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https://www.askthetrades.co.uk/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl DIY Forum >> Building Questions >> Making the garage more useable https://www.askthetrades.co.uk/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl?num=1251725091 Message started by Lectrician on Aug 31^st, 2009, 2:24pm

Title: Making the garage more useable
Post by Lectrician on Aug 31^st, 2009, 2:24pm

I do not the use the garage for a car, it is used for the washing machine, tumble drier and for storage on shelfs.

I would like to make it a little less like a garage while retaining the garage door (thinking of getting an insulated roller door).

The walls are single skin and the floor is concrete with no damp proof membrane (I am fairly sure).

I was thinking of battening the single skin walls with a thick DPM behind, and using 75mm celotex and then lining with ply with plasterboard on top. This is what I did when converting the rear of the garage last year, which is what the BCO asked for.

The only difference is, in the rear half of the garage I installed a floating floor, with ventiliation below, so any moisture that came through the wall would make it's way below and be vented.

The front half of the garage I would like to keep with the concrete floor, and possibly tile it to make keeping the area clean easier. How do you go about the DPM covering the outside single skin walls in this case?

How can you prevent any damp rising through the concrete prior to tiling?

Everything is still in the thoughts stage at the moment!

Title: Re: Making the garage more useable
Post by CWatters on Aug 31^st, 2009, 3:35pm

Not sure if this helps any but Celotex have a guide to using their products when converting a garage ...

http://www.celotex.co.uk/downloads.asp?i=27

You may have to register but they never seem to send me junk mail. It's possible you may not even need to give real email address.

Did the BCO insist you insulate the floor last time?

Title: Re: Making the garage more useable
Post by Lectrician on Aug 31^st, 2009, 8:02pm

The suspended floor - yes. Polystyrene sheet would have been fine, but I used celotex again.

This side of the garage is going to remain a garage as such, so was thinking insulating the floor could be ommited.

Title: Re: Making the garage more useable
Post by Lectrician on Aug 31^st, 2009, 9:12pm

When I did the rear of the garage I had to excavate the corner of the concrete slab to connect into a soil pipe.

The slab was around 70mm thick, possibly a little more, directly on top of fairly large gravel. no sign of a membrane. The concrete actually came up easily. The aggregate in the concrete is just very small gravel and shells.

If I had to take it up I guess it would not be too bad a thing to do. A couple hours work I guess. A membrane and possibly insulation could then be fitted before a new slab was poured. The garage floor could be raised a little if required, however, I could also remove plenty of gravel to drop the level too.

Umm......

Title: Re: Making the garage more useable
Post by woodsmith on Sep 1^st, 2009, 7:27am

Sounds like you have the same mixed blessing I have, crap concrete floors. I've (with some help ;)) dug most of my screed out and replaced it with an insulated floor, a lot of work but well worth it.

I think, as you can get the floor up so easily, you would be well advised to dig it out and fit a membrane, you could possibly fit polystyrene under the concrete just in case you ever want to change the use in the future, that is if you can fit polystyrene under a garage floor??

Title: Re: Making the garage more useable
Post by CWatters on Sep 2^nd, 2009, 9:25am

Be very careful if you tile it. I lived in a house where someone had done that. At some point the previous owner had come home with wet tyres and slid into the end wall of the garage. Tiles weren't polished or anything like that, just regular utility room floor tiles.

Title: Re: Making the garage more useable
Post by Lectrician on Sep 5^th, 2009, 10:06am

I thought about that, but ?I do not intend to use it as a garage.

I just want something that is easy to clean, and with the door open you get dirt blowing in.

I was speaking to someone who said you can paint that black tar stuff on the floor and ceiling so provide the damp proof membrane, then do what you like to walls (celotex and board). The floor can also have whatever you want on it.

Not sure if this is the way to go.

Title: Re: Making the garage more useable
Post by sparky415 on Sep 5^th, 2009, 11:00am

Lec,
Not sure about the ceiling but that's what I did to my walls and floor before the the screed went down a couple of years ago
To be honest my garage conversion stopped once I said 'I will just store a few tools in there temporarily'
I didn't get BC involved then either

[gallery]sparky415/1252144744.jpg[/gallery]

Title: Re: Making the garage more useable
Post by greg on Nov 28^th, 2009, 7:54am

If you dig the floor, you can then add UFH as tiled floors on concrete get pretty cold, but depends on whether it is necessary to spend any real length of time in there as to make it worth while.