Is 24x24 too small?

[Joelfke]

I don't really have a whole lot of room but my property has no garage (which is unacceptable) so I'm thinking of doing a 24x24 pole barn 14ft high ceilings so I can put a 2 post lift. Am I nuts or is it too small?

 

[James-W]

What are you planning on doing in the garage? If all you want to do is have a workshop where you work on one vehicle at a time, then a 24X24 would be OK. On the other hand, if you have some woodworking tools and you have some metal working tools and you want to work on cars and bikes and other stuff, then 24X24 is not going to be anywhere need big enough.

Suffice it to say that when it comes to a garage or a workshop, the largest size you can construct is preferable. In my case, 24X36 and 18ft 6in is the maximum size garage the city would allow me to build. I really wish that I could have built it larger, but I have to settle for what I was allowed to build. I would like to have a lift, but I had to make a decision. I could have a lift, or I could have a second floor that I could use for storage. As much as I would enjoy having a lift, I needed the storage space more. So my garage has a second floor where I have all sorts of cool stuff, but my wife says it is nothing but junk.

 

[MattRMagnum]

Whatever you build will likely be too small. Especially the longer you own it. My house came with a 30x36 three bay garage, and a 26x36 car port, and now I'm thinking of enclosing the carport into garage bays, and adding a second story to the garage, so I've more work space upstairs.

Figure out how much you need, and then build bigger, since even if you try to estimate large, you'll likely quickly find it too small (especially if family/friends know you've a garage, and want to store cars/furniture/etc temporarily).

 

[Joelfke]

All I'll be doing is work on my own car/wife's car and an occasional side job

 

[SGKent]

Look at your budget, the lot, and the zoning requirements before you make any decisions. With a lift it is nice to have room to either side to either work, and or park a car, open the car doors, etc.. Front and back you need room to close the garage door, and have a good space for tools, work bench, storage, etc.. Use those as your minimum standards. If you are in an area like where I am, our city code prohibits working on cars beyond an oil change, or putting air in tires, etc., you'll want to keep the garage door closed so the neighbors don't complain. Our city usually doesn't enforce that code unless neighbors complain about messiness or excessive traffic coming to the house.

 

[larry_g]

Given all the information and details you have given, 24x24 is perfect.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[Firebrick43]

Yes its to small. I wouldn't go less that 30x30 or you wont have any space for cabinets and benches along the wall and to open the doors of the vehicles or to walk around vehicles like vans or crew cab trucks. 6 extra feet will get you that

 

[Mr onetwo]

one word answer...YES! IMHO.... min 28ft wide and 32ft deep with 2 doors.

 

[Jazz1]

24x24 is fine. If you can go bigger by all means go. I do frame off restorations in a 24x30 and always enough room plus I have a corner for wood stove, tv, bar

 

[takai]

24x24 is doable, even if you have woodworking, metalwork, and automotive tools.
Heck i keep all the family bikes, storage tubs and brewing gear in mine. Its squishy, but gets the job done.

For inspiration have a look at Jack Olsen's 24x24 garage.

 

[crewchief888]

I built 2 Harleys in an attached 22x22.
built my off road rig (cage, body mods, eng/trans/xfer case swap, fuel cell, axle swap) in my 19x22.
built several cages, bumpers, rock sliders for others in the same garage. fabricated several yard art projects for the wife as well.

I keep wood and metal working separated, wood working gets done in the basement, guns/reloading are also in the basement in a separate room.

it's all about being "efficient" finding a place for your "stuff" and keeping it there. 3+ sets of toolboxes, air compressor, bender, drill press, hand shear, belt/disk sander welder, small bench, ect are all crammed into a tight space.

 

[kaiser715]

I was in a 24x24 for 17 years. Blew past my 5-year plan.

Pretty much it was filled up with tool cabinets and machinery. Had room to work like at the drill press, but had to step over a lot of projects and parts all the time. Try and go "up" as much as possible -- tall tool cabinets, tall storage shelves, etc. High shelves over machinery and workstations. If zoning will allow, get a conex for storage of stuff that will collect, parts, seldom used tools, etc.

I ended up the last 4 or so years there finally pouring a slab and putting up a 14x25 carport right beside the shop. Any real work happened out there...automotive, roll out the table saw, etc.

I am in 42x60 now. Still not big enough.

 

[bcoke]

My shop is too big-------no man ever said

 

[Steveodle]

Cheapest way to get more space is build upward. My 25x35 x 12 has a mezzanine that gives valuable storage space, that we all need, and an electric hoist to lift the staircase up to overhead

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[ed_v]

Go for it. You can get a lot done in a 24x24 shop. You just have to have some organization in place and keep it that way.

