Garage Design Question . . . - Page 2 - The Unofficial BMW M5 Messageboard (m5board.com)

Rcl4668 · 10th April 2002, 07:31

Bobafett --

I would greatly appreciate it if you would e-mail your plans to me. My e-mail is rcl4668@aol.com.

I also appreciate the rest of the comments thus far. Regarding the question on whether it will be single or bi-level, I am not sure. That is why I am looking for plans from some existing garages -- to get ideas and gauge what will fit my needs and what might be overkill (or underkill as the case may be).

Thanks and keep the ideas coming . . .

/Rich

Bart Carter · 10th April 2002, 18:48

Well, I can tell you that I can't answer this is the space provided.

I am finishing up my garage as we speak. This weekend the floor coating goes one. (When I say finishing up, I mean there is still a lot of work to do.

You could pick any part of a garage and I could write something on it. I have worked on cars more years than I want to admit and built two other garages. Of course, I am building my garage to my specific tastes and experience. And I have done a lot of additional research.

The first thing you want to do, since size is not limited, is make some maps of your land. Include your house and any other considerations. You would not want your garage to block a great view, for example.

I have Autocad, but you can use paper, pencil and cutouts. Make cutouts of the different areas you want in your garage. For instance, I like to use a stall area of 15 by 24 for each vehicle. Also make cutouts of different rooms, etc. Then start piecing them together to fit appropriately on your land. Think about door access and a work area. With no size limitation, you can even have a separate store room for parts, etc.

Once you get the general layout, then you can start thinking about lights, power, etc.

My design has 10 car spaces and a work area. (4x8 steel work tables, welding setup, etc.) It has a full bath (shared with a workout room), heating/airconditioning and a central commercial fan, more light than I will ever need, 2 lifts (4 post and 2 post), detail center, air outlets every where, rolling tool boxes and carts, and .... too much to discuss.

When Greg, Andy, and everyone is here in May for the race school, I hope to give a grand tour.

As you get to each stage of planning, I would be glad to give you some advise. I have heard a lot of good things and nothing negative about the Ultimate Garage folks. I'm sure they would be able to give you some advise also.

Diamond Dave · 10th April 2002, 19:00

Bart,

Might you be able to post some pictures of your garage once it's finished? Sounds marvelous! I've always wanted a huge garage with four things:

1. A lift
2. Water source to wash the cars
3. Drains in each stall
4. HVAC

Regards,

DWP

Bart Carter · 10th April 2002, 19:11

You bet!

I'm sure when Greg is in Las Vegas he will have his camera.

Diamond Dave · 10th April 2002, 19:12

Thank you, sir. We all look forward to it.

Regards,

DWP

CEC · 10th April 2002, 22:02

What a great project. Good luck and post lots of pictures. I am jealous.

The only thing I can add is definitely go with a radiant heating system. I have one in my boring, average 3-car garage and it is well worth the extra expense.

Rcl4668 · 11th April 2002, 02:40

Bart, congrats your garage sounds amazing! Thanks for the insights. If and only if you are comfortable with this, I was wondering if you would be willing to share your plans of the new garage. I realize that because of copyright issues (either your rights or those of your architect if you used one) that this may be awkward. If so, no problem. Alternatively, I would second the notion to se pics posted of your dream garage. I just wanted to see what the "essentials" are in a garage (storage, bay area, etc).

My e-mail address is rcl4668@aol.com if you would prefer to respond off the board.

Also, following up on CEC's post, what is the advantage of in-ground, radiant heat?

Thanks again for your input,

/Rich

CEC · 11th April 2002, 05:20

I am not an expert on radiant heat but these are my thoughts:

(1) Warm floor makes it very livable and a pleasure to walk on (especially in bare feet or socks)
(2) The system is 'invisible' - no vents (except for A/C) or ugly baseboard radiators.
(3) The system is silent.
(4) No spreading of dust or overly dry air like you get from forced hot air.
(5) Energy efficient and keeps a very even temperature.

SteveD · 11th April 2002, 16:47

I'm currently building a new garage workshop at my home and have taken some pictures along the way which might be of use to others on this forum (see http://www.ultimategarage.com/UltGar2.htm , http://www.ultimategarage.com/UltGar2a.htm , http://www.ultimategarage.com/UltGar2b.htm .

As the last person notes, radiant heat is the preferred solution to maintain consistent temperatures throughout the winter in spaces with high ceilings. With forced hot air, the warm air will collect at the ceiling level.

greg · 11th April 2002, 17:44

Hi - great thread. I'm thinking about this too. Our property up in the wine country has lots o' land (although most of it is very hilly and there isn't a lot of flat space) and some day - don't know when, I will build my "dream car garage". The price I pay to store ONE car away from home would justify a pretty decent space. Mine will be more modest - probably 6 bays, with at least one double-deep to park truck and boat trailer hooked up, and a shop area.

Yes, Bart, when I'm in LV I will be happy to photograph your garage! I can't wait for the school, but my Laguna date is coming up next weekend so I'm focused on that right now.