Above 1200 Sq/FT The Lab [Latvia]

[the lab]

Hi all,

I am new to GJ and this is my first post here.

Here mostly for inspiration and advice. Planning to share my experience restoring a garage as well.

I have been passively looking for a garage for about five years, maybe 2-3 years actively and about a year ago I first went to the property I am in the process of getting ownership of. From the moment I saw the property I have stopped looking at other options as this one seems perfect to me in terms of location and size. So it is 2in1 - garages and sort of a house in one building that has never been actually used as a house. It was a facility for the Red Cross and garages for their fleet. For the last 20 or so years property hasn't been used and has just been sitting without sorted ownership. The reason it hasn't been used was that paperwork was not in order and it couldn't be properly registered. Land was owned by a private party and building by the municipality, therefore it couldn't be legally registered. After I saw the building for the first time there were many letters, meetings and phone calls, but as of January the building was purchased from the municipality and registered on the land owner's name. So from a paperwork perspective the hardest part is done and now the regular process has left to separate the garage with land from the rest of the property. That should be sorted by June or latest July.

Name: The Lab
Location: Small town in Latvia, Europe
Size: 341 sqm
Built: in 1930's
Purpose: Garage (mancave) + weekend house (later on)

I am in no rush to finish it quickly - firstly because I do not have funds for all the construction required and secondly I wanna do it slowly and probably will change my mind on some stuff along the way as I progress. Planning to start slowly and will fix the garage side of the building first and the house part later on. The idea is to start this spring with replacing the roof for the garage side, insulating the foundation, fixing the back wall that is not in a great shape, removing the old trash, new windows for the garage side, new garage gates and maybe a new floor. If I do not finish all of it this year, fine by me and I will continue next spring.

The main purpose of the garage will be to have a space where I can work on my cars, to have where to store cars during the winter months and to have a place where to hang with my boys.

Fixing the house part of the building maybe will be year 3 or 4. Not in a rush to have that done.

I don't think I will be the most active member of the forum, but will try to update on the progress regularly.

Some photos of the Lab below. All taken by a film camera.

 

[Kasal]

Hello welcome. a greeting from Spain. The laboratory looks like an incredible place, large and with many possibilities. Congratulations on that acquisition. Nice cars too, both the Audi and the Subaru.

 

[the lab]

Here are few interior snaps as well

 

[the lab]

Hello welcome. a greeting from Spain. The laboratory looks like an incredible place, large and with many possibilities. Congratulations on that acquisition. Nice cars too, both the Audi and the Subaru.

Thanks Kasal,

The place indeed is pretty special. At least to me.

WRX is my winterbeater, RS6 is my buddies ride. I own first generation RS4. Once the Lab will be renovated RS4 will be the first tenant

 

[the lab]

BUT.. it is not all nice and **** as it may seem at a first glance.

On the back side of the building foundation and wall needs to be partially fixed.





The roof cover for the roof access point has been missing for about 20 years and nordic weather obviously has done some harm. For now I am just gonna get a new cover and deal with the damage later when renovating the house part for the building.







Another surprise was that there is still a car parked inside from Soviet times. Haven't tried to start it yet, but that is one of the missions for the near future.

 

[kbeefy]

Welcome from Western USA.

Cool old building, looks like lots of work! Don't break a leg with those in ground pits.

 

[the lab]

Welcome from Western USA.

Cool old building, looks like lots of work! Don't break a leg with those in ground pits.

Thanks. Those ground pits will be gone. Planning to instal a lift in one of the garages.

 

[Geoff289]

A big welcome from the southern hemisphere. Looks like a very interesting project full of potential.

 

[gearhead1]

Nice! That has a lot of character and a lot of potential.


I’d try to get the open areas covered at least until you get a chance to work on the structure.

 

[johnre]

Another surprise was that there is still a car parked inside from Soviet times. Haven't tried to start it yet, but that is one of the missions for the near future.

Original Lada VAZ-2101 looks to be?

 

[the lab]

A big welcome from the southern hemisphere. Looks like a very interesting project full of potential.

Thanks! The main reason why I wanna take it easy and not rush with a build is that I may change some thoughts along the way.

 

[the lab]

Nice! That has a lot of character and a lot of potential.


I’d try to get the open areas covered at least until you get a chance to work on the structure.

That's the plan. Will start with a roof cleaning + rain gutters replacement, then foundation + ground works and that should make the water flow away from the building and stop damaging it.

 

[the lab]

Original Lada VAZ-2101 looks to be?

It is Moskvitch 2140

I am not a fan of soviet cars, so it is pretty useless to me, but I think it will be fun project to get it running at least.

 

[johnre]

I am not a fan of soviet cars, so it is pretty useless to me, but I think it will be fun project to get it running at least.

One guy on our Subaru Outback forum who is from Lithuania states that he regularly gets offroad with a bunch of friends in Outbacks and Foresters. But he noted that a Lada Niva, if lifted and with proper mud tires, is quite capable offroad and is difficult to keep up with.

 

[the lab]

One guy on our Subaru Outback forum who is from Lithuania states that he regularly gets offroad with a bunch of friends in Outbacks and Foresters. But he noted that a Lada Niva, if lifted and with proper mud tires, is quite capable offroad and is difficult to keep up with.

Lada Niva is not bad - short chassis, light..

Besides I own old Land Cruiser for weekend trips, dirt roads and some light offroading. So, still not interested in soviet rides.

 

[Wreckster23]

That old building has a lot of soul, if only walls could talk. I love the old-era feel. Congrats, good luck with it. I'm curious to see how you will handle the bad wall in the back. What does the upstairs look like?

 

[the lab]

That old building has a lot of soul, if only walls could talk. I love the old-era feel. Congrats, good luck with it. I'm curious to see how you will handle the bad wall in the back. What does the upstairs look like?

