Loft or Garage

[totonlover]

Hi All

 

I've dilemma over this choice for some time now,

 

I want as big a layout as possible, the loft house's much parafanalia and I'm left with about 50% that is usable after all the stuff in storage, I hear lofts are red hot in the summer and freezing in the winter, i know its bloody cold in there now! you get problems with track expansion etc I'm led to beleive.

 

I have a single garage with rear extension that houses the usual bikes etc so have an average size garage with an up + over door, its still cold in there too.

 

I could build a layout round the perimeter allowing storage underneath. The garage is brick built and secure. it has power and lighting.

 

Should I set about warming one up with insulation etc, The loft is boarded and under the boards is insulated, and has 4, 4ft lighting units so its safe and lit, there are at least 4, 3pin plug in there too, there is a ladder for access, but its 50% full of stored gear!

 

The plan was to insulate it then possibly put a skylight in! there are roof beams every two feet which are a ball ache! but I've seen other layouts that get round this problem.

 

waiting answers with baited breath, tia

[Welly]

If I were you, I would go for the garage. I used to have a layout in the loft but it was beechinged: it was too hot and too cold despite insulation; the apex was too low so I've had to crouch or sit down and there was no skylight ( not that it would have made any difference )

 

I plan to use the loft only as storage and set my layout up in the lounge or garage ( room only for the car! ) when required.

[dymstocklr]

I faced the same choice and went for garage - it was really a no-brainer because of the temperature variations in the loft, in my case. Keeping warm in the winter is the main issue but a portable gas fire solved that!

[jazz]

I've had both including a purpose built large shed. (That being by far the best as it was very easy to keep warm)

 

The garage is next best and where I'm currently. Pity the lay of the land will not allow the railway to run round the garden as the shed allowed in a previous property. That was utopia.

['CHARD]

Had a long run figure-of-eight in the loft which would have been great had it not been for the temperature variations, obstructing beams, presence of water tank and need for storage of toys, books, Christmas decorations etc... Overall, that was just too much trouble, as was the crawling about to reach parts of the layout, so I moved to the garage where I've been for about 9 years. Yes it can and does get cold, but overall it's ideal.

 

Recommended: garage.

[Edwin_m]

Another advantage of the garage is that while lofts come in all shapes and sizes, if you move house you have a good chance of finding one with a similar sized garage to move the layout into.

[Edinburgh Junction]

Personally, Id go for a loft, but then I think garage is also a good idea.... id go for garage.

[Guest stuartp]

Another advantage of the garage is that while lofts come in all shapes and sizes, if you move house you have a good chance of finding one with a similar sized garage to move the layout into.

 

Having dismantled two layouts built to fit bedrooms due to unexpected house moves, that's what did it for me. The car will go rusty whether it's in the garage or not, the only downside is you'll have to scrape ice off it occasionally.

[Andel]

I echo other people when I recommend the garage - not only is the space far more posture friendly, but the expansion options and working space can often far outweigh the overall length available from a loft.

 

I would recommend that if you are looking to use it over the winter, a small investment in insulating the door and perhaps the walls with plasterboard as well as the ceiling, might not going amiss.

 

Hope this helps,

 

Andel

[OldSutt]

I threw the car out of the garage and started to build my layout there when we moved to this house a few years ago. It is cold in the winter, but a heater soon provides a source of heat. The only problem arose a few weeks ago when the garage was needed to store the new kitchen units and I had to remove the track end sections next to the door. Thankfully I had not got too far along with the layout development at that end. Accessibility is the key whilst building and running a layout. My current loft would not be too bad but some lofts I have known would be a nightmare.

[ECML180]

Garage means that any long sheets of wood for making baseboards are very easy to get in, it is easy to take guests to see the layout and if you've ever dropped a loco through a loft hatch you'd wish you chose garage.

