Garage conversion

[RTaylor692]

I am wanting to convert my 2 car garage into a rec room for my kids. My question involves 2 things. First, what steps do I take to make the garage floor level? Second, what is the best way to get rid of the garage door? Can I just build a wall with a window and just place it in the existing space, where the door is?

Thank you for any and all input.

Ron

[RWL]

1. If there is a decent slpe to the floor, I suggest some sort of light wieght fill [concrete for example] screed to the new level. Beware not to bring concrete to a "feathered-ge" [i.e. virtually no thickness] as it will continually crack and flake off. Least depth should be about 2-inches in thickness.

Do you have to and want to meet any ajacent floor levels, like inside the house? If so this becomes a little more involved.

2. There should be s strucutural framing member over the garage door which spans from one side to the other. so if you remove the door you will have a stable opening which you can fill with a stud wall, expertior finish material, insulation, and interior finishes. You can frame in for and install window[s] as you desire.

Don't know how handy you are in the trades required-- might lookinto a good contractor who can do this [or at least most of it] for you.
Good luck.

[mx2]

In our neck of the woods, it's not legal to simply do as you mention. Down here, we have hurricane impact issues (hurricanes have been known to send debris flying through exterior walls) so therefore the walls, as well as the windows and anything else on the exterior, must meet code standards. The raising of the floor slab is also a code issue, as well as filling in the door opening, electrical outlets, energy effeciency, and of course, we have occupancy issues; what are the safety issues for a rec room? Fire?...there needs to be two means of egress...escape. Also remember that once this is permitted then your total (interior) floor area increases and therefore your property taxes increase, as well as your home insurance. The opposite is true as well, should anything occur in the un-permitted room (fire for example), the insurer may opt to NOT pay for re-building the house citing illegal renovations (depending on the details of insurance policy of course). But otherwise, it's fairly simple to do all that was previously mentioned...but at least find out what the local building department says you're allowed, not allowed and what the consequences are. Check your with your home insurance broker as well. If by chance you're allowed to literally do anything you want, then I would recommend LWC on grinded existing garage floor slab with added bonding agent, and start at the entrance door to make sure there's no tripping hazard there. then i would recommend filling in the garage door opening with the same wall system as the rest of the garage (what are the walss made of now?) and frame out the entire perimeter wall, add some batt insulation then 5/8" type x gyp. wallboard (what's the ceiling height and material?), tape, sand and paint...then add commercial grade (or high-traffic) carpeting over vapor barrier and vinyl cove base. But I'd consider air conditioning/heating and electrical outlets before going into the simple quick fix...which you must hire pros to do.

mx2.5

[phansford]

RWL and mx2 have given you very good advice.

I would add that there is a possiblity there is no vapor barrier under the garage slab. This will make the room uncomfortable. Instead of using a floor leveler, you might consider using wood sleepers (pressure treated) @ 16" oc. Add some rigid insulation between the sleepers. The insulation can be purchased with a foil face vapor barrier. Lay the foil face down. Then install 3/4 inch floor decking over the sleepers. You can shave the sleepers to eliminate the slope of the garage slab. This will create a warmer floor.

[mx2]

It's really interesting to see how regional climates have effected local methods...we would never use wood at or near a floor...certainly not at a level equal to grade. The average tropical rain, frequent floods, humidity, hurricanes...( not o mention lack of wooded areas) make lumber NOT the first choice, especially as sleepers. But it is a good detail for drier (and cooler) climates. Down here we want a good seal, and air condition the heck out of the room....it's all about moisture control after that.



mx2.5

[phansford]

Mx2 interesting points..... all this talk about global economy, its still comes down to regional issues.

Wood is all we use here in the midwest. The pressure treated lumber should do fine on the floor, maybe a layer of 15# building felt would help, then you don't need a foil face on the insulation.

I would want to create some barrier at the former garage door opening. I might even hand-dig to verify if there is a footer/foundation under the garage door opening...... which in older houses was not always installed. Then I would want to detail some way to "lift" the new wood framing off of grade - either with CMU or a small conc. curb.

I am pretty sure there isn't a foundation under my garage door opening in my vintage 1955 ranch. I am figuring to correct that problem when I replace the drive and the garage slab in the near future. I'm planning on just doing a turn-down slab edge.