GARAGE AND CARPORT CONVERSIONS

Converting an existing garage or carport into a rumpus or games and party room is a cheap way to gain some additional floor space and provide some privacy for Teenage children when they entertain their friends. Planned and executed properly it will add value to your house.   A double garage is especially good for this as this space is usually 6mx6m and often under the main roof.  A garage is classified as a class 10a structure under the BCA and by changing its use to a habitable space its class needs to be changed to class 1. Class 1 structures have a much more stringent set of requirements than class 10a. Complying with these requirements is at times tricky and sometimes creative solutions are required.  What seems a simple task requires a good deal of knowledge about planning regulations and the Building Code of Australia if a good outcome is to be achieved.  On several occasions I have been brought in to re-document garage conversions that have been started without proper documentation or approval. Disputes with neighbors will often result in stop work orders issued by Local Council.  Building is only allowed to re-commence after providing retrospective documentation. The remedial works required to gain compliance far exceeded what these Clients had tried to save.  One common problem encountered is that the minimum allowable ceiling height for a living area is 2.4m. Often garages have less than this. Alternately they may have 2.4m but the floor level is set down to allow car access. This is a problem as living areas have minimum requirements for floor height above adjacent ground level. If the floor is raised to comply then the ceiling does not.  Another problem is that there may be no white-ant treatment or damp proof membrane under existing Garage or carport slabs.  The remedial work required to resolve these shortcomings may be difficult to achieve without serious structural changes.  Most jobs require a new topping slab as this means complying white-ant treatment and  damp proof membrane can be installed.   Most Councils have planning regulations that require a minimum of 1 under-cover car-park per dwelling. If you are converting your Garage to a living space then you need another under-cover car-park elsewhere. Building a new carport in front of the existing house to provide a new under-cover park is usually not allowed as most Councils have specific planning rules prohibiting this form of development.  Double or triple Garages are usually the easiest to work with as the simple solution is to put up an internal partition dividing the space so that one (complying) car-park is retained. Garages and carports are also quite often on or near boundaries. Development on a boundary is always problematic as it raises the issue of Fire-resisting construction and minimum setback rules. Each case is unique and it is advisable to gain professional advice before commencing.  I can usually provide a solution to suit most clients briefs.  I have found that charging at my hourly rate I can usually provide the required documentation for Development approval for around $2000. This is approximately 25 hours work. This is assuming that there is no problem with council at the planning stages and the job can be done with one comprehensive submission covering both Planning and Development Approvals.