A double garage build thread - but not a double garage!
Discussion
Here we go - a garage thread. Well, a double garage thread. But not a double garage.... two garages.
After all, why build one garage when you can build two??
One of the reasons we bought our forever home was the large plot of land it sits on and its suitability for a big garage.
As a temporary measure when we moved in I built a Compton concrete sectional garage to tide me over until planning permission, building regs, finances and time were all lined up ready to go. I expected it to be a few years before we were ready to build, with the expectation that we would build a big workshop and then replace the concrete sectional one with a "better" brick built one, so this was built to have a 5-year life-span.
As the garage was at the side of the house and blocked vehicular access to the rear garden, I specced it with front and rear doors.
Here it is back in 2017 all ready for service
I spent many a happy hour in there tinkering, wishing I had more space, wishing I had a 2 post lift etc..... but that was coming....
This space in the garden was earmarked:
and after a bit of clearing down looked like this:
The space is an odd shape - roughly triangular. I decided I could get a triple garage in width-wise without chewing up too much of the garden. Aligning it with the fence line on the left would mean that the left hand side would have room to be a tandem length. So basically I was looking at an L-shaped quad garage. This would leave quite a bit of dead space inside the L and behind the building, so filling in the "L" to make the building triangular and adding a room at the back for storage and a toilet made a lot of sense. Overall, the building would be 110m2
Easy to draw on paper, but more complicated to get my head round visually - so I made a model:
In late 2019 the planning came through - a small change with the dormers replaced by 2 x velux windows each side of the main front gable, and then for various reasons (building regs, ground surveys, tree protection stuff, work travel and finances) - we actually only started the build in 2021.
Whilst waiting, the first task was to replace the fence...
Next task was to demolish the Compton garage to allow machinery to get through - this will be rebuilt as a brick one attached to the house - hence the "double" garage build thread.
More to follow....
After all, why build one garage when you can build two??
One of the reasons we bought our forever home was the large plot of land it sits on and its suitability for a big garage.
As a temporary measure when we moved in I built a Compton concrete sectional garage to tide me over until planning permission, building regs, finances and time were all lined up ready to go. I expected it to be a few years before we were ready to build, with the expectation that we would build a big workshop and then replace the concrete sectional one with a "better" brick built one, so this was built to have a 5-year life-span.
As the garage was at the side of the house and blocked vehicular access to the rear garden, I specced it with front and rear doors.
Here it is back in 2017 all ready for service
I spent many a happy hour in there tinkering, wishing I had more space, wishing I had a 2 post lift etc..... but that was coming....
This space in the garden was earmarked:
and after a bit of clearing down looked like this:
The space is an odd shape - roughly triangular. I decided I could get a triple garage in width-wise without chewing up too much of the garden. Aligning it with the fence line on the left would mean that the left hand side would have room to be a tandem length. So basically I was looking at an L-shaped quad garage. This would leave quite a bit of dead space inside the L and behind the building, so filling in the "L" to make the building triangular and adding a room at the back for storage and a toilet made a lot of sense. Overall, the building would be 110m2
Easy to draw on paper, but more complicated to get my head round visually - so I made a model:
In late 2019 the planning came through - a small change with the dormers replaced by 2 x velux windows each side of the main front gable, and then for various reasons (building regs, ground surveys, tree protection stuff, work travel and finances) - we actually only started the build in 2021.
Whilst waiting, the first task was to replace the fence...
Next task was to demolish the Compton garage to allow machinery to get through - this will be rebuilt as a brick one attached to the house - hence the "double" garage build thread.
More to follow....
Edited by TriumphStag3.0V8 on Thursday 14th July 11:17
Edited by TriumphStag3.0V8 on Tuesday 19th July 16:19
SonicHedgeHog said:
I appreciate this is Pistonheads garage thread so please don’t take this the wrong way, but why do you need so much garage space? 110m2 plus your existing double garage is a huge amount of space.
