Finished our garage-to-home-office conversion in Scarborough and wanted to document for anyone considering the same.
The space: Single-car attached garage, 220 sq ft, concrete slab floor, 7’8" ceiling height. Had been used for bikes, lawn equipment, and general storage.
The project:
- Insulated all walls (2x4 stud walls + R14 batt, then ½" drywall)
- Insulated ceiling (R30 above the ceiling between joists)
- Insulated slab (1" EPS rigid foam + ¾" plywood subfloor on top)
- Added mini-split (Mitsubishi 9000 BTU) for heating and cooling
- New electrical (2 circuits — one for the mini-split, one for outlets/lighting)
- Pot lights + task lighting (4 pot lights on dimmer)
- Hardwired ethernet (ran cat6 from the main panel chase)
- LVP flooring on top of the plywood subfloor
- Painted drywall (light greige — needed the brightness)
- Replaced garage door with a framed wall + single fixed window (double-glazed, wood-frame exterior)
ESA permit: Yes. The mini-split dedicated circuit required it. No building permit required since we weren’t changing the footprint or use classification.
Cost:
- Insulation + drywall: $3,200
- Electrical (mini-split circuit + outlets + lighting): $3,800
- Mini-split (supply + install): $3,400
- Subfloor + LVP: $2,100
- Wall fill + framing (replacing garage door opening): $2,800
- Pot lights + fixtures: $400
- Cat6 + patch panel: $350
- Painting: $600
Total: $16,650
It’s one of my favourite rooms in the house. Two dedicated desks, completely acoustically separated from the living area, and temperature-controlled year-round.
7’8" ceiling feels fine — not low at all for a work environment. The window does a lot to prevent it feeling cave-like.