Garage project: your thoughts please

[Confiteor]

I have a detached, single garage.

I have notions of converting the rear quarter or so into some form of a computer room/study.

There is a large south-facing single-glazed window with open views, and I think it would be really nice. I'm keen to get the PC out of the dining room, because I HATE having computers in public rooms or bedrooms. They just look crap.

The rest of the garage would be used for storing all the bikes and tools etc. The car is never and will never be in the garage itself.

There is a side door into the garage, and my plan would be to partition off the area for the study, and give it its own door inside the garage. The garage has a pitched timber roof, with ceiling joists sitting on top of breeze block walls, so plasterboarding a ceiling in the partition should also be very straightforward.

Power and lighting are already there, and broadband cabling would be easy to sort out.

The biggest issue, I suppose, would be heating. However, since it's south-facing and I could pack insulation between the stud partition and the walls, I'd hope the room stayed fairly warm anyway. I'd envisaged using a free-standing electric heater when necessary, and perhaps moving the PC back indoors in the very depths of winter.

For the concrete floor, I'd thought about sealing and tarting it up with some form of epoxy resin.

I'm interested to know if anyone has done anything similar. I'm also keen to hear from anyone who thinks this is all a VERY bad idea, and why.

Also, are there planning implications (and since I'm not planning to move for a VERY long time, if ever, would I really have to worry about them? )

I wouldn't plan on spending a huge amount of money on this, and I'd do all the work myself. Therefore, if planners ever did find out and object, it wouldn't be the end of the world if I had to pull it all down.

Any thoughts, positive or negative?

 

[masona]

For the concrete floor, I'd thought about sealing and tarting it up with some form of epoxy resin.

A big improvement would be to insulate the floor to keep your feet warm!

If it was me I would put down DPM (damp proof membrane) and use something like 30mm Rocksilk Acoustic Floor Slab with a floating 18mm T&G chipboard flooring with the glue on the joints. There are many difference type of solid insulation for floating floor, see this for more information.
The wall is pretty straight forward, you could use 3"x2" or 4"x2" for studding + insulation + plasterboard etc.

perhaps moving the PC back indoors in the very depths of winter.

You could use a tubular heater which are cheap running but will need to ask the electrician for more info.
As for wiring, it's best to ask on the electric forum on here for more information because I believe you may have to use metal clad type socket in a garage, as I'm not a electrician so I cannot advise you on this. The electrician's on here may need to ask you for more information as what you're doing.
Metal clad socket

Also, are there planning implications (and since I'm not planning to move for a VERY long time, if ever, would I really have to worry about them? )

From what I understand regarding planning is as long you're not sleeping or living in the garage then you're okay.

 

[Confiteor]

Thanks a lot for the reply.

I'm interested in those floor slabs you linked. At the moment, the garage has a rough concrete floor. Am I right in thinking I would have to smooth the office area floor with a sand and cement screed, then lay the slabs on top, followed by chipboard?

Are the slabs to be set into the cement, or lain on top of it once it has set?

 

[masona]

Am I right in thinking I would have to smooth the office area floor with a sand and cement screed,

Depend how bad it is, normally we use floor levelling compound mixes with water and pour it out then finish off with a trowel and it will find it own level. If your concrete floor is a tamper finish then I would put down the dpm then floor insulation etc.
I wouldn't worry too much about the floor finish unless it's out of level as the insulation will take care of that.