['CHARD]

Garage means that any long sheets of wood for making baseboards are very easy to get in, it is easy to take guests to see the layout and if you've ever dropped a loco through a loft hatch you'd wish you chose garage.

LOL - I had a Class 46 do this once, very spectacular it was too. Fortunately there were no family members/ cats passing beneath at that precise moment; sadly I hadn't positioned a nuclear flask at that exact spot to recreate the Old Dalby test, however.

[ECML180]

HAHA! Someone should reacreate that test on a model, that'd be amazing!

Also, another good thing about using a garage is that you could run the trains around your garden if you wanted

 

(My plan is to have a removable section to connect my main indoor track with a purpose built garden layout)

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

Access and headroom are the two critical features, which would decide me on one or the other, because it is often expensive to significantly improve these. Both spaces can be brought up to whatever insulation standard is required relatively easily and without great expense. Further point for the garage: should you ever want to exhibit your modelling, provided the car door is retained in working condition getting a layout to and from a vehicle is relatively simple.

[ECML180]

The only benefit of the loft is that it may be slightly bigger-but the many criss-crossing beams mean it probably isn't worth it. :/

[DaveF]

I decided on the loft as my garage also forms the only way through to the back of the house for garden stuff etc. Also in bad weather I sometimes put the car in it to save deicing it!

 

My other reason is that I live near the sea and have noticed that anything left in the garage quickly gets covered in a thin film of salt, which did not do a test track any good when I tried the garage.

 

David

[BTC]

Garage without a doubt, unless you have a proper insulated loft conversion.

 

I've just had my garage converted - insulated, dry-lined, plastered, floor screeded, re-wired and an insulated roller-shutter door fitted. I've decorated and laid very cheap laminate and now I have a lovely layout room. I've had electric radiators fitted with a frost setting that will stop things from going too cold (5 degrees ish) when not in use for a minimal electricity burn. Total cost was about 6k for a very large single garage and has been got past her indoors by reserving a section for her art and sewing stuff

 

The gardening stuff got moved out to a new shed and the dirty toolbench and associated garage-type stuff got moved to the summer house that wasn't doing much else.

 

As with the previous posted, it's shortly going to be storing new kitchen and bedroom furniture, so I'm not going to have time to build the layout for a while yet!

[Bernard Lamb]

To make a loft into a useable room you should do a proper conversion. That will set you back upwards of ??30k. Current building regulations will mean steel beams being inserted over the full length to take the weight and insulation to the latest standards. If you are only using part of the roof space then the rules on insulation still apply to the whole lot. Then you must think about new windows, fitted smoke detectors on all floors, as you now have a three story building, fire doors throughout the house, for the same reason as smoke detectors and the complexities of updating the electics. Then when you have it all finished and your layout plan drawn up other members of your household, who would never in the past venture into the loft will want to take it over for their hobbies.

Been through all this in the past year and am now exiled to the garage. Mind you it will be a very nice garage by the time I am finished tarting it up.

Bernard

[steverabone]

Unless you can actually stand up properly in a loft and move without stooping do not use your loft. I've had no choice for many years but to use the loft and there's no doubt that it's contributed significantly to my lower back problems. If I could persuade my wife that the car should stay outside of the garage I'd be in there like a shot.

 

Fortunately, now the children have left home I also have a smaller layout in a box room.

 

There's another aspect of lofts that isn't generally mentioned - falling out of them........I've slithered down the loft ladder more than once but, fortunately haven't done any damage so far.

[28XX]

To make a loft into a useable room you should do a proper conversion. That will set you back upwards of ??30k. Current building regulations will mean steel beams being inserted over the full length to take the weight and insulation to the latest standards. If you are only using part of the roof space then the rules on insulation still apply to the whole lot. Then you must think about new windows, fitted smoke detectors on all floors, as you now have a three story building, fire doors throughout the house, for the same reason as smoke detectors and the complexities of updating the electics. Then when you have it all finished and your layout plan drawn up other members of your household, who would never in the past venture into the loft will want to take it over for their hobbies.

