How to transform your garage into an extra living space

All too often, garages are resigned to being pretty unpleasant places - damp, cold, full of creepy crawlies and home to piles of neglected storage boxes and rusty old power tools. It doesn’t have to be that way though. 

When secured, insulated and equipped correctly, your garage has the potential to become one of your favorite spots in the house - yes, really! Not only that, transforming your garage into a liveable - and loveable - space is a surefire way to add value to your property for if and when the time comes to sell. 

So, if we’ve got you feeling all psyched about giving your garage a total refresh, keep reading for our pearls of wisdom on how to go about getting the space in good shape for redecoration. 

First stop: insulation stations 

The first thing you’re going to want to do after clearing out your garage and giving it a good clean down is to insulate the space well. Nobody wants to chill out in front of Netflix or work from a home office that’s draughty and damp in the winter and hot and sticky during the summer. 

Invest in some good quality garage insulation and install it on the garage door and ceiling to help regulate temperature year-round. Another great way to insulate the space and make it more comfortable is by installing some plush carpet flooring - but hey, we can leave the interior design decisions to you. 

Make sure the space is watertight 

We’d always recommend purchasing a high quality (and reliable) weather seal to prevent water from entering the space. In fact, this is super important whether you use your garage as a living space or not - especially if you live in an area that is prone to heavy rainfall or flooding. 

When you’re done here, don’t forget to check out our range of residential garage door threshold seals to keep your garage warm, dry and secure. Our weather seals are made using durable, colorfast vinyl that won’t go rotten or brittle when exposed to the elements for a prolonged period of time. 

Let the (natural) light in 

If you’re going to be inhabiting the space on a more regular basis, you’ll probably want to consider fitting it with a window if it doesn’t have one already to let in some natural light and fresh air. Just make sure to double down on your temperature and moisture control measures, as well as staying on top of any chips, gaps or cracks as time goes by. 

Invest in some overhead garage storage

Worried about where all of those storage boxes and power tools we mentioned earlier are actually going to go now? Once you’ve done the mandatory declutter and trashed whatever you no longer want, consider installing some overhead garage storage to keep everything you do want to keep clean, tidy and out of the way.  

More reading > the different types of overhead garage storage available.