Garage Options.

[AJ]

The in floor heat would be about $4k and you can heat it with just a hot water heater, so it is very efficient. Working under a car on a cold floor sucks ass though. It depends on how much you are going to use it. 50 amps to the garage doesn't cut it if you are doing much. 80 would be a lot better. How high are you ceilings going to be? You'll want 12' if you get a hoist at any point. I would do a minimum of 10'.

I was looking at putting one about the same size on this house, adding an upstairs doesn't cost much more. You can really add a lot of space to the house for little money. It can make a kick ass party room, but it will up your insurance some.


I may have to look into the floor heat, $4k is a jump for heat but it would hold value I think and I like the idea of heating from the ground up.

We also thought about using spot #4 and walling off a section for a rec room or better storage room. But I think in reality we would end up needing it for a car or "hopefully" jet skis or a boat.

Check with your city code, I don't think you can put a drain in a residential garage anymore, at least in town.

Definitely get the high ceilings for a lift down the line. It's the best purchase any car buff can make.


I think you are spot on with the floor drain now that I think of it. And I don't plan to need a lift or hoist as I'm never one to want to pull a motor or anything myslef. Course I will need to think about what will be more attractive when/if selling comes into play.

I am sure he has 220v coming in, any decent compressor or welder will need it.

Yeah, 220v sounds more familiar after talking with him.

I think your mostly covered. floor drain attic storage. I'd make shure they run a gas line and vent for a future furnace if you arnt planning on gong the infloor route. Id also sugest putting down a good epoxy floor covering before you get your cars and other crap in there. I really wish Id done that.

Yeah, we are going to put down a nice epoxy flooring, I'll just have to check to see which one would work best with a floor heating setup if we went that route.

In the end I'll have to look into more options after we get the initial bid back.

Thanks guys!

[Pushit2.0]

Most houses are wired for 220v @100amps, so if you run power to your garage off the house I would only do 50amps, Talk with an elctrician but the idea is to not have more amps in breakers then your service is rated for, but we all know how that goes. I have 220v @ 50amps to my garage, runs my Husky compressor, lights, MIG welder (when I had one) and the heater just fine. Having 220v power is nice, you lower your amps needed with higher voltage. On the floor heat, its not needed but if you are looking at resale value then go for it, I could not justify spending that much. I bought my heater from an industrial place for ~$500 and works great with insulation, even befor I insulated my attic was 90deg and the floor was 50deg. Now with a small box fan on low to move air its a constant 65deg or higher if I want. Also an electric thermostat that you can program to come one only when you need it will help the energy bill a lot.

~John

[1QUICK4]

Vaulted rafters and oversized doors are what I'd do if I built another garage.
My garage has 100amps running from the 200amp service in the house and a 12ft roof. I'd rec. at least 80 amps to the garage if you plan on having any toys out there.

As far as the floor drain, you can only have one in the city if it runs to a storage tank that you can pump out. Earth drains are a big no-no nowadays.

[carltalon]

All the high end houses I work on have drains in the garage. Im shure you'll just have to check the local codes to see where it can drain to.

[92EvilTalon]

220v is not hard to run out to a garage. You can even break it off your main box into its own. Then break it down from there. But pretty much my plan for my new garage is two and a half with an attic too. Oh and also you can look into the raised floor tiles. Were they let water drip under them. I seen them some were....

[crazy_skier]

the best reason for having the floor heat is that over the long run you will save money, especially if you ever drop the heat down once or twice in the winter. Last winter I was in and out so i didnt keep my heat on and it got very expensive, since you end up having to heat the entire concrete slab before the garage starts warming up. If it were my garage I would do the ceiling high enough for a lift, incase you change your mind, and for resale

[tim]

How does in floor heat work if you arent planning on keeping it heated all of the time? Wouldnt you have to worry about pipes freezing? How about maintenance as far as cleaning the pipes for mold or whatever?

We have in floor heat at the new shop that I am working at and it is awesome. Nothing beats laying on the warm floor. The water evaporates quicker and the heat stays closer to the floor.

[carltalon]

The floor heat tubes Have a type of anti freeze in them so they wount freeze. There shouldn't be any mold problems because theres no air or food sorce for the mold in the tubes.

In floor heat seams to recover faster then forced air heat after a garage door has been opened. we have two 16x16ft doors on our shop that wre open every morning. It seams like its warm in there as soon as we close the doors.

[tim]

In floor heat seams to recover faster then forced air heat after a garage door has been opened. we have two 16x16ft doors on our shop that wre open every morning. It seams like its warm in there as soon as we close the doors.

I agree. I work in a 12 bay Semi shop. Not sure of the door size but there are 12 of them and it doesnt take long to recover after a couple have been open.

[JET]

Yes, the heated floor is a giant thermal mass, so it will recover from a door open faster. AJ, if you don't plan on heating the garage for long periods, then conventional heat is probably the best. You can pop it on and be out there 2-3 hours later, but with a cold floor. With the in floor heat, it will take a long time to heat up the slab and then heat the air.