ᐅ Concrete slab or timber beam ceiling for garages?

Hello dear forum community,

I wasn’t quite sure which subforum would be best for our question and hope I chose the right one :-)

As mentioned in another thread, my wife and I are currently planning a bungalow with two separate living units together with her parents. Besides the question about the heating system, we are also considering what type of ceiling to install over the garages. For the living areas, we plan to use concrete ceilings.

But what should we use for the garages? We have been advised by some people to go with a timber beam ceiling for cost reasons. However, since there will also be a utility room behind the garage, others say we should definitely use a concrete ceiling there as well. With a concrete ceiling, it is possible to install enough empty conduits during construction to make it easier to add electrical installations later on. That is difficult to do with a timber beam ceiling. Also, one must not forget the ring beam needed for a timber beam ceiling. In the end, the cost savings might not be that significant...

Now we are really at a loss for what to do...

Hausbau_Laien schrieb:

But what do you use on garages?

In the end, it doesn’t really matter. And the idea that you can always skip a ring beam for a garage is factually incorrect. Of course, you can also install plenty of empty conduits in a wooden ceiling (but for what purpose?), in the walls, or in the floor. Or even within the ceiling structure.

Ultimately, factors like your garage’s size, intended use, ceiling use, insulation, and so on determine whether wood or concrete makes more sense.

KarstenausNRW schrieb:

In the end, it doesn’t really matter. And the idea that you can always skip a ring beam in a garage is factually incorrect. Of course, you can also install enough empty conduits (for what purpose, actually?) in a wooden ceiling. In the walls or the floor slab. Or even within the ceiling structure.

Ultimately, your garage’s size, use, ceiling utilization, insulation, etc., will determine whether wood or concrete makes more sense.

Thank you very much for the quick reply.

I think I might have expressed myself a little unclearly.
Of course, we do not want to skip the ring beam in the garage.
What I actually meant was: for cost reasons, people recommended a wooden ceiling.
Others, however, said that this option isn’t much cheaper once you consider the costs of the wooden ceiling and the required ring beam as a complete package.
So we were / are somewhat confused about whether the cost advantage is really a valid argument.

I believe you should first answer the question for yourself and for us on how the garage roof will be made waterproof. So, flat roof or pitched roof? If it is a flat roof, should it be walkable or even used as a terrace? Furthermore, it is also important to know whether the garage is freestanding or if one or more sides need to withstand earth pressure.

If it's a flat roof, never use wood. Yes, it might be a bit cheaper, but if you ever have water infiltration, the damage can be severe. This is especially true if insulation is involved.

For a garage, you might still consider it—although the difference might be around 1000€—but for a residential building, never ever use a wooden flat roof. We should have learned from the mistakes of the last century.

Hausbau_Laien schrieb:

The living area itself should have a concrete ceiling.
But what do you use above the garages?

Cars "live" in garages, which are purely functional buildings. They get roofs but no ceilings—why would they need them?
In the bungalow, if I understand correctly, both living units are on one level, so the second one is not in the roof space. Again, the question remains: what’s the point of that?
In the attic, you will probably store Christmas decorations and seasonal clothes, maybe cushions for balcony chairs or paint cans. None of these create impact noise. Concrete ceilings here would only force you to have load-bearing interior walls (and they don't bring any benefit to justify that).
Ring beams are used to stabilize the exterior walls against the roof load, not to carry the extra weight of a heavier-than-needed ceiling.

Therefore, as already said in the main thread: #1 get professional advice instead of getting confused; #2 look at the project as a whole; and #3 make use of the forum’s search function—you are facing many questions that have already been answered hundreds of times. We have several threads on bungalows here, as well as various discussions about living with (in-law) parents, and so on. For example, https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/meinungen-zum-grundriss-doppelbungalow-zur-vermietung.41648/ or https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/grundriss-bungalow-mit-einliegerwohnung-grundriss-feedback.27146/

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