Remaking your garage into an extra bedroom, den, or kids’ playroom can improve not only the resale value of your home but also your quality of life. In comparison to building an addition, a garage conversion is much more affordable and entails fewer bureaucratic hurdles, but that’s not to say it’s a simple project. As you begin planning yours, take into account these essential considerations. In a garage with a flat and dry concrete slab, homeowners have no shortage of flooring options. Tile, whether ceramic or vinyl, holds appeal for its ease of installation. It can be laid directly over the slab, so long as the slab is properly prepared. This typically entails filling cracks with patching compound, cleaning spills with a degreasing solution, and applying sealer to block moisture from rising up through the porous concrete. Less affordable and more demanding to the do-it-yourselfer are carpeting or hardwood. Both materials require a plywood subfloor, which means the project must begin with patching, cleaning, and sealing the slab.

After that, lay down a layer of polyethylene sheeting to further safeguard against moisture. Then attach 3/4-inch plywood to the slab with concrete screws at 16-inch intervals. The carpeting or hardwood is then installed over the plywood, resulting in a raised floor height that will need to be managed at the garage entryways. Many who complete a garage conversion ultimately choose to leave the garage door intact, imbuing the space with a note of industrial flair. Other homeowners replace the garage door with a solid or windowed wall, or with a compromise solution, such as French doors. As you contemplate the design of your garage conversion, ask yourself whether the space has a sufficient number of windows. If you’re planning to add any, consider not only natural light and views to the outdoors, but also privacy. You’re ahead of the game if your garage walls are insulated and paneled in drywall. If they aren’t, however, how you address the issue often depends on how your garage is constructed.

If the exterior walls are cinderblock, then outfit the perimeter of the space in stud framing. Fit insulation between the studs and then fasten the drywall to the framing. (For walls with drywall but no insulation, spray-foam insulation can be used with little disruption to the status quo.) Before closing up the walls, remember to run electrical wire for overhead lighting. Also at this stage, you must frame out any closets you wish to include as part of your garage conversion.2 ton ac unit installed Once the walls are in, hire a licensed electrician to install outlets and light switches, as well as any fixtures you wish to mount on, or hang from, the ceiling. air conditioner unit water leaks(Note that it may be necessary to add a circuit to your breaker panel.) fan coil unit support

Of the many reasons to hire a professional to handle the electrical work in your garage conversion, perhaps most important is the pro’s in-depth knowledge of the relevant building codes in your area. If you have a forced-air system, the simplest (read: most cost-effective) method of heating and cooling your garage conversion is to extend the ductwork from the main part of your house. Alternatively, look into radiant floor heating, which operates through the floor by means of heated water or electrical coils. Yet another option is to install a mini-split heater and/or air conditioner. Known as a ductless system, this technology consists of a wall-mounted unit that draws from a condenser situated immediately outside the building. As a final set of options, consider the traditional amenities for small-space seasonal comfort, namely baseboard heaters and window air conditioners. Installing a kitchen, bathroom, wet bar, or utility sink can be the most complicated part of a garage conversion.

Chances are good that in order to have running water, supply and drain lines will need to be set into the concrete slab. For that reason, it’s wise to handle plumbing issues first, before addressing other features of the project. If you wish to build a bathroom but are leery of disrupting the slab, think about an up-flush system, which relies on a macerator (to grind waste) and a pump (to take that waste to your septic tank or sewer). In this setup, supply and return lines are boxed out along the floor, but they almost disappear from view once you have painted and furnished the renovated garage space.Whether your goal is to fix, tinker, build or make something better, your next adventure in DIY starts here.The page you tried to access does not exist on this server. page may not exist due to the following reasons:Although uncommon for garage doors, under certain specific situations, it could happen that a sealed, double-pane (thermopane) window breaks with small fractures appearing in the corners.

Note that this text will not cover all those situations where a window is accidentally hit by an object. A double-pane window can break due to an excessive variation in temperature over a short period of time. To help you make an “enlightened” choice about adding windows to your new garage door, contact us! What’s more, we can provide you with a free quotation.Get a Free QuoteContact usWhat are the causes? Breaks due to thermal shock are a result of stress generated by temperature variations between two areas within a pane of glass. For example, this variation can develop between a section of a window exposed to direct sunlight and a shaded section. Under the effects of the sun, a window heats up even more as its energy absorption is high. If a section of the window remains cold, it stops the hotter section from freely expanding, thus generating compressive and tensile stress respectively in the hot and cold parts of the double-pane window. As glass is less resistant in traction than in compression, the tensile stress generated is likely to exceed the tensile strength of the glass thereby causing breakage.

This type of break is seen at the edge of the window, in the coldest part of the frame, and is characterized by a perpendicular (90°) fracture at the edge on both sides of the glass. What are the risk factors?Climate conditions: The difference in temperature within a double-pane unit depends directly on the intensity of the solar radiation that reaches it based on the orientation of the unit, the time of day, and the season, and the maximum difference in temperature between day and night. Double-pane units facing north pose little risk of thermal breakage, as they are not exposed to the sun.Characteristics of the double-pane unit: The higher the energy absorption factor of the glass, the higher the unit heats up under the effect of sunlight. For instance, glass on which a reflective film is affixed absorbs more heat than clear glass and is therefore more susceptible to thermal breakage.Thermal inertia of the frame: The higher the thermal inertia of the frame, the longer it takes the temperature of the frame to adapt to external conditions.

The frame color can also have some effect on the phenomenon.External environment: The external environment (ex.: shadows from trees) or the house itself may submit the double-pane unit to partial and extended shade.Interior environment: The environment inside a commercial garage can significantly increase the difference in temperature between the hot and cold areas of the unit. How to prevent thermal breakage?Sealed, double-pane windows (thermopane) normally stand up to these stresses. However, for specific reasons, there may be breakage. In these cases, the quality of the window unit cannot be called into question. When the difference in temperature within a double-pane unit reaches values higher than 85°F (30°C), we recommend using tempered glass, which stands up to differences in temperature of 212°F (100°C) and more. However, using this type of glass may generally be avoided by taking into consideration simple measures such as:providing a minimum space of about 1 ½ in. (40 mm) between the glass and any blinds or curtains, for commercial garage doors: avoiding heating systems (radiators, convectors, forced air) too close to the glass, ensuring that they are at least 8 inches (20 cm) from the window.