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So we have a new home with a defunct detached garage (wood and stucco). The garage is in the far corner of the lot, and the driveway leading up to it has been grassed over to pick up green space.
Current objective:
-Do not demolish garage - it cannot be re-built that close to the edge of the lot. In fact, there is no other place to build a garage in the back lot given zoning restrictions (the house and town are historical).
-Do not put driveway back, as i dont want to give back green space
-After very long consideration, I have decided to turn it in an open-walled bar area. The vision is for bi-fold glass doors where the garage door is, with a clean finished interior. I would bifurcate a single stall area on the left side, which could be used for winter car storage etc. And on the right side, I would install a bar. This serves dual season purposes - i could store a single car during the winter, or have a showcase weekend car there in the future. And in the summer, we could open up the walls and setup prop seating in the "stall" area.
Current state of the garage (1915 construction):
-The slab is cracked, and large sections are fully segregated, and sitting on dirt. if you jump on these slabs, they will move almost a inch up and down.
-The roof vinyl needs to be replaced.
-There is rot and water intrusion on the front left edge. When it rains, there is water that pools up in this corner. Additionally, there is a good amount of bugs that come along with that.
-The construction is wood frame and stucco, with knob and tube wiring that goes back to the house underground.
-A previous owner installed some supportive framing alongside the original framing for support. This garage was clearly suffering.
-Considerable rot along the original door (but i wont be keeping it)
Scope of work (want to do as much as myself, as possible)
-Installation of new roof (professional needed)
-Address the slab. Hoping i could patch the cracks with concrete and epoxy over for a showroom look. Good for winter parking, and good for a summer seating area.
-Address knob and tube electricity.
-Try to figure out a way to do re-usable water for a small sink to not have plumbing run back to the house. Otherwise, i would avoid a sink.
-Install bi-fold glass doors where the garage door once was.
-Remove side windows and install big bi-fold windows
-Keep the interior "barn" look, by treating the wood and painting the interior white. I do not want to insulate and drywall.
-Address the water intrusion
What are peoples thoughts on this? I have not contacted my contractor yet, but obviously need someone for the roof. My biggest concern is the slab repair, and the cost of bi-folding glass garage doors. Ideally, I would like to keep this under 30k, and will happily do as much myself, even it is a weekend project stretched across a long period of time. Maybe I am dreaming a bit too much, and this garage is way beyond repair. But to be clear, I cannot get approval to re-build it, and dont have room to build in another spot, so I either need to let it continue to rot, or demolish it and go without a garage for perpetuity, or try my best to fix it up.
Thanks! I have attached some photos of the current garage, and some visually similar aspects of what i am looking to do.
Definitely an interesting project and I look forward to see what you come up with. As for that slap, I don't know that patching it is going to be enough, looks like it may need torn up and repoured.
that doesn't look like knob and tube to me... that's just a fuse panel box instead of a breaker box... that is more than fine for a garage like that... if you are concerned you can always convert it into a breaker box... but i wouldn't waste the money yet...
get the roof replaced and when they redo the gutters, have the downspouts go further out into the lawn... like off to the side of the garage vs right in front of the door...
that slab isn't salvagable... just have it replaced and when they put the new one in, they can regrade it so that any rain won't pool in front of the door... it should slope into the lawn...
Have you looked into any laws regarding grandfathering in "renovations"? I know around here, people who buy property on the lake can no longer build closer than 100ft or something from the shore line. Well with a small lot, that doesn't leave much for a house...so what they do is buy an old one that's close to the lake, knock the whole thing down except for one corner of the old foundation, and build a brand new one. Because the one corner of the foundation remains, it's considered an "existing structure".
Agree with everyone else, I don't think that slab is salvageable. It'll need to get replaced. Can't tell with the roof but you might need new trusses to support depending on how bad it is. Probably not a huge deal if the wall framing is ok after the reinforcements.
if you are going to put that nice of a door on it... don't leave the slab... replace it and you can have them polish and clear coat the concrete... if you want to keep it outdoorsy, you can even have them stamp the crete...
with the new slab, they will fix your grading (water pooling) issue at the apron of the garage as well...
yes, i agree. I have a feeling this door is going to be approaching $10k, in which case, it would be foolish not to fix the slab if i was going down that road.
What are your thoughts on pricing? This is just a total rough estimate I am throwing out of left field. But I would like to think this will be pushing the budget.
