Cost to build a garage (for gym)?

[Veradun]

I've decided I want to eventually have my own strength gym, and priced all the equipment I need inside it for around £2-2500, I just need the building!

In the very large back garden of the house we own, we've always had this old wooden storage shed/garage, which measures roughly from the top of my head about 3-4 square meters across and maybe 8-10 in length. So the space is big enough.

I want a rough idea on the cost of a new one, made from concrete/brick/breeze. I imagine it's big enough, and I think I'd only need it to have 10-12ft headroom inside for overhead presses.

Not to sure if I'd get electrics put in, depends on the extra cost of that, but I my brother is a plasterer so can plaster it and get materials at trade cost?

 

[Maccapacca]

I'd allow the same as your equipment.

 

[Veradun]

I'd allow the same as your equipment.

What? That cheap? I thought it would be along the lines of 4-7 grand at least?

 

[pitchfork]

Around £10k to have it done properly at the low end of the scale - including electrics hooked up, double skin & insulated etc, and you'd need planning permission.

£2.5k? Macca, what have you been smoking. You'd struggle to get materials for that.

 

[Wh00pS]

Around £10k to have it done properly at the low end of the scale - including electrics hooked up, double skin & insulated etc, and you'd need planning permission.

£2.5k? Macca, what have you been smoking. You'd struggle to get materials for that.

He could probably get away with permited development especialy with there being an existing large building being there for years.

To be cheap as possible i would build it with double concrete block skin and get your brother to render it then just paint it. Concrete block can be very cheap buying directly from manufacturer by the lorry load (most sell on ebay).

 

[pitchfork]

He could probably get away with permited development especialy with there being an existing large building being there for years.

To be cheap as possible i would build it with double concrete block skin and get your brother to render it then just paint it. Concrete block can be very cheap buying directly from manufacturer by the lorry load (most sell on ebay).

You'd need to double skin it and insulate it really if you were going to do that. Although block can be a cheap construction method.

He might get away with permitted development - it depends on the local regs.

Cheapest way to do something like this is doing a shipping pallet frame and building a big old shed. But that's the uber cheap DIY route.

 

[Psycho Sonny]

i have my own home gym and it's in the garage. i also have spent quite a considerable amount on equipment i probably have around £5K+ easy and here's some suggestions for you.

make sure it's fully insulated (you don't want a big garage door), this is essential if you want to be using the gym during winter or very cold days/months.

make sure it's heated, metal equipment is too cold to touch on cold days if it's not.

make sure it has electricity and lighting, you will want some music and to be able to see everything, etc and CV equipment requires electricity too if your buying it.

make sure the floor is completely flat, power racks, benches, stands will rock if it's not.

also take a look through my thread if you haven't already.

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18270342

it has tips on where to get equipment for cheap, cheap decent matting (essential), what things you should be buying, etc.


to do it properly and make it useable all year round it would cost £10K minimum imo. if i was going to do this from scratch it would cost me £20K minimum most likely as i would want to build a sauna in there as well as a wet room.

living in a cold country doesn't help, if you lived in miami you could probably get away with just building a large wooden shed and be done with it.

 

[pitchfork]

living in a cold country doesn't help, if you lived in miami you could probably get away with just building a large wooden shed and be done with it.

Depends how big your balls are, for years I used my garage as a freeweights gym, cold or not - door didn't even keep the breeze out, much less the cold. Arguably the extra pain drives you a bit harder.

If I was lucky enough to need a load of washing I might stick the tumble trier on, warm it up

 

[Psycho Sonny]

Depends how big your balls are, for years I used my garage as a freeweights gym, cold or not - door didn't even keep the breeze out, much less the cold. Arguably the extra pain drives you a bit harder.

If I was lucky enough to need a load of washing I might stick the tumble trier on, warm it up

would like to see you doing this in minus temperatures.

the equipment will most likely seize (treadmills) or be damaged over time (rust), etc.

not so long ago we hit -18 C here.

i live in scotland where it's far colder than what you southerners are used to.

i have done crossfit classes outdoors in the freezing cold when the majority of the class have worn gloves and i haven't and there's no way i would pick doing that again over room temperature.

nothing to do with having big balls it's simply about being smart, no point in torturing yourself if you don't have to and there is a more comfortable way to work out.

 

[Windle]

My neighbour got one of these put in last year, was quite impressed with it. Lay the concrete slab then they deliver and construct it. With a little work to insulate/kit it out would be the business. Considered getting one for a man cave project myself!

 

[Abyss]

Personally for the extra cost involved and if you want it to be an asset/add value to the house I would do the outer skin in brickwork to match your house and the inner skin in blockwork. I would certainly be adding in power/water and drainage as it gives you long term flexibility.

I would be budgeting £9k-£10K total.

Are you sure you will need 10-12ft head room? This seems somewhat high for exercise equipment and will likely force you down the route of a pitched roof.

 

[Veradun]

Sorry for not replying back sooner!

I did some measuring of the current shed, and if I extend it slightly when it gets built, it could reach 3.5 meters across by 8 meters long, inside dimensions wise.

As for the ceiling, I'd say 10 foot is my best bet, no more than that, as 3 meter would meet the regulations but don't want to risk being hampered with overhead pressing.

I'd get the outer brick to match the house. The door would be a standard single front door, as would like it insulated as well. I don't really care much for plumbing, even though a friend of the family is a plumber, as it won't have much use for it. Electric is a must really, as I'll need the light, because I'm getting no windows installed. Again though, I have a friend who can do electric xD

Not sure what to do with the floor, might leave it with a nice concrete finish, as I don't see a reason to lay anything on top.

