You could find many practical uses for a garage, which means you should focus on making them what you need in terms of storage space. There is no better way of doing that than by renovating them.
It would help if you ideally used them to store your vehicle. However, you can use your garage for more than just that. The following tips and ideas will give you a hint as to what you can use to make your garage space as amazing as possible:
- Begin by clearing the clutter inside the garage as your first small but important step toward improvement. Move all your stored items away from the garage and into the shed or the attic. If you can’t, you will need to store things in bins or on shelving while the project is going on. No matter what you’re planning, you will need that extra space.
- You can find Slatwall panels in most home improvement centres. Use them to hang your tools on pegs or in baskets hooked to them and out of the way. They will come in handy when you need to store and display your other items and even sports equipment.
- Designate work areas for your gardening, artwork and construction inside your garage. Since you don’t have carpeting inside a garage, you should keep in mind that making a mess there won’t be too much of an issue. You can enjoy the nature of your work there, sequestered away from the rest of the house.
- Keep a desk around for your work areas where you can place your smaller, sensitive tools. This will also serve as a focal point for your planning and sketching of new ideas and projects. You can also focus on drawing here or writing if you are inclined to do so, as this is one of the quietest areas around the house if you live with a large family. Alternately, your kids could enjoy spending time here if you accommodate them.
- You may want to set up some entertainment essentials inside your garage. It could be as simple as decorating the area or even going further by installing a pool table, air hockey table or something similar. You could also turn it into a gym or have a place of entertainment where you keep a TV and your gaming equipment. There is quite a bit you can do with that extra space, so think ahead and make a decent plan on what to do with it.
- Think about seating as well, but combine that with some budgeting if you don’t want to put too many resources into it. You can re-cushion an old chair from your lawn or do what you can to refresh an older couch if you’ve kept it around.
You don’t need a huge budget to implement these garage conversion ideas. With simple designs and many decor tricks, you can transform your garage into a usable space that adds value to your home.
For practical advice on converting your garage, don’t forget to check out how to convert a garage into a room guide. Let’s inspire you with these garage conversion ideas on a budget.
FAQs About Garage Renovation
How Much Does It Cost To Upgrade A Garage?
The national average cost range for a garage remodel is between $7,000 and $15,000, with most homeowners spending around $11,000 on a full 2-car garage remodel with new cabinet storage and floor coating. This project’s lowest cost is around $3,000 for a cosmetic update with floor and wall paint and shelving.
How Much Does It Cost To Drywall A Garage?
Installing drywall in a garage ranges from $1,200 to $5,100, depending on the size of the garage. Contractors often use thicker or fire-resistant panels for this space, which cost up to 50% more than the average.
How Do I Convert My Garage Into An Apartment?
Can a garage conversion become a living space? Yes, your garage conversion can most definitely become a living space! To legally do this, you must convert a garage by turning it into either a guest quarter or an accessory dwelling unit. A guest quarter is a living space with a bathroom and a wet bar but no kitchen.
How Much Does It Cost To Turn A Two-Car Garage Into A Living Space?
Experts agree that the costs for converting a garage can range from $8,000 to $25,000 or more. Major variables include plumbing and electrical work. Plumbing can quickly become a big expense, depending on what you plan to do in your living space.
Is A Garage Remodel Worth It?
Whether you’re just adding storage, re-coating the floor, or doing a complete teardown, garage improvements are well worth the investment. Your new and improved garage will give you more storage and flex space. You can make a new hobby or workshop room, a home gym, or give your family more room to spread out.
Eight Cheap Garage Conversion Ideas
A Cheap Garage Conversion Idea – Turn It Into A Games Room
Turn your garage into a games room with a few simple tricks. These homeowners have opted to paint their garage a light grey with matching vinyl floors.
They’ve painted the skirting board and architraves black to separate the walls and flooring, and they’ve added fun accessories like a football table, basketball, wall-mounted TV and ‘ALL IN’ artwork to give the room a fun feel.
We love the industrial feel of this conversion, which is on-trend and stylish. It’s also big enough to store anything else you need.
Simplicity Is Key – A Simple Detached Garage Design.
If you’re on a tight budget, simplicity is key. To create a practical yet stylish space, consider installing shelving units that allow you to free up your floor space. Also, building upwards, not outwards, is perfect for smaller spaces that need the extra square footage.
For example, this garage needs enough space to house a car. As you can see at the back, these homeowners chose to install a radiator and workbench, which gives this garage a dual purpose.