Been through all this in the past year and am now exiled to the garage. Mind you it will be a very nice garage by the time I am finished tarting it up.

Bernard

Or alternatively do what we did in the past, take care and be responsible for your own actions. Don't put too much weight up there, run the loft electrics from a lead which is dropped down throught the hatch and plugged in on the landing, so you know that everything is turned off when you leave. Most of the expenditure suggested above is unnecessary unless you want to sell your house and represent the loft as a living space.

[nigcuberail]

Having just moved at last I now have a garage available. This will become a workshop and layout room.

 

Initially I was considering building a false stud wall with a personal door to insulate the room, as the up & over door is very draughty. However, after allowing clearance for the door in the raised position, I lost too much space.

 

So, like BTC, I have ordered an aluminium insulated roller shutter door. This will allow full use of the space and mean no more painting of the metal garage door

 

Once installed,I will check how good the insulation is, and may still go for a stud wall (easily removed if we have to move).

 

However, the garage is still full of unpacked boxes from the move (where does all this stuff come from ???????), so I need to get my finger out otherwise there will not be any room for the new door when it is delivered in a week

[PaulCheffus]

Hi All

 

I've dilemma over this choice for some time now,

 

I want as big a layout as possible, the loft house's much parafanalia and I'm left with about 50% that is usable after all the stuff in storage, I hear lofts are red hot in the summer and freezing in the winter, i know its bloody cold in there now! you get problems with track expansion etc I'm led to beleive.

 

I have a single garage with rear extension that houses the usual bikes etc so have an average size garage with an up + over door, its still cold in there too.

 

I could build a layout round the perimeter allowing storage underneath. The garage is brick built and secure. it has power and lighting.

 

Should I set about warming one up with insulation etc, The loft is boarded and under the boards is insulated, and has 4, 4ft lighting units so its safe and lit, there are at least 4, 3pin plug in there too, there is a ladder for access, but its 50% full of stored gear!

 

The plan was to insulate it then possibly put a skylight in! there are roof beams every two feet which are a ball ache! but I've seen other layouts that get round this problem.

 

waiting answers with baited breath, tia

 

Hi

 

Garage everytime for me, especially as the access is so much easier.

 

Cheers

 

Paul

[richard_t]

I too went the garage route, as we live in a new house and our loft can only just about support itself.

 

Just a word of warning: I did have plans to plasterboard the walls and temporarily seal up the doors to stop the drafts and rain blowing in, but I thought I'd double check with our local Building Control department within the council. They where very polite, but did insist that I would need to contact them officially if I did what I planned and they would need to come to inspect it.? 

[BTC]

So, like BTC, I have ordered an aluminium insulated roller shutter door. This will allow full use of the space and mean no more painting of the metal garage door

 

Once installed,I will check how good the insulation is, and may still go for a stud wall (easily removed if we have to move).

 

If it's anything like the one I had fitted, it's better insulation than a 1-pane window, but not as good as double glazed. So overall, it's fine for a layout room.

 

Just a word of warning: I did have plans to plasterboard the walls and temporarily seal up the doors to stop the drafts and rain blowing in, but I thought I'd double check with our local Building Control department within the council. They where very polite, but did insist that I would need to contact them officially if I did what I planned and they would need to come to inspect it.????

 

As far as I am aware this is only the case if you have a door into your house, otherwise you can do what you want inside as long as you don't alter the main structure.

[Bernard Lamb]

Or alternatively do what we did in the past, take care and be responsible for your own actions. Don't put too much weight up there, run the loft electrics from a lead which is dropped down throught the hatch and plugged in on the landing, so you know that everything is turned off when you leave. Most of the expenditure suggested above is unnecessary unless you want to sell your house and represent the loft as a living space.

 

 

Or until you make a totally unconnected claim on your insurance.

I do like the idea about the electrics.

Bernard