I have a few old classics that I want to keep garaged at the house, plus tinkering space. I currently have 3 lock-ups and 3 sheds which will decanted into the new workshop. Existing garage is a single rather than a double (if that makes much difference), but will be replaced with a brick built variant.droopsnoot said:
I expect the existing sectional one will be going as it blocks vehicle access to the back area. While it has a door on the back, it does limit the size of vehicle that can get through it into the proper garage.
But, can't have too much garage space.
Correct - the doors are 2.4m wide which is tight with my trailer But, can't have too much garage space.
And also with the mirrors of larger cars, such as the Cayenne.
It will be replaced with a brick version on the same footprint but incorporating the passageway between the garage and the house, and will have 3m wide doors front and back which will make access much easier. This one will be used for parking of the toy (Merc SL or the Stag - depending on which one I am actively using)
SonicHedgeHog said:
No, he’s keeping it. The garden has huge potential as a garden. Seems a shame to build on it. Not a criticism and he can do what he likes with his property. I’d be building an amazing garden though and making do with my existing garage. That’s just me though. Good luck OP.
Thanks. Depends on your definition of an amazing garden I guess. We will still have about 1/4 acre after this is done - I'm not a gardening expert but will do a bit - I have landscaped one area though, planted a shrub bed around the boundary trees, still have a reasonably large lawn with an arched entrance to what will be a wildflower area where the woodstore is. When we bought the house, it had planning permission to build another house in the back garden, so in a way, we have saved the garden and kept it from overdevelopment to an extent.
Edited by TriumphStag3.0V8 on Thursday 14th July 22:33
So, it is Jan 2021 and the builders make a start. It is absolutely the worst time of year to start, but builders like being paid, and obviously if they are not building, they are being paid, so off they go.
It's freezing cold, it is wet, but we are off.
A change of plan at this point, and the builders decide to leave the old garage up now as they can use it as a site office and somewhere secure to store their stuff each evening.
Foundations get dug... 2.5m deep at the back.... Thanks building control!
And the fence gets shored up
And then we have 3 days of solid rain.
And the fence falls down.
I notice shortly afterwards. The other side of the fence is a public footpath, so I rapidly re-purpose the Heras fencing from the tree protection measures and make a new fence to prevent people walking along and falling into the 2m deep trench full of water. Then put some posts and tape down to keep people away from the heras fencing, then put some lights on it to make it more obvious.
I'm pleased with myself.
Then it rains some more.
And then all that falls down as well.
So the builders get called out on the weekend to sort it out properly and shore it all up. For the next couple of weeks, there is so much water around it is unbelievable. My mornings consisted of getting out there at 7am to start the pumps to get the water out of the trenches in order for the builders to be able to work when they arrive at 8 each morning.
I'm beginning at this point to regret starting the work. There is mud everywhere. Lots of mud.
And I begin to contemplate the benefits of a water feature.
Work is abandoned until the weather improves.......
It's freezing cold, it is wet, but we are off.
A change of plan at this point, and the builders decide to leave the old garage up now as they can use it as a site office and somewhere secure to store their stuff each evening.
Foundations get dug... 2.5m deep at the back.... Thanks building control!
And the fence gets shored up
And then we have 3 days of solid rain.
And the fence falls down.
I notice shortly afterwards. The other side of the fence is a public footpath, so I rapidly re-purpose the Heras fencing from the tree protection measures and make a new fence to prevent people walking along and falling into the 2m deep trench full of water. Then put some posts and tape down to keep people away from the heras fencing, then put some lights on it to make it more obvious.
I'm pleased with myself.
Then it rains some more.
And then all that falls down as well.
So the builders get called out on the weekend to sort it out properly and shore it all up. For the next couple of weeks, there is so much water around it is unbelievable. My mornings consisted of getting out there at 7am to start the pumps to get the water out of the trenches in order for the builders to be able to work when they arrive at 8 each morning.
