Gijs Great Garage Makeover
The property, acquired in April 2019, came with an old garage. A previous resident was a car enthusiast and used to tinker there regularly. Gijs does not quite share that passion, so the garage quickly turned into storage for old furniture and random materials.
Because Gijs is a natural builder and spends a lot of time behind a computer for work, he decided to transform the garage into a proper mancave with a workshop and an office. The image below is an early sketch of what the garage could eventually become.
Before Gijs could start this major project, the garage first had to be cleared out and the walls had to be exposed. Time to get to work.
To give the office a clean look, the walls were covered with plasterboard. That first required a frame, with the electrical layout already planned in.
The electrical boxes shown in these photos did not make the final cut; for a more professional finish, cavity wall boxes were used instead. Because plasterboard walls are not very strong and it was unclear what might be mounted later, the frame was first covered with chipboard. This gives the walls more strength and makes it easier to install shelves and/or pictures in the future.
Next up was the floor. To create a level surface more easily, the concrete subfloor was leveled. After that, a frame was installed to hide pipes and cables, including water supply and drainage for a kitchenette, plus electrical lines.
The floor was then boarded with underlayment panels, ready for a clean finish layer later (laminate, PVC, or carpet). Meanwhile, the cavity wall boxes for outlets and light switches were also installed.
After installing the subfloor and walls, finishing could begin. To avoid getting paint on the final floor, Gijs started by plastering and painting the walls. For a simple but professional look, matte white wall paint was chosen.
An uninsulated floor can lose up to 10% of heat. So before finishing the floor, it was insulated with HR++ EPS beads. It is an affordable way to save a lot of energy.
Because the office floor has to handle rolling desk chairs and sand from outside, a durable PVC floor was selected. These floors are easy to clean and tougher than laminate and most wood types.
Meanwhile, winter started to roll in. To keep the build comfortable, the original radiator was reinstalled. The office also got a sink unit with running water, so fresh coffee is always within reach. For this project, a custom kitchenette was installed, based on a simple 100x60 cm cabinet. It was topped with a solid birch countertop, plus a modern stainless-steel sink and faucet.
For a cleaner look, the cabinet doors were repainted in metallic red and fitted with stainless-steel handles. Because the garage is far from the central heating boiler, no hot-water line was run; instead, a local boiler was installed. That is not only more efficient, it also means hot water is available quickly.
To save even more energy and regulate temperature better, the ceiling was insulated with rock wool. The original electrical setup in the garage was not sufficient to safely power the office and workshop, so it was replaced with a new system where power, internet, and lighting run through separate networks.
On our Gijs Great Garden Makeover© blog, you can see how new lines were run between the garage and the house, including a new underground cable from the main electrical panel in the house.
At 23.5 m², the garage is fairly spacious. To avoid the office/workshop split feeling like two cramped rooms, a glass partition was installed. For insurance reasons, or rather the lack of insurance if we DIY’d it, this wall was installed by a professional. The result speaks for itself.
Once the ceiling was insulated and wiring installed, it could be finished as well. Because the office is a bit low, every centimeter counts. That is why the original plan for a suspended ceiling (great for future changes) was dropped in favor of a plasterboard ceiling. First, battens were mounted between the beams, then the plasterboards were stapled in place. After that, the ceiling was plastered and painted like the walls. With the ceiling done, the office really started to take shape.
Up to this point, the workshop had mostly been untouched. Time to change that. The workshop floor was heavily damaged, so it was repaired with leveling mortar.
Because no extra floor layer would be installed over the concrete in the workshop, special fiber-reinforced mortar was used. Heavy-duty concrete paint helps prevent damage and provides a waterproof finish, making the workshop easy to clean. The old inspection pit cover forms a kind of island in the middle of the workshop.
Because the old inspection pit no longer serves its original purpose, it is reused as storage. It is over a meter wide, leaving enough space for a row of shelves. That keeps less frequently used materials and tools close by.
After the floor was painted and the workshop walls got a fresh coat too, it was finally time to furnish the space. First up was a shelf for the 3D printers, made from leftover countertop material from the office. Next to it sits the KingTech server. Due to its height, it cannot fit fully in the corner, because that would block the light switch and outlet.
Nothing in Gijs Great Garage Makeover© is standard, and that includes the desks. To match the kitchenette and earlier shelf, two large beechwood desks were built. Two large tabletops were used and varnished to create the same color and finger-joint style. They are supported by two electrically adjustable frames, so desk height can be changed with the push of a button.
The desk frames include Bluetooth, so personal height presets can be saved and recalled through an app. The desktops are mounted with M8 bolts, with threaded inserts added to the wood. This mounting method allows the desktop to be removed and remounted without damage, unlike standard screws that weaken wood over time.
Because the desktop moves up and down, cables can get pinched between the wall and the desk. To prevent that, a robust metal cable passthrough was installed in each desktop.
