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View Full Version : Project: Turn Garage Into BBQ Center & Entertaining Area (Pron)


speers90
09-05-2013, 08:28 PM
My wife and I really enjoy entertaining but after each such occasion we always wish we had more space (who doesn't!). About a year ago we decided we were going to do a fairly large addition which would have quadrupled our kitchen/entertaining space. Being a general contractor I drew up all the plans and pulled the permits but we kept holding off because while we really wanted that addition, the truth is we didn't really need it. Our modest kitchen is fine for daily living which makes up at least 95% of the time.

Then we went to a friends 40th birthday party which was held in his mostly finished garage, that is when we knew we could do something similar and get the most bang for our buck!

It all started by cleaning out the garage (sorry no pics) and then having a drywall guy come in to do the mudding. I am a general contractor but that is one trade that I NEVER do myself! Next we painted the walls, that were already completely insulated.

Installed some flooring. I went with a rigid plastic tile that snaps together. It had very high remarks, the only negative that I read about it was that it creaks when walked or drove on, but that is easily solved by adding a couple layers of landscaping fabric underneath.
http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=774&pictureid=7818

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=774&pictureid=7819

Then it was time to put up a 14" x 96" stainless shelf to hold most of my barbecuing necessities.
http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=774&pictureid=7820

Next I put it two stainless steel tables, the one with the back splash is 30" x 60" the other is 30" x 72". I still need to level the tables. I made sure each table had an underneath shelf so I had somewhere to store the bigger barbecuing necessities.
http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=774&pictureid=7822

Of course I layed this entire area out to make sure I had just the right amount of space to store my recently purchased FEC-120. I just roll it out the garage door to cook. The propane tanks are for my fryer!
http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=774&pictureid=7823

A shot of the entire wall.
http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=774&pictureid=7817

Spot for the fridge that I will pick up soon:
http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=774&pictureid=7821

There are a couple more things to do still: my neighbor is a HVAC guy and he is going to help me install a shop/garage heater. The kind that hangs from the ceiling. In addition to that, I will run an electrical line above the stainless steel tables so I have a couple of outlets there.

We still need to get a couple more folding tables and a whole mess of folding chairs. The stainless steel tables will also serve as the buffet area for when we entertain. The best part is that we still have a fully functional garage that we can get both of our vehicles in, we do live in Minnesota after all and I don't like parking outside during winter. It will take 15 minutes to setup the tables and chairs and we have our much wanted entertaining area.

I am extremely pleased with how this is turning out!

code3rrt
09-05-2013, 08:35 PM
Looking good.....have fun!

KC

Garrett
09-05-2013, 08:42 PM
Every man needs his space. Nice!

Happy Hapgood
09-05-2013, 08:42 PM
Mighty Fine Sir!

Those radiant heaters are great from the ceiling but be sure to carefully check the required clearances and I add another 6" or will not install it.

bbqbull
09-05-2013, 08:46 PM
Are you equipped for washing big pans and smoker greats inside your regular kitchen or are you thinking of adding a 3 bay sink with frost proof faucets in your garage?

Love your idea and would love to do that to mine. Not set up for it though.

Thank!

cowgirl
09-05-2013, 08:48 PM
That's a great set up!!

speers90
09-05-2013, 08:50 PM
Mighty Fine Sir!

Those radiant heaters are great from the ceiling but be sure to carefully check the required clearances and I add another 6" or will not install it.

I hadn't really thought about radiant in the garage. I do prefer radiant just about anywhere else, but how effective would it be in the garage say after the door had to opened and closed when it is zero outside?

My neighbor has a 75,000 btu unit in his garage and it works really well in the dead of winter up here. It is a little oversized for our needs but it doesn't cost much more than the required size and it heats up the space quickly and shuts off.

HookedOnQ
09-05-2013, 08:52 PM
Awesome!

speers90
09-05-2013, 08:54 PM
Are you equipped for washing big pans and smoker greats inside your regular kitchen or are you thinking of adding a 3 bay sink with frost proof faucets in your garage?

Love your idea and would love to do that to mine. Not set up for it though.

Thank!

I use disposable pans and my idea of cleaning cooking grates is with a weed burner:biggrin1:

It would be easy to get water out to the area where the stainless steel tables are at, my utility room in the basement is on the wall. That being said, at this time I have no plans to put a sink in the garage.

mrbill
09-05-2013, 09:00 PM
good job of making the best of everything

Happy Hapgood
09-05-2013, 09:07 PM
I hadn't really thought about radiant in the garage. I do prefer radiant just about anywhere else, but how effective would it be in the garage say after the door had to opened and closed when it is zero outside?

