Jacking Up A Garage, For More Clearance

BAREIN

My brother in law just bought a new house, it has a detached 25x28 garage with a 7ft door. He wants to be able to store his boat in the garage but needs more clearance, he needs at least 16 inches. Question is what is the best method to do this? The garage is slab on grade he was thinking of jacking it up and laying two courses of block, would this work? Are there any other methods to do this?

FRAMERBEN

Is it the celing that needs to be higher, or just the 7' door that is too low?

cleveman

you'll need 3 courses of block.

The blockwork will crack a bit over time, no worries.

Get yourself some "high-lift"? jacks, at least two of them.

Cut off or loosen all anchor bolts, hurricane ties, etc. on the bottom plate.

Screw on some substantial lumber about x" high on the interior walls, according to your jacks height.

You may want to brace the walls across from each other to keep them from getting wacky on you as you lift.

So get yourself up high enough with your jacks to get some pump jacks underneath, then use the pump jacks.

You don't need to lift 24" at once, you only need to get high enough to lay the first course of block. Leave some block out, so you have a place for jacks (something has to hold the building up as you lay the block). These spaces also give you a place to lift the next 8 inches.

Let the block set up at least a day before you jack off it.

Repeat as necessary until you are up as high as you want to be.

When you lay your final course, again you'll leave some block out where your stands or jacks are. Then you can lower down onto a 1x, remove your jacks or stands, raise up with your other jacks to remove the 1x's, then sprinkle some sand on the top course. Your top course might be solid block if you don't have a 2x6 bottom plate. This will keep mice and stuff out of your block. The sand will help you move your walls into line if they get bowed out or in a bit.

You'll have to rig up some anchor bolts or straps to your or whoever's satisfaction.

Try to have a labrador retriever with a tennis ball help you as you are jacking up the garage. Pump the jack a few times, throw the ball. This is a great stress reliever as the building is creaking and groaning. It worked for me, and I went up 4'.

One final tip. If the walls are really out of whack, just line up the bumper on your pickup to the walls, and push them wherever you want them.

neolitic

Make friends with some
house movers!
They use multi head
hydraulic jacks run off
of a master pump,
and they know how to use them.
Maybe make a deal to
work into some of their
slow times.

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Harmoney Const

If its the door you can remove the header and reframe the header to be higher also if it was stick framed and does not have roof trusses you can remove the ceiling joists out of the ceiling but if you do that make sure you have collar ties approxiametly 3' to 4' down the roof rafters from the ridge!!!

JonM

Why the block?...why not just stick frame it after you jack it, and match the outside finish?

BAREIN

Thanks for all of the quik responses, we are getting some better ideas about what were up against. I have not seen the garage since it is pretty far away, but I think he needs more clearance than just moving the header. Moving the joists up on the rafter might work but, I think he might need more than that will allow to, Anybody know what proffesional house movers would charge to do somthing like this in the Minnesota Twin Cities area?

neolitic

Not a clue, but it should be
a piece-o-cake job for them.
Thought you were in Cheddarland?

(BTW Janesville? Whatever
happened to the "White Buffalo"?)

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concretemasonry

Raise the garage yourself or have someone do it.

Drill into the slab and drill/epoxy insert dowels long enough to reach near the top of the block where you need anchor bolts.

Lay the block, fill the cores that have dowels and place anchor bolts in to the filled cores.

Just ask anyone the difference between having a plate siting on a slab in comparison to have block to raise it up. - Makes cleaning easy and gets the wood out of the dirt and slop. It is rare around here to see a garage that is not on block or a concrete curb.

Framing the 24" is a joke, weak and is askibg for trouble even if it was legal or could re-sell the property.

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Dick

Engineer, designer and consultant recently active domestically and internationally on construction and design in about 35 countries.

Double-A

Have you considered adding another bay?

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neolitic

I know I could, I guess you could,
but I wouldn't recommend it as a weekend
DIY for a first timer.


Nothing but total agreement here bro.

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BAREIN

The White buffalo passed away A number of years ago The same people had another one a few years ago, but it changed colors quiker than the origonal one. That was big hype when the first one was born somebody offered the people really good money for it and they turned them down, I bet they wished they would have taken the money.
Slab on grade is the common form around here everyone just makes there slab thicker on the edges then leaves the slab out of the ground. This garage might have a curb.
These are all good responses keep them coming. Thanks

neolitic

Thanks, went by there to "meet"
the first one, second one turned
before I had the chance.
They seemed to be nice folks.

Good luck with the garage

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