Once the desks were in place, the rest of the furniture could move in too. Each desk gets a PC, creating two equal workstations. A bookcase and two display cabinets fill the back wall, and temporary office chairs make the space ready to use.
This means that even though a few small tasks are still pending, the office goes into service from this point on. All future updates for Gijs Great Garage Makeover© are now written from the new office.
Because a lot of work will happen in the new office, a good desk chair is essential. With that in mind, an ergonomic chair made from high-quality materials was selected.
Finally, extra outlets and network ports were added in the workshop for all power tools. The workshop now has 20 outlets, and the office has 10. There are also enough network connections for all computers, printers, and other network equipment.
After months of hard work, the old garage has been transformed into a true mancave. A premium office with a kitchenette and spacious desks, plus a clean workshop with room for both precision tinkering and heavier jobs. The end result speaks for itself.
Air Conditioner
One downside of the garage is its flat bitumen roof. That means it can still get very hot in summer, even with insulation. To stay comfortable, Gijs decided to install an air conditioner. A nice bonus is that many modern units can also heat very efficiently, so the space stays cozy in winter too.
Air conditioners are considered a luxury product in the Netherlands, and therefore expensive. In Southern Europe, they are much more standard and usually more affordable. That is why Gijs chose to import one. As you might guess, shipping costs are not small: shipping per pallet cost him 200 euros.
Because one pallet can hold up to four units, Gijs ordered four and split the shipping cost. He sold the other three units on.
Installing an air conditioner is, quite literally, a cool job. The indoor unit hangs on the wall with a special mounting system. Three pipes and one cable exit the indoor unit, and Gijs routes them through a roughly 6 cm hole drilled behind the unit. For this, he uses a dry core drill.
Two of those pipes connect to the outdoor unit and carry the refrigerant that moves heat. For most AC systems, the outdoor unit is pre-filled for a certain pipe length, usually around 5 meters. As long as the indoor and outdoor units stay within that distance, no extra refrigerant is needed and DIY installation is realistic.
The third pipe drains condensation from the indoor unit. When an AC cools, condensation forms on the cooling fins, runs into a tray, and is drained outside through this pipe. Because this usually works passively (without a pump), the drain pipe must slope downward. Otherwise, the indoor unit can fill up and leak, which is bad news for plasterboard walls.
Finally, there is the cable that links indoor and outdoor units. The indoor unit is powered through the outdoor unit, and both units also need to communicate. That is why a five-core cable is used to connect them. To keep things clear, Gijs labeled all cables in advance.
Because the wall has three layers (outer wall, cavity wall, and plasterboard), pipes and cables can get stuck between them. Gijs taped all pipes together so they could pass through the hole as one bundle. The opening was then filled with expanding foam to keep drafts and moisture out.
After placing the indoor unit, it was time to mount the outdoor unit. Because the garage roof is flat, Gijs placed it on vibration-damping feet. Those feet, plus extra dampers, reduce vibration and therefore noise. They also help protect the bitumen roof from vibration damage. Gijs did order the wrong size mounting hardware at first, but after a small modification, the unit could still be fixed to its feet and set on the roof.
Once on the roof, the refrigerant lines could be connected. It is essential that these lines do not leak, because without refrigerant the AC will not work. Gijs tightened the fittings firmly and, to be safe, used a special sealant paste on the threads for an airtight seal.
To minimize air mixing with refrigerant and to check for leaks, Gijs uses a dedicated vacuum pump and pressure gauge. Because this equipment is specialized and expensive, he rented it. With the vacuum pump, he pulls all air from the lines and indoor unit before opening the valves on the outdoor unit.
After about 15 to 20 minutes, once he is confident no more air is being pulled, he closes the valve between pump and gauge and turns the pump off. This creates a sealed system between indoor and outdoor units. If the system still holds vacuum after roughly 15 minutes, he can be reasonably confident there are no leaks.
Now Gijs can open the outdoor unit valves one by one to let refrigerant flow through the lines. He disconnects the gauge only after both valves are open. Because the lines are under pressure, a tiny bit of gas escapes during disconnect, but no air enters the system.
Because vacuuming and leak-checking take some time, Gijs used that time to connect the AC electrics. That includes the five-core cable between indoor and outdoor units and the power feed to the outdoor unit. Once everything was connected, it was time to test the system.
Luckily, everything worked on the first try, so it was time for a neat finish. For extra protection from weather and wear, Gijs wrapped the lines in an additional layer of insulating tape. He also added cable trunking along the outside wall to hide the lines from view. The end result is a cleanly installed AC system that keeps both office and workshop comfortable year-round.
Because Gijs loves smart gadgets, he upgraded the AC with a Wi-Fi module. A USB port is hidden under the cover of the indoor unit. By plugging in a dedicated Wi-Fi module, the AC can be controlled online through an app.
Besides the standard app, the manufacturer also supports control through Google Home. That lets Gijs set office temperature remotely, so the room is already comfortable when he arrives. With Google Home, temperature can also be adjusted automatically when he leaves home. An easy way to save energy.