I'm beginning at this point to regret starting the work. There is mud everywhere. Lots of mud.
And I begin to contemplate the benefits of a water feature.
Work is abandoned until the weather improves.......
But, the weather improves. Some MOT gets put down to reduce the mud
And the footings get poured
Things are starting to look up. Some foundation blocks are next
and filled with hardcore for the sub-base
And I step outside to find the builders like this
I decide it is best not to ask, take a photo and wander off.
And the footings get poured
Things are starting to look up. Some foundation blocks are next
and filled with hardcore for the sub-base
And I step outside to find the builders like this
I decide it is best not to ask, take a photo and wander off.
Edited by TriumphStag3.0V8 on Thursday 14th July 23:20
We are now into late February and the worst of the water is gone (thank god) but the mess ingrained everywhere will take some time to clean up.
The deepest area of foundations at the back is now dry
and the walls are started. The walls are thermalite block, which will be rendered on the outside and insulated plasterboard on the inside
And for the first time I get a real feel for the size of it
The deepest area of foundations at the back is now dry
and the walls are started. The walls are thermalite block, which will be rendered on the outside and insulated plasterboard on the inside
And for the first time I get a real feel for the size of it
mikeiow said:
This looks entertaining!
What an awful start by the Rain Gods. Your builders really wanted to earn money!
The rooflines look….interesting. A lot of gulleys. I imagine it all turned out fine in the end: watching with interest!
Yes, it was terrible. It was lockdown at the time - builders were still allowed to work, but there weren't many jobs around at the the time, and this one was fully outdoors so they were keen. What an awful start by the Rain Gods. Your builders really wanted to earn money!
The rooflines look….interesting. A lot of gulleys. I imagine it all turned out fine in the end: watching with interest!
You are right about the roof. I won't put any spoilers out yet though!
Pitre said:
jfdi said:
Come on get on with it 
. Massive garage envy.
Is that massive envy of his garage, or envy of his massive garage? . Massive garage envy.
In all seriousness though, this is costing a lot of money (added onto the mortgage) so no point in getting something that is too small :-)
The piers at the front get built
Toilet/storeroom at the back gets started
It's now mid-march, and the first set of scaffolding goes up
and the walls continue rapidly upwards
And by the end of March, the walls are predominantly complete
And this is where the first of the Covid supply-chain issues hits. The next job is to errect (fnarr fnarr) the steelwork to support the roof structure. The builder tells me he has been let down by his supplier and needs to find another one.
When he does find another one, the supplier is not happy with the connection drawings supplied by the structural engineer. So the builder engages a man with a laser scanner to come in and scan the building and give accurate measurements for the steels.
So now, not much I can do but sit and wait.
Toilet/storeroom at the back gets started
It's now mid-march, and the first set of scaffolding goes up
and the walls continue rapidly upwards
And by the end of March, the walls are predominantly complete
And this is where the first of the Covid supply-chain issues hits. The next job is to errect (fnarr fnarr) the steelwork to support the roof structure. The builder tells me he has been let down by his supplier and needs to find another one.
When he does find another one, the supplier is not happy with the connection drawings supplied by the structural engineer. So the builder engages a man with a laser scanner to come in and scan the building and give accurate measurements for the steels.
So now, not much I can do but sit and wait.
RichB said:
How will you render the outside of the block up against the fence, will you remove the fence panels one by one, render and then replace?
Exactly that, there is actually a 1ft gap between the building and the fence, so lifting the panels out gives plenty of room to access from the footpath the other side. More to come on that :-)Once all done, the panels were secured back into the posts with screws to stop any ner-do-wells from simply lifting the fence to get into the garden.
abzmike said:
Looks a great project - One question though, how will access work? Is the space left enough for the turning and moving space you'll need at the front of the building?
