Project - I joined my house and garage

[thelucash]

Hi, just wanted to share a project I'm proud of. I joined my house and (recently saved!) garage with a 20'x13' porch. It's a simple single-sloped roof that's shingled. Not 100% done, still have to add the door onto the garage and finish painting it. The whole thing is also built to code - inspected and all. And I did EVERYTHING myself, from the foundation to the roof

Edit: added some photos from during the build

 

[Sleepy1]

I like it! Sometimes it's the small things that make things flow and much more convenient.
"Is it raining? Oh, I didn't even notice."

 

[Boilerhouse]

Great job - and my favourite thing is the "built everything myself" part!

 

[captain14]

I like it. Which direction is the summer sun coming from?

Did you take any during the build pictures? I always enjoy the simple builds like this. Maybe add some photos and give a brief description on the immediate job and any issues you encountered and how they were overcome.

Id recommend a ceiling if you hadn’t considered it. The local birds are already eyeballing it for next seasons nests. And you know what that brings. Ask me how I know.

 

[Jayman17]

I like a house and garage connected with a breezeway, nice job.

Jay

 

[brownbagg]

like what you did, I cuss my house for twenty year, but once i put a cover over the back door, it change, to get in the house without getting wet

 

[JohnKal]

Great job! It’s a great feeling knowing you did it on your own. A great sense of accomplishment.

 

[GreenIron]

Nice job, @thelucash

Always make a person feel good for doing a job themselves.

 

[mikedodge]

Cool!
Now how long before you decide to close the walls and make more indoor space out of it?

 

[FMB4]

Great job thelucash!

​

 

[steaks&anvils]

Cool!
Now how long before you decide to close the walls and make more indoor space out of it?

SCREEN PORCH! and it gives you a place grill out of the weather.

 

[FMB4]

SCREEN PORCH! and it gives you a place grill out of the weather.

And room for a pool table (out door rated of course).

 

[K'ledgeBldr]

It's a good feeling to accomplish a project like that for anyone who doesn't do construction as a profession.

But, I gotta ask- as in most states when you "attach" a building it usually brings the "Taxman". Had you considered that? Or, is it a non-issue in your state?

The "work around" is making roof(s) overlap/extend over each other- they are not "attached", so the Taxman can't look for the "extra revenue".

 

[ed_v]

That was a really nice job done. You should be proud of that.

Ed

 

[matt_i]

That's a tricky intersection to navigate with the garage roof so very nice job!

I would recommend a ceiling covering, otherwise its very likely birds could start to take up nesting in the nice dry pockets in the springtime.

 

[Spencer Was Here]

As mentioned above, connecting the garage to the house in many jurisdictions allows them to tax the garage differently, as opposed to just an outbuilding.

Not sure if the OP was aware, not that it makes any difference now, but might help someone else who may be considering this to look into it first.

 

[Daniel Dudley]

I would like to do this, but the spread is pretty far. Nice job.

 

[dfiler2]

That looks great, good for you!

 

[CJ7VFR]

I like it! Sometimes it's the small things that make things flow and much more convenient.
"Is it raining? Oh, I didn't even notice."

I like it too!

It's really is great when you don't have to worry about the rain when your BBQing, or you have a nice fire pit going, or you just want to hang out drinking some beers outside.

Jim

 

[CraigStu]

I like it a lot. One thing I would add is to box in the bottom of the 4x4s w/ pvc trim to hide the metal feet. 1x6s narrowed to fit the 4x4s about a foot tall. 1/4 round at the top gives a nice finished look.

 

[Kaizen]

OP where are you and what codes did you have to watch for? I know a detached is easier to build but not sure what codes would be involved in this.

 

[thelucash]

OP where are you and what codes did you have to watch for? I know a detached is easier to build but not sure what codes would be involved in this.

I'm in michigan - and the only real things to watch for here are footing depth (has to be 4 feet in my area!), and rafter spans for snow load (you'll notice that I did 2x6 rafters at 12oc, thanks to the low slope of 2.5/12)

 

[thelucash]

It's a good feeling to accomplish a project like that for anyone who doesn't do construction as a profession.

But, I gotta ask- as in most states when you "attach" a building it usually brings the "Taxman". Had you considered that? Or, is it a non-issue in your state?

The "work around" is making roof(s) overlap/extend over each other- they are not "attached", so the Taxman can't look for the "extra revenue".

I asked my local assessor about it, and the only tax difference is that I now have a 260 sqft porch added so the value is slightly higher - so it won't make much difference in my taxes

 

[thelucash]

I like it. Which direction is the summer sun coming from?

Did you take any during the build pictures? I always enjoy the simple builds like this. Maybe add some photos and give a brief description on the immediate job and any issues you encountered and how they were overcome.

Id recommend a ceiling if you hadn’t considered it. The local birds are already eyeballing it for next seasons nests. And you know what that brings. Ask me how I know.

Here's a few pictures from the beginning of the build You'll note that some of the footings are in the middle of existing concrete - I had to cut holes in the concrete with a diamond bladed circular saw.

 

[thelucash]

Impressive work! It's nice to see a successful project of a person who is not professionally engaged in construction. What kind of wood did you use for the beams? I have heard that the best material for such a construction is oak.

Thank you! And I used 4x8 pressure treated SYP (outdoor-use high-strength framing lumber) for the beams. Nothing too special required for them, especially since they're supported by so many piers on each side.

 

[billconner]

Very nice result! Now to resist temptation to put too much under it.