My first garage was a 10x20 in a townhome. I started a frame off restoration of my 1950 chevy pickup in it. Took some maneuvering, but it worked, I later sold the truck and bought a house with a bigger shop.

Ed

 

[WisJim]

I'm getting a new garage and shop building this spring and it will be 24 by 40 and 18 feet tall due to zoning requirements, and I had to get a variance approved to build that size. We're going to move into a house in town on a city lot due to my back and knee problems, so we can live on one level. I will be leaving behind a 40 by 100 pole shed that I managed to fill with "stuff" over the 30+ years we've lived there. My shop spaces and garage were in other buildings. My existing wood shop was 12 by 24, and my metal shop stuff will fit in about 10 by 24, so I'm hoping to have enough space to do the things I need to do. The hard part is getting rid of all the projects that I now realize I'll never get around to.

 

[rusty1]

...I've built dozens of old cars in my 20x26' shop, but always wished it were bigger, at least wider......30x30 would be nice.

 

[ttensirk]

24' x 24' is a good size for parking 2 vehicles. If you plan on doing ANY work, I would strongly suggest pushing the size up to 26'(w) x 28'(d) at the minimum. If you plan on storing lawn equipment or household overflow, I would definitely consider larger.

 

[240sxguy]

...I've built dozens of old cars in my 20x26' shop, but always wished it were bigger, at least wider......30x30 would be nice.

I have a dilapidated 20x30 right now used for storage and can confirm that it's really too narrow.

I could live with a 24x24 as a shop as long as I didn't have to keep my woodworking tools, yard equipment and other **** in there too.

 

[captain14]

Stake out a 24x24 spot on the driveway or yard and park your car/trucks inside the square. Place. Some cardboard boxes in there also to represent toolboxes and work bench. Add a couple More for shelves.

Can you work around and work comfortably on all 4 sides?

 

[PhantomEB]

I always want bigger but I sure have made my 24x24 workable. Check out my thread, I haven’t been updating it much but hope to change that soon.

I went a lot of overhead cupboards the full length of my header wall then came down the sides. Lots of shelving inside them. Aim for max empty floor space. Once I build a shed for the garden tools this is gonna free up some space. Soon to come is a 30t or bigger hydraulic press, power washer with some water storage and a engine stand mounted tube bender.

I am in the same boat as you. One spot is dedicated to my off-road truck and the other is for a daily driver. I am to always have one spot available by being able to move the daily driver out.

 

[KeaneKong]

I am in the Post Frame industry, the question comes up all the time I typically tell them 24x24 is the smallest I would recommend a garage to be. It's tight but doable. I usually say go with a 30x30 if you have the room but need a smaller structure.

 

[txvwnut]

I have 20’w x 26’d x 20’h with a full upstairs. If your stuck with a small ground footprint go up when you do your build. I was limited to 500sf on the ground so it was must for me to have as much space as I could get. Like others have said it’s doable but you have to be careful with what you put on the floor. Do the stake and string layout and pull a car in and look at toolbox and bench placement. The biggest thing is to not use it for storage of any kind and you will have good work space.

 

[Moose97]

Is 24X24 too small? Yes, likely it will be. That being said I have a 16X20 shop that I can guarantee you is too small but I use the **** out of it because it's what I have! If all you can manage is a 24X24 then you'll make it work. I imagine somewhere is a guy with a 100X80 shop complaining every day that he didn't go bigger!

 

[Monte406SS]

I'd kill for that, I'm in a 20x20 (may even be a hair less than that). It works with just the project car but I cannot park anything in there alongside it. The depth is what really kills me most, an extra 4 feet would be awesome if possible but I can't.

 

[brewchief]

If you build a 24x24 with 14' walls it may look a bit out of proportion due to the height.

A lean to on one or both sides would add a lot of space, even if it is just storage. You can always prep to add a lean to later on as well if your budget doesn't allow for it now.

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[Charlie51]

If you can afford 2 feet more depth to the garage, do it. It makes a world of difference in what can be put in front of a vehicle and still give you comfortable access to the engine compartment.

 

[Joelfke]

Can you post a link? I can't find it

 

[u2slow]

I don't really have a whole lot of room but my property has no garage (which is unacceptable) so I'm thinking of doing a 24x24 pole barn 14ft high ceilings so I can put a 2 post lift. Am I nuts or is it too small?

Build to the max your bylaws will allow.

I have 754sqft for two vehicles, a lift, and some shop tools. Its shaping up to be really tight.

 

[Toomanytools?]