The workshop building is 11m wide at the front, and there will be a paved drive from there to the back of the "small" garage at the side of the house - basically the mud outline in the last picture. It will taper down to just over a car's width when it gets there, but at the workshop it is 11m wide, so there is room for three-point turns if needed. Also, it is possible to reverse all the way to the front and then turn there as the front is a large block paved area.
Whilst the driveway between the two garages is obviously predominantly for moving cars into the workshop I don't intend to park there so it will double up as a large flat, clean area for kids to ride their bikes etc. I don't expect vehicles in the garage to be in and out very often. That's what the side garage is for.
RicksAlfas said:
If I had a garage that big with running water and a loo, I'd never go in the house!
Looks great OP. I also like the original "tunnel" garage too.
Me too, and if I am honest, that is probably one of the reasons Mrs Stag was happy for me to build it Looks great OP. I also like the original "tunnel" garage too.
paulrockliffe said:
Great thread, looking forward to it. Two questions; why didn't you build right up to the boundary and will it be uninsulated when it's finished?
I thought I had built it up to the boundary it is only a ft/30 cm from the fence and with the foundations really couldn't get any closer. I did not want to have the wall of the garage as the boundary as I wanted to keep the fenceline along the alleyway.It will be insulated.
nunpuncher said:
My newly built sectional double+ looks pathetic next to this.
11m across at the front, what's the depth? And is the bay on the far left going to be deep enough to get anything more than a smart for2 in?
Interested to see how it pans out as like myself, it sounds like you actually like to get oily in your garage unlike the usual PistonHeads operating theatre garage.
11m across at the front, what's the depth? And is the bay on the far left going to be deep enough to get anything more than a smart for2 in?
Interested to see how it pans out as like myself, it sounds like you actually like to get oily in your garage unlike the usual PistonHeads operating theatre garage.
a double is still good, especially if you use it. Before building this I would have been well happy with a double. Depth wise, the main garage area is also 11m, the toilet/storage room at the back adds another 2.5m - taking it to 13.5m deep on that side. The smallest bay at the front is actually 5m deep so should still be useable for a decent sized car.
And yes, I do get oily (see my Rover thread for examples) - but once it is all done I am going to * try * to keep it clean and tidy
Edited by TriumphStag3.0V8 on Friday 15th July 13:40
It's now the middle of May and some steelwork arrives. After several weeks of nothing obvious happening, it is good to see things moving again.
The structural engineer had designed the roof with 3 piers, which is what building control then signed off, so is what we had to build.
In the above pic, the scaffolders have come back, and installed a raised floor so that work on the roof can commence
At this point the next Covid supply chain issue hits.... "Can't get the wood for the roof."
What I suspect he meant was "Can't get the wood for the roof for the amount I want to pay for it, and I have another job to go to, bye"
So I spend some time up there over the next couple of weeks putting red oxide on the bits they missed whilst I waited...
The structural engineer had designed the roof with 3 piers, which is what building control then signed off, so is what we had to build.
In the above pic, the scaffolders have come back, and installed a raised floor so that work on the roof can commence
At this point the next Covid supply chain issue hits.... "Can't get the wood for the roof."
What I suspect he meant was "Can't get the wood for the roof for the amount I want to pay for it, and I have another job to go to, bye"
So I spend some time up there over the next couple of weeks putting red oxide on the bits they missed whilst I waited...
Taking a break from working on the Rover (it is hot out there) so thought I would write the next installment.
Weeks pass (We are now into July) and some wood turns up. 2 lorry-loads, just unloading that and taking it to the garage took the labourers most of the day.
Followed (the next day) by some chippies. They look at the steel frame, swear, look at the plans, swear some more, ask to see the model, look at that, look at each other, then look at their van and contemplate going home.
Fortunately they then look at the building and say (direct quote) "No f
king architect has beaten us yet" and up the scaffolding they go.
Wall plates go on, as well as an outline around the steels
By the end of day 1, all of the steel framing and wall plates are in.
By the end of day 2, we have most of the front elevation
And in a masterpiece of forward planning which I was unsure that my builder was capable of, some roof tiles have arrived (See pic above).
