Is A Kitchen Garage Door Right For Your Home? (Design Guide)

You’ve probably heard of garage doors used as openings for living areas, and it’s a really nice way to provide a very large, automated opening for your living room. However, using these doors for the kitchen is a little more uncommon, but you’ll surely enjoy the benefits and advantages of installing one in your home. Garage doors used in other areas of the house (aside from actual garages) have been gaining popularity recently, especially when styles with glass panels have been introduced. If you’re still unsure, read on to see several different types one can choose from.

Garage Door Style Kitchen Window

If you don’t have space for a full-length garage door, you can also use the same mechanisms and hardware to create a small kitchen roll-up window. This is a great idea if you have enough ceiling space for the rolling window track to fold onto, and a perfect way to improve air circulation in the room design.

Here are some of the benefits of installing garage door windows in your kitchen:

Large Openings – because of the mechanism and design of garage doors, they can be fully opened, allowing you to maximize the opening. The large opening for windows also makes it very efficient when you need to move in large items, such as appliances, furniture, construction materials, or even simply lots of grocery shopping.

Natural Light – Steel-framed glass doors or windows can increase the amount of natural illumination in your space the same way a normal window or door does.

Automated/Mechanical opening – Hands-free door opening? That’s very possible when you have a roll-up door installed!

Space-saving – You can install very large window or door openings in virtually any space, even small kitchens, as long as you have enough headroom for the rolling door mechanism

Improved ventilation – Most small kitchens have ventilation issues because they’re usually only installed with small windows – using this window style will solve that problem, as the large opening will help improve the airflow even in the smaller spaces.

Aesthetic/Design Improvement – Roll-up doors are a great way to connect indoor and outdoor spaces seamlessly. Connect it to your yard, patio, deck, or pool area to create a more laid-back ambiance to your kitchen!

For smaller kitchens like this, ventilation is even more important as the fumes and smells can be trapped while you’re preparing food. The garage door mechanism allows an almost full opening for your window, so ventilation is not a problem if you have one installed. Just keep the window up and open when you’re preparing food that produces a lot of smoke or smell.

Converting a Window to a Garage Kitchen Window

You can include a garage door–style kitchen window in many ways in your space. You can easily convert any existing opening (door or window) and use it for your roll-up window. You only need to check for two things:

• Load capacity – If you’re installing very large openings, you might need to consider if the ceiling can bear the load of the size of the door or window you are installing. Garage-style doors and windows can be a bit heavier as they also have other mechanical parts and tracks.
• Ceiling height – Ensure you have enough headroom even when your window is rolled up to the ceiling to avoid accidents.

Garage Kitchen Conversion

Aside from converting existing door or window openings to a garage-door style, another popular way is by converting your existing garage to a kitchen or a room extension. This can be a practical choice, as many kitchens are designed to be very close to the parking area to easily transport supplies and groceries to the pantry/food storage.

In most cases, you only need to take down walls or partitions to connect them to the floor plan; otherwise, you’ll need to fully convert the space into a new kitchen, installing all the necessary plumbing and cabinetry.

Converting garages to kitchens from scratch can cost between $6,000 and $50,000, depending on the size, materials, and cabinet finishes you specify. The room conversion might cost less if you have existing plumbing lines nearby.

Consider your garage’s condition before converting it to a kitchen – ventilation, electrical lines, plumbing, insulation, etc. You can consult a local contractor to asses your current garages layout for conversion viability and try to plan according to your allotted budget. You may need planning permission to convert this space into a kitchen, but check with your municipality or city’s zoning department to see any regulations regarding interior remodel conversions.

This is similar to the previous layout, wherein the kitchen was situated right beside the door area. The walls dividing the floor plans were torn down, and an I-beam was added for support. The segmented door is metal-framed glass, allowing a lot of natural light to enter the space. Visit this page to see more examples of garage-to-living room conversions.

Garage Kitchen Conversion Design Considerations

Once you have decided to convert your garage into a brand-new kitchen, here are the very important design and planning considerations you need to discuss to ensure a successful renovation:

Budget – Set a budget to keep it realistic. You can compare various quotations from contractors to determine a realistic working budget for your project

Size – You must carefully determine the exact size of your garage dimensions to ensure your design is planned properly.

Insulation – You will need to check the existing insulation of your room to make sure it will be a comfortable/livable space

Flooring – Does your layout have flooring, or is it just concrete? Do you plan to change it to tiles, wood, or other materials? Floors will also add much cost to your overall budget, so plan this accordingly.

Electrical/Wiring – Do you have enough power for your kitchen? You might need to add more load, convenience outlets, and switches.

HVAC – You will need to assess the garage’s current heating/cooling system and decide whether to add one to make it livable.

Walls – You might need to add drywall or other finishing to the existing walls to prevent moisture from seeping through!

Plumbing – For a complete design, you will need running water, a plumbing system to hook up appliances, and a sink.

Cabinetry – If you’re starting from scratch, now is your chance to plan your kitchen well. Consider your current and anticipated storage needs when planning the cabinets, and note the existing appliances you will use or install built-in. If everything is new, always plan with the “kitchen work triangle” in mind for a more efficient cooking workflow.

To create your own plans there are many types of garage design software that can help you visualize your ideas.