If you are looking for the ultimate DIY experience, you don’t get much bigger challenge (short of building your own house) than building a garage.
Sure, plenty of people buy kit garages and put them together over a few weeks or months, but not as many are willing to take on the task of building a garage from the ground up. Put simply, it’s not a simple project.
Having said that, if building your own garage is something you want to do, you need to start with a plan. There are plenty of companies that sell complete garage plans, and they generally range in price from $400 to over $2000. However, you can also find a few free plans and project guides on the internet.
A word of caution, though. Many of the ‘free’ plans that you find on the internet either aren’t actually free or will be incomplete. To help you out, we’ve done the research and come up six truly free plans for garages that you can DIY.
1. The Shell Only Single Garage from BuildEazy
BuildEazy’s shell only garage is about as inexpensive and straightforward as it gets when it comes to building a DIY garage. Designed with cost in mind, this garage literally consists of nothing more than the foundations, framework and outer shell of the garage. This garage doesn’t even have a floor; however, BuildEazy suggests that a concrete floor is something you can add later.
2. Simple 16’ x 20’ Garage from Rona
This simple single car garage from Canadian company Rona is a DIY project that can be built in about ten days. As with most garages, the siding and roofing material you select will have a significant impact on the cost of your build.
3. Two Car Detached Garage from Western Construction
This simple A-frame style two-car garage from Western Construction Inc is a typical no-frills example of a detached garage that can be found all around the country.
The plan can be simply modified to move the position of the entry door and to include a window or two in one or more sides.
You should note that while the plan is complete and provides details of all cross-sections, elevations and plan views, it does not include a comprehensive materials list which will make cost estimation and ordering of the required materials more difficult.
4. Single Car Detached Garage from My Outdoor Plans
With this design, My Outdoor Plans provide a very comprehensive and detailed step by step DYI project guide describing how to go about building their single car garage.
The DIY guide will be particularly useful if you are a first time builder and explains what is required during each step of the build, whether you are building to these specific plans or to another design altogether.
5. Free 24’ x 24’ Garage Plan from Cad Northwest
Cad Northwest has produced a very comprehensive set of plans for a lovely two-car garage with a loft. The plans are complete and contain all the information that an experienced DIYer or professional builder would need to construct this garage, including a comprehensive materials list. While this plan is free and available for you to use, Cad Northwest have indicated a willingness to modify it or provide a custom design for a fee.
6. The Ultimate DIY Home Garage Plan from Instructables
If you are looking for the ultimate DIY plan for building a two-car garage, you really can do no better than this comprehensive plan and how-to guide from Instructables.
Walking you step by step through every process, from the initial planning to obtaining city approval, to the use of subcontractors, building foundations and even the basics of wall framing and construction, this is a perfect guide for anybody looking to DIY their garage build.
Featured image credit: Truss garage by waterloosheds, Pixabay
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