Small Garage Conversion Ideas – Decorating Can Make A Difference.
Although renovations sound pricey, they don’t have to set you back thousands if you make good design decisions from the start. For example, these homeowners completely transformed their basement garage.
However, to do so, they’ve only given the area a lick of paint, new floors and some inset ceiling lights. The furniture is either recycled or repurposed. As minimalism is a trend set to continue in this modern world we call home, you can spend less while making a big impact.
Garage Conversion Kitchen Design
This fantastic kitchen design is built in the garage adjacent to the homeowner’s semi-detached house. Making a small space stylish and functional is easy with a little know-how. Firstly, bright and light white goods contrast nicely with the black brick splashback, creating depth and height.
Secondly, the dark wood features warm the monochrome elements for a modern design that doesn’t overpower the small square footage.
Warm Garage Bedroom Conversion Ideas
Not everyone is blessed with spare rooms for guests, so turning your garage into a bedroom makes sense. As featured, you don’t need to spend a fortune converting your garage into a sleep sanctuary.
These homeowners chose to keep things clean and simple with a cottage-chic aesthetic. Light decor with interesting features like a floral bedspread and bare wood floors is a nice way to add warmth without boxing in the room.
Converting It Into A Playroom Is Cheap.
One way to impact is to turn your garage into a playroom. You don’t have to fill it to the brim with accessories as featured; however, a few key elements will make all the difference. Firstly, a safe floor that’s child friendly, like laminate or rubber, will help avoid accidents.
Secondly, makeshift a bookshelf or repurpose an old one and fill it with fun and educational material. Floor mats, puzzles and toy trunks are great additions that won’t cost you a fortune. And, as it’s a garage, you can opt for bright and colourful decor to provide extra enrichment for young imaginations.
Storage A Problem In Your Single Car Garage Conversion Idea?
It doesn’t need to be complicated. If you park your car in your garage, you’re not left with much room to work with. That’s why it’s worth investing in a robust shelving unit that allows you to store your belongings higher up and away from the floor.
These homeowners opted for a sturdy wood shelf that left plenty of space underneath to hang bags, ladders, vacuums and other items. A simple tiled floor that’s strong and stylish gives this garage a practical yet tidy finish.
Industrial Garage Office Conversion
With home working in fashion and office space a commodity, people converting their garages into home offices is rising. Why not make the most of your garage’s industrial feel and add a workbench and shelving combo like this green example? Not only does it slot neatly against the back wall, but it’s metal and green finish also stands out against the grey walls and floors.
Don’t forget to check out our garden office ideas for more inspiration. And if you’re wondering how long a garage conversion takes, we have all the information you need.
Seven Hidden Garage Makeover Costs You Should Keep In Mind.
If you’re thinking about renovating your garage, you’re not alone. These days, garages are used for more than just parking cars and storage space.
It’s exciting to think about all the innovative ways to reinvent this area of your house—convert your garage into a home gym, laundry space, or even an extra apartment.
If you’re thinking about remodelling your garage, it’s also time to think about the less fun part: The garage makeover cost.
When going through your checklist and determining your budget, one thing you’ll want to do is allot 15-20 per cent of your budget to garage mishaps and hidden fees. Allowing yourself some wiggle room ensures you won’t go over your budget.
To help you prepare for any fees that can come your way, we’ve curated a collection of seven hidden costs that can come along with a garage renovation:
- Permits
- Floor remodelling
- Electrical installation
- Wall painting
- Plumbing
- Heating and cooling
- Storage
Permits
Depending on how you want to reinvent your garage space, the first thing you’ll have to do is research your local law to see if you’ll need a permit. If you plan on converting your garage into a living space, you’ll most likely have to purchase a permit to be able to do your huge overhaul.
In addition to the permit, you may increase your property taxes by adding livable square footage to your home.
Flooring
Make sure to carefully plan what happens to your garage floor because if you’re prone to moisture problems in your garage, a remodel won’t make them disappear. One workaround is to put removable, interlocking tiles down for a new floor because you’ll be able to remove them for future floods or leaks.
However, before you even put down any mat or tile flooring, take care to fix any existing cracks in the concrete because broken pieces can continue to expand, ending in a future costly fix. Waxing or buffing your floors won’t fix the problem either—you need to have a clean slate for any floor coating you’d like to affix.
Electrical Installation
One of your highest garage remodelling costs will come from electrical work. The type of re-wiring and electrical installation will depend on what you plan on implementing in the space. If you’re installing appliances like a stove, or washer and dryer, you may have to insert more breakers or volt boxes.
