I’ve lurked long enough - my CT garage

[strunz0]

Ok, folks - I’ve mooched and lurked on these forums for quite some time. I learned a lot - and it inspired a lot of ideas for my garage build. It’s now been done for about a year and I’m just starting to settle in and think about how to finish (or not) the interior.

The build was a nightmare to be honest: we couldn’t find solid ground when digging for footers - ultimately had to dig down 17 feet and remove debris that had been left that there by the builder 30 years ago. Once removed, an engineer had to come in and give me a plan to make the ground solid - the solve was to fill the 17 foot hole with 13 full trucks of gravel, compacting every 12 inches and then finishing with a foot of compact-able soil.

In the end, it was worth it. I got my project done and it allowed me to stay at my current home which I otherwise love. Pictures and story to follow. Also, the “CGC” on some of the photos is a watermark from my car account on Instagram @CarGuyCollective - you’re welcome to connect and see more photos there.

Thanks again for all the ideas. I hope this helps give back a bit! And I’m of course happy to answer questions....


Suffering from a car disease; incurable and expensive to treat

 

[strunz0]

Ok, folks - I’ve mooched and lurked on these forums for quite some time. I learned a lot - and it inspired a lot of ideas for my garage build. It’s now been done for about a year and I’m just starting to settle in and think about how to finish (or not) the interior.

The build was a nightmare to be honest: we couldn’t find solid ground when digging for footers - ultimately had to dig down 17 feet and remove debris that had been left that there by the builder 30 years ago. Once removed, an engineer had to come in and give me a plan to make the ground solid - the solve was to fill the 17 foot hole with 13 full trucks of gravel, compacting every 12 inches and then finishing with a foot of compact-able soil.

In the end, it was worth it. I got my project done and it allowed me to stay at my current home which I otherwise love. Pictures and story to follow.


Suffering from a car disease; incurable and expensive to treat

Started by moving a gas line - that went surprisingly well and was done in a matter of hours :


Then started digging for footers and the nightmare began:


One we reached China with the dig, 17 feet of gravel, compacted every 12 inches had to be brought in - then covered with a foot of solid dirt also compacted





Suffering from a car disease; incurable and expensive to treat

 

[strunz0]

Started by moving a gas line - that went surprisingly well and was done in a matter of hours :


Then started digging for footers and the nightmare began:


One we reached China with the dig, 17 feet of gravel, compacted every 12 inches had to be brought in - then covered with a foot of solid dirt also compacted





Suffering from a car disease; incurable and expensive to treat

Once footers were poured, the walls with a **** ton of rebar were also poured

And drainage was added - lots of drainage including 9 cultec storm water chambers to prevent storm water from entering the city sewer system - only in socialist Connecticut could a 600 SF garage require this nonsense



Suffering from a car disease; incurable and expensive to treat

 

[strunz0]

Once footers were poured, the walls with a **** ton of rebar were also poured

And drainage was added - lots of drainage including 9 cultec storm water chambers to prevent storm water from entering the city sewer system - only in socialist Connecticut could a 600 SF garage require this nonsense



Suffering from a car disease; incurable and expensive to treat

With walls poured and drainage in, we proceeded to backfill the foundation and grade the lot for my new driveway design - it changed substantially from the original
And required engineers from the city, surveyors, planners, zoning - i think Jesus even made an appearance at one point



I unfortunately don’t have many pictures of the build. But I ordered a prefab unit from sheds unlimited. They built this thing in a single day - worked from 8am to midnight - unbelievable thing to see!

Here she is:





Suffering from a car disease; incurable and expensive to treat

 

[strunz0]

With walls poured and drainage in, we proceeded to backfill the foundation and grade the lot for my new driveway design - it changed substantially from the original
And required engineers from the city, surveyors, planners, zoning - i think Jesus even made an appearance at one point



I unfortunately don’t have many pictures of the build. But I ordered a prefab unit from sheds unlimited. They built this thing in a single day - worked from 8am to midnight - unbelievable thing to see!

Here she is:





Suffering from a car disease; incurable and expensive to treat

Interior shots:



Suffering from a car disease; incurable and expensive to treat

 

[jon72vega]

Very nice!

 

[bdymnjm]

Nice garage. What was that water collection for? Wouldnt it be cool if we could just build with common sense? Jim

 

[strunz0]

Nice garage. What was that water collection for? Wouldnt it be cool if we could just build with common sense? Jim

Seriously! And good god did I argue. I live in coastal Connecticut - about 1/3 mile from the ocean. Code requires all storm drainage from my property to be able to sustain a certain amount of rain per hour - the thinking is that it will prevent flooding of sewage systems during large storms. The reality is, when it pours rain 90% of the water goes right past the drains in my driveway. It is classic hippie nonsense and it cost me nearly $10k extra to excavate, buy the units, get an engineer to design the system, have the town come out to “witness the burial of the units” (not kidding)


Suffering from a car disease; incurable and expensive to treat

 

[CombatNinja]

That thing to hold the Jeep top is cool. Just to clarify, they built that garage in one day?

 

[M-technik-3]

Seriously! And good god did I argue. I live in coastal Connecticut - about 1/3 mile from the ocean. Code requires all storm drainage from my property to be able to sustain a certain amount of rain per hour - the thinking is that it will prevent flooding of sewage systems during large storms. The reality is, when it pours rain 90% of the water goes right past the drains in my driveway. It is classic hippie nonsense and it cost me nearly $10k extra to excavate, buy the units, get an engineer to design the system, have the town come out to “witness the burial of the units” (not kidding)


Suffering from a car disease; incurable and expensive to treat

Mass was thinking about making a plan that calculated your yard size and how much run off it generates and then taxing you on it. Thank goodness someone came to their sense and this nonsense did not pass.

Great looking garage what are the dimensions.

 

[strunz0]

That thing to hold the Jeep top is cool. Just to clarify, they built that garage in one day?

Thanks. And yes, the entire structure - including roof, hanging doors, siding, was one day. Legitimately one of the craziest things I’ve seen. The Jeep thing is actually my own little invention - bought a hoist from harbor freight, a few straps and built the ghetto gantry hoist with some 2x4s sistered together


Suffering from a car disease; incurable and expensive to treat

 

[strunz0]

Mass was thinking about making a plan that calculated your yard size and how much run off it generates and then taxing you on it. Thank goodness someone came to their sense and this nonsense did not pass.

Great looking garage what are the dimensions.

Thanks. It is 34 wide x 20 deep. Ceiling at low are 9 and 14 at the center


Suffering from a car disease; incurable and expensive to treat