A garage is often the least desirable space in an urban property, with lack of natural light, high humidity levels and poor air circulation making it a less than ideal place to store tools and equipment. If you live in an apartment and have a single carport with limited space for parking vehicles and storing other items, converting it into a functional and usable space that benefits you is definitely worth thinking about. However, garages present a few challenges that require careful planning and attention to detail if they are to be safely converted into useful and usable spaces. Here are some tips on how you can convert your garage into something useful and usable if it’t too small to park a car in, too small for storing tools and equipment, or if you are interested in making it into a living space (with or without a finished loft above it).

Ensure your garage has good foundations

Before you start converting it, you need to make sure that the foundations of the garage are sturdy and able to support the weight of whatever you want to build above it. This means that you need to check the floor joists to make sure they’re strong enough, and also assess the walls and roof for signs of weakness. A good way to do this is to hire a building inspector to come out and inspect the garage and give you an assessment. If you’re not sure what to look for in terms of signs of weakness, this article on how to inspect a house for flaws might be helpful.

Decide if you need to lift the floor joists

If your garage has wooden floor joists that are resting on a concrete slab, you’ll need to lift the joists before adding any new weight to an upper level. This is because the concrete slab will not be able to support the weight that the floor joists will take if they are left as they are. You can do this by securing lifting straps to the joists and using a jack to lift them up. Alternatively, you can use a crane if you have a large enough space. If the floor joists are made of metal, they will not need to be lifted, but you’ll still need to check that they won’t buckle under the weight of whatever is above them.

Decide what you need to store above the garage

Once you’ve decided if you need to lift the joists and how much weight you can stack above it, you can then start to plan what you want to store on the upper level. If you’re renovating the garage, you may simply want to use the space for storage. If you want to turn the garage into a living space, you may want to consider building an extension on top of the garage. You can also consider building a loft above the garage if you’re renovating to make the garage look like a living space.

Decide on architectural plans for your garage

If your garage is only going to be used for storing tools and equipment, you can keep it simple and use architectural plans that just show you how to build a roof above the place. If you’re renovating the garage to make it look like a living space, you can choose to use architectural plans that show you how to build an extension or loft above the garage. You can also use architectural plans that show you how to convert the garage into a living space.

Find an engineer to check your structure

If you’re renovating the garage, you might want to consider hiring an engineer to check the structure of the building. This can help you avoid any issues with the building code, and it can also help you identify potential safety hazards. To find an engineer, you can either look online or find a contractor for recommendations.

Conclusion

Converting a garage into something usable requires careful planning and attention to detail. If you want to renovate the garage, you’ll need to decide on architectural plans that show you how to build a roof or an extension above the garage. If you want to turn the garage into a living space, you’ll need to assess the garage’s foundations to make sure they are sturdy enough to support the garage’s new use.If you’re renovating the garage, you’ll also need to hire an engineer to check the structure of the garage and help you identify any safety hazards.