If there are poor foundations then the rest of the project is a money wasting exercise. Lipstick on a pig is a well worn phrase and sums up when people want to turn a low-end building into habitable space.
Christmas and January project
- Thread starter Parrotface
- Start date
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You haven’t read all the thread. It looks sounds. If you can enlighten me with anything else then I’d be grateful, but anymore pseudo dick Emery jokes will be ignored (ps I liked dick emery, but poor impersonators won’t be tolerated)
I think the point is what costs are you actually saving by investing into what you have, rather than knocking it down and doing it properly from scratch
If you want something up to standard/code, surely it's cheaper to knock it down and clear it in a day yourself, and start from scratch
Rather than extend a brick outhouse and make habitable etc
But if you are only tarting it up then crack on
If you want something up to standard/code, surely it's cheaper to knock it down and clear it in a day yourself, and start from scratch
Rather than extend a brick outhouse and make habitable etc
But if you are only tarting it up then crack on
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You haven’t read all the thread. It looks sounds. If you can enlighten me with anything else then I’d be grateful, but anymore pseudo dick Emery jokes will be ignored (ps I liked dick emery, but poor impersonators won’t be tolerated)
Quite honestly, I’m really suprised at all the negatives. It’s a brick structure that has dpc, is (after looking more closely at it) well made….. why do I need to go and loose 10 bags and a load of mucking about when I can modify this??? I’d be mad!!!! There’s not one reason that I can think of after reading the thread of why I should.
Because you posted this....
My response was based on YOUR initial information. I'm terribly sorry you didn't get the response you wanted. However, you still would be wise to check the foundations even if your garage has miraculously levelled itself in the meantime. Start there.
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I’m all for a bit of diy, but what’s your plan here?
How will you make it habitable? What spec insulation for the floors and walls, how are you going to do an inner skin for the walls?
I assume you’re replacing the roof? Are you going for a cold roof or a warm one? Do you know what depth of insulation you’ll need? How about the vapour barrier, etc?
Are you any good a brick laying if you’re extending it?
While it may seem counterintuitive to demolish what’s there, a well built timber frame room of better proportions maybe on par with working with what you’ve got there already.
How will you make it habitable? What spec insulation for the floors and walls, how are you going to do an inner skin for the walls?
I assume you’re replacing the roof? Are you going for a cold roof or a warm one? Do you know what depth of insulation you’ll need? How about the vapour barrier, etc?
Are you any good a brick laying if you’re extending it?
While it may seem counterintuitive to demolish what’s there, a well built timber frame room of better proportions maybe on par with working with what you’ve got there already.
*on par cost and effort wise I mean
There's 2.1m from DPC to rafter. That's a door frame.
So assuming a floor can be insulated to current regs within the 150mm from slab to DPC, that means that by the time the roof insulation is added, all the doors will need to open outwards, and no games involving standing up straight could be played in there.
So assuming a floor can be insulated to current regs within the 150mm from slab to DPC, that means that by the time the roof insulation is added, all the doors will need to open outwards, and no games involving standing up straight could be played in there.
I had a detached garage in my last place that I thought about converting but it just wasn’t worth the effort. I had a few builders round to get their thoughts on it and they mentioned a lot of the type of things above.
Sometimes to get what you want you have to accept things and do it a different way. Removing an old structure and replacing with a timber framed version sounds like an awesome project to me.
Sometimes to get what you want you have to accept things and do it a different way. Removing an old structure and replacing with a timber framed version sounds like an awesome project to me.
The biggest mistake folk make is doing a half hearted attempt at habitable and are subsequently very disappointed. Having spent all those thousands only to end up with a place that's difficult to heat, difficult to keep cool and is seldom used because of the mouldy walls and damp smell.
I’ve carefully read through the comments. The main issue that has been raised (aside from my early comments on foundations) are about the fact it’s a single skin and that will need addressing from an insulation/damp perspective… all of which is easily done with batten, circular saw, tyvek and insulation material. I’m still very confused at to why a perfectly strong unit is being seen in a bad light. There’s also no saving to be made for demolishing it. The products are out there to make this unit work….
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