How big is a double garage?

[Roger Mills (aka Set Square)]

Having lost a large chunk of my built-in garage in order to make a bathroom for a disabled relative, I'm looking at the feasibility of having a stand-alone garage built - but don't have an infinite amount of space - quite apart from planning issues with building lines etc.

Are there any established standards - estate agent speak, or whatever - for what constitutes a "double garage"? My own thoughts are that the inernal dimensions would need to be at least 18 or 20 feet long by 15 feet wide. Obviously, I want to make it as big as space and planners permit - but is there a size below which it wouldn't qualify as a double?

[Nigel Molesworth]

Length depends on cars, check a Volvo Estate. Double doors are 14' wide, and you need at least two lengths of brick either side.

[Roger Mills (aka Set Square)]

Indeed - my V70 (not latest model) is just under 16' including towball. I wouldn't really want it to be a shoe-horn fit though.

Double doors are 14'

Are you saying that at (say) 9" per brick, that makes the width 17'? That would presumably be the overall (external rather than internal) width though? Or are you saying that you need 2 bricks either side of the door in addition to the thickness of the side walls? If so, why?

[Andy Hall]

I think that you need one double width each side - that's what mine has. Alternate courses are with bricks positioned opposite ways round. There are then brick pillars of the same dimensions along each side and the intervening walls are single thickness brick.

I suppose that one could go for double thickness, although I'm glad that mine wasn't built that way since I was able to fit Celotex in the intervening spaces and get better insulation than could have been achieved with cavity insulation - if there had been cavities.

[Lobster]

I think it's one of those very grey areas; a bit like a double bedroom versus a single bedroom (terms which I've noticed estate agents seem to have stopped using now).

Maybe worth obtaining the measurements of as many garages of friends and acquaintances as you can, to ascertain norms?

We had a single garage built a few years ago, shoehorned onto the drive area between us and next door; it was always going to be very tight for space, and was built of single-skin block mainly to keep the width down... however, slight cockup in that the construction necessitated internal piers on the long walls to provide enough support - and guess where they had to go? Yes, exactly where the driver's door opened. Oh well; we never were going to get a car in there anyway....

David

[Andy Hall]

One other factor that you may wish to consider is that there is a

30m^2 floor area limit for construction of a detached garage, below which Building Regulations do not apply.

[Nigel Molesworth]

One 14' door, 3" frame, 1" gap, 2x 9" bricks, 17' 8" external

Do it any narrower and you either have to reverse one car in, or buy a left hand drive, otherwise you can't open the car door to get out!

Trust me, I've got ONE brick each side :(

[Nigel Molesworth]

This is what I did, designed the garage so it was just under the maximum size. Big, big mistake (see previous reply).

[Andy Hall]

I believe that for BR purposes internal rather than external dimensions apply....

[Roger Mills (aka Set Square)]

If it *is* internal, I could probably comply, although - since I'm going to have to build over a public sewer - I think BR will apply anyway!

[Andy Hall]

course planning permission is another discussion. You will switch that on by virtue of size and probably height.

[dennis]

I think you will find BR apply anyway. You just don't have an inspection/approval if its below a certain size.

[manatbandq]

So long as it's also at least one metre from the property boundary.

MBQ

[manatbandq]

In what way do you think they apply?

If a project is exempt from Building Regs approval then it is just that, exempt, and the regulations do not apply.

MBQ

[Roger Mills (aka Set Square)]

OR constructed mainly of fireproof material (according to the article which Andy cited - in which case the one metre rule doesn'y apply).

[manatbandq]

OK. The link I found said AND but OR seems to be in the majority. I suggest checking the source building regs documents.

MBQ

[dennis]

Just because its exempt from approval doesn't mean that you can do what you like, the regulations still apply.

It just means someone will have to complain before they will come and look. If there is something wrong then an enforcement can be placed on the work until it is fixed or it can be demolished at the owners expense.

[Mike Barnes]

Our concrete garage is 4.95m wide and 4.90m deep (that's 16'3" by 16'1") internal and it happily accommodates an Audi A4 estate, a Toyota RAV4, and the usual gubbins (barbecue, pressure washer, garden chairs, garden shredder, etc). We do need to reverse one car in, but one of us would instinctively reverse in anyway, and the other wouldn't dream of it. (No prizes for guessing which is which.) It's possible to fully open the driver's door of both cars, but probably not simultaneously.

[Nigel Molesworth]

How could they?

[Nigel Molesworth]

Yes, that's what we do, and probably the same way round ;-)