Garage for my TVR - Specification
Discussion
When we moved house last year one of the requirements was a good sized garage for the Tamora. So we bought a house with no garage and it has been staying in a friend's garage nearby.
We now have planning permission for an extension with a 6m x 4m (internal dimensions) garage on the ground floor and a room the same size above. Hopefully 4m wide makes it a good single for a relatively small car, I don't have much scope to change that now and it fits the plot ok. I don't need to store much in there other than the TVR.
As we are about to do the detailed design / specification, I would appreciate people's thoughts on what the garage should be equipped with. I am only doing this once so would like to do it properly.
I thought about a pit that would allow me to do a bit more work on the car. Some companies make drop-in pits, but I think we have a high water table and they could pop-up. Also, I am not sure I am going to get into any serious work, that is what TVR specialsts are for. Hopefully 4m wide gives me enough room to get all 4 wheels off and do some smaller jobs. Where it is currently stored I can only check tyre pressures on one side without getting the car out.
You can get some very compact scissor lifts that come up out of the floor, but the garage ceiling is going to be at normal height (and there is the sectional door) so I wouldn't be able to get the car very high - although a lot higher than axle stands. Any experience of these lifts? Might it be worth considering one?
The garage should be built to the same wall insulation standards as the room above (so quite cosy), one double glazed window, and I would like a sectional garage door that is close to 3m wide to make access easier as I will be driving in at an angle.
Hormann due some doors that look good and are 46mm thick insulated ( link) - Any thoughts on these?
It would be useful to have a remote control and motor for easy drive in / out.
I think there should be some heating in there - I could add it to the central heating system with a radiator, which seems excessive, or have an electric heater to keep the room a little warmer in winter.
Could also have a dehumidifier. I worry when putting the car back in a garage when it is wet since the dampness is likely to linger. Any advice?
Flooring - some sort of tiles rather than bare concrete?
Walls / ceiling - Might as well plaster and paint as I will be doing with the room above.
Anything I have missed?
Thanks in advance for any help, I want to get this built next year and am looking forward to having the car home where it can get a bit more use.
We now have planning permission for an extension with a 6m x 4m (internal dimensions) garage on the ground floor and a room the same size above. Hopefully 4m wide makes it a good single for a relatively small car, I don't have much scope to change that now and it fits the plot ok. I don't need to store much in there other than the TVR.
As we are about to do the detailed design / specification, I would appreciate people's thoughts on what the garage should be equipped with. I am only doing this once so would like to do it properly.
I thought about a pit that would allow me to do a bit more work on the car. Some companies make drop-in pits, but I think we have a high water table and they could pop-up. Also, I am not sure I am going to get into any serious work, that is what TVR specialsts are for. Hopefully 4m wide gives me enough room to get all 4 wheels off and do some smaller jobs. Where it is currently stored I can only check tyre pressures on one side without getting the car out.
You can get some very compact scissor lifts that come up out of the floor, but the garage ceiling is going to be at normal height (and there is the sectional door) so I wouldn't be able to get the car very high - although a lot higher than axle stands. Any experience of these lifts? Might it be worth considering one?
The garage should be built to the same wall insulation standards as the room above (so quite cosy), one double glazed window, and I would like a sectional garage door that is close to 3m wide to make access easier as I will be driving in at an angle.
Hormann due some doors that look good and are 46mm thick insulated ( link) - Any thoughts on these?
It would be useful to have a remote control and motor for easy drive in / out.
I think there should be some heating in there - I could add it to the central heating system with a radiator, which seems excessive, or have an electric heater to keep the room a little warmer in winter.
Could also have a dehumidifier. I worry when putting the car back in a garage when it is wet since the dampness is likely to linger. Any advice?
Flooring - some sort of tiles rather than bare concrete?
Walls / ceiling - Might as well plaster and paint as I will be doing with the room above.
Anything I have missed?
Thanks in advance for any help, I want to get this built next year and am looking forward to having the car home where it can get a bit more use.
Thanks for the replies.
How big is a 1.5x garage?
In one of the pictures I saw a hint of a lift, but nothing that showed it in context. What is the ceiling height like?
Is the type of lift below what you have? Seem to vary by design as to whether you would have access to the centre of the car.
or
If the ceiling height in the new room is like the other downstairs rooms then it is 2.3m. Lifting in the manner that these lifts work (between the wheels) means that you could get a T car ~ 1.2m off the ground at most before there is an unpleasant crunching noise.
m4tti said:
I did a complete engine out and rebuild in a garage which is probably a single and a half. There's a link on my profile. There may be pics of the car on the ramp. The garage is integral and you can quite comfortably sit under the car while working.
Thread read, good skills - that is a little beyond the type of work I might try.How big is a 1.5x garage?
In one of the pictures I saw a hint of a lift, but nothing that showed it in context. What is the ceiling height like?