-Garage door - $7-$10k
-Demo and fix slab - $4k
-Epoxy and seal slab - $1k
-Install pavers in front - $1k
-New roof - $7k
-Install oversized window, remove backside window - $4k
-General labor for paint, electric, lighting, fan, plank interior sides - $5k
Total: ~$30k; just to get it in box form; bar to follow
Last edited by ThermonMermon; 08-18-2016 at 09:18 AM.
yes, i agree. I have a feeling this door is going to be approaching $10k, in which case, it would be foolish not to fix the slab if i was going down that road.
What are your thoughts on pricing? This is just a total rough estimate I am throwing out of left field. But I would like to think this will be pushing the budget.
-Garage door - $7-$10k - YES
-Demo and fix slab - $4k - I'd think 3k
-Epoxy and seal slab - $1k - Should be included in the slab work above unless you plan to do it yourself
-Install pavers in front - $1k - why not crete it like the slab?
-New roof - $7k - you could do a whole house for that amount... should be ~$4k maybe 5k for just the garage, and that should include new plywood if anything is rotted (couple hundred more for gutters)
-Install oversized window, remove backside window - $4k - I paid $10k to rewindow my whole house (28 windows) and do some refit work in the pantry... this included some framing and siding work... if you get quoted $4k to do it, i'll send you my window guy for a quote, he does roofs as well...
-General labor for paint, electric, lighting, fan, plank interior sides - $5k - going to depend on materials and how deep you want to go...
Total: ~$30k; just to get it in box form; bar to follow
Thanks. I put $4k for the windows, since it includes removing the existing back window and re stucco'ing. Then remove the other side window, re-framing, and installing a big bifold window that could fold open in the summer (maybe 5' high, 8+' wide. That window itself has got to be at least a few K.
Agree, the roof is probably overstated.
Last edited by ThermonMermon; 08-18-2016 at 09:38 AM.
Do you have any concerns with security? That garage door looks sweet but gives everyone a nice easy view of all the cool and potentially valuable items that are inside...
Do you have any concerns with security? That garage door looks sweet but gives everyone a nice easy view of all the cool and potentially valuable items that are inside...
We have a pretty strong system in place...and a guard dog with little patience
Looks pretty awesome, can't wait to see how it comes out. I know you say you want to DIY but unless you are really good with stuff like this, most of that looks like a pro should do it and I love DIY.
Left - Current state
Detached garage in far corner. The Seller removed the connecting driveway.
Middle - Option 1
Convert garage to multi-use, as described throughout this thread. Demo rear driveway and grass over. There is a gate in the far corner of the house that helps delineate between the two. I could also install grass seemed flagstone pavers to create a wide walkway the width of a car. This could be driven over seasonally if i want to throw a car in the garage. But wont lose backyard space. Chairs could be setup on the pavers, etc. I want to make the garage look less like an abandoned garage, and more like a connected out house structure. The focus on this design is MULTI function.
Right - Option 2
Demo 1.5 car garage. Get variance and approval from historical committee to build a new single car garage. I would build a breezeway to attach to the house, so it wont be so awkward. I may need to get a variance for the entire house. While this will be the most conventional setup, I will end up paying twice as much, and left with a small single car garage that will be used primarily for storage. The town will want wooden windows, doors, stucco and trim sides, and gabled roof, so this will be on the town's radar and will be pricey. It will be an uphill battle with the town, and could be a 2-3k/yr tax hit at a minimum...potentially 6-7k/yr if they reassess the entire house (but very doubtful). I know deep down this is the right way to do it for resale, and more yard space, but something tells me its not worth it.
Thoughts? I am waiting on a contractor to price out Option 1.
Last edited by ThermonMermon; 10-11-2016 at 04:10 PM.
...now that I am thinking about it, Option 2 would probably be way more than double the cost of Option 1. Demo garage, re-level soil in the backyard (the grass is built up around the deattached garage by about 2 feet), remove three trees, re-landscape, re-sod. Build a 250 SF stucco extension, covered breezeway, and a tudor style connected roof. The whole backyard would be a construction site.
HA. Yes. I dont have AutoCad (although I know how to use it quite well). I took a bunch of dimensions of my backyard, and laid it out on 1x1 foot grid in Excel. Normally, I would do it by hand, but when town variances come into play, car turning radius, etc. every foot matters. Option 2 is a really tight squeeze.
Last edited by ThermonMermon; 10-11-2016 at 05:15 PM.