 

[pitchfork]

would like to see you doing this in minus temperatures.

the equipment will most likely seize (treadmills) or be damaged over time (rust), etc.

not so long ago we hit -18 C here.

i live in scotland where it's far colder than what you southerners are used to.

i have done crossfit classes outdoors in the freezing cold when the majority of the class have worn gloves and i haven't and there's no way i would pick doing that again over room temperature.

nothing to do with having big balls it's simply about being smart, no point in torturing yourself if you don't have to and there is a more comfortable way to work out.

All through the winter, minus temps, not minus 18 but -5/10 no problem.

Working out is supposed to hurt, excercise isn't supposed to be fun - if you're enjoying it, you're not pushing hard enough.

 

[Psycho Sonny]

All through the winter, minus temps, not minus 18 but -5/10 no problem.

Working out is supposed to hurt, excercise isn't supposed to be fun - if you're enjoying it, you're not pushing hard enough.

lol

so you think that because exercising isn't supposed to be fun, you should torture yourself by doing it in the cold?

i enjoy exercising, i enjoy pushing myself and breaking new personal best records, i enjoy going to the limit, etc.

i would rather do that in a comfortable as possible environment than say a harsh one, unless i needed to be training for a harsh climate as well then sure i would train in the cold, but that's not what my training is about.

it's like doing a day job, some people choose working in an office over field work, etc because they prefer it, some people choose to work from home than having to sit in traffic for hours and then in a cubicle all day, etc. working out in minus temperatures for me is extremely detrimental to my motivation and i end up packing it in, whereas on a nice day i would push myself hard and train a lot better, therefore i have a much better workout and i enjoy it more.

imo why torture myself unnecessarily if it can be avoided with the same outcome? that's like saying work isn't supposed to be fun so you should pick a job that you will hate doing.

 

[tom_e]

Sorry for not replying back sooner!

I did some measuring of the current shed, and if I extend it slightly when it gets built, it could reach 3.5 meters across by 8 meters long, inside dimensions wise.

As for the ceiling, I'd say 10 foot is my best bet, no more than that, as 3 meter would meet the regulations but don't want to risk being hampered with overhead pressing.

I'd get the outer brick to match the house. The door would be a standard single front door, as would like it insulated as well. I don't really care much for plumbing, even though a friend of the family is a plumber, as it won't have much use for it. Electric is a must really, as I'll need the light, because I'm getting no windows installed. Again though, I have a friend who can do electric xD

Not sure what to do with the floor, might leave it with a nice concrete finish, as I don't see a reason to lay anything on top.

No point in doing anything fancy with the floor because you'll want to get some good thick matting down anyway.

 

[pitchfork]

lol

so you think that because exercising isn't supposed to be fun, you should torture yourself by doing it in the cold?

i enjoy exercising, i enjoy pushing myself and breaking new personal best records, i enjoy going to the limit, etc.

i would rather do that in a comfortable as possible environment than say a harsh one, unless i needed to be training for a harsh climate as well then sure i would train in the cold, but that's not what my training is about.

It's a mental thing, if you embrace the pain and suffering you'll achieve more. If you don't expect comfort then your motivation won't fluctuate - it'll remain strong regardless of pain or cold or whatever.

it's like doing a day job, some people choose working in an office over field work, etc because they prefer it, some people choose to work from home than having to sit in traffic for hours and then in a cubicle all day, etc. working out in minus temperatures for me is extremely detrimental to my motivation and i end up packing it in, whereas on a nice day i would push myself hard and train a lot better, therefore i have a much better workout and i enjoy it more.

imo why torture myself unnecessarily if it can be avoided with the same outcome? that's like saying work isn't supposed to be fun so you should pick a job that you will hate doing.

It's nothing like a day job, we do a day job to survive, I don't choose the comfortable option at work, I choose the best, most efficient option. I'm not paid to work comfortably, I'm paid a lot of money to do a good job.

I could take the soft option and just keep ticking over, surviving, tunneling through life, but then that's laziness. The more you hate your work, the more you enjoy your time outside of it, I have no intention of enjoying my job because it's just going to make my free time insignificant.

 

[Windle]

Just realized I didn't add a link so my post makes no sense, was talking about these things http://www.prestigegarages.co.uk/ . Sectional pre-fab, just put the concrete base down and they deliver and build it. Get it insulated, kitted out for heat/power etc, jobs a good un.

 

[Psycho Sonny]

The more you hate your work, the more you enjoy your time outside of it, I have no intention of enjoying my job because it's just going to make my free time insignificant.

Do you think everyone should conform to this way of thinking? I'm sure a lot would disagree.

Some people choose jobs which make them happy. Just the way some people choose to exercise in a comfortable environment. I think a lot of people who enjoy their work live happier lives, as they enjoy their time both in and outside of work. So many people out there are depressed because they hate their job, others wouldn't change their job for any amount of money.

Exercising in a harsh environment isn't going to benefit anyone in any way unless they were training for a specific task/job in a harsh climate, in fact it can be detrimental to their efforts.

It looks like your motivated by financial gain more than happiness when it comes to work that's why you think like this, you also seem to be driven by more by extra pain when working out rather than those who are driven more by not being in pain whilst working out. Pain can also be a sign that something is wrong and to stop, for example it would be stupid to tell someone to keep on running after they had some sharp pain in their ankle or knee, etc. This could aggravate the issue and they could be out of action for weeks or do some real serious permanent damage. Therefore not all exercise should hurt, it depends a lot on what your doing tbh.

Therefore I don't think you can simply say everyone should "man up" and torture themselves whilst exercising.