Since I moved to the farm ~10 years ago, I've wanted a garage. When I lived in Colorado, I had a two car garage; the only garage I've ever owned. It was awesome, albeit a bit tight for working on a car, especially when another was parked in there. But at 7400' elevation in the Central Rockies, a garage is a necessity.
After a lot of thought and planning, I took the plunge on Labor Day and ordered a metal three car garage building. Thanks to a Labor Day sale, it was 20% off of retail. Even at retail, it would be way less expensive than a wooden frame garage. Now I'm waiting for the concrete bid, which will likely be as expensive as the building.
Fortunately, since we live on a farm, it is exempt from the usual county building permit requirements. Nontheless, the building will be engineered, and certified to 140 mph wind load.
After looking at a neighbor's 30' x 35' metal building, I decided to go with 40' x 30'. Enough room for a 10' x 10' door and two 9' x 8' doors, and a bit of room at the end for a workbench, tool cabinets, compressor, parts washer, shelviing, and miscellaneous stuff.
The slab will be 4" thick, with a 12" thickened perimeter.
I also plan to have the concrete guy thicken a portion of the slab for a future two-post lift.
The plan is to use the 10' x 10' bay for my K2500 Suburban, as well as having room to drive our 1970 John Deere 2520 tractor inside; the other two are for my DD and my GF's 2011 Ford Ranger pickup. All three still have excellent paint (the Sub was completely repainted earlier this year), and having a garage will help preserve them by no longer having to park them outdoors.
Not sure what I'm going to do for heat and cooling, but the building will be insulated with what metal building companies call "double bubble." The next tier of insulation would have cost a bunch more, so I figured that some insulation is better than no insulation. Plus, uninsulated metal roofs form condensation, which in turn drips onto whatever is below. The double bubble takes care of that problem.
I'm meeting with the local electrical cooperative next week to get an estimate for running a new power line to the building. Because of the potential for later installing a two post lift, it will be wired for 220v.
Having a concrete floor and all weather protection will be a game changer. No more fighting with a floor jack on a gravel parking area, no more working in the direct summer sun, and no more being rained out. I'll be able to use my creeper, and my roll-around seat. I'll even be able to clean and wax vehicles on a sunny day. And my tools will all be in one place, instead of distributed among three locations on the farm. The gross inefficiency of my current setup for doing even minor maintenance and repairs will largely disappear.
I'm retired, and with every year that goes by I realize how short life really is. Having a garage, but with improvements based on my past experience in Colorado, has merely been a "someday" dream I've had since moving to the farm.
"Someday" has become today.
My guess is that it may take several months to complete, as the concrete contractor is at least two months out.
I'll post pictures and progress updates as things unfold.
After a lot of thought and planning, I took the plunge on Labor Day and ordered a metal three car garage building. Thanks to a Labor Day sale, it was 20% off of retail. Even at retail, it would be way less expensive than a wooden frame garage. Now I'm waiting for the concrete bid, which will likely be as expensive as the building.
Fortunately, since we live on a farm, it is exempt from the usual county building permit requirements. Nontheless, the building will be engineered, and certified to 140 mph wind load.
After looking at a neighbor's 30' x 35' metal building, I decided to go with 40' x 30'. Enough room for a 10' x 10' door and two 9' x 8' doors, and a bit of room at the end for a workbench, tool cabinets, compressor, parts washer, shelviing, and miscellaneous stuff.
The slab will be 4" thick, with a 12" thickened perimeter.
I also plan to have the concrete guy thicken a portion of the slab for a future two-post lift.
The plan is to use the 10' x 10' bay for my K2500 Suburban, as well as having room to drive our 1970 John Deere 2520 tractor inside; the other two are for my DD and my GF's 2011 Ford Ranger pickup. All three still have excellent paint (the Sub was completely repainted earlier this year), and having a garage will help preserve them by no longer having to park them outdoors.
Not sure what I'm going to do for heat and cooling, but the building will be insulated with what metal building companies call "double bubble." The next tier of insulation would have cost a bunch more, so I figured that some insulation is better than no insulation. Plus, uninsulated metal roofs form condensation, which in turn drips onto whatever is below. The double bubble takes care of that problem.
I'm meeting with the local electrical cooperative next week to get an estimate for running a new power line to the building. Because of the potential for later installing a two post lift, it will be wired for 220v.
Having a concrete floor and all weather protection will be a game changer. No more fighting with a floor jack on a gravel parking area, no more working in the direct summer sun, and no more being rained out. I'll be able to use my creeper, and my roll-around seat. I'll even be able to clean and wax vehicles on a sunny day. And my tools will all be in one place, instead of distributed among three locations on the farm. The gross inefficiency of my current setup for doing even minor maintenance and repairs will largely disappear.
I'm retired, and with every year that goes by I realize how short life really is. Having a garage, but with improvements based on my past experience in Colorado, has merely been a "someday" dream I've had since moving to the farm.
"Someday" has become today.
My guess is that it may take several months to complete, as the concrete contractor is at least two months out.
I'll post pictures and progress updates as things unfold.
