Garage renovation glossary
22 terms from quotes and building sites, in plain English.
Free and no obligation. Your plan goes to one builder, not a list.
- 22terms explained
- 3main door types
- 3roof coverings
- 30 m²Class 3 limit
Garage renovation terms, A to Z
Anti-condensation lining
A fleece under metal or fibre-cement sheets that stops them dripping.
Class 3
The exempted development rules for garages and sheds: up to 30 m² in total, with conditions.
Damp-proof membrane
A plastic sheet under a floor that stops ground moisture coming up.
Deck
The boards a flat roof covering sits on.
Dry-lining
Plasterboard fixed over walls, often with insulation behind.
EPDM
A synthetic rubber roof covering laid as one sheet.
Epoxy
A hard resin floor coating, laid on a dry, sound floor.
Fascia
The board along the roof edge that the gutter fixes to.
Fibre-cement sheet
Corrugated or flat cement sheeting; sheets made before 2000 may contain asbestos.
Flashing
The strip that seals where a roof meets a wall.
GRP
Glass-reinforced plastic: a fibreglass roof covering laid wet and cured hard.
Joist
The timbers that carry the deck.
Lintel
The beam over a door or window opening.
Pier
A thickened column of blockwork in a wall.
Registered Electrical Contractor
An electrician registered to do and certify electrical work in homes.
Render
A sand and cement coat on the outside of a wall.
Roller door
A door of slats that roll round a drum in a box over the opening.
Screed
A sand and cement layer laid over a slab to make a level floor.
Sectional door
A door of insulated horizontal panels that runs up and back under the ceiling.
Skim
A thin plaster coat on an inside wall.
Torch-on felt
Roofing felt melted onto the deck with a torch, in layers.
Up-and-over door
A one-panel garage door that swings out and up into the roof space.
Plan your garage renovation
A few quick taps: what your garage needs, what the roof and door cost, and the order to do it in. Contact details come last, and only if you want a price.
A single garage, new roof and a roller door: €3,120 to €6,300, the old door taken away included.
How the estimate is worked out
Roof and door ranges are what Irish roofers and door companies publish for the same job: the lowest to the highest figure. A double garage roof is its area times the rate for the covering. Floors, walls, windows, insulation and electrics vary too much from garage to garage to price fairly without seeing them, so the builder prices those on a visit.
Questions about the terms
How much is a new garage door?
A manual up-and-over door costs €800 to €1,500 fitted. An electric roller door is €1,200 to €2,500, an insulated electric sectional door €1,500 to €3,000 and an electric double door €2,500 to €5,000. Taking the old door away adds €120 to €300, and a motor added to a manual door €250 to €600.
How much is a new garage roof?
Stripping and re-covering a single garage's flat roof costs €1,800 to €3,500. On a bigger roof it's priced per m²: felt €55 to €90, EPDM rubber €70 to €110 and fibreglass €75 to €120 per m², so a double garage roof of about 36 m² comes to €2,000 to €3,250 in felt.
What order should a garage be renovated in?
Roof first, so the garage is dry; then walls and windows; then electrics; then the floor; and the door last, so it isn't knocked about by the work. Insulation goes in before the walls are finished if the garage is to be heated.
Is my garage roof asbestos?
Corrugated or flat fibre-cement sheets on a garage built before 2000 may contain asbestos: Ireland banned asbestos products from 1 April 2000. Left alone and in good condition they're low risk. Don't cut, drill, sand or power-wash them: have a sample tested, and have them removed by a specialist contractor.
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Pick the garage and the jobs to see what the roof and door cost and the order to do it all in. When you want a price, your plan goes to a single vetted builder for your area.