A garage is one of those items that often appear as a need on your list of required spaces. But living in the tropics, is it a necessity?
Functions and Benefits of a Garage
A garage is a place to house your vehicle. Usually it is mostly or completely enclosed. In situations where it is mostly open to the sides, it is referred to as a carport.
A garage or carport is a space where your car or SUV can be protected. It often provides the added benefit of you, the homeowner, being able to get to and from the inside of your home without having to worry about the weather.
Your vehicle can be protected from the rain as well as dust and dirt that can come along with the rain. It also protects your car from the sun’s ultraviolet rays, which can cause damage to the paint.
In the tropics, a garage could also shade your car from the intense heat of the sun. This creates a cooler interior when you are ready to go for a drive.
But, Do You Need A Garage?
Though having a garage may come with many benefits, you as a homeowner in the tropics may need to decide whether having it is worth the expense.
A garage can be one of or the largest room in your home. That means it can add quite a bit of square footage to your home and by extension, cost on to your budget.
You, therefore, need to determine if the benefits outweigh the cost. When doing so, here are some things you may consider.
Sun Exposure In The Tropics
The sun’s ultraviolet rays can cause the paint on your vehicle to fade and breakdown over time. Frequently washing and polishing your car may help but protecting it from the sun’s rays would be ideal.
Also, no one in the tropics likes getting into an intensely hot car. You suddenly burst into a pool of sweat and it is difficult to touch the steering wheel or even sit in the seat.
However, I am not sure a garage will help with this issue that much. The reason I say this is that for most of the day, when the sun is at its hottest, most of us are usually at work. Most car parks or parking lots do not have covered areas for the average person.
Hence, the need to have a garage at your home, where the car leaves in the morning before it gets too hot and returns in the evening when the sun is about to set, does not seem critical.
Weather
In temperate countries, they are worse weather conditions that may create a greater need for a garage. Snow and very cold temperatures can give the homeowner the ability to start their car and get the heat going without the need to go outside in the extreme cold. They also avoid the time it takes to defrost their windshield of frost which may have formed overnight.
We in the tropics do not have these issues. Our weather concerns deal mainly with the rain.
During the rainy season, it is common to get the occasional, unexpected rain shower. This can catch you when you have just arrived home from a long day of work and you are trying to get inside.
A covered area like a garage or carport could offer the protection you need to leave your car and enter your home without feeling a single drop.
However, an unexpected rain shower could also catch you on your way to work, church, the gym, or the supermarket. Rain can catch you anywhere and most of these places will not have a covered area for you to park and enter. Hence, I sometimes wonder why we believe that the main place we need that protection from the rain is the one place that you can easily go into and quickly change out of your wet clothes.
Security
A garage can offer a great layer of security for your vehicle. This will require a garage door or gate.
Having a door on your garage can be a great way to secure the space. This means that along with housing your car, you can also store other things like garden equipment, tools and other stuff that no longer fits in the house.
Unfortunately, we often take that opportunity to store everything in our garage. Everything except the vehicle.
I have a brother who lives in South Florida, which largely experiences tropical climatic conditions. When I visit, I like to take walks around the neighbourhood. It is fascinating to see every house having a garage. Some have two and three-car garages. However, a large percentage of the homes do not use them for their vehicles. They are often filled with storage units, furniture, or gym equipment. But not cars. Cars tend to be parked in the driveway.
This was a stark difference to when he (my brother) lived in Illinois, USA. There, most persons parked their cars in the garages, particularly during winter because of the reasons previously mentioned.
I know of people who say they would still park their car in the garage if it was completely secured. However, I also know many who have succumbed to the temptation of having all that extra secured space.
It is fine if you are enclosing your garage to create more storage or an extra room. However, consider incorporating such storage into your design upfront.
Conclusion
Having the protection that a garage offers is a great addition. They are a lot of benefits a garage can offer. Your vehicle can be protected from the sun, rain and theft. It also provides a sheltered area to get in and out of your vehicle as well as provide some additional storage for your home.
However, consider if the benefits outweigh the cost. You can also consider whether you need a fully enclosed garage or if an open-sided structure like a carport would be sufficient. Perhaps you can also consider making it a future project.
If you are planning to build a new house, and you are doing so on a tight budget, there are some things to consider to reduce the size and cost of your project. One of those things is the garage.
Take some time to consider if a garage is a need for you and if it is worth having it added to the budget of your tropical home.