A coworker and I were talking about garages today, and I got to wondering: how many people actually keep their car in their garage? It seems to me like the majority of people use their garage like a big storage shed, filling it with whatever junk doesn’t need to be kept in the house, until there’s no room left for a car. Does anyone know of any surveys regarding how people with a garage actually use it?
Our HOA is picky about storage sheds (to the point of suing people), so practically everyone uses at least half of their garage for storage.
Car on one side and other stuff on the second side. The car takes priority over other stuff. You can store stuff where the car doesn’t get parked like the walls and loft.
Don’t know of any surveys, but if you’re after anecdotal evidence I can provide some.
Two of our vehicles are always in the garage. One sits out because it’s not driven often and it’s spot is occupied by my tractor, which is worth more than the vehicle who’s spot it occupies.
Two car garage, two vehicles, both go in the attached garage.
I wouldn’t have it any other way. The cars don’t get beaten to death by the sun, they start better in the dead of winter, I don’t have to brush snow off them in the winter, no getting in/out of the car in the rain, etc.
If you’re using your garage for that much storage you really need to get rid of some of your crap.
Judging from what I see around my neighborhood, ours is one of the few 2-car garages that actually regularly houses 2 cars.
When all I had was a car-and-a-half, detached garage, behind a gate with no gate opener, it was exclusively used as a storage shed and workshop. When I bought my current house, an attached, two-car or bigger garage was a requirement. Of course I now had to use a lawn tractor, set up a work area, store all my outdoor gear (Michigan really has four distinct seasons!), and overall, it didn’t work too well, so I built the biggest shed I could. If I’d had more money (and maybe someday I will), I’d’ve built a nice, three car garage back there like a couple of my neighbors have.
So, as is today, I park in my garage and have some basic household materials and tools stored on the shelving I built. I couldn’t fit a second version of my car into the garage at the same time, but I ought to be able to fit my car plus the Fiesta I have my eye on at the same time. Don’t know where I’ll park the old Grand Ville when I get around to shipping it to myself. I don’t think one of those will fit in my current garage!
Our garage was* too small for anything much larger than a Nash Metropolitan or maybe a VW Beetle. As a result, our vehicle lives in the driveway, and the garage holds my workbench, the freezer and the trash and recycling bins.
*As built, it had a one-piece swing-up door that severely restricted the height of anything that could be in the garage. We’ve since replaced it with a normal sectional door, so the height is usable, but still lower than typical. The vehicle stays outside and the workbench and freezer stay inside.
In my typical suburban neighborhood I only see one house with a garage that doesn’t hold at least one vehicle.
Of course this is an older neighborhood and a lot of houses either have storage sheds or basements that open into the back yard.
For many of us, the “crap” consists of stuff that we actually need. I have no other place for the lawn mower and snow blower, for example, plus storage of a gazillion other things that are yard-related.
Conversely, our HOA is picky about where you park your cars (no resident parking in the visitor spots, for example), so practically everyone uses their garages to park their cars.
Ed
3 car garage, two vehicles parked in it, 4-wheeler/boat in other stall with a shitload of tools. No outbuildings. Although I do have a trailer parked on the side of the driveway.
If we’re doing a poll, an important variable might be the presence of a full basement. I have a two car garage with two cars parked in it, but if I needed space for tools and Christmas decorations and such and I didn’t have a basement I’d probably use half the garage for that. So, if you use half or more of your garage for storage, do you have a full basement?
Two car garage, houses both cars, the lawnmower, the weed whacker, the leaf blower, the tool chest and has some shelves with stuff. It’s a small garage too. I can’t see myself ever putting a car outside the garage unless it wouldn’t fit (which a large car like a Cadillac or a large SUV would not). As it is, we have a Nissan Versa and a Nissan Sentra, and they fit OK. I do have a full basement, so I can see how not having one would be problematic. If we didn’t have the basement, though, I’d rent a storage unit to store that stuff rather than kick a car out into the driveway. Having a non-freezing car in the dead of winter (Our garage stays around 30-40 when it’s very cold outside), plus the lack of wear and tear from rain / hail / storms / snow / etc is well worth the tight quarters.
Two car garage.
Crap on one side, more crap on the other side.
I think there is a huge difference here between the newer suburbs and the older neighborhoods in small cities.
Modern suburban neighborhood with inadequate on-street parking and one-car garages. Ours appears to be one of the few garages that houses a car. When neighbors leave a garage door open, it is often floor-to-ceiling, front-to-back with crap. The houses have small built-in storage sheds, the HOA mows the lawns, and we’re not in snowblower country.
Our theoretical 2-car garage is 100% storage and we have no basement at all. The lawnmower, generator, and assorted yard tools all live in an 8’ square shed in the back yard.
I have a two car garage with a single door also in the back wall. In the summer I have a TV, couch, and other furnature and use it as a covered porch. In the winter everything gets stacked and the motorcycles get parked tigt against the walls so I can park inside so I don’t have to brush off snow in the morning.
I have a one car garage that I would love to be able to park a car in.
Like most houses in my area, my basement is somewhat “damp” (ie, the two sump pumps run from March to June nearly non-stop). Since the basement would have been the original storage location, all of that stuff is now in the garage. Along with my lawn tractor, which, of course, deserves indoor storage.
Consequentally, both cars live in the driveway.