Garage build - what to include
Discussion
An easy roof to construct if your not going too overboard in size is to have a RSJ running from gable to gable, your roof timbers go from the wall plate up and over the RSJ at ridge position and bolt together with the coresponding timber on the other side thus forming a natural triangle (they literally "hang" on the RSJ,) you would need to fix a timber plate to the top side of the steel to spike the joists into. Using this method you do not need any ceiling rafters thus giving you max clear headroom. I have done a couple like this with spans over 7mts. You would need a structural engineer to produce a calc for this design, as a plus point,provided your engineer factored it in you could have a traversing trolley mounted on the lower flanges of the beam for engine lifts etc.
My garage is going to have this design when I have taken the planners to appeal!!!!!!!
My garage is going to have this design when I have taken the planners to appeal!!!!!!!
sheel said:
An easy roof to construct if your not going too overboard in size is to have a RSJ running from gable to gable, your roof timbers go from the wall plate up and over the RSJ at ridge position and bolt together with the coresponding timber on the other side thus forming a natural triangle (they literally "hang" on the RSJ,) you would need to fix a timber plate to the top side of the steel to spike the joists into. Using this method you do not need any ceiling rafters thus giving you max clear headroom. I have done a couple like this with spans over 7mts. You would need a structural engineer to produce a calc for this design, as a plus point,provided your engineer factored it in you could have a traversing trolley mounted on the lower flanges of the beam for engine lifts etc.
My garage is going to have this design when I have taken the planners to appeal!!!!!!!
interesting concept i can see the advantages, doesnt the roof feed a "spreading" load into the walls tending to force them outwards? You can put a tie bar at the ends but there will be nothing to react it in the middle. I imagine this must be within limits if the structural engineer did their sums and OKed it.My garage is going to have this design when I have taken the planners to appeal!!!!!!!
taylormj4 said:
Now that's very useful to know. I have been wondering about whether to change to a double width door. Pros are as you said but cons are that when you open the door, the whole garage is on show and leaves etc blow right into the lot. Still can't decide.
I'd definitely have a double width door if it's a choice. The brick pillar is a right royal PITA.interesting concept i can see the advantages, doesnt the roof feed a "spreading" load into the walls tending to force them outwards? You can put a tie bar at the ends but there will be nothing to react it in the middle. I imagine this must be within limits if the structural engineer did their sums and OKed it.
If you birdsmouth the ends of the roof timbers onto the wall plates there could be a slight possibility of it trying to spread the centre sections of the walls, this would be deflection in the beam and would become evident when it was loaded with tiles, the engineer could factor this in, you could also avoid the birdsmouth and just spike to the wall plate, this would allow for any possible movement, the ones I have done previously had no problems
Richard
If you birdsmouth the ends of the roof timbers onto the wall plates there could be a slight possibility of it trying to spread the centre sections of the walls, this would be deflection in the beam and would become evident when it was loaded with tiles, the engineer could factor this in, you could also avoid the birdsmouth and just spike to the wall plate, this would allow for any possible movement, the ones I have done previously had no problems
Richard
sheel said:
An easy roof to construct if your not going too overboard in size is to have a RSJ running from gable to gable, your roof timbers go from the wall plate up and over the RSJ at ridge position and bolt together with the coresponding timber on the other side thus forming a natural triangle (they literally "hang" on the RSJ,) you would need to fix a timber plate to the top side of the steel to spike the joists into. Using this method you do not need any ceiling rafters thus giving you max clear headroom. I have done a couple like this with spans over 7mts. You would need a structural engineer to produce a calc for this design, as a plus point,provided your engineer factored it in you could have a traversing trolley mounted on the lower flanges of the beam for engine lifts etc.
My garage is going to have this design when I have taken the planners to appeal!!!!!!!
Nice design. Unfortunately, I've gone for a pyramid roof design so it's going to need to be more complex I guess. I was also worried about pushing the single-skin walls out as discussed above. Was thinking on a steel pyramid structure held at its base by a square of steels that sat on top of the wall and prevent the pyramid from spreading. Would that work ?My garage is going to have this design when I have taken the planners to appeal!!!!!!!
Presume it would need to be independently designed and fabricated on site - sounds expensive !
