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Building a Garage, debating the size?

747mopar

747mopar

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I'm planning on building a garage this Spring and need to figure out what I want as far as size goes. I'll be building it myself and will likely go with a poll barn style only I prefer pouring the footers leaving blocks above ground with anchors instead of burrying the lumber. I came across some nice trusses years ago (still indoors) and snagged them up so if I use them I'm looking at a 24'X40 maybe 60. I'm just curious if 24 is deep enough? Since I work at a sawmill the only real cost will be the floor, garage doors and the tin if I use the trusses.
 
when you decide on a size your happy with, go bigger. my 2 cents. I went with 1000 sq. ft. and should have went a little bigger. but it all depends if you have the room to build.
 
Whatever size you build, you'll fill it with stuff.... I didn't think I'd fill a 30x60, but here I am a year later organizing so I can fit more crap in
 
I personally believe:
Go Big

Mine is going to be 30 X 40
I like the 30 foot depth
Enables you to go a car deep and then some xtra footage.

I take it your going Steel?
 
My $.02, I'd say 26' or 28' is much better, but it does depend on the vehicles you plan to have & what work you plan to do on the vehicles. You need to have some room to work around them & for tools & equipment. A little bigger always seems better. Good luck.
 
Imo. No less than 30'x60' if have the room and cash... Sounds like your doing a multi-bay/door side entry?
 
I'm guessing the truss you have are limiting you to 24ft and you can add more to increase length. I agree bigger is better but my advice is to have one or two enclosed spaces.

One for sure if you do welding fabrication a closed room will keep the black grinding dust from covering everything in an open space.

A second as a tool storage for larger not always used equipment to keep the larger area free.
 
Build the largest that you can:

1) Afford to build
2) Have room for
3) Biggest your city/county will allow

Mine is 38' x 65' and is built on the footprint of my old house, which was destroyed in 2003 in a tornado. shop01.jpg

shop01.jpg
 
I should add that I already have a 32X100 that my dad, myself and my brother built, it's right across the road but we share it between the 3 of us. I'm just tired of my dad dragging junk home and cleaning up after my brother so it's time to move out and gain some sanity. I agree 24 just seams to shallow and extending one end is an option, 32 would be nice. Another idea I'm throwing around is building it with a short upstairs for storage? I'll likely make a bay for the messy restoration work while keeping the rest separate for vehicle storage.

- - - Updated - - -

Room is no concern, I have 11 acres in the country where I'm free to build what I want without the hassles of permits.
 
I built a 28x52 and was already pushing deed restrictions but with what I know now, wish I had built a lot bigger and thumbed my nose at the deed restriction police. I laid down a 25x25 pad out behind the building and then put up a carport and have been thinking of enclosing it. Will you still be able to use the 32x100 to store anything if you build your own place? If I ever get to move out to the country, a 5000 sq ft building will be built as I'm tired of having to walk around all the stuff that's in the shop. 12x16 build room, 3 cars, engine lathe, milling machine, tool boxes, welding machines, metal working machines, work benches, refrigerator, freezer.....you get the message. Go twice as big as you think you will ever need and add 10%!
 
My shop is 30' X 36' with a 15' X 35' loft. I think it took about two years to out grow it. I now think it really doesn't matter what size you build, within a couple years you will wish it was bigger. With that in mind, go as big as you can. With 11 acres, you can always add on.
 
Mine is 38' deep, but I wish it were 42' or deeper, as that allows two C-bodies to be parked end-to-end. With 38' along with front and rear garage doors, I can park the Imperial and the Coronet end-to-end with an inch between the cars and an inch between the ends and the doors. It's tight!
 
Here's mine. It's 28 x 44. I was limited to 1250sq ft since I'm in the city limits. If I were in your situation, a 30x60 would sure be nice. I put in an exterior entrance for the attic as I'm not getting any younger. It's 4' wide and is really nice when hauling up hoods and fenders.
D330C6CF-2CED-43D7-907B-2A73A0216EF7_zpsdeohqz9p.jpg
 
As large as you can afford,as the bigger it gets, the cheaper it is per square foot.
 
mine is 32x30 enough room for 3 cars and all my tools compressor furnace welder and fridge and some work space
 
I have built many and would never go less then 30 deep as most autos are 20 plus ft long....like Patrick said the most your budget can go...
 
I also have 11 acres in the country with the only restriction of a 50 foot set back from the dirt road. I have 1480 feet of road frontage. I keep threatening to build a big garage but so far no dice from the misses. Still in one bay of a double garage. It's 12x 30.

As to your question...i suppose bigger is always better. I'd use your 24' trusses and go long...then add a cement pad about 12x24 in the middle with doors into the bigger space. Frame it up as storage and put your stuff in there like parts and equipment you don't always use. As usual you should try to be creative with the vertical aspect of your space. Make the building ceiling height high enough to install a post lift or rotisserie. Hanging hoods, fenders, door shells etc from the ceiling rafters frees up space below, hanging smaller parts on wall space does too. Good luck! As far as separate space for welding/fab and bodywork i would just buy some heavy mil thick plastic sheeting and hang it as an overlapping curtain to separate the spaces.
 
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