Ideas For Using Your Garage As A Room
Garages might be for cars, but they're an extension of your home, and you can use them however you like. When you thought you'd never have that dream art studio or room for guests, your garage steps up to help you out. There is one issue when remodeling your garage — where does the car go? Emptying the garage out and not letting the vehicle back in is a sacrifice, so you must decide which is more important.
According to Auto Warehouse, there are ways to protect your car when it doesn't live in the garage. They recommend you get a protective car cover, wash your car regularly, wax once a month, try not to park under a tree, use a sun visor to shield from harmful rays as your car sits still, and keep up with regular maintenance. A carport is another option as well.
Once the garage is a blank slate, you'll need to clean it thoroughly, make sure walls are insulated and drywalled, and electricity is running. Also, you'll need to build a wall to replace the garage door and install flooring. A ductless heating and cooling system will keep your new room comfortable. Let's explore some fun ideas for using your garage as a room. If you don't have a garage, check out how much it can cost to build a garage.
Make a bedroom for your big kid
Whether the kids are growing and need more space or your eldest has grown up and needs a place to land when they visit, your garage is perfect for a bedroom. Teenagers enjoy the feeling of independence and having a room separate from the other ones in the house. Allowing teens to have their own space is a healthy choice. According to the Child Development Institute, teens require space to begin to see themselves as individuals, separate from their families. When you give it to them, you're providing a great gift. Small gestures, like a unique room, go a long way.
After choosing the necessities for a teen room, consider some fun details, such as a mini-fridge for sodas and a cabinet where they can keep their favorite snacks. A garage often has more square feet than other rooms, so go all out. Sitting areas for socializing or a study area are ideal for your teen's room. When working on the walls, ensure they're soundproof to prevent the room from feeling like a garage.
Set aside space for a home office
It's great working from home. Schedules are flexible, and you can see more of your family members. Still, sometimes you need a spot where you can focus when the house gets distracting. Turning your garage into a home office is the best solution.
Paint the garage in a color that brings you calmness and keeps you centered. According to Behr, you should choose neutral colors like browns and taupe to maintain focus. Investigate enhancing the Wi-Fi for your new home office. Invest in comfortable furniture that supports your back and neck, such as an ergonomic office chair. Take advantage of the fabulous garage space and add built-in storage. There are plenty of small garage storage ideas to help inspire you. Use it for office supplies and any other storage needs in your home. It won't interfere with your office if it's behind closed doors. Inspire yourself with wall art you enjoy, and bring in a few plants for a natural touch.
Build a creativity studio
There's no need to limit yourself or your family when designing an area for creativity. Divide up the garage and have fun together on the weekends creating art, woodworking, scrapbooks, or whatever else your imagination allows. According to The Important Site, creativity offers several benefits, including a feeling of motivation, problem-solving, an ability to see the big picture, a boost in confidence and productivity, clarity of thought, and stress relief. Those are some great reasons to get your creativity room underway.
An art studio or any room for artistry works wonderfully on the cement garage floor. You may want to leave it as is for easy clean-up. Keep windows uncovered to let an abundance of natural light brighten up your workspace. If the entire family is sharing the place and you have lots of different projects, line the walls with as much shelving and cabinetry as possible. Storage is essential for keeping your creativity studio organized. If a mudroom is right off the garage, you'll enjoy its location for easy clean-up. If it isn't, consider the addition of a wash sink.
Set up a cozy guesthouse
Benjamin Franklin left us with the famous quote, "Guests, like fish, begin to smell after three days," per Psychology Today. Depending on the guest, he was probably correct. Still, before the three days are up, you can ensure your beloved guests are comfortable in a fully furnished guesthouse.
We've all had times when we were the guests, and we appreciate all the little extras that make a stay comfortable. Design your guesthouse just as you would a studio apartment, with a sleeping area, a small kitchen or kitchenette, and a place to sit. It doesn't have to be complicated. Keep everything simple. Once you replace the door with a wall and other things are changed to make the garage a room, choose a soft color for the walls, comfortable bedding, a small sofa, and a lamp for reading. Stock the kitchen area with snacks, bottled water, coffee, and tea. Keep little things on hand that you know you'd appreciate if you were a guest. Create an everyday essentials kit for your travel-weary friends (via Reviewed). The set should include deodorant, a toothbrush and toothpaste, razors, and a comb. You could make a few different ones and leave them on the counter. A charming guesthouse is your own B&B, and your guests will love you for it.
