Are you looking for a way to add some extra living space to your home without spending much money? Converting your garage into a garden room could be the perfect solution! In this blog post, we’ll outline some of the steps you need to take to make this transformation. Keep reading for more information.
Is It Possible To Transform My Garage Into A Garden Room?
Most likely, it is correct. Thus many people have such a section of the driveway to connect the garage, where the car might be parked once the garage has been converted into a garden room or additional living space. If you’re looking for things to outfit your entire garage, GarageSmart® got you covered.
If there is no driveway, the area adjacent to the garage could be used, or the rear garden could be converted into a parking space. Otherwise, parking on the street is always possible, provided such is permitted.
My Garage: Should I Live There?
Whether your garage is attached or detached, converting it into liveable space is a simple method to enhance your home’s square footage. If you’re on the fence about whether or not to convert your garage, consider these advantages:
- You can get more living space from the garage’s current footprint than a brand-new addition.
- Converting a garage might save you valuable outside space.
- No need to necessarily dig out additional footing. Still, it’s a good idea to inspect the existing footings, especially if you plan to add another story above the garage.
- The majority of garage conversions may be done without applying for planning approval, and in fact, this is the kind of project that is usually met with approval.
- There are many potential uses for a converted garage, from an additional bedroom or utility room to a games area or home gym, among many other possibilities.
- As a component of a larger home makeover, they perform admirably. Consider alternative floor plan configurations to smoothly transition from one area to another.
- Your home’s resale value could be significantly increased by converting your garage.
To Transform A Garage Into The A Garden Room, A Planning Permit May Be Required
As long as the work being done does not impact the exterior of your house and you do not want to enlarge the existing building, you will likely not need to obtain planning permission to convert your garage into the garden room. However, the following are not among them:
- If you need a bedroom because you’re going to be using the garden room as a full-fledged living space,
- In an apartment or maisonette.
- Your neighbourhood is protected, so your home is, too.
- Your house is on the historic registry.
- It’s time to give your garage a facelift from the outside in.
Anyone using their PDRs should remember that they must obtain an LDC beforehand. This will prove that the garden room was built within the law at the time it was built.
Storage Space To Pleasure: Converting Garages Into Garden Rooms
For many of us, building a garden room from the ground up is nothing more than a fantasy. While it is possible to construct a garden room on a modest budget, this option will stay out of reach so long as financial constraints prevent its implementation. However, there are many little garden rooms on the market, or you could create and construct your own.
Still, if you have a rear yard large enough to accommodate a couple of rubbish bins or even no rear garden, you will regretfully not be able to fit in even a pocket napkin-sized garden room.
Even if your garage is adjacent to your home, it is possible to transform it into the garden room of your dreams, making it the ideal solution for individuals who want a more spacious outdoor living area but have neither a garden nor a large yard. Need storage solutions for sprucing up that blank wall in your garage? Adding a GarageSmart® SmartWall is a quick and easy method to upgrade your garage’s storage capabilities.
Making Use Of Your Garage
Since the slab of concrete (also known as the base or foundation) of an existing building has to support the weight of a vehicle, it is likely to be more robust than would have been necessary for a garden room, which might save you money compared to starting from scratch.
You might be fortunate to have stone or brick walls, possibly chosen to complement the main house; however, many garages were built utilising prefabricated concrete panels, which are not the most aesthetically pleasing of walling material but are sturdy and robust, and therefore it makes good sense to retain them. Next, we’ll examine how exterior cladding can hide the presence of prefabricated concrete panels.
To conceal the prefabricated concrete panels that were removed when the garage was converted into a garden room, a new front wall could be built out of stone or brick to match the existing walls, or a timber frame could be built and clad.
Verify that the slab of concrete (also called the concrete base) is thick enough to hold the new wall or that the garage’s foundations continue below the opening where the car would have been driven. If you have any concerns regarding the stability of your concrete slab, you should see a contractor or structural engineer.
If your garage already has a side door and a window, you can skip the cost of installing them; if not, you’ll need to make a hole in the wall to instal them. If you’re building a new front wall, you can have a window installed simultaneously; however, you should check with your local planning first to see if any permits are needed.
Only some people will want to permanently seal off the opening through which the car would be driven; for whatever reason, some may decide to re-install the garage later. In such a case, you could construct a momentary wooden frame and then use insulated fibreglass board on the interior of the building while keeping the original garage door on the outside.
Especially if asbestos was used in its construction, your garage’s roof might need to be rebuilt entirely; a new flat roof will be watertight and properly insulated, resulting in a significant temperature differential within the garage during the winter. On the other hand, you may make it look more like your main house by giving it a pitched roof, and you can take advantage of the potential storage space up there. If you want to convert your flat roof into a pitched one, you should check with your local planning authority to determine if you need special permission before cutting any new holes in your ceiling.
