Monitor Barn Planning

[barnee]

Monitor Barn Planning Version 2

(New version at end)

Ive started my detached garage planning process and have completed the initial layout of the garage. After spending hours figuring out what I need and sketching it up I think Im going to head down the design/build method of selecting the builder since I dont think I really need separate Architect services at this point. Im going to get the shell built and do the interiors myself over time.

It takes over a year to get building permits so this wont be starting any time soon, but wanted to share the concept for any comments.

Building is 36' wide (12' carport, 14' bay, 12' garden room) by 30' deep. Bay has 12' ceiling. Upstairs will be 14' wide by 30' deep with vaulted ceiling. I can go as big as my wallet will allow but this is my balace of needs vs cash.

Didnt know if this should go in Gallery or Discussion.

 

[schwalby]

Can you post up some pics of how the inside is layed out?

Looks good though.

 

[larry_g]

I'm liking it. Looks to be a nice space. Are you making a living space on the lower floor? If you are and looking at a hard permitting process I would show that as a woodshop or something other than living. I really like the skylight there. I'm going to let the guys owning lifts chime in on the width of the center bay. It seems kinda narrow with the lift.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[bobadame]

Do yourself a favor and make the center section 16' wide. 14' width lumber isn't always available. You'll end up buying 16s and cutting them to 14'. Also it will make the top look less peaky.

 

[Chaz]

We designed our own Monitor Barn house/shop. I'm glad I didn't use the services of an architect. Only YOU really know what your needs are. I'm not a fan of carports or outside stairwells, but I live in Montana where the snow blows sideways. As a garage that looks great, but it seems tight from side to side for a shop. If you close in the carport , you can back the car out when you need more shopspace for a given project.
All I know is that when it comes to shops, size matters!
When considering building on your property, Teach yourself to use CAD. I did and saved Thousands in architectural fees. Your pklace really has a nice look... Keep at it!
Y'all are probably tired of these pics, but here's our self designed monitor barn.

 

[barnee]

The lower space on the right contains a kitchenette (refridge, sink, micro) to serve as a compliment to our patio which is directly out the patio doors on the right. The patio has a hot tub, outdoor fireplace and cooking setup. We needed a place to store items for the patio and as an enclosed space. I put the powder room on the lower level also for freeze protection and to serve outside/shop uses.

The upstairs will be left shell until it is claimed by my kids or inlaws or guest suite. Not sure how this will go. At that point I will add another bath if I need it.

I was thinking also to increase the width of the bay to 16 since it looked insufficient. My main point of indecision is to increase the building size and bring the staircase inside which i would love to do but it would be a space hog (although it would mean not adding a bath upstairs in the future.

Im never going to be pulling engines, the lift is to store a car and my pop-up camper in the winter and might be used for tires, oil changes, brakes and small repairs. Its cheaper than adding a second bay.

 

[barnee]

Chaz, nice place.

My main reson for the carport is to store my pop-up camper in the usable months and then put it on the storage lift in the winter. Im in VA so our winters are very mild, but I too dont like the outside stairs and will probably in-board it.

Another reson for the carport is to decrease the mass of the building. This will sit 20' and perpendicular to my house which is a restored 1907 Victorian Farmhouse in a historic town (2500 sf above grade) and i dont want this to overwhelm the house or look like a house (therefore the barn style), plus the property size is one acre.

 

[shopnut]

If not able to go wider on the main bay, you might consider a set of double doors (much like the big blue ones) between the shop and the carport. During nice weather, the carport could easily become an extension of the workshop and really open up that space. I would at least add a man door out to the carport from the living space or shop.

I'm not real fond of that outdoor stairs, but I understand your reasons.

Have fun with the planning/building.

 

[bobadame]

I have outdoor stairs on both of my monitor barns. The first one was built 18 years ago and all the treads need to be replaced. They were made of treated lumber. On the second barn I used redwood and sealed it with the best deck sealer I could find. I think it will outlast me. If I had it to do over though I'd use that new composite deck material. Cost is about double but you only need to do it once.

 

[barnee]

Thanks for all the input, I think Im going to do another model which brings the staircase inside and encloses the carport. I think the net usable space will be the same, cost similar, and It will be more flexible for whatever need I may have in the following years, More shortly.

 

[larry_g]

Thanks for all the input, I think Im going to do another model which brings the staircase inside and encloses the carport. I think the net usable space will be the same, cost similar, and It will be more flexible for whatever need I may have in the following years, More shortly.

Another thing you might play with is the roof pitches. I understand that you have the sheds shallow so that you can have windows above, and steep pitch above to gain headroom but to me it looks wrong for some reason. Study some other monitors and compare the shed pitch and the main roof pitch. Would an overhang on the main roof look appropriate? I've not got the answer for you.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[barnee]

Larry,

good point. The clerstory windows need to be in a smaller field, and the shed roofs are to flat. I can increase the shed pitch and decrease the wall that the clerstory windows are in without affecting the upstairs space. plus it will allow me to put the staircase along the back wall and have the proper headroom as you go from floor 1 to 2. I will also stretch the bay width to 16', and play with the second story roof pitch until it looks appropriate.

 

[barnee]

Updated the original design to get rid of the carport, expand the center bay to 16' wide, increease the slope of the shed roofs and put the staircase inside.

Building overall will be 40' wide (12' shop/16' lift bay/12' garden room) by 30' deep. Upstairs will be 16' by 30' for future "to be determined" needs.

