Replies

1. 
   Guest_ | May 01, 2000 11:39pm | #1

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   yes... break the building lines ,...say two 28x24 offset two feet..

   make the roof pitch higher.. or more appropriate to the surrounding architecture..

   don't do the stucco unless that is teh vernacular of the primary residence...

   and so on...in short get some design help...

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   Guest_ | May 02, 2000 12:32am | #2

   *A couple of dormers (if in budget) can do wonders in making a large garage look a little more residential-especially if you increase the pitch as Mike suggests. the dimentional shingles get kind of lost on a low pitch roof, I would go with 6/12 minimum to show off those shingles.Also, an attractive cupula, cornice returns, "chamfering" the garage door openings at the top corners can softenen the garage look.Just a few suggestions off the top of my head, John

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   Guest_ | May 02, 2000 02:50am | #3

   *Nice ideas - also how about i not doing fascias in 2x lumber? How about windows in the doors .... etc,uh ... hope the 10' is to the fascia or ceiling, not the ridge!

1. 
   Guest_ | May 02, 2000 04:49am | #4

   *I like Mike's idea to break up the roof line, and that 4-1/2:12 pitch is gonna make it look like a double-wide. How about some relatively tall windows to give the structure a bit more of a "residence" look?Good luck, Steve

1. 
   Guest_ | May 02, 2000 01:06pm | #5

   *I put up a large garage on a very tight urban lot 3 years ago.The people who commented on your roof pitchv are correct. A 4/12 on your building will make it look like an airplane hanger no matter what siding you use.( the 24" overhangs will only compound the horizontal feel)Since I live in an old neighborhood,I spent a lot of time checking out old buildings that seemed to have the scale right. For me,a 7/12 worked great.Mine was also built a little taller to accomodate an 8 ft. overhead door.The 8ft high X 18 ft wide raised panel door in combo with the 7/12 pitch seemed to bring everything in scale. If anything ,I probably should have made it a 8/12.Shortly after my garage was finished my city changed the building code to limit the size and height of garages. Currently my garage could not be built. You may want to check out similar restrictions in your area.(even out in the county there is a restriction governing the size of the garage in proportion to the size of the house.Good Luck,Stephen

2. 
   Erik_Wordal | May 05, 2000 10:09pm | #6

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   Thanks for the ideas. The building is already framed though and it might be a little difficult to change the roof pitch. The reason I chose 4 1/2 in 12 was because my house has that pitch. Kind of popular out here in southern Califrnia, the same for the big eaves, for the sun. I think I will probably go with the hardiplank siding. Any idea how to get it to look nice over a long run (48 ft). The joints are every 12' so it seems it will have several joints along each run. I am using harditrim on the corners and butting the siding to it. The front wall is the only one with the brick wainscoat. It will have trim around the windows and doors 3- 3 1/2" wide. Thanks for the help.

3. 
   Erik_Wordal | May 06, 2000 04:06pm | #7

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   I am building a big garage in a residential area 28' x 48' x 10' tall. I was planning on using hardiplank for siding with 1 x 4 Harditrim on the corners of the building and maybe a brick wainscoat on the front side of the building. Any suggestions as to how I might get the building to look a little more "residential"? I had thought of possibly stucco on some parts of the building. The roof is 4 1/2 in 12 pitch and it has 2' overhangs, 2 x 8 Facia and a dimensional comp roof thanks for the help.

4. 
   Guest_ | May 06, 2000 04:06pm | #8

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   The Hardie will show up any and all crooked framing.Don't skip the sheathing, and straghten or remove any suspect studs. Sometimes a face nail here and there is all it takes to pull down high spots. I used the 5/4 choice trim for my trim, and it looks great. 4/4 is just a bit too thin to give a nice reveal.