Good luck with your appeal....don't give up!
Great pics guys, some lovely designs and garages there!
Built ours a couple of years ago on a much smaller scale (single+ sized as we were limited in space).
Built ours a couple of years ago on a much smaller scale (single+ sized as we were limited in space).
- I went for an electric insulated roller door - well worth the money
- I used dynotile on the floor which is nicer to work on than epoxy/paint
- if you're not going to board the walls (I didn't as it cut into space) then paint the walls white for extra light reflection
- I'm using a greenhouse tubular heater on a thermostat to keep the chill off
- You can't have enough 13A sockets or lights!
- When you're putting the wiring through, go for overkill: I have a phone line and 2x CAT5 cables going through
NiceCupOfTea said:
Great pics guys, some lovely designs and garages there!
Built ours a couple of years ago on a much smaller scale (single+ sized as we were limited in space).
Phoneline....hadn't thought of that. Might be worth it, although I'd rather use a wireless phone linked to the house so that I can intercom when I want a cup of tea !Built ours a couple of years ago on a much smaller scale (single+ sized as we were limited in space).
- I went for an electric insulated roller door - well worth the money
- I used dynotile on the floor which is nicer to work on than epoxy/paint
- if you're not going to board the walls (I didn't as it cut into space) then paint the walls white for extra light reflection
- I'm using a greenhouse tubular heater on a thermostat to keep the chill off
- You can't have enough 13A sockets or lights!
- When you're putting the wiring through, go for overkill: I have a phone line and 2x CAT5 cables going through
Not sure on the auto-thermostat heating. Lots of you seem to have this. Is it important to keep a garage warm / above freezing for some reason even when you're not working in there. Must cost a few bucks in heating bills ?
taylormj4 said:
Phoneline....hadn't thought of that. Might be worth it, although I'd rather use a wireless phone linked to the house so that I can intercom when I want a cup of tea !
Not sure on the auto-thermostat heating. Lots of you seem to have this. Is it important to keep a garage warm / above freezing for some reason even when you're not working in there. Must cost a few bucks in heating bills ?
I have a phone line in mine pretty handy as i seem to take most of my call out there for what ever reason Not sure on the auto-thermostat heating. Lots of you seem to have this. Is it important to keep a garage warm / above freezing for some reason even when you're not working in there. Must cost a few bucks in heating bills ?
I have no heating in mine apart from a gas heater for when i am working out there. It's ok and cheap to run it heats the place up in 5 minutes then i switch it of until i feel the need to fire it back up.
What i do have is a Dehumidifier in mine much cheaper to run than heating and keeps all my tools and car tip top from moisture the big killer.
taylormj4 said:
Phoneline....hadn't thought of that. Might be worth it, although I'd rather use a wireless phone linked to the house so that I can intercom when I want a cup of tea !
Not sure on the auto-thermostat heating. Lots of you seem to have this. Is it important to keep a garage warm / above freezing for some reason even when you're not working in there. Must cost a few bucks in heating bills ?
I wasn't going to bother with the phone line - it was the builder's idea as he had a roll of cable in the van! I never use the landline anyway and both ends are just bare cable but it's in anyway - could be used as an intercom I guess but I have a set of walkies for that (use them for when I am under the car in case something nasty happens and I need assistance!).Not sure on the auto-thermostat heating. Lots of you seem to have this. Is it important to keep a garage warm / above freezing for some reason even when you're not working in there. Must cost a few bucks in heating bills ?
The idea with the stat is to keep the frost off so the tools don't go rusty, and hopefully it keeps the car in better condition, battery chargers are happier, and paint/sealant/etc doesn't go off.
In reality, a single 3 foot low wattage heater doesn't cut it, and during the really bad freezes the last couple of winters it hasn't managed to keep it above freezing. A couple of them plus cavity walls/insulated plasterboard would make a real difference though I think. I haven't noticed a huge increase in the electricity bill, they don't pull much (tlc-direct have a good range). If I am working in there in the winter I have a cheap fan heater which heats it very quickly and then shuts off.
The insulated garage door with a rubber skirt at the bottom is a big help and keeps the garage clean and dry.
Grr, really want to get out there and give it a sort, it is a right state at the mo!