Is the type of lift below what you have? Seem to vary by design as to whether you would have access to the centre of the car.
or
If the ceiling height in the new room is like the other downstairs rooms then it is 2.3m. Lifting in the manner that these lifts work (between the wheels) means that you could get a T car ~ 1.2m off the ground at most before there is an unpleasant crunching noise.
pjac67 said:
I knew someone would have been here before, but my searching had missed that one.- Some good ideas in there, especially regarding flooring.
- I was just planning some units at the end, making use of the 6m length with a 4m car, leaving the sides free for access.
- The wide door seems to be covered, and the ones I am looking at are insulated and should be well sealed.
- CAT5 - Good idea, and a surplus of sokcets and lights.
- I would have thought it better to be an additional zone off the house alarm system rather than a separate alarm. Not sure of the logic here.
- Heat and smoke detector is a good idea, and a proper fire extinguisher to hand.
- Shame I can't build 10m x 10, but I will have to make do.
- If I want to run a dehumidifier then drainage would be useful. No need for a sink as there is a bathroon off the adjoining room to the garage.
Plenty of power sockets especially one in easy reach for an Accumate or similiar.
Good fluorescent tube lighting.
For flooring I used http://www.rubberco.co.uk/rubber-flooring-rolls-c-...
I will be using interlocking tiles in my new garage.
Make sure there is a ACO drain across the front of the garage.
Water tap.
Good fluorescent tube lighting.
For flooring I used http://www.rubberco.co.uk/rubber-flooring-rolls-c-...
I will be using interlocking tiles in my new garage.
Make sure there is a ACO drain across the front of the garage.
Water tap.
Edited by glow worm on Tuesday 9th December 08:40
I wouldn't bother with any heating or a dehumidifier; I've always ensured a small amount of ventilation at the front (around the door) and at the rear (eaves/window/door) and my cars have dried out fairly quickly with no tools or cars rusting in the garage.
That lift with the yellow 911 looks good. Don't forget the 75mm of Celotex or Kingspan in the ceiling and under the floor slab (and an in round the edge of the floor slab.)
Think about services coming in to the building and cast plenty of ducts in the garage slab.
That lift with the yellow 911 looks good. Don't forget the 75mm of Celotex or Kingspan in the ceiling and under the floor slab (and an in round the edge of the floor slab.)
Think about services coming in to the building and cast plenty of ducts in the garage slab.
Sevenman said:
I knew someone would have been here before, but my searching had missed that one.
Couldn't find a decent pic of mine at the moment but this is the identical ramp with the same height garage. The centre of the ramp is clear. This pic is take from the thread I started before I bought mine.- Some good ideas in there, especially regarding flooring.
- I was just planning some units at the end, making use of the 6m length with a 4m car, leaving the sides free for access.
- The wide door seems to be covered, and the ones I am looking at are insulated and should be well sealed.
- CAT5 - Good idea, and a surplus of sokcets and lights.
- I would have thought it better to be an additional zone off the house alarm system rather than a separate alarm. Not sure of the logic here.
- Heat and smoke detector is a good idea, and a proper fire extinguisher to hand.
- Shame I can't build 10m x 10, but I will have to make do.
- If I want to run a dehumidifier then drainage would be useful. No need for a sink as there is a bathroon off the adjoining room to the garage.
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
m4tti said:
The only issue with that type of lift is you lose the ability to remove the exhaust, rear under tray, prop, gearbox etc. They're popular in Porsche circles as everything is largely contained in the rear. But is very much dependent on what you want to do long term.
That is true Matt. But i like my type due to its (relatively) compact size, and can be moved fairly easily. And lets face it any of these contraptions are pure luxury compared to jacks and axle stands 
Sandy
Thanks for the further replies, seems like a few people use that type of lift to do more than you can with axle stands and hopefully can some some useful elevation before the car is crushed into the ceiling in an expensive manner.
May be worth be getting the floor designed with that fairly centrally, slab may need to be a bit deeper to support it, especially if I have it in-set rather than on top.
There is already a water tap outside a few metres away from where the garage door will be, and a bathroom a few metres away through the planned internal door into the house.
ACO Drain - Just looked that up. Yes, don't want any risk of water running in, will get driveway done as well and make sure the slope is appropriate. At the moment there is such a poor interface between drive and road with a nasty dip that I don't think there is a way to get the Tam on without destroying the front splitter.
But making it easy to heat will involve limited ventilation, hence the dehumidifier. Old garage was unheated and things in it seemed to stay in good condition.
75mm Celotex / Kingspan - Is that for insulation or fire resistance? On an insulation front, is that to help keep the room above warm if the garage is cold? As otherwise this is an internal ceiling with room above so wouldn't have thought it would be insulated to a very high level.
If I wanted to do some work at home and component changes (not those above), it should make it easier.
