Creative Garage Renovation on a Dime

Hi there. I have an old 18x18 frame, hip roofed garage. If I tear it down, new city ordinances say I have to move it (which messes with my yard) - so I want to keep it where it is and fix it up.

Is it possible to convert the hip roof to a flat roof? I'd like to reinforce it and put a wooden deck over it - re-side it and spruce it up (summertime workshop, etc..).

It is just your average wood frame hip roof garage - probably built in the 60's or 70's - very standard.

Thank you

- C

 

Welcome to the forums.

Putting a flat roof and a deck on it puts it into a different category. Will your town allow that ?

 

I think you need to talk to your Zoning and Building Inspection Departments to find out what you can and cannot do. They are the ones passing judgement so you need to very clearly understand what you can do. Get it wrong and it could be very expensive.

 

Supposedly my alderman is really great about assessing plans on a case-by-case basis. I know I will definitely need to draft this all up on sketchup / run this past an architect friend before I ask for the permit.

The thing I'm most worried about is if it will be possible to take the hip roof off without hurting the structure of the garage, itself. It looks like the hip roof is added after the four walls are built and the joists fastened - so I'm thinking i could strip it down to its studs and joists and just work from there --- but I've never done this exact type of work so I'm just hoping not to make a big structural mistake. Generally the roof itself is not part of the structural integrity of a small garage, though, right?

 

Seems to me that it would be more logical to reinforce the roof you have and build a deck on top. In other words, the deck would straddle the roof. Do all roof planes meet at a common point, or is there a ridge?

 

I'm not sure your plans and your title match; this is going to cost a whole lot of dimes.

 

A flat roof will require joists capable of spanning the 18 foot width. Could get expensive. Post a photo of what you have to work with.