Another size question

[Compressor]

On the verge of building a 24' deep x 28' feet wide garage. My plan was to park two cars in it and use the left side for 2 work areas. The garage door would be offset to the right. Do you guys think that this is deep enough or am I making a mistake? We have a minivan and a sedan.

Thank you!

 

[Stuart in MN]

Bigger is always better, but a 24' deep garage has worked fine for me for many years.

 

[spotco2]

I thought 30' was deep enough until I filled it up.....

 

[TheEquineFencer]

I thought 30' was deep enough until I filled it up.....

Same here, 44 x 62 x 16, now I'm thinking about closing in the 62 x 14 shelter down the side.

 

[Cobra5150]

Mine is a 24x28 with door offset to the right. It's a little tight and not sure you'll get two work areas in the space but it will work. A couple of winters ago we replaced the heads on my son in laws Avalanche and it was a tight fit. One thing that really helped was getting rid of a large workbench and downsizing to one that is about 6' long. Originally it went almost all the way across the back and still didn't have 6' worth of space to work as horizontal surfaces tend to gather ****.
Right now I've got my DRZ 400, grandsons PW50 (with training wheels), a two seat battery powered riding toy, a couple of bikes and my Factory Five Coupe + parts which is under construction in there and it's workable. All that is in addition to tools and equipment. Some might say I have 8lbs (which is not quite as bad as 10) in a 5 lb box.

 

[Compressor]

Thanks for the replies. Anyone willing to share pics of their 24' deep garage?

 

[Compressor]

Thanks Cobra, i was planning to have the work benches to the side and use the back wall for shelving and storage only.

 

[Shoester]

I'm planning a 24x32, but may consider a 24x28 so I don't block the wife's view out the kitchen window...so I'm interested in this as well.

 

[racerex]

I'm building a 20x24 and the 24 deep will work out just fine for me. I wish I could go wider, but I have work with the property line set back. I've been restoring my corvette in one bay of a 28x24 detached two car garage at my sister in-laws place for the last two years with no issues.....yeah, you have to be smart as to how you use the space. I my new garage, the Corvette will take up the entire garage until I finish the resto, then I'll get another car into the garage.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Keep in mind, that if you ever purchase a full size pick up, 24' deep runs out of room really fast. Honestly, for future growth (I'm assuming this will be a detached garage/shop) I'd go no smaller than a 28'x32' (deep x wide). I'd price out the difference on the two.

The other thing I'd suggest is going with a 10' wall. Moving a 4x8 sheet of wood around with 8' ceilings ****. The 10' wall also allows for a 9x8 O/H door.

 

[Compressor]

Thanks again, for all the replies. This is a detached garage. I made this scale mock up. Opinions/criticisms welcome (28' wide, 24' deep).

 

[allenb12]

For years I had a 20x40 x8 wood frame shop. Big enough to do lots of stuff. I had a 16' door that I really liked. You could back something down the middle. It had a 8' wall height. I would recommend a10'. Just to hard moving a sheet of plywood.

 

[over40pirate]

A friend who build a large storage facility, told me if I was going to build a garage, to make it 26' instead of 24' He said 24' would not fit most boat trailers.

 

[kbs2244]

It depends a lot on what you are going to be working on and the kind of work you plan to do.
You need at least 24 inches between the front bumper and the wall to work.
And that is if you are young and skinny.
36 is much better and more even better.

And that is just for your body.
Any work that involves pulling stuff out the front means more room.
Will you need to open the door and push the car half out?

 

[spotco2]

I would add a man door. I don't like having to open the big door every time I just want to walk in or out. In the winter it lets a lot of heat out. Also shows off everything that is sitting inside for everyone to see. Also if the power is out, you can not get in if all you have is a overhead door with an opener.

You could do an outswing door next to the overhead door.

 

[bob15]

Make it deeper. If you ever bought a full size extended cab truck, it might not fit. Also, your picture has the vehicles a bit too close to the doors.

make it a 28 x 28 building......for starters

 

[Compressor]

Thanks again for the replies. Bob15 - you're right, those cars are too close to the door. Might be able to squeeze in 1-2 more feet of depth.

Thanks for all the replies.

 

[volleyball]

Without knowing your area, we don't know if boats or big trucks are in your realm. What about snow blowers, tractors and mowers. Will this be storage if you don't have a basement. You cannot have too much storage space.
Maybe pour a bigger footing and put a separate storage room on the back.

 

[Compressor]

No boats or big trucks right now and no immediate plans for them. Snowblower and push mower - already have those. I know that a big truck or boat would push the limits but I'm not even sure going to 26' is going to help a lot in that case, anyways.

The key question for me is can I realistically expect to have a bench against the back wall of the garage at just 24'. Cars we have (mini van and hatch) are not the biggest things in the world.

The garage design I am looking at is tall (has storage above). I am trying to figure out how to get stuff up there to make the most of it.

 

[cj7jeep81]

Another thing to keep in mind when you are drawing up layouts is that the dimensions are the outside measurements. By the time you get framing and sheeting up, you'll lose about a foot from each direction. So a 24x28 is really a 23x27 inside.

 

[Gerald O]

Thanks for the replies. Anyone willing to share pics of their 24' deep garage?

My 32'w x 24' deep garage under construction:

 

[Compressor]

Another thing to keep in mind when you are drawing up layouts is that the dimensions are the outside measurements. By the time you get framing and sheeting up, you'll lose about a foot from each direction. So a 24x28 is really a 23x27 inside.

Thank you. Yes, it my drawings I did account for the loss of space for all those things. I know bigger is always better but dealing with the lot, etc is making it a challenging decision

 

[Compressor]

My 32'w x 24' deep garage under construction:

Thanks for the reply, unfortunately I can't see your pic?

 

[Gerald O]

Strange, it shows on my screen even if I log out.

You can try my build thread in the gallery here: http://garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=200759

 

[Compressor]

Bigger is always better, but a 24' deep garage has worked fine for me for many years.

Are you able to keep a work bench along the back wall of the garage?

 

[ultrahd4me]

I would highly recommend at least 28' depth. My garage is 32' wide by 24' deep and 10' walls, and it gets full real quick with 2 cars, workbench, tool box, frigde, etc. I don't any real good pics of the garage, but here a few to give something to compare to. I had about 3' behind and 2' infront off the 63.
I hope this helps.

 

[Compressor]

I would highly recommend at least 28' depth. My garage is 32' wide by 24' deep and 10' walls, and it gets full real quick with 2 cars, workbench, tool box, frigde, etc. I don't any real good pics of the garage, but here a few to give something to compare to. I had about 3' behind and 2' infront off the 63.
I hope this helps.

I would love 28', I just don't have the space. Right now, I can definitely do 24', 25', or 26'. My width at 28' can't be changed. Obviously would be easiest to just do 26' but trying to figure out what it really buys me if I spend the extra change on it.

Seems the main argument is the ability to have a workbench on the back wall but some seem to say this is doable with a 24'