The garden room is meant to serve the entertainment needs of the patio which will be to the right, and to serve as the kitchen/bath for the upstairs room should that turn into a nanny/in law suite, guest room, or kids room. The shop will end up being 28 feet wide by 30' deep with a four post lift.

Id like to find a way to not have the support column in the shop but I dont think it will be that much of a problem if I cant span it.

Thanks for everyones input, I think this is much better.

 

[larry_g]

That looks better. I would seriously consider making that window/loft door functional. I don't know what you plan to put in the loft but having an opening there would sure make it easier to get large/heavy items up. Damn sure makes it easier to unload when moveout day comes.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[barnee]

larry,

Im somewhat limited to building details by whats in Google 3D warehouse. My preference would be to have as many sliding barn doors as possible throughout the building (in place of patio doors) but Im not sure thats practical. For the second floor window in the front I was thinking of a sliding "barn" door that would cover a good size window with the hoist point above which would be functional.

 

[NASMAN]

Hi barnee
Glad to see your interest in a Monitor style barn. What I don't see in those cad pictures is any of the framework. The framework is most important in a monitor barn because of how you will support the center section. In ours we do it with posts, which is common, but they get in the way of the lower level. A Monitor can be done with some other style cantilevered bents that will allow the lower space to remain wide open and unrestricted. However, they are complicated and add to the expense, especially when the building gets large.
Consider in your design also, that the wider you make the barn the taller it will get to make the roof angles ( pitches ) appear correct. Have seen way too many get the roofs wrong and really spoil the look. And the taller it gets the longer the spans of the rafters etc etc. Just saying.
If you have not already seen our web site I would like to have you take a look and check out the framing. I hope that it may give you some ideas.

http://www.ninetyninesigns.com/barnproject/centerpurlins/03cp0311091.html

 

[pumpjocky]

Updated the original design to get rid of the carport, expand the center bay to 16' wide, increease the slope of the shed roofs and put the staircase inside.

Building overall will be 40' wide (12' shop/16' lift bay/12' garden room) by 30' deep. Upstairs will be 16' by 30' for future "to be determined" needs.

The garden room is meant to serve the entertainment needs of the patio which will be to the right, and to serve as the kitchen/bath for the upstairs room should that turn into a nanny/in law suite, guest room, or kids room. The shop will end up being 28 feet wide by 30' deep with a four post lift.

Id like to find a way to not have the support column in the shop but I dont think it will be that much of a problem if I cant span it.

Thanks for everyones input, I think this is much better.

Fantastic Garage barnee! That is what we hope to start building as well this spring.

How tall is the ceiling in the lift bay and the bonus room 2nd floor?

Now for a more sensitive question, have you got a good idea of how much it will cost you to see this garage happen. If so, could you give me a ball park range.

Thanks

Peter

 

[barnee]

Peter,

The lift bay will be 12' clear and the bonus room right now is at 12 feet to the interior peak with 6' side walls. I want to do an exposed timber frame (not sure what this is called) for the roof support for the second floor to gain ceiling volume.

Cost? Well I figure it will be around 65-70K with me acting as GC and doing most of the material purchase, labor, cleanup, site restoration, finishes, insulation, interior carpentry and other non-trade tasks. Im going to get the shell built and do the interiors over time.

I dont have to do a standing seam roof, but I like it.

Getting ballpark prices now from contractor buddies so I should have something more scientific soon.

 

[pumpjocky]

Peter,

The lift bay will be 12' clear and the bonus room right now is at 12 feet to the interior peak with 6' side walls. I want to do an exposed timber frame (not sure what this is called) for the roof support for the second floor to gain ceiling volume.

Cost? Well I figure it will be around 65-70K with me acting as GC and doing most of the material purchase, labor, cleanup, site restoration, finishes, insulation, interior carpentry and other non-trade tasks. Im going to get the shell built and do the interiors over time.

I dont have to do a standing seam roof, but I like it.

Getting ballpark prices now from contractor buddies so I should have something more scientific soon.

Thanks for the reply. Look forward to seeing your progress.

 

[barnee]

This was my inspiration for the barn look (except for the dormers). I would love to have the sliding doors for the main lift bay (and hay loft door/window above) but i dont think that door will seal very well but I plan on doing more research on this.

 

[barnee]

After a few years and many challenges ($40,000 in water and sewer upgrades to my house) I'm ready to have my plans drawn up for permit and start this.

Had to settle for a 28' by 38' building not due to zoning or budget but due to my home being within the Chesapeake Bay drainage area which requires extensive environmental permitting and costs if you disturb over 2500 square feet of ground to build your project. Would have added $30K to $40K for this process which isn't feasible. With this plan I disturb 2450 SF.

Barn has 6/12 pitched roofs and a 13 foot interior height for the center bay. I'm waiting for my architect to design the structural frame so I can lock down the room heights. Left and right shed sections are 12' wide, and center section is 14 feet wide.

Should be able to do this with scissor trusses. My biggest issue is trying to not have any interior columns on the left side since my span would be 24 feet to the stair or 28 feet to the back wall. The right side has interior walls so I can hide a column.

Still trying to decide on the garage door (big gray area in front). Would love a sliding barn but haven't seen anything that is sealable to my liking. May end up with swing our carriage doors. Opening likely 12 foot wide and 10 foot tall but I have a foot or two of play here.

Ill add more features like barn lighting, cupola and weathervane, etc. Still have 6-8 months of city and county permits to obtain but I'm hoping to start and get the foundations/slab in by late fall.

I can still adjust the rooflines but think 6/12 looks good. I will be using Hardie Board with battens at 16" for exterior, and metal roof.

Suggestions appreciated.