Thanks! It has a soul indeed. That' s why I stopped searching for a garage after I went there for the first time. It is just perfect for me. Didn't want to build new facility either.

It is not that all back wall that is bad. It is about 5 meters [16 feet] where the fundament is bad and wall is falling apart. Rest of it is solid.

For the most part attic has low ceiling and I will only remove rubbish and old insulation. Then put in proper insulation and leave as is.



However there is a part with higher ceiling and I am planning to build studio apartment there. But that won't happen any time soon. Priority is garage, then house part and only later on if I need more space I could do something in attic.

 

[jskicet]

Welcome! Looks like a cool project. The car is a plus!

 

[coldh2o]

Welcome, from Canada!

That's a very neat building, following with interest.

 

[the lab]

Welcome! Looks like a cool project. The car is a plus!

Thank you! Finally got a permission from wife to get a motorcycle as well. But the garage is priority now.

 

[the lab]

Welcome, from Canada!

That's a very neat building, following with interest.

Thanks! I am very interested myself as well to see where I will get with it

 

[roger440]

This is outstanding!

 

[KSJeff]

That place looks cool, but it's going to be some work. Looking forward to seeing it done. I've been looking at your part of the world for retirement since I've visited Estonia several times and really enjoy the area. Next time I go I need to make it to Latvia. Good luck!

 

[the lab]

That place looks cool, but it's going to be some work. Looking forward to seeing it done. I've been looking at your part of the world for retirement since I've visited Estonia several times and really enjoy the area. Next time I go I need to make it to Latvia. Good luck!

I know, I know.. Won't be a quick and easy fix, but I am up for it

Hit me up when next time in Baltics.

 

[littlebean]

that's a really cool looking building, looks like this is going to be a interesting journey for you

 

[the lab]

that's a really cool looking building, looks like this is going to be a interesting journey for you

Yasss.. looking forward to it

 

[MacTexas]

Following

 

[wendle]

Wow.

Put that display case that's in the ceiling space in one of your photos in a corner somewhere and start filling it up with some of the more interesting objects you find as you clean up (like the old brazing goggles, bottles, light bulbs etc)!

 

[the lab]

Wow.

Put that display case that's in the ceiling space in one of your photos in a corner somewhere and start filling it up with some of the more interesting objects you find as you clean up (like the old brazing goggles, bottles, light bulbs etc)!

Definitely not gonna rush with throwing everything away. One man's trash is another man's treasure

​

 

[Cris B]

Wow. So much potential in this.

I think I'd be starting with a clearance bonfire to get rid of some on the internal clutter and debris. When we had our house in rural France the local zoning laws meant that you were not allowed to do them - despite this the other locals did and never seemed to get into any trouble for it.

What are your plans for this amazing space? Does the roof just need some patching or complete overhaul? Previously worked on sort the roof first and then fix what's below it, if the structure is sound. Your property looks generally robust, just needs time and effort.

 

[the lab]

Wow. So much potential in this.

I think I'd be starting with a clearance bonfire to get rid of some on the internal clutter and debris. When we had our house in rural France the local zoning laws meant that you were not allowed to do them - despite this the other locals did and never seemed to get into any trouble for it.

What are your plans for this amazing space? Does the roof just need some patching or complete overhaul? Previously worked on sort the roof first and then fix what's below it, if the structure is sound. Your property looks generally robust, just needs time and effort.

Thanks!

Over the next couple of weeks I will start with getting rid of unwanted junk.

The roof structure is ok and metal sheets are ok as well, but it is an old one and not built to today's standard. So I wanna add roof membrane and replace metal panels as well. Gonna start only with replacing roof over the garage part first.

 

[magnusk750]

Hi from neighbour in Estonia. That's a nice place. Be gentle to it and keep the atmosphere. If the steel roof is ok, keep it, can be painted. Old wood windows are also much better quality than anything you can buy today. Looks like they are restorable. Doors perhas too far gone, but can be kept outside for their cool looks and new doors installed inside.

 

[Wreckster23]

Just noticed the Canada sticker on the cabinet above. Odd seeing that there.. If those wall could talk, I'd listen for hours.

 

[the lab]

I've been quite busy lately, which has kept me from posting updates, but I promise to share more about the progress with the garage. I've been hard at work removing trash and unnecessary items from the building, and now I have so much more space to imagine what this place could become one day. It's exciting to think about the potential transformation! Stay tuned for more updates as we bring our vision to life.

P.S. Sorry for the format of photos. I added the white frame for posting on instagram.

 

[RoninB4]

Greetings from Southeast Tennessee. Your first photos of the building sparked me to see the potential in it, perhaps like you did. I'm looking forward to seeing your journey with all the steps. It's looking really good so far.

 

[the lab]

Some landscaping have been done around the garage, and the transformation is really starting to take shape! With the area cleared and spruced up, we now have so much more light, making everything look even better.

 

[the lab]

The back wall of the garage, facing the forest, was looking pretty rough, and I wasn't sure about the foundation underneath. So, I took the wall out, and good news—the foundation is solid! The new wall is going in soon. I have to admit, once the wall was out, I was tempted to put in a big glass wall to take in the forest view. But in the end, I decided to keep the original window size and stay true to the building's classic look.

 

[gearhead1]

This is great.

I’d love to have a service pit for working in cars - that’s excellent.

 

[RoninB4]

This is great.

I’d love to have a service pit for working in cars - that’s excellent.

-Yeah they're very handy until a snake crawls into one while you're in it.

 

[the lab]

This is great.

I’d love to have a service pit for working in cars - that’s excellent.

I will fill them before the new floor goes in. Planning to instal a lift in one of the garages.