I would definitely get the CAT5 cable again though - I've not wired mine up yet, but I have a spare laptop I use for EPCs and checking forum posts/howtos when I'm in the middle of breaking something on the car, and it's out of reach of the wifi.
Just thought - get some alarm cable put down, ours is now linked into the house alarm for peace of mind (and is probably more secure than the house as well with decent uPVC door/window (for ventilation / cooling in summer - did a radiator change in midsummer 18 months ago and it was warm to say the least as I was bleeding the cooling system!) and electrical sectional door.
One other thing - pinched a dry whiteboard from my brother's work, brilliant for jotting down important stuff!
Edited by NiceCupOfTea on Monday 8th October 18:01
I cant see why you would want to keep it permanently heated. you dont want condensation on your cars, but good ventilation will do this, as noted earlier when I got a problem it was due to garden crud building up and bridging the DPC. Once I fixed that the usual window open worked fine again.
One thing I did was fit a substantial padlock and hasp on the up and over door, the spring lock it came with was pathetic. If you are choosing your door, check the security fit, just tot up how much your tools are worth !
One thing I did was fit a substantial padlock and hasp on the up and over door, the spring lock it came with was pathetic. If you are choosing your door, check the security fit, just tot up how much your tools are worth !
Good further advice thanks. I'm going to give this thread to the builder and just tell him to do everything on here !
Extending the alarm system is a good idea. Do you have a separate keypad in the garage or do you go out the garage and then return to the house to arm the whole system after you've locked the garage ?
Extending the alarm system is a good idea. Do you have a separate keypad in the garage or do you go out the garage and then return to the house to arm the whole system after you've locked the garage ?
Tavan said:
lots....
Good to see your project Nigel- hope that you are keeping well!Some great ideas on this thread.
My recent build of our three storey house extension much of the design revolved around the garage!!
I'd suggest you try and include:
Toilet !! (rather then going back to the house, get "distracted" by the missus etc etc)
Sink with hot and cold water - but go for one of the "cleaners / caretakers" type square sinks that has a fold down grill that you can rest your bucket on top of, rather than the usual bathroom hand-sink type
Taps - go for the lever type that you can operate with your elbows (dirty / oily hands...)
PROPER epoxy type industrial floor covering: I used a two part paint that needed to be mixed then applied in different coats - MUCH harder wearing. Also I have motorbikes, and didn't want the skid risk of wet tyres on a painted floor, so on the "vehicle areas" you can mix in some beading to give texture to the surface (is is painted over with the final coat, but gives a rougher more grippy surface)
LOTS or worktop surface - I was suprised how "little" I ended up with - its always getting covered up
Softer rubber type interlocking floor tiles - these make a MASSIVE difference to comfort when standing, kneeling down, and also help prevent things breaking when you drop them on the floor. I used Big Dug - cheap and effective
Workunits - old kitchen units are OK - but the metal workshop type stuff is better. Again, rather than top of the line stuff I got some basic stuff from Big Dug, and complemented it by second hand metal filing cabinets
Remote control garage door - it really is absolutely necessary!!
Ruber seal for bottom of garage door - it helps prevent leaks and draughts especially if it is attached to the garage floor and creates a slight "lip"
Lots and lots of lights - and not all overhead
Lots and lots and lots of sockets all arround the garage
Separate burgular alarm system to the house
Wall mounted peg board over worktop for easy access to tools
Cold tap on outside for your hosepipe (car washing)
Security lights on outside
Absolutely and utterly NO KIDS STUFF or other GARDENING STUFF !!!!!!
taylormj4 said:
Good further advice thanks. I'm going to give this thread to the builder and just tell him to do everything on here !
Extending the alarm system is a good idea. Do you have a separate keypad in the garage or do you go out the garage and then return to the house to arm the whole system after you've locked the garage ?
Get a completely separate alarm system for the garage. It is really not that expensive.Extending the alarm system is a good idea. Do you have a separate keypad in the garage or do you go out the garage and then return to the house to arm the whole system after you've locked the garage ?
Have a keypad at both garage door and if you have one, separate person-door entrance.
I keep the garage alarmed at all times, even when we are in the house...... (peace of mind).
Gassing Station | General TVR Stuff & Gossip | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff