# Forum Home Renovation Brickwork  Converting Brick Carport to Brick Garage - HELP!

## Brials

Hello Fellow Renovators / Builders and all around Geniuses!  
I have come across something which I know nothing about and I need some help desperately. I am currently in the process of renovating and have hit the_"converting the Carport to Garage will be easy, dear"_ and have unsurprisingly come to the point where, I just don't know what to do and it doesn't seem to be so easy....  any advice would be great, I am in Perth NOR about 20k's from the city. I want to engage a builder / brickie and want to outsource the whole thing, does anybody have any idea on price or what it may cost me? Measurements are below (apologies if they don't make sense)  
Thanks all, and I will monitor to answer any questions on this too!  
Brials

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## METRIX

Fairly easy, build a series of walls in between the brick columns, these would most likely need to be made from timber, as the slab would not have enough strength to support brickwork, due to footing's only being under the columns. 
Put an exit door on one side if you require this, plus a window or two. Install a panel lift garage door as there looks to be no clearance for a roller type door, would recommend installing a strip drain between the paving and slab.

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## David.Elliott

:Iagree:  Looks like a WA build to me, in which case you can pretty much guarantee there will be the minimum depth of concrete under the slab edge, thereby ensuring you will not be able to brick up the openings...

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## Brials

Hey guys, is there a way to increase the footings? I would really like it to be all brick if I could. Is there any way to do that?

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## David.Elliott

Not a builder, so all the relevant cautions apply..  
 The only thing I can think of is getting it underpinned around the perimeter. Not sure if thats an option, but if it is, tripling your budget might just get you there...

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## barney118

See an engineer they might deem the current slab is up to it or another option.  
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## gpkennedy

Brick Cladding | Fake Brick | New Durabric 
This product (or similar) may be worth a look.

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## r3nov8or

Cut away existing between pillars and pour appropriate footings. Of course based on engineers advice, or AS.  
So... _"converting the Carport to Garage will be easy, dear"_ but "_more expensive than you may like, dear"._

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## METRIX

> Hey guys, is there a way to increase the footings? I would really like it to be all brick if I could. Is there any way to do that?

  I would say No, but Yes if you want to spend a lot of money fixing it, the footings are under the slab and were poured at the same time as the slab, with your open design, I would say 99% the footings would only be of suitable thickness under the piers, as there was no need to have strip footings under the edges of the slab. 
No builder would put strip footings around the perimeter of a carport like yours if there was nothing going on top of those parts as it would cost $$$ for the extra footings, the slab would probably be 120 - 150mm thick which is not suitable to support masonry construction. 
There really is no easy way to rectify this, as the problem lies under the slab. 
If you can find the original Architects plans and engineers diagrams, you will soon see if there is a strip footing under the open parts of the slab, you may be lucky.

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## METRIX

> Cut away existing between pillars and pour appropriate footings. Of course based on engineers advice, or AS.  
> So... _"converting the Carport to Garage will be easy, dear"_ but "_more expensive than you may like, dear"._

  This would technically be possible but I would not recommend it, you would end up with floating footings between the piers, and articulation joins at each pier, which may cause a few problems depending on the soil type.
Then again you could tie new footings into the old footings with bars, but you would then have cold formed slab joins which can lead to termite penetration points, and it would be an awful lot of work for not much gain. 
Basically it would not be worth the hassle, Timber construction is the easiest, cleanest and cheapest way to do it, if you want to minimize the exterior timber look, simply put larger windows in. or go for a similar looking brick that clips on and is mortared in afterwards, these could be attached to timber frames.  The Brick Cladding Experts In Australia 
Below are some pics showing you what's going on under a slabs which supports masonry construction, your slab won't have this detail.

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## r3nov8or

> Then again you could tie new footings into the old footings with bars, but you would then have cold formed slab joins which can lead to termite penetration points, and it would be an awful lot of work for not much gain.

   Bars/dowels is what I was thinking. Termite penetration is something we in Geelong don't need to worry about much, so, yeah, wasn't thinking about the rest of the mainland there  :Smilie:  . But 'the gain' to the OP is for a solid brick garage - up to them how much this is worth to them.

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## PlatypusGardens

I'm guessing you want it to be all brick for looks, but as others have said, there will be a lot of work and $ involved in that. 
Sheets and render might be an option?
It could even look good if you leave the brick pillars as they are and have rendered panels in between as a feature. 
That way the garage will still tie in with the look of the house by being part brick. 
My $0.02   :Smilie:

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## Brials

Thanks for all your help guys, I will look into a timber/Brick cladding option! is there anyone that you guys would recommend to do this type of work?

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## METRIX

Where are you located?

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## PlatypusGardens

Says north Perth in first post   :Smilie:

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## thenewmrt

Probably too late for my response but I'll throw it in anyway.
I did a similar project last year. Bricked up between columns in a carport - only 2 walls.
Had to get a permit and supply drawings to the council. Cut a section of the existing slab away between the columns and had to lay footings 600mm deep (the council wanted it).
DIY'd the whole thing and turned out OK - couldn't get matching bricks and was on a boundary fence not visible from the street so put some render on the wall and painted it. 
The concrete bricks were about $500...cement, sand, screenings, tools ect ect probably another $500.
Permit was only $350......tried to charge me $1500 though. I think I claimed it was a minor change to an existing structure or something along those lines.

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## barney118

Need to get planning permission first different rules for carport a vs garages  
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## autogenous

Yep, you need planning permission with an engineers detail for the structure. Councils do the rounds with cameras on their cars now looking for illegal structures. 
Even then, if you decide to sell, it could backfire on you. Gone are the days of simplicity, mainly because of litigation which has brought more regulation, procedures and more $$$$. 
Perth is predominantly sand which means WA people don't need the expensive footings seen in the East.  
The piers are built first, and the garage floor laid after.  You will probably have to underpin the garage slab as a requirement of the engineer. Im guessing the engineer will want 300 x 200mm N25 footing depending on which engineer you go to. 
I bricked in my carport on the dodgiest 1980s conc floor without underpinning. I have no cracks in the render at all. The piers are the load bearing entity. I don't recommend it. I just did it because I can. 
Personally I cant stand all face bricks in a house and Im a bricklayer. I like a mix of materials on a house to give it character, preferably 3.  
Brick is popular in WA, because it is cheaper than other building methods, it is low maintenance which doesn't give the builders anywhere the maintenance grief of other products. WA is full of termites too which love to eat many things. Termites can eat through 3 inches of concrete. 
I've got as much work as I can organise (large complex residential) with some predictability of scheduling but work has slowed and others are more than happy to do the type of job you want done around town. Choose a brickie carefully. 
ps. Tape up the floor with some plastic for the brickie to keep floor damage to a minimum. 
Best of luck,
Todgy   

> Need to get planning permission first different rules for carport a vs garages  
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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## autogenous

Personally I would go with a 2 course face brick 'inside' and a sand face render outside and paint with the wall recessed 30mm in from outside face of the piers.  It will give you house a neat contemporary feel and add a little value to the home.   
Thats what we want really, add value to our homes when we renovate. Thats my 2 cents worth.

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