Blocking up garage door

[Dookie1985]

Hoping for a bit of advice. We have a single garage not attached to the property, but shares one wall with the neighbours garage. Since it’s too small to fit most current cars, I’m looking at converting it to an office, and to do this would require blocking up the garage door, which I’ve come to the choice of either using bricks or breeze blocks and render. I know breeze block would be cheaper, but is there any other benefit of using breeze blocks? Which would be the safer of the two when it comes to securing it to the side walls?

It will be single skin as the inside will be insulated and plaster boarded.

Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Murdochcat]

I would say you need to talk to your local planners as converting your garage into a usable room whilst attached to your neighbours garage May have implications they are very interested in.

Our neighbours did this and had to go for full planning and building control approval

 

[JohnD]

OOI, breeze blocks have not been used in UK for many, many years.

You are probably thinking of lightweight (foamed) concrete blocks

 

[Dookie1985]

Yup. Those are the ones I meant! From what I gathered from YouTube, wall ties like the Sabrefix wall kit should be able to secure it to the existing wall for stability. Unless there is something better to use?

 

[big-all]

as Murdochcat says if you are removing a possible parking space [the garage] and if that brings you below required number off spaces on your property that you need you may not be allowed to convert
on street parking doesn't count

now iff parking on the street is not a problem [unusual] you may be ok

 

[Dookie1985]

Along our street there's probably a out 30 of the same garages, with about 3 actually being used to store vehicles. The rest have either either knocked them down or converted into a usable space. Hopefully, that is a sign for the better.

Thank you for your advice and I'll definitely look further into it. At the moment, I've just been going by the idea that "my neighbours have done it, it should be fine..."

 

[Mr Chibs]

I've seen a few garage/storage conversions, where they keep the garage door and have a 30% length store room, build a separating stud wall, then have the remaining 70% as an office, usually with French doors into the garden, depends on how much room you need.

 

[Dookie1985]

I've seen a few garage/storage conversions, where they keep the garage door and have a 30% length store room, build a separating stud wall, then have the remaining 70% as an office, usually with French doors into the garden, depends on how much room you need.

This is exactly what we want to do. When we bought the property, the garage door was hanging off and non functional. The previous owner was supposed to have this fixed before the purchase was finalised, but didn't, along with many other problems with the house. So it's either pay £500+ for a new garage door to be fitted, or just take it out and brick it up. It even still has the old corrugated roof, which we already have quotes to replace that.