Day 3 and the long side is pretty much done
Things now slow down and the amount of swearing increases as they start to get to grips with the "flat" roof section at the back.
I say "flat" as it still has a decent slope to it, but not enough to be tiled. This will be done with one of those fancy new rubber roof membranes.
From inside, it is an impressive sight:
At this point the chippies are looking quite pleased with themselves and finish off by putting on the barge boards and soffits.
It has taken them two weeks to do the roof structure, which I felt at the time was pretty impressive (and still do).
Excellent. Roof timbers are on, and we have the tiles, so now the roofers can come and put a roof on it, right? right? Well, no apparently. Due to how long it has taken to get the wood, the roofers are now off on another (massive allegedly) job and we will have to wait for them to finish that.
More waiting around..... We are now approaching 3 months past the original completion date ho humm
Weeks pass (We are now into July) and some wood turns up. 2 lorry-loads
, just unloading that and taking it to the garage took the labourers most of the day.Followed (the next day) by some chippies. They look at the steel frame, swear, look at the plans, swear some more, ask to see the model, look at that, look at each other, then look at their van and contemplate going home.
Fortunately they then look at the building and say (direct quote) "No f
king architect has beaten us yet" and up the scaffolding they go. Wall plates go on, as well as an outline around the steels
By the end of day 1, all of the steel framing and wall plates are in.
By the end of day 2, we have most of the front elevation
And in a masterpiece of forward planning which I was unsure that my builder was capable of, some roof tiles have arrived (See pic above).
Day 3 and the long side is pretty much done
Things now slow down and the amount of swearing increases as they start to get to grips with the "flat" roof section at the back.
I say "flat" as it still has a decent slope to it, but not enough to be tiled. This will be done with one of those fancy new rubber roof membranes.
From inside, it is an impressive sight:
At this point the chippies are looking quite pleased with themselves and finish off by putting on the barge boards and soffits.
It has taken them two weeks to do the roof structure, which I felt at the time was pretty impressive (and still do).
Excellent. Roof timbers are on, and we have the tiles, so now the roofers can come and put a roof on it, right? right? Well, no apparently. Due to how long it has taken to get the wood, the roofers are now off on another (massive allegedly) job and we will have to wait for them to finish that.
More waiting around..... We are now approaching 3 months past the original completion date
ho hummEdited by TriumphStag3.0V8 on Saturday 16th July 13:53
bobtail4x4 said:
I said the chippies would hate it,
architects draw pretty plans but often they are unbuildable.
architects draw pretty plans but often they are unbuildable.
In all fairness to them, they were pretty happy all the time they were doing it. They both seemed to love what they were doing and did it quick. Fair play to them. Promised Land said:
Been putting roofs on all my life, on big projects like apartments the drawing can just have sections with a cloud drawn and inside it says ‘cut roof’, we have had that before. National house builder as well.
Oddly enough the site manager/ contracts managers stay out of your way then as they have not got a scooby unless they had a joinery background and you just cut the roof how you’d expect it and so the roofer can tile it.
put roof here Oddly enough the site manager/ contracts managers stay out of your way then as they have not got a scooby unless they had a joinery background and you just cut the roof how you’d expect it and so the roofer can tile it.
Promised Land said:
Cracking garage build though.
Thanks A month has passed and we are now towards the back end of August. Nothing has happened, so I go and buy a Mini Cooper to cheer myself up.
(needed to scratch the itch as I cannot rebuild the engine on my Cooper S until the sodding garage is built....)
Then I get an email from the builder saying "we will be with you tomorrow"
They turn up as promised. The roofers ask the builder where the membrane and battens are..... FFS...
Off he goes to get some, whilst the roofers start unpacking the tiles from the pallets and taking them up the scaffolding.
Couple of hours later, the builder returns with some battens and a few rolls of membrane - several different rolls, making it look like a patchwork quilt, but then again, won't be able to see it when it is all done.
