Garage, more than simply a place to park the car, store the lawn mower, and hide the bikes. Cleaned up, organized and transformed from storage spaces to living spaces. What is your garage saying about your personality?
An evening stroll around the neighborhood will reveal the garage transformations taking place as owners sit with door open socializing with anyone who walks by.
One house has a three car garage with finished walls and ceiling that are painted black with orange stripes and the number 14, NASCAR fan likely! The floor is finished with a grey rubber tile and orange steel cabinets and professional tool boxes line the entire back wall.
Another house has a two car garage with nicely painted walls and ceiling, full trim, nice wood cabinets along the one side and storage bins in the loft above. The floor is covered by a very large area rug on which sits 2 couches and a six person dining table. It seems to be the neighborhood card room.
The block sports bar is a transformed garage with every sports memorability available. The floor is painted like a large hockey rink and the table is in the shape of a hockey puck. Pennants line the ceiling and walls. This room even has a 50” flat screen and stadium style seating for 8. He has installed insulated doors and a heater so “the boys” can watch the game as they play darts.
Clean it up!
If you have been convinced to turn traditional storage space into new living space something has to go!
If you sit back and look at all your stuff that typically sits in a garage it lands into 3 piles; Seasonal, Historical and Just Because! Taking over the garage will mean creative disposal and relocation!
- Seasonal- Snowblowers, lawnmower, shovels, wheelbarrow, skis and bikes all are only used part of the season. Outdoor back yard sheds make great seasonal storage and kids make provide the help to move it back and forth every season!
- Historical Stuff is the things that we hang onto just because some day we plan to use them or it is "worth something to someone". Exercise equipment or that old pool pump to make a water fall takes up space, time for a yard sale!
- Just because it is a garage- Ever notice that stuff ends up in the garage because someone wants it out of their area? Bags of old cloths destined for the re-use sit in the garage for months. Winter tires stacked in a corner, recycling boxes and garbage cans all need to find creative new places to hide.
Time to organize
An explosion of garage storage products has flooded the market. There is almost nothing that you have in your garage that can’t be hung, hid or organized, so you can create more space.
Built in cabinetry is a great way to organize and hide the garage stuff that you want quick access to. There is a wide assortment of cabinets, shelving units, work benches, and tool chests available so you can custom design your garage storage. Storage bins are a great way to organize and store the stuff not used very often, like camping gear. Heavy duty garage storage bins are available in variety of sizes and colors. They seal tightly keeping your stuff clean and protected.
Storage bins can be stacked in a corner, placed high on a shelf or mezzanine, hid in the attic, or even hung from the ceiling. You need to be careful as most garage ceilings are not design for a dead load from storage items. If you are not sure, consult a professional.
Let's look at the floor
Now that all the stuff in your garage has its place, it is time to focus on that floor. A finished floor controls dust making the new space more livable. An impressive finished floor also draws visitors' attention away from the storage bins hanging from the ceiling.
Garage floor products have become increasingly popular in recent years. As floors offer unique challenges, some flooring manufacturers are now developing products specifically designed for garages. Flooring options include: floor paint, epoxy, various types of specialized tiles, rubberized flooring, polished concrete, and various types of rolled flooring. Some of these products are suitable for DYI homeowners and some are best left for the professionals.
When selecting flooring options consider that the space is typically not climate controlled so the flooring must withstand heat, cold and moisture specific to your region. The expansion and contraction caused by water or moisture, especially when frozen, can separate flooring products from the concrete.
A unique indoor/outdoor replacement to traditional front porches. What does your garage say to your visitors?
Wish I had a Garage to Use some of these fantastic hints and ideas. Maybe one day.
This is an extremely well written and informative article. And I really like the way you have explained each and everything so well. Very well done with the article
Thanks for this great idea. I just had my garage door renovated. It was a fun time.
Cool stuff. Thanks for sharing this. I am getting so much inspiration from this.