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Building a motorhome garage what would you include?

Yahoo Message Number: 23488
In the next two years we are adding a motorhome garage to a new smaller retirement home we are building. We own a 03 42 ft intrigue 3 slides.
We are starting to think about what size bay we will want (to include a larger coach if needed in the future), so I would like to get some ideas from this group as to what we may need to include. I would like to be able to fully extend the slides and still have comfortable access to the storage etc. Wondering what size door opening 15ft? And width? any other ideas of improvements people have included in their RV storage buildings. I would appreciate your imput and stories of things you have included in your RV storage. thanks Gerald Brawley

Re: Building a motorhome garage what would you include?

Reply #1 –
Yahoo Message Number: 23491
I would not go any less than 50ft. long and go beyond the coach with slides out by at least 2 ft on each side. Dump station would also be nice to have.

Gary Bender

04' Intrigue 11701

In the next two years we are adding a motorhome garage to a new smaller

Re: Building a motorhome garage what would you include?

Reply #2 –
Yahoo Message Number: 23493
Quote from: gbrawley1
Dump station, 50 amp elec service, water, heat for the garage, garage lights, elec. door opener, "rodent proof" the garage as much as possible, room for a workbench and cabinets to put stuff in. I wish I had one like this - I have to rent a lesser one!

Quote
In the next two years we are adding a motorhome garage to a new

smaller

Quote
retirement home we are building. We own a 03 42 ft intrigue 3

slides.

Quote
We are starting to think about what size bay we will want (to

include a

Quote
larger coach if needed in the future), so I would like to get some > ideas from this group as to what we may need to include. I would

like

Quote
to be able to fully extend the slides and still have comfortable

access

Quote
to the storage etc. Wondering what size door opening 15ft? And

width?

Quote
any other ideas of improvements people have included in their RV > storage buildings. I would appreciate your imput and stories of

things

Re: Building a motorhome garage what would you include?

Reply #3 –
Yahoo Message Number: 23496
Hi Gerald, We have a 42 foot unit with the taller profile.
When building our barn we specified 14 X 14 doors and they have proved more then adequate for the coach and I would recommend this size.
Be careful to consider the horizontal angle of approach and degree of vertical slope of your driveway. We are on level ground and have acreage so this was not an issue for us.
Assuming you have roll up doors you will need a commercial version. These do not come with remote controls. I recommend insulated doors.
We went with sixty feet in length as we had the space and the additional cost was not to much. In a residential situation you might want to go with fifty.
Ours is a pole barn and the main poles are set 16 feet apart. This allows plenty of space to walk around the coach and open the bay doors. Going wider then sixteen feet with a single roof span will increase costs dramatically as building codes may require a much heavier engineered truss system.
If you live in earthquake country there will be added costs for sheer walls and additional retainers to consider.
Find yourself a really good concrete guy. Large areas of concrete tend to crack rather easily. Stress relief lines should be correctly spaced to avoid cracking. I am not a concrete expert but based on experience would recommend a stress relief line running down the center front to back and side to side every eight feet. This divides the floor into squares and concrete likes that!

Make sure your concrete guy understands the weight of the vehicle.
We installed a short but very solid concrete approach ramp to make sure the load on the leading edge of the concrete floor was mitigated.

50 Amps is nice if your existing house panel can handle it.
Sewer raises many issues. We didn't do it due to the distance from our septic tank. If the coach house was connected to the main house I would still be wary about including it inside the structure and you would need water available to rinse everything off. Consider the 'Sewer Solution' as a low cost alternative.
Our barn was pre wired for phone and cable TV (easy to do with new construction) and we also placed outlets on the outside of the barn plus another 50A and 30A power source so that if we host friends with a coach they can hook up. No water or sewer. You may not be inclined to do this, the guests may never leave!
To be candid we (I) probably spent more money then I should have by adding lots of electrical outlets and lights but it was fun and the coach loves it!

Good luck with your project.

David

David and Karen

2006 Allure Siskiyou 31383
2002 Honda Odyssey TOAD

Re: Building a motorhome garage what would you include?

Reply #4 –
Yahoo Message Number: 23504
And I would add, 50 Amp, water, dump opening, ON BOTH SIDES OF THE GARAGE. I would also make sure that the cement had an incline so that the water from washing, etc. moved to a drain at least 6-8 inches in diameter and led to the back of the lot outside. I would also have the cement contractor create a depression at the back of the garage between where the wheels of the coach go that was deep enough to run a creeper under the coach safely. I really like getting under the coach to grease, change oil, and just visually inspect the underside. I have a "beer belly" which makes getting underneath a bit of a problem without some additional room.

George Mayleben

Glen Gieg wrote:

Re: Building a motorhome garage what would you include?

