I’m building a detached garage, and am trying to decide which way to go on doors.
24 x 36 footprint, with the doors on the 24′ (gable) end.
My current plan is a 16×9 door plus a walk-in. I want the height to be able to get my truck in with kayaks on top.
My other option would be 2- 9×9 doors with the walk-in around the corner, but that would put the walk-in it under the eaves, which would require building some sort of porch roof over it to keep from getting dripped on, which would project into the gap between the house & garage where I’ll need to keep an access path to the back yard. That would also put the walk-in on the windward wall.
So, given that I’ve currently got a Tacoma pickup and a Chrysler minivan to go in (and don’t expect to have anything bigger), do you think I’ll find it a little cramped getting the vehicles in through the 16′ door?
The garage will be wide open – no support columns in the center.
Thanx
Don
Replies
I prefer two doors, but in your situation one may be the ticket. How about two 8x9 doors?
How high are you going to build the ceiling?
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Edited 5/15/2005 10:45 pm ET by Hasbeen
if you are planning on parking 2 cars in garage,there is no way i would go with a 16'. lookat a 18' it's much easier to get both in.if you want to check this out go get a couple t post and drive them into the ground and park your cars between them and try to open the doors. now put them at 18 and see what you think. larry
hand me the chainsaw, i need to trim the casing just a hair.
Most people don't realize that an 18' exist. They are readily avialable, but not "standard".I have one. And when one of my clients saw it they ended up changing the plans for their garage.OTOH, my folks used to get 2 cars in 1 1/2 car garage. 12ft door I think.
I put an 18' door in my garage- If I could have had a 20' I'd have done it-
As Overbudget said, an 18' door is the ticket. Centering the door in the 24' wall will leave you a 3' pier on each side. That is adequate for opening the passenger and driver side doors on both vehicles without dinging the walls if you are careful.
I had an 18'; door on my last garage, and parked a minivan and a full size 3/4 ton PU truck it with no problem.
Expect to pay more for the 9' door height. 8' has become pretty much standard, so adding the extra foot makes the door a "custom door", and that will be reflected in the cost.
Dave
Don,
The two singles are ok if all you plan on doing is parking cars there, but I am betting you will be doing some work on them too. The nice thing about the 16" or 18" single is that if you want you can pull one car right into the middle of the garage to wax it etc. My 24 x 24 detached has one 16' offset to one side. gives me plenty of workbench room on the other side. I do wish the garage on the house had a 18' instead of the 16', would make it a lot easier with 2 large vehicles to park !
Bill Koustenis
Advanced Automotive Machine
Waldorf Md
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Now there's a man with an open mind - you can feel the breeze from here.
Thanx for the replies.
I guess I'll do a little refiguring to see if I can fit the walk-in next to an 18' door. I really would like to have the walk-in door on the same wall as the overhead door. Going to a wider door will also cost me some wall storage space next to the vehicle opposite the walk-in. There's always tradeoffs.
The garage will be a gambrel with a full upstairs, with the header of the doors supporting floor joists. Going wider with the door will put more joists on the header and move some of the roof load further towards the center of it. That may require a significantly more beefy header (will probably use LVL's).
So can I assume that most people who are putting 2 vehicles through a 16' door would be much happier with an 18'?
Don
My garage has one 8' door and one 16' door, and I've noticed that the wide door sags in the middle when it is in the up position while the narrow door doesn't (or at least not enough that I notice it.) I suspect the 8' door will last longer since it doesn't get flexed back and forth as much every time it's opened and closed.If you put the walkin door on the same wall as the overhead door, it sounds like you won't have a lot of wall left... 24' - 16' - 3' = 5', so you end up with three skinny little wall sections, each less than two feet wide, holding up that whole side of the garage. It may be better from a structural standpoint to move the walkin door around to the side wall.
DonNH I'm planning a garage like that (24'x32') with living space above. Where did you get your plans? Would you be willing to share/sell them?
Interior or exterior staircase?
You can put the 18' overhead door and a 3' entry door in the 24' gable end. You can decide how much room you want between the overhead door and the exterior wall, 2' or 1' 6" would still leave plenty of room between the vehicle and the wall until the collection bug hits. Chances are that one of your vehicles seldome has a passenger, park that vehicle on the right next to the outside wall.
RU
1 garage door versus 2 garage doors - having 1 door only is a problem should there be a door malfunction. Have a friend who opted for a "large single door"; door evidently was not quality as has not operated in years. (perhaps a track problem?)Cars just weather outside all year long.
Have you considered having a walk-thru door between 2 garage doors? If space allows, this is most convenient plus eliminates a lot of cold air rushing in when one only needs to walk-out the door.
Architecturally I think two doors nearly always looks better, but one door (especially a bigger) one is probably easier for you.
I agree with Tea, architecturally, and as a garage door user, too. Helps if there's "clutter" in the garage, too--some, more sensitive types like to only open the door on the "car" (not clutter) side.
Now, since you are tight on width, can you stagger the "fronts"? If you could bump the front elevation out, say, 45", you could get the access door in between the the two single doors if its turned perpendicular to the front of the garage. That'd give a little protected area to get back over to the house, etc., too.Occupational hazard of my occupation not being around (sorry Bubba)
I have a "garage" that is 26'x74' and is has two 10' doors on the gable end and 54' of it has a 10 1/2' ceiling height. The other 20' end of the garage has a ceiling height of 8' with attic trusses above. The attic space is approx 14' wide by 20" long and has a finised height of 80". The roof is 6:12 and There is a 6' covered walk way going down the lenght of the garage. This was space was designed with trusses by the truss company and the cost wasn't alot more, so to speak. Try talking to a local truss company and see what is the difference in cost. Prices varied quite a bit between the two local companies.
As per the man door, I have one that is positioned down past the "designated car space" and opens into the covered walk way, say aroung 24' down . I actually have another 10' wide rollup door and then a man door.
I would recommend that you go with 9' high doors. I regret not doing it because of the extra cost. Makes SUV's and roof/ski racks easier to deal with
Now as to my lay out. It was designed to be a woodworking shop and probably never see a car inside unless I have some mechanical work to do on a car. Maybe the next owner will park inside.
I'll enclose a scan of the attic truss we used. We are in a 110mph wind area due to being on the Wash. coast. No real snow load and not much in the way of earth quake requirements. Top of the truss is not flat, it has a add on piece that is installed once trusses were delivered due to shipping/trucking
I wonder what Boss Hog thinks about this truss design.
Boss Hog doesn't think it's TOO out of the ordinary. But definitely unusual. I don't like the way it's plated, but that's just personal preference. Can't figure out why they had to cap something that short, though. We build 'em up to 13'6" tall or so.
Although it is generally known, I think it's about time to announce that I was born at a very early age.
If Im remember correctly, the trusses were shipped laying flat, not standing up right.
"the trusses were shipped laying flat, not standing upright."
Trusses are virtually always shipped laying down. But they can typically be built and shipped up to 14' wide, in theory. In practice we generally limit them to 13' 6" just to make it easier.
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hurricane zone design if u are in one sez use single doors