depressed slab or not

[124ci]

I am doing a new garage build, 28 x 36, stick built, and trying to decide whether or not to make the garage floor level with stem walls or have the floor depressed a couple of inches. need to decide by the end of the week. Flat is my decision at the moment The floor will be flat, not sloped. The obvious differences to me, are when you water hose off the floor, which I would use a mop instead. Tool cabinets would not go up against the wall with the stem higher. [ 2x4 construction, 5 5/8 stem ]. This is a 3 pour, not monolithic. Anyone have any opinions on other issues I might run into one way or the other? My previous shop, metal building was even with the floor. I always mopped the epoxy floor when I had a spill. Thanks

 

[The Cobbler]

seems reasonable,but depending on extra cost I would prefer a stem wall. I did monolithic pour & poured a 6" high stem to build the walls on. just my preference

 

[Stuart in MN]

Considering you're in Phoenix it's not as big an issue, but I would prefer having the bottom plate of the wall held above floor level (and grade level on the exterior.) It will keep water away from the wood inside when you wash down the floor, and away from the wood outside when it rains (or snows, in my case.)

 

[lis2323]

Viewing on my phone. At first I thought your post said “depressed SLOB or not”.

I was gonna suggest don’t be so hard on yourself. Many people experience depression after the holidays....

 

[finn]

The bottom plate suffers from rainwater and snow melt if it’s flush with the slab. Probably not an issue in Phoenix, where it never snows and rarely rains.

Pressure washing the floor would do the same thing, though.

 

[ForceFed70]

I also prefer the stem wall to extend above the slab. Really nice not to worry about spills/water getting into the walls, drywall, and framing.

In my neck of the woods, your stem walls must be a minimum of 8" above grade. Unless you want your slab 8" above grade, you don't really have a choice but to pour the stem walls higher than the slab. Especially if you are dealing with height restrictions and trying to squeeze as much ceiling space as possible out of the build while still keeping the inspector happy.

 

[124ci]

Thanks for the responses, my slab will be 12 inches above grade, so kind of easy to go either way. OSB for the walls. As long as I epoxy/paint floor to make clean up easier, I think it will be okay. Just looking for any other cons to doing it this way. Pressure washing the floor is one I had not thought of.

 

[Pluribus]

I'm a big fan of the raised stem wall vs. framing on flat slab surface. Not only does it keep the interior use water away from the sill plate and wall material, but it raises your siding material that much farther away from grade outside. One of my shops was built on a flat slab and I'm dreading what sort of damage might be hiding on one or two sides of it where the soil got up against the wall.