Step down into garage

[sotal]

I've got a slightly odd question.

I've got a lates 1970's detached house which has a garage as part of the house (bedroom above etc)

It's quite a large garage and when we bought the house it had a toilet at the back and a utility room. We didn't like this as we had to walk through the garage to get to it so we moved the utility area to the front (temporarily) and never used the toilet.

We now have a conservatory added to the house which gives us access straight into the back of the garage so we're planning to redo the utiltity room and toilet so they are accessed from the conservatory.

My questions is with regards to the building regs, I believe you are required to step down from a house room into the garage - is that correct?

The old utility room and toilet are on the same level as the garage which is about 4 or 5 inches lower than the house.

I don't mind stepping out of the conservatory into the utility room but I've been advised that as I'm making them part of the house rather than the back of the garage that I should raise the floor a few inches. It's not a massive area to raise but I'd still prefer not to (4m x 2m approx size)

Any advice?

 

[DevilDamo]

Yes. Have a look here...

http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/uploads/br/BR_PDF_ADB1_2006.pdf

Page 32 of the Approved Document, paragraphs 5.4, 5.5 and Diagram 10.

 

[big-all]

you are required to have a 4" threashold to contain any liquids

if you have a propper brick built partition accross the garage then providing you have a 4" step as a barrier then i belive it complies

in other words you have a doorway in the partition 4 inches higher step up step down

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

You can only have a flush threshold if the garage floor falls away from the access door into the house.

 

[sotal]

Thanks for the advice,

What constitutes as being part of the house though?

Obviously when it was first built either the toilet and utility weren't classed as part of the house as they were built that low, or that rule didn't exist.

I'm not moving them but I've changed the access to them so now they have a door direct into the utility room from the conservatory (not sure if that counts as part of the house with it having to be separated by external doors etc???)

The wall between the utility / toilet and the garage is just a stud wall, plasterboard on the room side and chipboard on the garage side.


Does the level make any difference if I don't have a door into the garage from the utility? As I could block that up.



Hopefully the following drawing will help explain what I mean a little better:

Basically all I have done so far is have the conservatory added and a door put in (the red one on the drawing) everything else is as it was built.

Do I now need to raise the floor? Obviously really it makes no functional difference as a spill in the garage would have gone into the utility room any time over the last 30 years, and it won't get any further as there is a step into the conservatory.

I'm about to gut the utility room and toilet and redo them so if it is required now will be the time to do it but it's not something I want to spend on if it's not neccessary.

Thanks again for the replies - hopefully it's a little clearer now?
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[DevilDamo]

Are you therefore saying your conservatory, utility and toilet are all at garage floor level? If so, then there must be a step from the house into the conservatory?

 

[sotal]

No, the conservatory is the same height as the house, the utility room is two bricks lower than the conservatory.

The new door separating the utility and the conservatory is a UPVC 'back' door.

We don't mind the step down to the utility from the conservatory, but as I'm about to rip it all out I want to make sure it's not neccessary to raise the floor. One builder said that we didn't need to as it was already there, another said we would need to as it would now be part of the house and not just a room at the back of the garage.

Reading the pdf that you posted above it seems to be mostly for fire protection and talks about compartments within the house. It would still be a separate compartment to the rest of the house, but the garage compartment would include the utility and the toilet, not a major problme for fluids etc as the floors could be mopped etc.

Has this rule always existed? Should the toilet in the back of the garage be stepped up right from the beginnning to be correct? Every house in the street has the same garage layout with a toilet in the back - our garage is just about 1.5m wider than all the others so ours was built with a utility room next to the toilet.

Thanks again for the replies

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

The issue is burning fluids tricking under the door into the dwelling, the rules have always existed. Why don't you discuss it with the actual Building Inspector who'll be signing off the job? They're an amiable and sometimes flexible bunch you know! (well most of them are )

 

[DevilDamo]

I currently have a planning application in with the LPA and the existing layout has a shower room off the garage. There is door between the existing house and garage and a step down which is approx. 150mm and there is a step up from the garage to the shower room, again... approx. 150mm. So the house floor and shower room floor are at the same level with the garage floor being 150mm lower. On that principle, I would say you would need a step up from the garage to the utility room.

As FMT, you'd be better off seeking advice from your building control department because a utility room isn't at much of a high risk than a living room (for example) and there is a step between the conservatory and the utility so if there was a chance of leaking fluids from the garage, they wouldn't be able to enter the main house due to the step from the utility into the conservatory.

 

[sotal]

Thanks for the replies - it does seem like it's one of those where it doesn't fit in a yes or no box. As you say burning fluids would just go into the utility and no further.

The issue is burning fluids tricking under the door into the dwelling, the rules have always existed. Why don't you discuss it with the actual Building Inspector who'll be signing off the job? They're an amiable and sometimes flexible bunch you know! (well most of them are )

Which bit actually needs a building inspector? The conservatory was built by a company who sorted out all the building regs side of things and they put the door in which goes to the utility.

I'm not not building anything new, the toilet and utility have been there since it was built in the 70's, and the door itself has been signed off.

Cheers

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

Ahh You don't think I've actually read your original posts do you? If the works do not require formal a Building Regs Application it is still good practice that anything you do do is up to Building Regs standard. What about having a bund wall where the utility room door is ie a line of bricks under the doorway? It doesn't matter how many times you ask us the answer is always gonna be the same, according the building regs you need a step down or the garage floor needs to slope away. If you want to avoid a step that's fine, nobodys gonna get upset, nobodys gonna report you to Building Control and they wouldn't take any action anyway but it would not comply with Regs. In the highly unlikely event of a fuel fire in your garage that consequently causes damage to your utility room (or worse) your insurance company may well not pay out though. We're not scaremongering, far from it, the decision is yours but you have asked the question and we have answered it.

Edit: if it was like this when you bought it then you can leave as existing.

 

[DevilDamo]

Are you confident your proposals do not require building regulation approval?

There's no harm in putting a general call into your local BC department and put the question to them. You don't have to tell them where you live. You can just say it exists (which it does) and you had concerns.

 

[sotal]

Thanks guys - I'll take everything on board,

personally I'm thinking it doesn't really need anything and as nobody has jumped in saying that you "Must" do it etc etc and as it's already like that I'll probably leave it. Will price it up first though to see how much it would cost to do, will also look at just putting a small brick wall across the garage 2 bricks highwith the wall and door on top - although this will mean rebuilding the wall as well. <- that would also result in a swimming pool should the washing machine ever fail, atleast with the utility room on the same level any washing machine failure would flow out into the garage.

Thanks again for the advice - it's been very useful

 

[sotal]

It's still bugging me, I don't like to do things wrong! Even if it means extra effort now it'll keep me happier.

I've been thinking about it and the area isn't that big. Approx 4m x 2m at a depth of approx 10cm = 0.8 cubic meters of concrete.

Can anyone tell me how many bags of sand and cement I would approx need to mix up that much? I can borrow a mixer

 

[DevilDamo]

Your local builders merchants should be able to tell you that.