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jedens
New Member

Reged: 09/12/02
Posts: 12
Loc: Colorado Springs Colorado
Pro's and con's of a garage under the house
      09/12/02 10:24 PM

I am interested in seeing what people think about the pro's and con's of having your garage under your house. We have a building site that would lend itself to having the garage under the house with the garage door on the side of the house.
Also wanted to be first to post on this forum!


Joe

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DUMBDOG
Gold Member

Reged: 09/11/02
Posts: 286
Loc: North Dakota, Florida
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: jedens]
      09/12/02 10:27 PM

Your profile does not say where you live, but the biggest drawback up here in North Dakota is the winters. If you have a bathroom or any other water lines above the garage you had better make sure that it is well insulated or the lines could freeze if your garage is unheated.

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Scott_IN_WVa
Member

Reged: 09/11/02
Posts: 73
Loc: Planet West Virginia
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: jedens]
      09/12/02 11:02 PM

A big concern of mine would be asphyxiation if a car/truck was left idling in the basement.When I was a boy a family died in a town not to far from where I live,because a car was started and left idling in the basement garage.

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GaryM
Veteran Member

Reged: 09/12/02
Posts: 1212
Loc: Warrenton, MO
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: jedens]
      09/12/02 11:14 PM

Many smaller, and older, houses in the older parts of St. Louis have the garages under part the house.

My brother in law's former house, 1970's vintage, was what they call a split foyer and the master suite was above the garage. We never noticed any problems.

Gary
----------------------------------------------
Hey! Aren't you supposed to be working?

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egon
Veteran Member

Reged: 09/12/02
Posts: 3031
Loc: Nova Scotia,Canada
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: Scott_IN_WVa]
      09/13/02 07:33 AM

Scott's reply would be a major concern for me. Exspecially with all the new command start's around. There are quite a few cases of death due to carbon monoxide poising from vehicles left running in an attached garage.
Our house has a basement drive in garage but it is outfitted as a work shop. I have always felt that a garage should be separate so there is also a place to store combustibles etc. We have a little shed out back for this purpose.
Egon

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Scott_IN_WVa
Member

Reged: 09/11/02
Posts: 73
Loc: Planet West Virginia
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: egon]
      09/13/02 11:02 AM

Another advantage of having a garage seperate from the house is FIRE,if you loose your garage to a fire or vice versa,you will not loose everything you have.Finish the basement for some extra living space and put the garage elsewhere.

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jedens
New Member

Reged: 09/12/02
Posts: 12
Loc: Colorado Springs Colorado
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: Scott_IN_WVa]
      09/13/02 07:43 PM

Thanks everyone for your comments. The cons certainly seem to outweigh the pros on this. A detached garage looks like the best way to go.
thanks again

Joe

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njrqs
Member

Reged: 09/11/02
Posts: 40
Loc: Australia
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: jedens]
      09/15/02 06:05 PM Attachment

Joe

Over this side of the pond, garages under the house are the norm. I have lived all my life in houses with garages under, so have my parents and most people we know.

The gassing thing is not an issue, neither is fire as far as the authorities go.

Most places have internal stairs so we don't have to go outside to get into the car.

The garage makes an excellent party area and is cooler in summer due to being insulated from above.

Here is a pic of our place. Very typical.

Note that low-set places (obviously) don't have the garage under but it is normally included under the main roof at one end.

Cheers


From OZ


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edt
Member

Reged: 09/13/02
Posts: 39
Loc: so. N.H
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: jedens]
      09/16/02 01:50 PM

HI Jedens I also have a garage under have for about 15 years when i bought the house first things to purchase is a smoke detctor and a co2 detector mine is built too meet code with fire doors and firecode sheet rock and steeel studs.I love heat from the house when working in there
and storage for fire wood for cold winter nights
EDT
PS I don't need to shovel a walk to it either

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Kevin_in_Mi
New Member

Reged: 09/12/02
Posts: 14
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: jedens]
      09/17/02 08:28 AM

The Popularity of ranches with attached garages seems to be on the rise here in SE Mi. The garage is not directly under the house. Instead, a bonus room is built over the garage with access from inside the house. This makes for more floor space and a pretty cool place to hang out.

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Gary_in_Indiana
Gold Member

Reged: 09/15/02
Posts: 260
Loc: Fort Wayne, Indiana
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: jedens]
      09/22/02 12:40 PM

Around here code changed within the past few years requiring substantially more fixed, permanent ventilation in garages regardless of whether they are under living areas or not. I don't know if this is a national change or just local. In any event, more ventilation would ease a lot of your ocncerns.

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njrqs
Member

Reged: 09/11/02
Posts: 40
Loc: Australia
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: Gary_in_Indiana]
      09/22/02 07:33 PM

Our garages under houses have no ventilation requirements at all.

Hey mine is sealed is tight as I can to try and stop the snakes getting it !!

Cheers


From OZ


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cowboydoc
Veteran Member

Reged: 09/11/02
Posts: 642
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: jedens]
      09/26/02 08:22 AM

I disagree. We have had underhouse garages in our last three houses, two of which I built. We really like them. This forces us to insulate, heat, and finish off the area. You come out in the am in the winter to a nice warm car. At night you come home to a nice warm garage. My wife loves it because she can take her time getting kids in, groceries, etc. I like it because I have a warm garage to work in, put wood in, etc. You have a climate controlled area that you can put your freezer, an extra refrig., etc.

As far as exhaust goes we don't have to warm up the cars so we just open the door and go. There is no exhaust buildup. We don't start or close the door until the cars are shut off.

You can do the same things with a detached garage but this always seemed easier to me.