Depending on the vehicles you work on, my truck is about 23' long so parking it in a 24' garage would be tight. If you can go 30' do it that gives you some wiggle room on lift placement also. It shouldn't add that much cost, pole spacing would go from 4 posts at 8' to 4 at 10' so no extra holes. You don't need an extra truss just longer purlins and side girts, about $1.50 more for 2x6x10' than an 8'. You are adding more metal on sides like 2 pieces each side also same on roof, then about 2 yards more concrete. There is a point when economies of scale come into play. Good luck.
I wanted to add if you think in terms of lumber lengths 8, 10,12' it works better for building. You could even go 12' spacing and not add a post or truss and have a 36' long shop. Of course it all starts to add up $$ and your lot may not allow it.

 

[MattN03]

If you are in an area like where I am, our city code prohibits working on cars beyond an oil change, or putting air in tires, etc., you'll want to keep the garage door closed so the neighbors don't complain.

So you technically couldn't do a brake job or replace an axle or such? I knew CA was bad, but not that bad!

 

[vavet]

Garages are like your lady's *****:
the bigger the better
better to have small ones than none at all
you can always add on later, but it's expensive
the bigger they are, the more your friends will admire them
it's easy to overlook other shortcomings when they're bigger

 

[sberry]

No replacement for displacement, Lots of guys building 30x40 that should be adding on another 10 ft wide.

 

[510ebl]

I would barely be able to walk around my truck in a 24x24, never mind work on it. Remember this is an exterior dimension, so you are losing 12-18" right off the bat. My current ride is 19 ft long, my former truck was 21 feet. Toolboxes and cabinets eat up another two feet. You will want to close the door, which rides on tracks INSIDE the interior dimension.

My go-to for a minimum depth is 32-36 feet. 24 wide would be adequate as long as you are not storing anything along the walls. I do, so my 24 wide is very tight.

20 foot car/truck
2 feet behind
4 feet in front (need room for a jack handle and creeper)
2 feet for walls and doors
2 foot deep bench or toolbox
=
30 cramped feet

 

[CraigStu]

I think the worst part of it will be that the lift posts take up a lot of width. Look at the outside width of various lifts, consider you need to be able lean down and place the lift arms on the side near the wall. So it can't be against the wall. I think it is going to be tight to get another car in there w/ the lift on one side. I worked like you plan for 20 years in a 24x24 and it was OK but I didn't have a lift.

 

[nadogail]

IMHO, the required size of a garage depends on what you intend to use it for.

Obviously you could not recreate the Hindenburg in that garage, but it should be perfectly adequate for smaller projects.

 

[KeaneKong]

Garages are like your lady's *****:
the bigger the better
better to have small ones than none at all
you can always add on later, but it's expensive
the bigger they are, the more your friends will admire them
it's easy to overlook other shortcomings when they're bigger

I may use this when I'm trying to sell buildings...

 

[Fastfish]

So I got a 24x24 shop. Started as a horse barn which it was for 12 years. But I built it with 12' ceilings. I have a 2 post lift on one side. More forward than I like so no work bench (it is on the other side) but I can fit full size pick up truck on the lift. It is tight and the welders, plasma cutter, batt charger, all must live under the work bench. It was custom made to accomidate this. No room for wood stove or tire machine, and the non lift side needs to be empty for large jobs like engine swapping but that size is livable for me. Like you just my own cars and friends and family... It is ok just a little tight.

 

[finn]

I would upsize slightly, if that’s an option, to 24x32. I think that’s a sweet spot for a modest garage.

I have had smaller, my starter house being about 19x20, and our current winter house has a 20x20.

I lived for years.with a 21x22, with a 10x10 bump in the rear, along the laundry room, and it worked ok as long as the kids bikes and the yard equipment had alternative homes.

I ended up with a 48x75, plus a 32x54 and a 24x32, and I am as cramped as that 21x22 with the bump. Projects expand to fill the space, but I often thing the 24x32 would have been wonderful for all those years I lived in the city.

Having a huge space that owns you and your budget is worse than having a smaller but useable space and money left over to enjoy life.

Someone mentioned having a 23’ long pickup. That’s another life choice where understanding of the hidden costs can be sometimes be elusive. Sometimes your possessions end up owning you.

 

[u2slow]

A lean to on one or both sides would add a lot of space, even if it is just storage. You can always prep to add a lean to later on as well if your budget doesn't allow for it now.

Good point, but I had to build the lean-to's in at the beginning due to height restrictions. They way they calculate roof height, the enclosed shop by itself was too tall. The lean-to's dropped the eaves another 6' or so. They're also structural in the sense the enclosed shop area needed less bracing.

Remember this is an exterior dimension, so you are losing 12-18" right off the bat.

OP didn't specify. My bylaws enforced the max size by interior dimension.