My neighbor has a 75,000 btu unit in his garage and it works really well in the dead of winter up here. It is a little oversized for our needs but it doesn't cost much more than the required size and it heats up the space quickly and shuts off.

That would depend on your fuel. Are you running nat. gas, propane or electric? I assume by 75,000 btu's your talking output and not input.

93vpmod
09-05-2013, 09:09 PM
I liked the flooring...what is the brand?

speers90
09-05-2013, 09:20 PM
That would depend on your fuel. Are you running nat. gas, propane or electric? I assume by 75,000 btu's your talking output and not input.

Natural gas. Yes I believe 75,000 btu's is the output.

speers90
09-05-2013, 09:27 PM
I liked the flooring...what is the brand?

Diamond Grid-Loc Tiles from http://www.rubberflooringinc.com/garage/diamond-grid-loc-tiles.html

On their website they show lots of pictures of finished floors, it looks like most people do some sort of pattern, but the boss said she just wanted a solid color.

I ended up picking this instead of epoxy because it wasn't much more expensive and it was much faster. My floor was in pretty bad shape and I was going to need to rent a bead blaster to prep the floor properly for epoxy, which was going to run me about $500-$600, plus another $600 for commercial grade epoxy and all of the time to do the epoxy. This showed up at my house today and I had it installed in less that 3.5 hours and that included the time to take stuff out of the garage and sweep the floors.

Epoxy would have taken me at least a week to properly prep and install.

Diesel Dave
09-06-2013, 04:35 AM
That is a great idea and set up. Maybe one day I can do something like that.

Titch
09-06-2013, 05:40 AM
Looks very useful mate, great work

Untraceable
09-06-2013, 05:43 AM
good stuff bud!

SmokinAussie
09-06-2013, 06:01 AM
LOVE It!

Now what you have to add to this is pretty simple...

1. Full Bar with a Keg on tap.
2. Jukebox.
3. Pool Table
4. Dart Board
5. Pinball Machine or two.. My choice would be T2 and Addams Family
6. At least 2 monster flat screen TV's for Baseball, Football and Basketball
7. An invitation to me, all airfares paid so that I can teach you how to play pinnies, play pool, get the right music on the dukebox, shoot darts and stock the fridge, pour drinks and cook BBQ...

Sitting here waiting...:becky:

Cheers!

Bill

NoSwineLeftBehind
09-06-2013, 07:05 AM
Nice!!! Where did you get the SS tables?

sliding_billy
09-06-2013, 07:19 AM
Nice cave!

Chris89Stang
09-06-2013, 08:52 AM
Nice garage!
I hadn't really thought about radiant in the garage. I do prefer radiant just about anywhere else, but how effective would it be in the garage say after the door had to opened and closed when it is zero outside?

My neighbor has a 75,000 btu unit in his garage and it works really well in the dead of winter up here. It is a little oversized for our needs but it doesn't cost much more than the required size and it heats up the space quickly and shuts off.
Radiant heat is a really nice, comfortable heat but if have a big heat loss (ie. opening a garage door) it won't keep up. Your best bet is a natural gas unit heater. Also, I don't know how big your garage is but a unit with 75,000 output is a lot! Generally in a colder climate, 40-50 btuh's per sq. ft. is plenty.

RT
09-06-2013, 09:01 AM
Nice set-up........:thumb:

speers90
09-06-2013, 09:21 AM
Nice!!! Where did you get the SS tables?

I picked up one of them off of craigslist from a guy that remodels commercial buildings. The other I got from a used restaurant equipment store.

speers90
09-06-2013, 09:29 AM
Nice garage!

Radiant heat is a really nice, comfortable heat but if have a big heat loss (ie. opening a garage door) it won't keep up. Your best bet is a natural gas unit heater. Also, I don't know how big your garage is but a unit with 75,000 output is a lot! Generally in a colder climate, 40-50 btuh's per sq. ft. is plenty.

Yeah, we talked about the 40-50 btu's being adequate for the size of our garages. I am getting the 75K unit through him at a HVAC supply house and it is only marginally more expensive than the 40-50k units. Less than $50 bucks if I remember correctly.

The main reason for going with the higher output is so that is cycles off quicker, because a draw back of these heaters is that they are a little noisy while running. Thankfully, I had my entire garage insulated when the house was built and it stays pretty warm in the winter without any heating so it won't run very often.

I will set the thermostat at 50 when we are just using the space as a garage and 65-70 when we are using it to entertain.