Say cheers to an at-home bar
Stay in now and then and hang out in your sweats. With an at-home bar, your home becomes the place to be on Saturday night. With a spacious garage, you can use the entire space for an impressive lounge or choose a part of the garage for a smaller bar area and use the rest of the place for something else.
Start by deciding what you want the vibe to be at your bar. Sophisticated? Rustic? Retro? Get some plumbing run to the garage if it isn't there. A little bar sink is handy. According to Simpson Plumbing, the best way to get plumbing to the garage is to run it from the nearest plumbing system, such as the mud room or laundry room.
An at-home bar can be as simple as a bar cart for liquor bottles and glassware and a table and chairs for seating. Or you can design a completely built-in, traditional-style bar. Add some fun signs and neon lights for an authentic bar feeling. A sound system is a must, but it can be as simple as your best Bluetooth speaker.
Design the ultimate game room
Want to keep your teens home on Friday night? Design the ultimate game room for them in your garage. Lounge space at your home is the best way to keep an eye on your kiddos. According to Your Teen Magazine, there are three top reasons why it's best to have your home as the hangout spot. First, you get to know your teen's friends, you know what they're up to, and you're creating a happy home. Converting a garage into a game room gives your teen the space they need while giving you the peace of mind you deserve.
Comfortable furniture and a large screen TV are essential for your game room. However, the room doesn't have to only be for video games. Make sure a few decks of cards are left out so the kids can grab them. Keep favorite board games on hand as well. If they really love to game, it's worth investing in a few chairs designed for long hours of video competition. A mini-fridge and plenty of snacks stored in bins or cabinets are your best bet in keeping the kids coming back every weekend.
Get healthy in your own gym
Forget expensive gym memberships. An at-home gym leaves you with no excuses to work out during the day. What better way to use a garage than as a room that improves your health?
A home gym doesn't require a lot for the flooring and walls. Make it as simple or elaborate as you want. The challenging part is deciding what equipment to add for exercise. The equipment depends on your goals. According to Cleveland Clinic's Health Essentials, the first step is to consider what exercise you enjoy. Those answers can help you with your plan, equipment, and layout. If you hate walking and running, don't choose a treadmill. Create a weightlifting area if you are all about strength training. You don't have to invest in all the equipment in a day. You can slowly build a collection. A few nice extras in your new space include a refrigerator for cold drinks, speakers for motivational music, and storage for things like towels and yoga mats.
Add more living space
An additional family or living room is helpful for families or those who love to entertain. Also, turning your garage into a family room can free up your other living room to use as something else. The extra space is great for get-togethers and letting guests mingle from one room to another. It's also helpful to give the older kids a place to go during parties, away from the boring adults. No matter what you use it for, extra living space always gets used.
Finish off the garage just like any room that requires windows, heating, cooling, and insulation. It's essential to choose the right flooring for your garage-turned family room. According to Choices Flooring, vinyl flooring is an excellent choice because it's waterproof, looks like wood, provides insulation similar to carpet, and is low maintenance. Add a big rug to make the space cozy. Garage rooms are usually just four walls, so take advantage of the wall space and add built-in bookshelves and cabinets for storage. Ensure the electrical is prepared to handle things like a TV.
Look forward to laundry day
Many households have laundry machines that run nonstop. With so much time spent washing, drying, and folding, why not design a room to make the experience fun? Use the space in your garage to install counters for folding. Attach bars to the wall so you can hang items to dry when needed and create an area for ironing.
As with many rooms, electricity and plumbing are necessary for your laundry room. Consider energy-efficient machines if you don't have them already when creating a new space. They save money in the long run and clean better than older models. According to Energy Star, switching to high-efficiency appliances can save a household on monthly energy bills. Since you're dealing with water daily in the laundry room, look for vinyl flooring. It looks great and is water-resistant. Who knows — you may find you suddenly love doing laundry.