Whilst I was up there taking photos... I noted the six months growth back here....
And the fact they still haven't replaced the fence...
The roofers crack on though...
Velux windows go in
Ha ha - good luck chaps
"No problem" they say....
We have a roof. Finally, the building is watertight (according to the stage payment invoice), well apart from the three big holes at the front, where doors should be, the two big holes at the side where there should be a door and a window and the other two holes at the back where there should be another door and a window, but yes, water-tight, sort of
and with that, the external scaffolding can come down
(needed to scratch the itch as I cannot rebuild the engine on my Cooper S until the sodding garage is built....)
Then I get an email from the builder saying "we will be with you tomorrow"
They turn up as promised. The roofers ask the builder where the membrane and battens are..... FFS...
Off he goes to get some, whilst the roofers start unpacking the tiles from the pallets and taking them up the scaffolding.
Couple of hours later, the builder returns with some battens and a few rolls of membrane - several different rolls, making it look like a patchwork quilt, but then again, won't be able to see it when it is all done.
Whilst I was up there taking photos... I noted the six months growth back here....
And the fact they still haven't replaced the fence...
The roofers crack on though...
Velux windows go in
Ha ha - good luck chaps
"No problem" they say....
We have a roof. Finally, the building is watertight (according to the stage payment invoice), well apart from the three big holes at the front, where doors should be, the two big holes at the side where there should be a door and a window and the other two holes at the back where there should be another door and a window, but yes, water-tight, sort of
and with that, the external scaffolding can come down
Edited by TriumphStag3.0V8 on Sunday 17th July 21:47
Next up, the electricians come and do the first fix electrics. Takes them 2 days and for some reason I start thinking that we are on a roll. This was stupid of me, because we weren't.
After the electricians left, nothing happened for two and a half months!!!!! TWO AND A HALF MONTHS!!!!!
Well, I say nothing happened.
My truck blew its radiator
Then the mini blew the most difficult to get to coolant hose it had
Then someone crashed into the back of my brother's car (according to the insurance company that is £2,500 worth of damage)
(Honestly I am starting to think at this point that the builder may have made a voodoo doll)
Next, My friend bought a very small tractor
And I planned a ski trip for January to cheer myself up.
After the electricians left, nothing happened for two and a half months!!!!! TWO AND A HALF MONTHS!!!!!
Well, I say nothing happened.
My truck blew its radiator
Then the mini blew the most difficult to get to coolant hose it had
Then someone crashed into the back of my brother's car (according to the insurance company that is £2,500 worth of damage)
(Honestly I am starting to think at this point that the builder may have made a voodoo doll)
Next, My friend bought a very small tractor
And I planned a ski trip for January to cheer myself up.
Edited by TriumphStag3.0V8 on Monday 18th July 11:53
mikeiow said:
Heh heh!
Ski trips are always good to plan ????
Indeed Ski trips are always good to plan ????
- Almost as much fun as going on them!Quhet said:
Excellent build, really enjoying following the progress of this. Without wanting any detailed spoilers assume you're in and tinkering now with it all done?
I would like to tell you..... but.......mikeiow said:
Hey: no spoilers, it’s all about the journey!!
eltax91 said:
With all that trailer manoeuvring through a garage and around some tight spots, you need one of these. Game changer!
Ah yes, front towbar. Very good for this kind of thing. Not sure i can fit one to the front of a Cayenne though 
I actually fitted caravan mover motors to the trailer so it is now a giant (very slow) remote control toy :-)eltax91 said:
TriumphStag3.0V8 said:
eltax91 said:
With all that trailer manoeuvring through a garage and around some tight spots, you need one of these. Game changer!
Ah yes, front towbar. Very good for this kind of thing. Not sure i can fit one to the front of a Cayenne though I actually fitted caravan mover motors to the trailer so it is now a giant (very slow) remote control toy :-)Gassing Station | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff