Questions from a garage noobie

[Northman11]

In my search for sites on advice for building a detached garage, I stumbled across this wonderful forum. My wife and I recently put in an offer on a house just outside of Charlotte, North Carolina, and are now in contract. The house has an attached two car garage but I have always dreamed of having my own "man castle". After spending countless hours in the garage gallery thread, I really liked the build from dave67fd (http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=102939). His garage was 28 x 38 x 10 with a full dormered loft and turned out great. Depending how much it will cost, I have plenty of room for a 30 x 40.

The house we are buying is on a nice and flat acre on the end of a culdesac. The neighborhood doesn't a CCR but I have to adhere to the county's restrictions. I plan on calling them next week to find out what the restrictions are.

This is my first attempt at building anything so it is completely new territory. I plan on hiring out for most of the work but will consider doing any of it that I reasonably can.


1) Because cash is limited with our pending closing, what are recommended building phases? For example, should I have the foundation, frame, exterior, and roof done all at the same time? That looks like the biggest chunk of change for the project.

2) The lot is really flat so I hope the foundation costs are reasonable. What is a ball park cost per square foot for a foundation? I plan on getting multiple quotes but I have not basis of comparison.

3) Is it a problem to have electricity ran to the garage later or should I have that done during the initial building phase?

I'm sure that there are tons of other questions I will have down the road. I'm just a little overwhelmed with everything right now but I'm really looking forward to the end result of this project.

Thanks in advance for any advice you guys can offer.

 

[akdiesel]

I am right there as the worst for waiting. But if fundings are not there and you want something, do the foundation and let sit. It will allow it to cure better and it is also one of the largest costs in building.
It would benefit you to run water, drain lines, and electrical. Plan for water, sinks, toilet, and a shower. The cost for piping is not that much and a little research you can do it yourself. If you feel you do not want it now simply leave the lines caped off for when it is wanted.
Your location may change all this. UV and wet locations could damage the pad when exposed for long duration. But a large tarp (ugly to look at) can help to protect it.
A 30 x 40 shop is a great size, but 10' is not tall enough. 14 is ideal, but 12 will work for just about anything except a motor home.

 

[KPSquared]

Get quotes, figure out what you can build, go 14 feet high. Consider a pole building. Much more cost effective. Build the structure, pour floor after.

 

[Northman11]

Thanks for the quick reply. The issue of height makes sense and 12 or 14 feet would be helpful. I definitely want to do this right the first time. No more moves for us. It took us years to get back home.

I plan on finishing the top floor as an open area for games and a movie room. According to the property disclosure we obtained when we put in the offer, the septic system for the house is rated only for the existing number of bedrooms. I would love to add a bathroom to the loft but I'm not sure how that would work.

 

[Northman11]

Get quotes, figure out what you can build, go 14 feet high. Consider a pole building. Much more cost effective. Build the structure, pour floor after.

A pole barn's a good idea but I really want the extra space afforded by the loft.

 

[K'ledgeBldr]

... the septic system for the house is rated only for the existing number of bedrooms. I would love to add a bathroom to the loft but I'm not sure how that would work.

Your answer is in your question- # of bdrms.
You're not adding another bdrm- you're adding a bath.

The equation is based on usage per people- not the number of bathrooms. A common mistake with people not familiar. Of course all it depends on elevation and location.

 

[Northman11]

Awesome. This is our first house with a well and septic. Not sure how easy it would be to connect the detached garage to those systems. I have the home inspection this week.

 

[egads74]

30 x 40 nice... consider that as inside dimension...consider garage doors with size and usage... consider lot coverage issue and border distance issues... consider highest piece of land for water runoff and gutter runoff... consider pex in cement... consider full 2 story as 2x6 and platform are cheap space in overall cost (banging head and loss of space to roof in 2nd story)... most importantly tag the money from your loan if possible (money to borrow is cheap now and it wont always be this way... $5 per thousand a month on a 30yr = $50k for $250. a month) You spend more than that on cable/cell phone and lunch...

 

[Delta74]

if you dont do the electrical right away atleast Stub a 2 inch, and a pair of 1 or 1.5 inch up thrue the slab and down and out to the yard, to be connected to later.

the 2 inch, is for the electrical ( with room for 100A no problem ) and the pair of 1.5 inch is for phone, cable, net, intercom whatever, and the second 1.5 inch is for when the first one is broken, cause if you have a spare, you will never need it, but if you dont.....

 

[Falcon67]

No way to ballpark the slab - what cost me $5~6 a sq/ft here may cost you $10~12 there.

The best thing is to really lay it all out - size, height, how it should lay out inside, doors, windows, roof pitch, electrical layout, lot location, etc. All of it. I killed an easy ream of graph paper and a box of mechanical pencils, then ragged out a box of grade stakes and 1000' of string turning the building this way and that before I ever bought a nail. Even after that, the latest layout was in Visio is Version 16, rev G LOL. Check with the local building department on foundation requirements and use that as a check against contractor quotes. You really just have to know where you're going before you can budget it out and plan the phases. Note that a slab can sit there for a long time and not be hurt. If you are paying to have it done, then the slab/foundation is Job 1. Walls/roof/windows/doors, drying it all in would be #2. After that, you can chip away at it. Of the 13K I'm currently at, the foundation and dry in would be around 10K of it.

Also - how the foundation details are laid out depends on stick built, pole barn, metal building, etc. The devil really is in the details, so the more you have ID'd the better. And remain flexible, because you'll learn things that shoot holes in other ideas.

 

[camarotoolman]

The Charlotte atuo fair is in 2 weeks.

 

[kbs2244]

Everybody here has been pretty technical.
And that is good.
It is a big thing of what we are sharing.

But am encountering an increasing amount of concern about the “appearance” of a shop building.
The days of a “sheet metal box” appeared limited.

As strange as it may seem, look into the advice of a “landscape architect.’
Even if it is just to suggest an exterior painting scheme for the building.
They can make a 12 foot at the eaves look like 8 feet.

And that can mean a lot to everybody concerned.

 

[akdiesel]

Falcon & kbs2244 both have some great advice for layout location and appearance.
Stake the corners of your soon to be shop and see how it blends in with the house and the functionality of the foot path between the two. Take. Ote of your tread winds so when you open the shop doors, the interior is not blasted.
Nature can be used to help costs as well. Sun light through skylights, wind for ventalation, and as simple as a water barrel to collect rain from the shop roof to be used for washing hands or cars.