Category Tuck Under Garage

This St. Louis Park Addition Exterior is close to completion. The garage door and exterior lighting fixtures will be here soon and the deck rail to the back stairs will be installed as well.

An important part of this project was accomplishing the homeowner’s goals while matching the architectural style, colors and materials of the existing home.

When the landscaping and plantings are in, this St. Louis Park addition will blend wonderfully and really look as if it was built as part of the original house. Our sincere thanks and kudos to Bryan Anderson and SALA ARCHITECTS for their design work on this project.

That’s what makes a renovation a Showcase Renovation!

The framing is complete and even includes a bonus crawl space between the new construction and the existing structure. Some photos during the progress.

— You can see the steel beam (we used a crane to set this one) used to support the deck and framing above the garage. And a shot of the rough framing when complete.

— This is definitely a room with a view! The room above the garage not only provides a great view of nature but there is a wonderful deck for enjoying the view from the outside. This deck will wrap-around the addition and there is an extra wide overhang to provide shade and protection from the elements.

This stage of the project shows the poured concrete foundation walls and cement block walls where appropriate. These concrete walls will give a finished ceiling of over 10′ for this St. Louis Park attached garage addition when completed.

— On the left is the foundation ready to be capped. On the right is a shot of two poured columns with core filled block on top in anticipation of supporting a wrap-around deck.

— These two images show the cap load – called that because the lumber is used to put the initial cap on the foundation. And a look from the top in the back showing the reinforced concrete wall with insulating drainage board (R value of 5) over watchdog H3 waterproofing.

— And of course none of this happens without some carpenters that are ready to go!

This project is the replacement of an old and aged detached garage with an attached tuck-under while adding usable living space above. This will also gain space for landscaping and esthetics in the yard while benefiting the curb appeal and live-ability of the home. Note the image at bottom after 3″ of rain.

— These imagess show the existing garage and the site plan illustrating the new relationship of the garage to the home with the new living space above.

— These images show the amount of excavation required and a computer rendering of the planned front elevation.

— The shoring up of the excavated area along the existing structure is done with large plates of steel held in place by long steel pipes driven into the soil. Stabilization of this type is critical to maintaining the integrity of existing structures. That the water is deep enough for a swim is just a bonus!