Garage Renovation for Workshop

[Denis Rezendes]

Some quick background. I built furniture when I was in high school and had a workshop at my parents house but haven't had workshop access since I started college, about 12 years ago. My wife and I bought a house a little over two years ago and we've done some pretty substantial renovations, doing a lot of the work ourselves with the help of family members who are in the trades. At this point I know enough to know what terms to plug into Google and have a decent network when that doesn't work.

One of the big selling points for me was the detached 2 car garage, which I always planned to turn into a workshop. That has been my project this summer, as the garage needed substantial renovations as well. It's starting to come together so I thought I would share my progress right before I get to the really fun part (adding tools). Secondarily, I'm getting to the point where non woodworkers are starting to say things like "why would you bother with that in a garage," so I'm hoping a group of like minded individuals will share my enthusiasm a little more.

I don't really have a good before picture, but the two big problems were that someone forgot to pull a rogue Norway maple out 50-60 years ago and over time the landscape has been regraded leaving most of the wooden garage walls underground. We got the tree removed, although I did have to dig out a lot of the remaining stump by hand, and put the garage up on blocks. We backfilled with crushed stone and put a perimeter drain in the areas that are below grade which runs to the drywell I installed last year. One of the few occasions where I've adequately planned ahead in this renovation process.

garage below grade.jpggarage stump.jpggarage perimeter drain.jpg

Due to the walls being below grade, the back of the garage was rotted out with the back right corner being about 2 inches lower than the front and the back left corner was about 5 inches lower. I raised those back corners to get me within a 1/2" of level all the way around and built up the sill to get an extra 3" all the way around so I had enough headroom for a full 7' garage door. We also used some push braces to try to get everything as close to plumb as possible before putting the new sheathing on.

garage jack.jpggarage push brace.jpg

Once it was sheathed I got quotes for siding and didn't like any of the numbers I got back so I gave it my best shot. I have the trim coil for the fascia trim but I haven't gotten around to renting an aluminum break yet.

garage siding.jpg

Moving on to the inside. I managed to get my hands on a 25 ft aluminum I-beam (the actual span is only 18 feet) to hang ceiling joists on for the garage door tracks and drywall. I also followed the lead of a few members on this forum to install a dimple membrane over the concrete floor and add an osb subfloor.

garage beam.jpggarage floor.jpg

I'm currently scouring Facebook marketplace for a deal on flooring (as well as any tools I can find - I've found a bandsaw and a drill press so far) to put over the subfloor, although even if I find something I don't plan on installing flooring until the garage is insulated, drywalled and the mini split is up and running. Right now there's just one outlet but I should have a sub-panel in some time next week. There was an existing conduit running from the house to the garage so we're going to utilize that to put in a 60 amp sub. Then the plan is to run a track along the sill for outlets, like you would have in a lab, so that outlets can be rearranged at any point in the future as the shop layout changes.

If anyone finds this interesting I'm happy to keep updating. I've gotten a lot of great ideas (such as the dimple membrane) from this forum and I'm sure I will get a lot more now that I'm getting close to the actual "workshop" part of this renovation.

[Sam Force]

Looks like the beginning of a fine workshop to me, please continue with the pictures and the progress

[Zachary Hoyt]

It looks like you've made a lot of progress, good for you. It should be a handy space when you're ready to start using it.

If I read your post correctly and you have a 3/4" conduit to the garage that is not big enough for wires that will carry 60 amps. Probably not physically big enough and certainly would not pass inspection. If I misunderstood then disregard that concern.

[Denis Rezendes]

Hey Zachary, you are correct. I must have remembered it incorrectly, I updated the post. I didn't have a tape measure on me but I took a quick look and it's definitely larger than 3/4". I'm not doing the electrical myself so I'm fuzzy on the details there.

[Jim Becker]

That's coming along really nicely!! It's very nice when you can get a property that has an outbuilding that can be used for a shop and can enjoy the process of creating it. I'm glad you could get things updated to deal with the grade, etc., too.

Since you're shooting for conditioned space with the mini split and you have that wonderful open ceiling, if you can swing the cost, go for closed cell spray foam insulation. Keeping the space open will make a "yuge" positive impact on how big it feels and will make utilizing vertical material storage at the gable end(s) practical.

As to your electrical feed, your electrician will check any existing conduit and determine if it's code-usable for the intended level of service to the building. If it needs replaced, I'm sure they will be "happy to help".

[Bill Dufour]

location? Climate? Insulate the roof while it is open from the floor. Polyiso insualtion has doubled in the last three years. the foil really helps reduce solar gain in my climate. Roof deck bottom 135, bottom of insulation 110 or less in mid afternoon summer day.
Bill D.

[Denis Rezendes]

Jim and Bill, really like the closed cell spray foam idea. I have some leftover from our bathroom renovation so I have some experience with it. I'll have to get a quote though, it might not be cheaper to DIY at ~1200 board ft. The location is Boston area. Cost is definitely a consideration but spending a little extra to make it a nicer space for years or decades of use is worth it in my opinion.

The roof space is deceptively small, so there's not as much room for storage as it looks like but I agree that keeping that space open will leave the whole space with a much nicer feel. I had originally planned limited storage, beach items and other small things, but once I got the beam in place, added the joists, and replaced the rafter ties that had been removed/hacked up there really wasn't a lot of room left over.

[Jim Becker]

While the cost to do my 24x36x10 shop with spray foam was not insubstantial, it was worth every penny to me. It's not just about thermal qualities...it's also about air and moisture sealing as well as the structural benefits. Get local quotes and look for the "smaller operator". That's what produced the best price for my shop...not quite half what one larger insulation firm wanted. And the installer was highly skilled and got the work done quickly.

[Denis Rezendes]

Appreciate the advice Jim. I'm planning to get a few quotes from local contractors. If the price is too high for me to stomach, I'll probably do 2" of spray foam using a DIY kit and fill the rest of the bay with rockwool or fiberglass. I've done that before successfully and it saves some money for tools if filling the whole bay with foam is prohibitively expensive.

[Kris Cook]

Looking good. Nice to have shop space particularly separate from the house. Nice work so far.

FWIW I used pre-made steel fascia on my shop building and it goes up pretty easily.

[Jim Becker]

"Flash and batt" with rockwool is a very good method for your walls for sure. It's a bit harder up top so if you need to spend some money, that's where I'd have the pro do the underside of the roof and then either have them do the flash coat on the walls for you or do that DIY. Closed cell spray foam is unfortunately expensive "up front" although over time, it can result in a more comfortable space as well as more efficient heating/cooling.

[Bill Dufour]

Contact your utility companies and see if they offer heating, insulation, ac, and lighting free planing services and/or discounted rates or rebates,
BilL D

[Bill Dufour]

https://www.mass.gov/guides/massachu...tes-incentives

Does it have an old heater/ac/ fridge? maybe get money to turn it in for scrap.
Bill D

[Denis Rezendes]

There was nothing in the garage before and everything in the house is new at this point. I did the Mass Save program two years ago and it was great at the time. I have had trouble finding a straight answer on whether I can use the state or federal incentives for a garage but it's worth it to try to figure that out as the incentives are much higher now.

[David Stone (CT)]

The shop space is looking fantastic, having good insulation with proper heat and AC, to boot, will be wonderful, and I'm amazed by the amount of work you've done yourself in such a short period of time .... Finding a property where a home shop is even feasible is no small thing in the Boston area (where I live as well), given the housing stock and property values, and banishing stuff that, for most people, lives in the garage to the basement, somewhere else in the house or offsite storage is a price to be paid. Enjoy.