Looks like a pretty cool project. I would keep the garage for sure! There's loads of potential. If the concrete isn't that thick I would rent a jackhammer and bust up all of the concrete that is loose or feels hollow, leave the busted up pieces in there, fill in with gravel and float it with some new concrete. Then I'd cover it with those rubber garage tiles, or rubber floor mat that comes in rolls. Will the concrete crack again underneath? Sure it will, but it'll still look nice on top with the rubber flooring and last quite some time. You could spend the thousands of $$ tearing it all up, re-pour just to have those large trees/possible tree roots next to it bust it up again..
Downspout on the left I'd bury it and take out into the yard, front and back. Gotta take care of those water issues.. Maybe even put in a french drain along the front that dumps into middle of yard. Once of those things where you did a big hole in the middle of the yard, drop the big plastic bucket with holes and fill with gravel.
I'm not an electrician, but wiring looks like maybe from the 40's or 50's. I'd replace it all anyway along with a breaker.
I'd also probably frame in the right 1/3 or so of the garage door, with a large window that matches the exterior of your house. Then get a nice smaller garage door(less$$) to fill in the left side.
I'd also try to put an entry door to the garage where there isn't one. on the side closest to your house(not sure if that bush/tree is in the way).. with a sidewalk going to your house.
That's just what I'd do with it. Look forward to seeing your progress!
if it were me... here is what i would do... Option 2... keep what you already have... put some money in to revamp it... and gain all that backyard space back...
further down the line, after you get some more money i would then submit for the variance and build the additional 1 car garage... but i wouldn't put it back as far as you have it in option 3... i would pull it closer to the house so that eliminates the need for a huge breezeway... basically make it flush to the bump out on the back of the house so you can still have the space in the backyard...
Here's the other option. Tudor style with an off centered roof to match the design of the house.
One thing of note is that the backyard neighbors garage is directly behind my existing garage. My seller got a variance to move the garage and the neighbor gave him hell. The seller put up the fence and hedges in spite. I would need to fight that fight too. Rightfully so, relocating my garage would effectively create a staggered blockage of sight along the lot line. His garage on the left, mine on the right, and a window of clearance over the middle one third of the fence. More free space, but potentially more claustrophobic.
By keeping the existing garage, I could convert it, and use it for multifunction. Down the road, I could add the pavers, and add a classy pergola carport
Last edited by ThermonMermon; 10-12-2016 at 09:12 AM.
So the garage conversion has been flagged for Phase II. Moreso focused on Phase I, which i am going to contract out. Should be breaking ground in a bit. The driveway is super narrow and has 100 yr old poured concrete curbs that the wife keeps hitting.
They are going to demo the top driveway above the gate, and double the backyard greenspace, resurface the existing driveway and widen, demo curbs and add belgian blocks, reconstruct / narrow a window well, etc. I thought this would be a simple job, but it ended up getting bid out over 2x what i thought it would be. I guess all these little things keep adding up, and a basic "redo the driveway" has turned into something a bit more.
Does this sound reasonable?? I have two quotes that are similar
demo asphalt and sod above gate - 1.5k
resurface driveway and widen below gate - 3.5k
narrow up the window well with concrete, and add grate - 1k
demo and repour concrete slab strip at side of house, extend asphalt over - 1k
wet saw cut original 100 yr old concrete poured curbs and add belgian block curbs - 3k
beligian ribbon at sidewalk - 1.5k
install wrought iron handrail at steps 0.5k
12k total.
Below photo is not totally to scale. The distance from the front of the house to the street is about 50'; house itself is 50' deep, and the area above the gate is another 30'.
Last edited by ThermonMermon; 03-07-2017 at 08:44 AM.
Any thoughts on the above pricing? Looking to go into contract this week. I have two very similar quotes, however, they both seem high, in my mind. But what do i know.
The landscape guys that fancy themselves as 'designers' come in high. You need the landscaper that cuts lawns, plants flowers, but will also do a little hardscaping.
Both quotes are precisely the latter. Top 2 landscapers in town that do all the lawn cutting, and also do hardscaping patio work in town. One quote is from my actual landscaper/lawn cutter.
Problem too is I kind of live on "the road" in a small town, that has the estates about a mile south from me. So the address has a certain cache, so i am a bit suspicious of inflated quotes for house work.
Last edited by ThermonMermon; 03-08-2017 at 12:05 PM.
if I was you, I would call in a paver guy and just get a price to rip up the driveway and paver the whole thing. I bet it comes out close to that number.
08-17-2016, 12:21 PM
Excel
