When the owners of a 1926 home in Portland’s Alameda neighborhood reached Hammer & Hand, their garage was falling apart.  The garage’s failing roof and bad drainage was washing away soil under the structure, causing the concrete slab to break apart and the entire structure to lean into a neighbor’s property.

“Our clients had a falling-down-a-hill garage on their hands,” said Aaron Stevens, Hammer & Hand’s Operations Manager.  “The foundation was failing.  The original flat roof was collapsing.  It had become totally defunct.”

The owners had a choice: do a complete tear down and rebuild, or salvage the existing structure and remodel it into a fully functioning garage.

There were two problems with the tear-down-and-rebuild approach.  First, given the zoning restrictions in Alameda, if the structure were demolished and a new one built in its place, new setback requirements would push the new garage footprint deep into the clients’ backyard.  Second, while the roof and foundation of the existing garage had to go, its three walls and garage doors were in good shape.  It would be a shame to demolish them if unnecessary.

So, the team set to work remodeling the structure.

“The easy thing would have been to tear down and build new,” said Aaron.  “But the remodel approach made it challenging, in a good way.  It’s tough to take a structure that’s failing and make it basically brand new.  It’s not a simple or straightforward process, but Scott did a great job.”

Scott Gunter, Hammer & Hand’s lead carpenter on the project, worked with his team, including Aaron Quint, Mike Lund and Aaron Bergeson, to tear off the roof, remove the front of the garage, and pour a new slab for the structure.

“For a few days there,” said Scott, “we had just those 3 walls standing, swaying a bit as we laid a solid foundation for the structure.”

Amy Griffith of Broken Box Designs put together a design for the garage that painstakingly matched detailing from the house but also allowed the team to reuse much of the existing garage.

photo by bright designlab

The original garage doors were refurbished and incorporated into the renovated structure.

photo by bright designlab

The team built a new, pitched roof featuring gabled ends that match the roof detailing of the house perfectly, down to the dentil detail.

left photo by bright designlab, right photo from Google Earth

In the end, the garage underwent total transformation, but one that salvaged valuable materials and preserved the clients’ backyard and garden space: new architecturally-appropriate roof, new and proper drainage, new concrete slab, new seismic upgrade, and new electrical wiring.  It’s a structure that will faithfully serve the home and its denizens for a very, very long time.

– Zack

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This freestanding garage wasn’t the first home addition Hammer & Hand built for this NW Portland home. Over a decade ago the H&H team worked with David Giulietti of Giulietti/Schouten Architects to build an office addition for the previous owners of the home. When the new owners wanted to add another addition to the property, this time a one-car garage with rooftop deck, they knew exactly who to call. H&H and David Giulietti once again teamed up to build an addition for this Portland home.

Then the owners hit a snag. When they looked into the process of taking the existing patio down in order to build the garage, they learned that a portion of the patio had been constructed on City of Portland land. They would have to go through the city to get a street vacation and purchase an easement in order to get the permits required to build their garage. “They jumped through a lot of hoops,” said H&H Project Supervisor Christopher “Coop” Cooper. “It took almost five years for them to secure the land and permits to build this garage.”

Photography by Jeff Tan

Once the owners had secured the land and permits, Hammer & Hand got to work on the garage. H&H Lead Carpenter James Reck and carpenter Brant Buchholz installed cedar shingle siding to match the house and office addition.

Howser Steel built a custom fabricated steel stairway to lead up to the rooftop deck. The landing where the stairs turn also serves as the roof of a small wine storage closet located inside the structure.

The rooftop deck makes great use of space and offers the owners an outdoor area to hang out on during nice weather. To protect the weatherproofing system of the garage while also providing a level walking surface for the deck, Pioneer Roofers installed concrete 2’ x 2’ square pavers to sit on pedestals above the TPO membrane and interior gutter system.

The garage features a few high performance details as well. H&H Home Performance Consultant Sean Hendryx made sure the structure was well-insulated through a tight waterproofing and drying system. “It’s insulated really well so it’ll be comfortable if they want to spend time working in the garage,” said Hendryx. A Prosoco Wet-Flash air and water barrier system helps keep the structure dry while low-density spray foam in the roof framing, HydroGap Housewrap, and Home Slicker Rainscreen mesh keeps the building insulated.

Note: Check out this video detailing our Wet Flash Air Barrier System.

This addition features a garage door by Metro Overhead Door and a side man door by Portland Millwork for easy access. Inside, there’s plenty of room for one car, some work benches, and extra space for storage.

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