Now THIS is a Garage! Find Out Why
When was the last time you broke a mirror on your car pulling in our out of your “standard” size garage with “standard” sized garage doors?
Or do you park so close to the other car in the 2 car garage that one of you has to climb out through the passenger door? That gets old quick; especially if YOU are old! (Not that you are 🙂 )
This particular “2-car” garage measures 27 feet wide by 24 feet 10 inches deep. The ceiling is over 10 feet high, but two-thirds of it slope upward starting half way back to get to a large shelf storage area that also has the scuttle to get to the attic.
(The attic has a nice catwalk across it – and a light, of course – but that’s getting off topic.)
Custom Home Has Oversize Garage Doors
Once the garage itself is large enough, the next logical step is to put in overhead garage doors (yes, openers with multi-button remotes) that are large enough to COMFORTABLY pull in (I prefer backing in) your truck or SUV without worrying about having power retractable mirrors and maybe dinging your vehicle (and the garage) besides.
These overhead garage doors are Wayne Dalton brand, highly regarded at the time and advertised by Home Improvement star Richard Karn.
And the size of these garage doors? 8 Feet high by 10 feet wide. Yeah, a far cry above the 7 foot high by 9 wide, or – if you are particularly unlucky or comparing to that “third” garage on most homes – 7 high by only 8 feet wide. 8 feet wide, that’s for a golf cart or 4 wheeler, not a car, SUV or, God forbid, a pickup. Oh, but they saved $19.95! (How many mirrors and how much garage door/trim damage will that cover?
This Custom Home Has Walk-in Doors Too – As in TWO
Don’t you love it when the quickest way out to the driveway is through the garage but there is no walk in door? This custom home has no corners cut; there are two walk in doors, one that opens toward the front porch and the other that opens toward that beautiful Morton Building.
Now – Let’s Talk About Windows
Most people want a window in their garage for some light, and many home designs have windows on a side entry garage that make it look like a room of the house.
A few people will even open those garage windows for fresh air, but I quite honestly see that very seldom. Most times the windows just get dirty and full of cobwebs.
Garage windows, also, can be a slight security risk. Remember, we are dead bolting the walk in door then putting in a cheap window right next to it? (Garage windows are often not of the same quality of the home, that’s IF the home windows are quality.)
How about an alternative to garage windows?
Glass Block Windows Are Beautiful From The Outside
Glass block windows can come in just about any size or dimension, you can get creative. Naturally, it helps if the exterior of the garage is brick! This home has a 100% brick exterior with nice stone corners and window sills, so no problem here.
The glass block windows are 4 inches thick so they are actually somewhat insulating, more so than most windows, I think.
The glass block lets in all kinds of light, but since it’s a distorted “view” through the thick block, no curtains are really necessary for privacy. Curtains just get dirty and dingy in a garage anyway.
And since the glass block does not open, no security risk.
As you can see from the photo at left, they really make for an attractive addition with adding a lot of cost.
And Easy To Maintain On The Inside
But how do you deal with the block on the inside?
Very easy for a carpenter of just minimal skill level (No Tim The Toolman required!). And, yes, that’s a 20 amp outlet between the glass block windows, I figured that a battery charger, work light, power saw, refrigerator or maybe even a crock pot might appreciate a full 20 amps of power.
With these glass block windows, a quick swipe of a small broom occasionally will take care of any cleaning needs.
Summary
So let’s summarize the features of this custom built garage. Is it huge and obnoxious? No, not all.
What it is is a very comfortable 2 car, SUV or truck garage.
It fits a Ford F-150 standard length truck with the tailgate down and there is still room for a full size refrigerator that you can even open the door for. See Want To Park Your Truck In The Garage For Once? for more info and photos on that!
It has oversize garage doors with high quality rigid aluminum door trim.
There are two walk in doors of premium quality with Baldwin lever handsets and Schlage deadbolts.
The ceiling is high (over 10 feet) and it angles upward for a nice storage area. There is no drain to worry about, water drains out toward the garage doors and does not get stuck in the corners. Many 20 amp electrical outlets adorn the walls in convenient locations and it’s well lit with a 4 way switch system to cover the three entry doors (2 outside, 1 to the home).
We’ll even through in a nice shoe rack from Comfort Concepts that is mounted to the wall next to the door to the house.
Sound pretty nice?
You will enjoy this garage as much as we have.
Oh, and one more thing: it’s fully insulated so the odds of anything freezing out here are quite slim.
Contact us and make this YOUR garage today.