Give meaning to the phrase garage band
Do your teens, or maybe you, yourself, play an instrument and wish you had somewhere to jam out and not worry about disturbing the rest of the house? Turn your garage into a music studio and start rocking. According to Music To Your Home, playing an instrument is a stress reliever, improves the respiratory system, counts as exercise, strengthens the immune system, and may improve our ability to remember. Considering these great benefits, you may want to take the garage band idea more seriously.
In the garage, you can leave the door as is and open it up when the band wants to entertain the neighborhood or close it off as a wall. Either way, excellent insulation, and acoustic wall panels will help soften the noise when things get loud. You will need plenty of outlets for amps, guitars, microphones, and other equipment.
Enjoy family movie night
Imagine the impressive home theater you could create with an empty and clean garage. Bring in the big screen, surround sound, and a popcorn machine, then call your friends for a viewing of your favorite movie, right in your own home. Start with a cozy color for the walls. As a theater room, you can make it kind of unique with a dark red or navy, but any color will do.
According to Lifewire, carpet is best for home theater flooring. Unlike hard floors, carpet absorbs audio artifacts and annoying echoes. It's essential to focus on the lighting in your new room. Install dimmer switches so you can adjust them as necessary. Window coverings are required as well for sunny daytime viewings. If you can fit it in, a little kitchenette where you can store microwave popcorn, dishes, and some cold drinks, will complete your family fun area quite nicely.
Give the little ones a place to play
Kids and grandkids make messes, and that's okay. Those messes are essential. According to the American Association of Pediatrics, play is necessary for healthy developmental growth because it supports cognitive skills, language, self-regulation, and social-emotional skills. Encourage playtime and create a designated spot for all the toys to go.
Opt for carpet or a large rug for the kiddos to sit on if using wood or vinyl flooring. Cube storage is great for playrooms and makes clean-up time easy. Make a list of everything the kids like to play. Include art supplies and a table and chairs for arts and crafts. Keep in mind that as kids get older, their play needs change. Design a playroom that can grow with them.
Lower storage for little ones is helpful, but they can also use high storage as they get bigger. Use fun, bright colors to encourage a playful atmosphere. The garage should be well-insulated. Install a ductless heating and cooling system for comfortable temperatures year-round.
Create a she shed
We all need a moment (or a day) now and then. Get away without going too far, with a designated space in your home. For so many years, it was all about the man cave. Today, the She Shed is making waves, and women can enjoy a little getaway right in their own backyard. According to Tiger Sheds, the She Shed does more than give us a place to retreat. It represents gender equality. What once was considered for men only is now enjoyed by everyone. However, the She Shed doesn't have to be a shed. You can convert your garage into a cozy hideaway.
Use this opportunity to let your personality shine. Your unique space doesn't have to match the rest of the home. Paint the walls your favorite color and decorate the room with everything that brings you comfort. A reading nook with an overstuffed chair and a soft glowing lamp is a must. If you're a coffee or tea drinker, include a coffee or tea bar. Feel free to stow away a couple of wine glasses and bottles of wine for girls' night occasionally (or a pampering evening with you and only you).
Breathe easy in a meditation retreat
Devoting an entire room to your meditation practice is not unrealistic. Meditation requires quiet and focus. A space designed for that purpose helps you focus. According to the Mayo Clinic, meditation can help reduce stress and anxiety even if only practiced for a few minutes in a day. You can give yourself more time for meditating and destressing in a designated area.
To convert your garage into a meditation room, close the space up as you would any room in the house, add soft lighting that can be dimmed as needed, and make sure you have a speaker in place for quiet music. A cozy spot on the floor for sitting is important during meditation. Other things your room and meditation practice can benefit from are items that help create a peaceful environment. That looks different for everyone, but you may want to consider incense, crystals, beads, candles, and any artwork that feels restful to you. Spend some time in the room, and eventually, you'll know what feels right and what you can change or add to create the perfect meditation space.