However, one of the major electrical undertakings will come in the form of your garage door if you plan on transforming it into a solid wall. Before you paint or reconfigure wall space, make sure you know exactly where you need outlets and wiring to complete it before anything else in the renovation process.
Painting
Painting your garage should be one of the last steps you check off on your remodel to-do list. If a mistake is made during the electrical rewiring or plumbing stages, the last thing you’ll want to do is to tear out your walls post paint job.
While painting seems like one of the cheapest parts of your garage remodel, it can quickly become expensive if you don’t plan accordingly.
Plumbing
From laundry units to utility sinks to a spare bathroom, installing garage plumbing will become a massive undertaking since most are not designed with a system in place. You may need to install water lines, drain lines, gas lines, and perhaps a new water heater.
Breaking open walls and digging up the foundation are possibilities with a new plumbing system, so make sure you’re prepared for it all! When it comes to both plumbing and electrics, as soon as you rip open a wall, you are bound to run into hidden costs. Take the time to make sure current and new systems are up to code.
Heating And Cooling
It’s no secret that garages do not retain heat in the slightest, so you’ll need more than a space heater to keep you warm, especially if you plan on removing your garage door. If you want a temperature-controlled space, install insulation in all of the walls and even the floor.
Without the insulation, your heating and cooling systems will have to work a lot harder, and in turn, you’ll end up with higher bills.
Storage
Have you thought about the items you currently have in your garage and where they will post remodel? Purchasing storage bins, building a setup somewhere in the basement, or even installing a tool shed can be unexpected expenses when you’re done with the renovation.
Consider the organisation of your cars and other items before you begin to redo your garage space.
Before you take a hammer to your garage walls, think about these seven hidden fees so you can be prepared for them. No matter what you’re transforming your garage into, the job deserves to be done properly, so consider every detail and cost.
From the paint job to plumbing installation, no detail is too small. If you stay on track and thoroughly complete every step in the renovation process, your home project will be completely worth it.
How To Convert A Garage Into A Bedroom On The Cheap
Converting your garage into a bedroom adds about 600 square feet of space to your home. Garage conversion circumvents the need for a lengthy, cost-intensive home addition, but it can still run $10,000 to $50,000 unless you do it on the cheap.
There is no one right way to convert garage space into a living space inexpensively, but there are ways to save at every point in the project.
The Ground Level
Typically, a garage offers one cost-friendly benefit right off the bat — it has a concrete slab floor, which easily accommodates carpeting or floating wood flooring. If you’re faced with a potentially expensive excavation of the garage floor, though, setting lintels just below ground level often serves as an affordable solution.
Starting at about $1.85 per square foot, as of 2014 prices, vinyl tiles offer an easy-to-install and cost-effective flooring option. If you live in a warm region, staining the existing concrete to make for a cool, breezy floor with a visually interesting patina has a similar cost.
Walls And Windows
Your garage will likely need insulation to make it into a cozy bedroom; by reducing the amount of construction required, blown-in insulation offers a cost-conscious option.
If your garage has single-course brick walls — common in older structures — real estate agent Nigel Lewis recommends building independent stud walls and mounting them about 3 inches from the existing walls to easily and affordably accommodate insulation and plasterboard.
The Family Handyman website calls drywall the most economical option for covering your garage ceiling and the easiest. Go with value-priced 5/8-inch-thick drywall if you have rafters spaced at 24 inches. Although they may cost a bit more upfront, choosing energy-efficient windows and doors will save you money in the long run.
The Accoutrements
If you plan to run air conditioning in your garage conversion, extending your home’s existing ductwork into the garage is the most affordable renovation option. Electric baseboards are also cost-effective upon installation but will have a bigger impact on your electric bill.
To reduce heating and cooling costs, ensure that your garage has about 1 square foot of vent opening per 300 square feet of attic space if it has an attic. For a wallet-friendly way to make your new bedroom feel more spacious, use light-coloured paint and mount mirrors in the room.
More To Consider
Regarding real estate value, the new bedroom — if well-constructed — can generate a first-year return on investment of up to 78 per cent of its initial cost. Homewyse recommends limiting your garage conversion budget to 2.1 per cent of your home’s total estimated value after the conversion to maximise your return.
Planning your garage conversion without needing an additional bathroom also helps reduce cost. If your garage shares a wall with an existing bathroom, install a connecting door.