May be worth be getting the floor designed with that fairly centrally, slab may need to be a bit deeper to support it, especially if I have it in-set rather than on top.
glow worm said:
For flooring I used http://www.rubberco.co.uk/rubber-flooring-rolls-c-...
I will be using interlocking tiles in my new garage.
Make sure there is a ACO drain across the front of the garage.
Water tap.
Those tiles look quite tidy. I will be using interlocking tiles in my new garage.
Make sure there is a ACO drain across the front of the garage.
Water tap.
There is already a water tap outside a few metres away from where the garage door will be, and a bathroom a few metres away through the planned internal door into the house.
ACO Drain - Just looked that up. Yes, don't want any risk of water running in, will get driveway done as well and make sure the slope is appropriate. At the moment there is such a poor interface between drive and road with a nasty dip that I don't think there is a way to get the Tam on without destroying the front splitter.
seeby said:
Don't forget the beer fridge 
Good thought, but the beer fridge is only 10m away from where the internal door will be, so the exercise will do me good...TA14 said:
I wouldn't bother with any heating or a dehumidifier; I've always ensured a small amount of ventilation at the front (around the door) and at the rear (eaves/window/door) and my cars have dried out fairly quickly with no tools or cars rusting in the garage.
That lift with the yellow 911 looks good. Don't forget the 75mm of Celotex or Kingspan in the ceiling and under the floor slab (and an in round the edge of the floor slab.)
Think about services coming in to the building and cast plenty of ducts in the garage slab.
Heating seems to make sense and should be inexpensive to fit at the build stage - take the edge of very cold winter starts and make a more pleasant environment if I am working there in the winter. That lift with the yellow 911 looks good. Don't forget the 75mm of Celotex or Kingspan in the ceiling and under the floor slab (and an in round the edge of the floor slab.)
Think about services coming in to the building and cast plenty of ducts in the garage slab.
But making it easy to heat will involve limited ventilation, hence the dehumidifier. Old garage was unheated and things in it seemed to stay in good condition.
75mm Celotex / Kingspan - Is that for insulation or fire resistance? On an insulation front, is that to help keep the room above warm if the garage is cold? As otherwise this is an internal ceiling with room above so wouldn't have thought it would be insulated to a very high level.
m4tti said:
The only issue with that type of lift is you lose the ability to remove the exhaust, rear under tray, prop, gearbox etc. They're popular in Porsche circles as everything is largely contained in the rear. But is very much dependent on what you want to do long term.
Indeed, but there is no way I am getting a 2 / 4 post lift in there. If I think I will get some use out of one of these lifts, then it makes sense and hopefully will have no impact on space when lowered.If I wanted to do some work at home and component changes (not those above), it should make it easier.
Sevenman said:
75mm Celotex / Kingspan - Is that for insulation or fire resistance? On an insulation front, is that to help keep the room above warm if the garage is cold? As otherwise this is an internal ceiling with room above so wouldn't have thought it would be insulated to a very high level.
C/K is for insulation. For the room above, yes to keep it warm, I think it's building regs. for the slab it makes quite a difference if you're in there when it's cold outside and is very easy and cheap to do when you're building. Fire protection is 15mm of a fire board: http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/uploads/br/BR_PDF... p32 and http://www.british-gypsum.com/products?cat=fire&am...You will be required to have a fire rated ceiling between the garage and the room above and dependant on your building control officer 200mm of fibreglass between the 1st floor/garage ceiling joists
On a lift front I have fitted a low ceiling 2 post lift posts sit at 2100mm H and are hydraulic so nothing across the floor £1640 on the bay, leaves the complete underside of the car clear, fantastic for wheels off, chassis maint etc, you would only need to slightly thicken the slab where the posts bolt down by far the best tool I have ever bought
Rich
On a lift front I have fitted a low ceiling 2 post lift posts sit at 2100mm H and are hydraulic so nothing across the floor £1640 on the bay, leaves the complete underside of the car clear, fantastic for wheels off, chassis maint etc, you would only need to slightly thicken the slab where the posts bolt down by far the best tool I have ever bought
Rich
sheel said:
You will be required to have a fire rated ceiling between the garage and the room above and dependant on your building control officer 200mm of fibreglass between the 1st floor/garage ceiling joists
You can do that but then you get 8" deep joists which you may not want. The alternative is what I posted above.TA14 said:
You can do that but then you get 8" deep joists which you may not want. The alternative is what I posted above.
Dependant on the span, and the op says 4mts, rule of thumb would be half the span +2 which in old money 4mts abt 12ft so rough joist size is going to be 8" My lift sits in a 4.2 mt wide tent which is giving way to a new garage starting 2nd Jan, the tent has tapered sides so the bases of the lift sit 250mm from the side walls, Chimera fits on the lift with enough space to walk by
Rich
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