would go 10 foot high. The extra space always comes in handy and it is alot easier and cheaper to build the garage higher during the initial build then wish it was higher later down the road and try to add the extra height after its built.

 

[MacTexas]

One question you did not ask but I will offer a suggestion. Go with an 18' door instead of 16'. I have had both and believe me 18' is worth the extra money.

 

[BD1]

Go 12' . You can get 12' 2x4's and plywood sheeting would out better. Might be quicker with less cutting .

 

[Icky1911]

My garage is 28x30 with 9ft walls. I also have a 18ft insulated garage door. I finished the inside with 9ft sheets of T11. If you are going to "hang" things from the ceiling (bikes for example) 9ft works well. Also, I had to install 2 ceiling fans to "push" the heat down in the winter. Good luck!

 

[Bobcatter]

I have 10 ft walls, but are 9 ft on the outside. The hip roof was trusses that came down like a rafter with a bird's mouth cut, and then the soffet was boxed in. You could have higher walls that look shorter from the outside.

 

[Charles (in GA)]

I'm not crazy about those wide garage doors, but that is a personal choice. You certainly need to be taller than 8 ft with the door. If you go ten on the walls, you probably can squeeze a 9 ft door in, you will like it the first time you try to get something in there with some height, such as a van or a camper trailer, etc.

If there are no codes against it, go as tall as practical, you won't regret it.

Charles

Charles

 

[JDishong]

I always like to think from a marketing point of view. Many potential buyers would see value if they had a taller garage, and for those who own boats its a must. The added cost is not significant. This means go taller on garage door and walls. Even if you can't think of a reason why you'd need the extra height .. still do it!

 

[1921runabout]

Thanks for all the input. After reading your comments and giving it alot of thought today, I've opted for 9 ft walls. Mostly because I want it to look in proportion with my house and the neighborhood. As I mentioned, I'm going with scissor trusses on 20 of the 30 ft garage length. This will give me some extra height, just a little over 13 ft in the center. I'm also going with an 8 ft tall garage door.

I'll try to start a new thread on the build over the next few days so I can show my progress.

Thanks again.