Concrete Block vs Wood Frame for New Garage?

[FIRE me]

I'm having a detached two garage built next Spring, and I am getting estimates now.

Assuming identical cost, would you go with concrete block or wood frame, and why?

[Chris22]

I've had both.  It really depends on what you're doing.  A concrete block garage will be less maintenance, but on the other hand, isn't terribly attractive, and is a much bigger pain in the ass to do stuff to like hang things, or insulate, or what have you. 

[pbkmaine]

Where are you? I live in Florida, where extreme weather is common, and block is preferred here.

[kendallf]

As a car guy who works on stuff, I'd pick frame construction.  Lots easier to put shelving, hooks, slat wall, however you're going to organize your tools and parts.  I have a concrete block 2 car garage though, and it's nice to not worry about wood rot, and being able to just hose the garage floor down if you like.  There are good concrete anchor solutions to hang furring strips along the block for mounting attachments these days.

I'm going to knock the roof off of my garage next year sometime and put a gambrel roof with attic storage trusses on it; my goal is to get all storage upstairs so I can have more room to work on the cars.

[FIRE me]

Where are you? I live in Florida, where extreme weather is common, and block is preferred here.

I'm in the Midwest. There are tornadoes and thunderstorms. Termites are a moderate concern. If I were in Florida, I would definitely go block.

[andy85]

As a car guy who works on stuff, I'd pick frame construction.  Lots easier to put shelving, hooks, slat wall, however you're going to organize your tools and parts.  I have a concrete block 2 car garage though, and it's nice to not worry about wood rot, and being able to just hose the garage floor down if you like.  There are good concrete anchor solutions to hang furring strips along the block for mounting attachments these days.

I'm going to knock the roof off of my garage next year sometime and put a gambrel roof with attic storage trusses on it; my goal is to get all storage upstairs so I can have more room to work on the cars.

I've had both.  It really depends on what you're doing.  A concrete block garage will be less maintenance, but on the other hand, isn't terribly attractive, and is a much bigger pain in the ass to do stuff to like hang things, or insulate, or what have you.

agree with both. depends on what you are doing. if you are just using it for parking/storage, concrete will work fine. I have a 2.5 car garage that is concrete. I would MUCH rather have it framed out since i plan on adding to my tool collection and delve into woodworking...makes organization so much easier being able to add shelving and such. I've toyed with the idea of framing the inside at a later date....not sure if that will ever happen though..

[FIRE me]

As a car guy who works on stuff, I'd pick frame construction.  Lots easier to put shelving, hooks, slat wall, however you're going to organize your tools and parts.  I have a concrete block 2 car garage though, and it's nice to not worry about wood rot, and being able to just hose the garage floor down if you like.  There are good concrete anchor solutions to hang furring strips along the block for mounting attachments these days.

I'm going to knock the roof off of my garage next year sometime and put a gambrel roof with attic storage trusses on it; my goal is to get all storage upstairs so I can have more room to work on the cars.

“A car guy who works on stuff” describes me very well. I want a garage more for a warm and dry work spot on my old vehicles than for storing them. Keeping the sun and snow off them is just icing on the cake.

I had pretty much decided on block, but the builder that I like best is recommending frame over block. So now I am reconsidering.

[FIRE me]

I've had both.  It really depends on what you're doing.  A concrete block garage will be less maintenance, but on the other hand, isn't terribly attractive, and is a much bigger pain in the ass to do stuff to like hang things, or insulate, or what have you.

I'm a bit of an odd ball with regard to appearance. For a garage, I think block looks better than siding. Also, my house is brick and they will brick the front of the garage to match the house no matter if I chose frame or block.

[Chris22]

I've toyed with the idea of framing the inside at a later date....not sure if that will ever happen though..

“A car guy who works on stuff” describes me very well. I want a garage more for a warm and dry work spot on my old vehicles than for storing them. Keeping the sun and snow off them is just icing on the cake.

I had pretty much decided on block, but the builder that I like best is recommending frame over block. So now I am reconsidering.

If you do go block, my suggestion is to take Andy's experience above, and build yourself in a margin of error so you can frame the inside later if you want.  Framing is going to eat about 4" per wall, so if you want 20' of width, build yourself a 20'8" (or 21') wide space so you can eat up the space if need be.  I'd frame the inside of my garage, but it's already pushing the minimum of what I can accept, there's no room to consume that additional foot of space.

[andy85]

Yea Chris, other than money, the one thing holding me back from framing the inside is that i'd lose almost a foot of width after the moisture barrier/insulation, framing, and drywall. I'm sure i will want to hang a lot but have a feeling i wont want to put a ton of holes in the cinder block...so i'll probably just do a bunch of vertical cabinets or drop them down from the ceiling since the joists are exposed. Idk...i feel like a good garage is constantly being tweaked for efficiency...so i will have years to figure it out.

[Chris22]

The best thing that happened to my garage is my shed.  My garage is usually pretty clean and organized, my shed is basically a mess, and full of all the crap that I would have to arrange nicely in my garage (yard tools, snowblower, etc etc etc).  If I were ever to build a standalone garage (can't on my lot now), I'd probably configure it with a room that opened to the outside that was separate from the main garage to store all the lawn care stuff, etc, that I wouldn't want cluttering up my work space for the cars. 

[andy85]

The best thing that happened to my garage is my shed.  My garage is usually pretty clean and organized, my shed is basically a mess, and full of all the crap that I would have to arrange nicely in my garage (yard tools, snowblower, etc etc etc).  If I were ever to build a standalone garage (can't on my lot now), I'd probably configure it with a room that opened to the outside that was separate from the main garage to store all the lawn care stuff, etc, that I wouldn't want cluttering up my work space for the cars.

agree 100%...we think a lot alike
I've also considered a very small shed for yard equipment and such..basically for anything that isnt a mechanical or woodworking tool. I also don't have plumbing out there...so I'd also add a sink and maybe a urinal. Man...daydreaming about garages is fun...

[Chris22]

Put up a privacy fence or enough trees and you wont need a urinal!

[FIRE me]

Thanks to all for the advice and opinion. I'll probably go with frame instead of block.

[Jeremy E.]

Pole buildings are very reasonable, I'm finishing a garage that is the basement of one of my houses which has concrete walls, but I'm going to put up a pole building eventually as well.

[FIRE me]

Pole buildings are very reasonable, I'm finishing a garage that is the basement of one of my houses which has concrete walls, but I'm going to put up a pole building eventually as well.

In addition to frame and block, I had considered both pole and steel buildings.

Pole is non standard construction in my jurisdiction and requires a special permit. I decided against both pole and steel.