garage plans w/ pic

[tech]

this is the garage i am building in the spring. it is a dettached that is being built next to my first house that i bought last spring at 20. it is a 2-bay, 2-story, 30x30 and the top is an apartment and the bottom will be used for makin' money. the 2 sides will be seperated with a wall so one side can be for paint and the other for mech. w/ lift. i have been a dealer tech for three years now and come across a lot of side work but dont have anywhere to do it. i am looking for input from everyone on any aspect.

lift: http://www.americanautomotiveequipment.com/pages/831606/index.htm
heater:http://www.propaneproducts.com/modine-hot-dawg.html
compressor:???
doors:????
lights:?????
floor covering:??none???

 

[bmwpower]

Couple of questions come to mind:

- Will the town let you "run" a business out of your house?

- Do you think 15 feet will be wide enough per bay? Sounds kind of cramped to me.

- What's the ceiling height?

 

[danski0224]

Better check code regarding the apartment thing. I forsee issues with occupancy and a sewer connection, not to mention metering for other utilities. No municipality around here is allowing the construction of detached garage apartments... "single family" zoning and all.

In my area, only certain types of businesses are legally allowed to be conducted in a residential area out of a garage. Car repair isn't one of them.

Oh, and tenant issues with noise/smells.

Lots of luck.

Check your private messages...

 

[trovato]

Stairs are generally safer and a bit more attractive if you can do something other than a straight run from top to bottom. Perhaps a landing half way if there's room. Also, I don't know what the other side looks like, but that apartment doesn't seem to have a whole lot of windows.

 

[DaveL.]

You'll need to have a seperate heating/cooling system for the shop and living space. Building codes won't allow a shared system. You'll probably drop a lot of $$ on plumbing/heating/cooling/electrical with a living space included above.
As stated above,check all local building codes 1st.
Welcome aboard and have fun!

Dave

 

[OldCarGuy]

Nice start

Tech,

Please don’t feel as if we’re “raining on your parade” rather a heads up about the obstacles that you may encounter. Regrettably most of us have had to battle issues with our protective local bureaucracies in order to pull off the garages we have.

Good planning and good luck on your build.

 

[GearHead_1]

Gotta wonder about having a paint booth below a living quarters as well.

 

[tech]

upper is storage with electric and water as far as city knows
lower is storage with electric and water as far as city knows
really aren't any neighbors that can see
i will live in apartment and rent out house (to someone understanding that i will be making noise in garage)

windows are just basic untill i come across what i will be using, i am hopeing 2 windows per side
should have posted more details at first

 

[GearHead_1]

I guess it comes down to what ever you can get past the building inspector. Sometimes easier said than done.

 

[bmwpower]

upper is storage with electric and water as far as city knows
lower is storage with electric and water as far as city knows
really aren't any neighbors that can see
i will live in apartment and rent out house (to someone understanding that i will be making noise in garage)

windows are just basic untill i come across what i will be using, i am hopeing 2 windows per side
should have posted more details at first

Inspectors might question why you have an outside stairway and water up to a storage area.

Not trying to open up a can of worms, but these are some of the reasons I stayed away from putting living space above my garage as well as waiting to put my lift in until AFTER I get the final inspection... townships can nail you for stuff you would never think of.

 

[vintagegto]

this is the garage i am building in the spring. it is a dettached that is being built next to my first house that i bought last spring at 20. it is a 2-bay, 2-story, 30x30 and the top is an apartment and the bottom will be used for makin' money. the 2 sides will be seperated with a wall so one side can be for paint and the other for mech. w/ lift. i have been a dealer tech for three years now and come across a lot of side work but dont have anywhere to do it. i am looking for input from everyone on any aspect.

lift: http://www.americanautomotiveequipment.com/pages/831606/index.htm
heater:http://www.propaneproducts.com/modine-hot-dawg.html
compressor:???
doors:????
lights:?????
floor covering:??none???

Well I live just south of you (2 hrs) top be exact and I am jellous.
I love NH and I can say that as far a bussiness it ranks #5 in the nation for being
bussiness friendly. I would check with the state/town codes because I think you can run a shop out of most areas in NH. It amazes me how many shops (autobody,used car lots & mechanical)are in peoples back yards.

Now maybe I'm wrong but I have checked with with state zoning in Concord a couple of years ago because we are contemplating whether to relocate thier or not.
When I checked,the state leaves it to the town for the licensing and I don't think the regulations are really that bad. At least they weren't a few years ago.

I am curious because we have been looking for some property more seriously lately and hopefully we will be able to find something tha is reasonable.

I would need to be able to have Autobody,Used Car Lot & Mechanics shop if I made the move.

 

[Just A Beginner]

I had a friend who built a garage/ shop on Long Island. It was very much like your
deal except that he had a large garage door so that he could store a friend's boat.
The final inspector assumed it was his.

He built a work pit, filled it with sand to within 2" of the slab and then poured concrete over the top of the sealed pipes. Did the same to an area where he
planned on having a mechanics shower and further plumbing to the upstairs.

The electrical was 200 amp as he had several machines like a lathe, drill press,
a welder and sump pump.

After the final inspection he let things cool off for 6 months and then broke up the concrete, moved out the boat, and finished his shop. Most inspectors seem to feel that if you haven't "modified" your garage in the first 6 months you probably never will. PATIENCE.

Tom V.

 

[MacTexas]

I have not had any problem with my outside stairs.

 

[White Chocolate]

Even if you make everything past the inspectors, which is not easy if they have to do a lot of interim inspections during the build, one call from a neighbor and your local code enforcers will be on you like white on rice. Around here, the fine for something built/installed without a permit is 4x the permit fee, plus you have to go through plan check with whatever the improvement is. If you try to run an auto repair business out of your residence, I think some people will notice.