A skylight installed in your new roof will let in lots of natural light and cool air during the warmer months and add value to your home. One reason to convert a flat roof to a pitched one is a shortage of headroom inside the house. This could be due to the building’s original design, or it could result from your having to raise the floor level to instal additional damp proofing, insulation, and possibly even underfloor heating.
A pitched roof can have a vaulted aspect without the need for a ceiling if the ceiling joists are raised. However, adding the necessary extra courses of blocks or bricks to a flat roof will not suffice if you want to raise its level; you will likely need to replace the entire roof.
Insulating your roof is crucial in converting your garden room into a comfortable living space, regardless of the type of roof you already have.
Using Clapboards For Your Garden Shed’s Exterior
External cladding can be made from a variety of materials. Still, timber is the most popular because it is affordable and simple to instal yourself, making it the material of choice for most homeowners. In addition, if you insulate the space between the cladding and the inner wall of your garden room, you can use it to regulate the room’s temperature year-round.
Floor Of Repurposed Garage-Turned-Garden-Room
Also, a waterproof membrane (DPM) and a waterproofing course are commonly omitted from garage construction sites when damp proofing is needed (DPC). Since most garage floors aren’t insulated, you’ll need to add some before turning your garage into a usable garden room.
Protected From The Rain
Although you can find do-it-yourself kits for installing the injection of a chemical damp-proof course, we advise consulting with your provider to make sure you get the right equipment.
Water-Resistant Membrane
Trying to bring the floor level up to coincide with the around it street level will also prevent future flooding, so if the floor of your garage seems to be lower than the floor level around it, installing a waterproofing membrane without constructing a step-up inside the floor level should be a simple matter (unless a step up in the floor level is desired).
Before installing your moisture-proof membrane, ensure your garage floor has been thoroughly swept and is free of any loose objects.
There is the option of using a solid damp proofing membrane or a liquid one, such as a liquid epoxy; however, if head height is a potential problem, it is more practical to utilise the liquid membrane.
Lapping up the walls to a point where the chemical injection moisture-proof course is installed is essential for installing your damp-proof membrane, and lapping up the walls beyond the flooring you choose is essential for preventing dampness at the ends of your flooring.
If you’re having trouble standing up straight, you have two options: raise the height limit, which will likely require raising the height of the roof, or dig up the present floor and instal a new one, next time with the appropriate damp proofing and insulation.
Flooring Insulation
After you’ve finished waterproofing your converted garage garden area with a damp proof course & damp proof membrane, it’s time to start planning how you’ll insulate it. There is a wide variety of underfloor insulation products on the market, so you should shop around to choose the one that best fits your needs.
Good news for individuals who value their ceiling height but worry about losing it: insulation solutions have come a long way in recent years, and thin insulation that performs admirably is now readily accessible.
Radiant Floor Heating
Consider installing underfloor heating to warm a garage-turned-garden room without sacrificing floor space to bulky radiators or space-hogging freestanding heaters.
Underfloor heating is more effective and cost-effective than traditional radiators since it operates at a lower temperature. In addition, underfloor heating, and at least the water-based variant (also known as a wet system), takes far longer to warm up than radiators mounted on the wall.
Radiant Floor Heat Fueled By Water (Wet System)
This system functions similarly to the radiators in the home and uses the same piping system to distribute heat from your boiler for both.
A water-based underfloor heating system will have a more noticeable impact on the floor level than an electrically heated floor system. Thus this must be considered if the neck room is a possible problem. However, the water-based variant’s lower operating costs mean it will pay for itself in the long run.
Radiant Floor Heating Fueled By Electricity (Dry System)
Underfloor electric heating typically consists of tiny cables running from the wall outlet to the floor below. This heated floor is typically installed as part of a matting or membrane. It comes in various thicknesses, including very thin ones, making them suitable for any space where there is a constraint on the amount of vertical space available.
The cost to operate an electric underfloor gas boiler is roughly three times that of a water-based system; hence these systems are typically only installed in smaller rooms or regions that are difficult to access. In addition, electric underfloor heating systems must only be wired into the building’s electrical system by a licenced electrician.
Internal Partitions
Insulation can be installed between the plasterboard and the inner walls if you use it to line the interior walls; if you use a timber frame and cladding for the new front wall, insulation will also need to be installed. Looking for garage shelving, storage solutions, or something else to organise your garage? Look no further than GarageSmart®!
In conclusion, converting your garage, whether attached or detached, can increase your home’s square footage and provide additional living or recreational space. A planning permit may be required for certain conversions, like turning a garage into a garden room.
You can create an outdoor retreat by adding a new front wall to match existing structures, and save money if the garage already has a door and window. Insulating the roof, floor, and walls is essential for comfort. Raising the ceiling height may be necessary if you’re concerned about space. Modern insulation options and underfloor heating systems can help enhance the room without sacrificing ceiling height.