Reply #5 –
Yahoo Message Number: 23508
Gerald,

Go to the Lake Ashton web site and you will see some great garage layouts for coaches. We have a garage with a 16 foot garage door and a 56 foot bay with full hook ups on both sides. We attached a 2 car stacked garage to it with a walk in closet. Our entire garage holds our 40 foot Magna, (with 3 slides out) 2 cars, 2 golf carts, work shop, storage loft and an AC unit. Ceiling is 22 feet high in coach area and 10 feet high in car garage. Our 2600sf house wraps around this garage.

Bill G.05 Mag #6425

Re: Building a motor home garage what would you include?

Reply #6 –
Yahoo Message Number: 23515
I would wire the garage with florescent lamp on the ceiling or high on the walls that would light the coach "sides". Most garages only have minimal lighting and the cast huge dark shadows in the area of the bays and make even washing windows, waxing impossible! As well I would place 110v outlets at 5ft (code) at least every 10ft along the side walls. Also I would run H/C water (use a shower mixing valve) and a hose reel just inside the bay door (in cold weather country) so that you can wash the coach, hook up a pressure washer and or use it for domestic water when 'guests' are overloading your im-movable home?
I also would make the width adequate to build 2 foot deep shelving so that you could organize your "trip" supplies on the shelf and then they don't all have to be stored in the coach, yet easily inventoried and organized (I use Rubbermaid tubs that are all marked on the ends and sides and color coded as to what is in them?

Tim

Re: Building a motorhome garage what would you include?

Reply #7 –
Yahoo Message Number: 23522
Here are a few of my suggestions, hope it helps?

I would wire the garage with florescent lamp on the ceiling or high on the walls that would light the coach "sides". Most garages only have minimal lighting and the cast huge dark shadows in the area of the bays and make even washing windows, waxing impossible!
As well I would place 110v outlets at 5ft (code) at least every 10ft along the side walls. Also I would run H/C water (use a shower mixing valve) and a hose reel just inside the bay door (in cold weather country) so that you can wash the coach, hook up a pressure washer and or use it for domestic water when `guests' are overloading your im-movable home?

I also would make the width adequate to build 2 foot deep shelving so that you could organize your "trip" supplies on the shelf and then they don't all have to be stored in the coach, yet easily inventoried and organized. I use Rubbermaid tubs that are all marked on the ends and sides and color coded as to what is in them?

Sounds like a fun project!
Tim

Re: Building a motorhome garage what would you include?

Reply #8 –
Yahoo Message Number: 23524
Quote from: F102508@\.\.\.
Sewer raises many issues. We didn't do it due to the
distance from our

Quote
septic tank. If the coach house was connected to the main house

I would

Quote
still be wary about including it inside the structure and you
would need water

Quote
available to rinse everything off. Consider the 'Sewer
Solution' as a low

Quote
cost alternative.
Another alternative is Sani-Con. My RV carport is about 90 feet from the nearest sewer connection. Sani-Con makes a 12-volt pump that can pump for a hundred feet with a five foot rise, through a 3/4 inch hose. It is nice to be able to use the coach when we have an overflow of people, and not have to worry about having to pull out and find a place to dump the tanks.

Al Colby

2000 Intrigue 10979

Re: Building a motorhome garage what would you include?

Reply #9 –
Yahoo Message Number: 23528
Some good info so far ... good question.

We built a 45 x 63 pole barn for our Affinity. We also have a 14 x 14 door which is plenty big enough to back in.

We have power and water running to the barn, and incadescent lighting in two rows (200 watt bulbs). We also have a sky light at the peek of the roof, which lets in plenty of light.

We don't have a dump station, but we use a Flojet macerator that connects directly to a right angle adapter at the sewer connection, chews the stuff up, and pumps it out a garden hose in the woods behind the barn. We live in the middle of 80 acres, so no one complains. You could pump it into a holding tank, and take it someplace also. Very cool unit. We only use it when we get home, not on the road.

We have a dual 30 amp service (two 30 amp legs). Not enough power to the barn for 50 amps. Plenty to keep the batteries up, and run two air units if not charging.

Floor is 5" fibreglass and steel mesh reinforced. Makes a great basketball court if we pull the MH out.

I think total cost was around $30-35,000 (N IL) with electric front door opener. Standard 8x8 rear door for air flow if required.

Thinking of putting a pit towards the back for service, but hate to cut into that new floor.

Nice to roll around on a stool with casters to pack, unpack and mess around in the basement.

Oh yeah, and there's Larry the fake owl to keep the birds out.
Might have to rename him, as he birds don't seem as afraid of him as we hoped.

Good luck in your project.

Quote from: gbrawley1
In the next two years we are adding a motorhome garage to a new

smaller

Quote
retirement home we are building. We own a 03 42 ft intrigue 3

slides.

Quote
We are starting to think about what size bay we will want (to

include a

Quote
larger coach if needed in the future), so I would like to get some > ideas from this group as to what we may need to include. I would

like

Quote
to be able to fully extend the slides and still have comfortable

access

Quote
to the storage etc. Wondering what size door opening 15ft? And

width?

Quote
any other ideas of improvements people have included in their RV > storage buildings. I would appreciate your imput and stories of

things