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Scott_IN_WVa
Member

Reged: 09/11/02
Posts: 73
Loc: Planet West Virginia
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: cowboydoc]
      09/26/02 01:05 PM

I agree to disagree.Whoopee

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Mosey
Gold Member

Reged: 09/12/02
Posts: 436
Loc: Southern Indiana
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: jedens]
      10/02/02 02:54 PM

Joe - I'm coming in on this one a little late, but thought I'd chime in anyway. I lived in a house with the garage under the bedrooms and hated it! It was not insulated, so the bathroom froze in the winter a few times. The floor was cold. If you insulated it, then it might be OK. Another problem I had was that if I got up early and someone else wanted to sleep in I would wake them up when I opened the garage door which made rattling noises and vibrated the bedroom floor, and if that didn't wake them up then starting the truck would! Again, enough insulation might solve that. What I have now is a garage attached via a breezeway and I like it a lot.

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billfires
New Member

Reged: 09/13/02
Posts: 4
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: jedens]
      04/14/03 10:27 AM

Joe, we are in our second raised ranch with garage under. This one is 26' wide by 29' deep with two 8' high by 9' wide doors. It is completely insulated including the ceiling. The doors are insulated steel (R-11 if I remember correctly). I used a 1500 watt milk house heater and the lowest temp this winter was 50 degrees when the outside temp was below 0. If you don't need the space for living I think it is a good alternative to an attatched or stand alone garage (and a good deal cheaper, too). Hope this helps, Bill C

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roho627
Silver Member

Reged: 10/23/04
Posts: 142
Loc: HouTex
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: billfires]
      11/09/04 06:19 PM

Hey Pros seems to outweigh cons for me! Anybody got a site where a person could see house above the garage or garage apartment plans! Am interested in looking at plans!

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JP11
New Member

Reged: 10/12/04
Posts: 14
Loc: Central Maine
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: roho627]
      11/14/04 06:14 PM

Plans for us:

Have a daylight basement. Drive in for garage on back side of house. Front side ground level will be my wife's photography studio.

All will be heated, no concerns there. No worry about occasional under studio noise. We plan to install a wood boiler, and have a large utility room with wood storage and central vac, water works, etc etc all in the utility room across the back of the garage.

I think that if you dont EVER run the vehicle in the garage other than in and out of the building.. it isn't much of an issue.

Looking forward to my radiant floor heat throughout the house, including my warm garage. Even better that it will be heated from wood I collect from my own 70 acres.



JP

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roho627
Silver Member

Reged: 10/23/04
Posts: 142
Loc: HouTex
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: JP11]
      11/14/04 07:53 PM

hey JP sounds good, U ain't got any plans going or any early pics to share! BTW, have U got a good website that's got plans for such a place! Sounds nice Good luck!

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Gatorboy
Gold Member

Reged: 09/13/02
Posts: 398
Loc: Bel Air, Maryland
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: roho627]
      11/15/04 05:42 AM

Anybody got a site where a person could see house above the garage or garage apartment plans!

:: Archway Press
:: CAD Smith
:: Garage HSH Plans
:: Home Plans Store


I'm sure you can find many more if you do a Google Search.

:: D A V E
:: g a t o r b o y


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roho627
Silver Member

Reged: 10/23/04
Posts: 142
Loc: HouTex
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: Gatorboy]
      11/15/04 06:57 AM

THANKS GATORBOY form MARY LAND! Really presiate sites & advise! Will try 2 use ASAP! This is what it's all about! PEOPLE HELPING PEOPLE! U know I may get enough advise about home building software program, that I can save my money on some junk that just sets in drawer because it's not being used! I've got lots of gadgets that I thought I'd use but never did! Would like to buy just one home building software program! Oh yeah, am not familar with Maryland, R U the only gator there!!!! roho

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lbrown59
Member

Reged: 12/03/04
Posts: 48
Loc: Along the Ohio River
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: roho627]
      12/09/04 09:52 PM

I have always felt that a garage should be separate so there is also a place to store combustibles etc. We have a little shed out back for this purpose.
Egon
==============
So have I but apparently the insurance industry doesn't agree with us.

I was on an insurance forum one time with mostly all members being insurance agents.
Boy did they come down hard on me for doing that.
Seems for some hairbrained reason insurers would rather you put it in the garage or basement.

Also If you keep over 5 gallons of fuel on hand they frown on that and can either cancel your homeowners insurance or deny a fire claim if they discover you have more than 5 gallons around the place.


lb
3 Kubotas
1 BX23
2 BX1500s


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lbrown59
Member

Reged: 12/03/04
Posts: 48
Loc: Along the Ohio River
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: lbrown59]
      12/09/04 09:57 PM



fire is not an issue, as far as the authorities go.
njrqs
************************
Maybe so but with the insurance companies it's a hot issue.
PUN INTENDED!

lb
3 Kubotas
1 BX23
2 BX1500s


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lbrown59
Member

Reged: 12/03/04
Posts: 48
Loc: Along the Ohio River
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: lbrown59]
      12/09/04 10:09 PM

Around here code changed within the past few years requiring substantially more fixed, permanent ventilation in garages regardless of whether they are under living areas or not. I don't know if this is a national change or just local. In any event, more ventilation would ease a lot of your ocncerns.
Pages: 1
jedens
New Member
==================
It's not national because in my county there isn't any building code.

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http://consumers.creditnet.com/straighttalk/board/showthread.php?s=&postid=410243#post410243
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lb
3 Kubotas
1 BX23
2 BX1500s


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tdiller
New Member

Reged: 04/01/05
Posts: 20
Re: Pro's and con's of a garage under the house new [re: jedens]
      04/08/05 12:49 PM

Biggest con...

Fire. Saw a house with the garage under one bedroom. In the less than 3 minutes it took the fire dept to show up bedroom was gone. Swore then and there that I would never have a house like that.

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