Why Steel Is the Smart Choice for Your Next Parking Garage

When building new parking garages, one of the most crucial decisions is selecting the right construction material. While there are various options, steel is increasingly becoming the preferred choice for modern parking structures.

With its exceptional durability, environmental benefits, and cost-effectiveness, steel is becoming an ideal material for large-scale projects. Moreover, steel parking garages allow for customizations across different areas, leading to innovative architectural designs. Along with quick construction and high adaptability, steel offers sustainable infrastructure. It stands out to be the smart, future-oriented choice for your next parking garage!

However, let’s take a closer look.

Comparing Steel With Traditional Materials Used For Parking Space

Let’s draw a comparison between steel and its two other most likely alternatives for parking garages — wood and concrete.

Steel

A metal parking structure is highly durable and resistant to corrosion, leading to a longer lifespan.

Opting for a prefab parking garage also reduces labor costs and construction time. Most parts are made in a factory, away from the site, making it quick to assemble on-site.

Due to its high strength and relatively low weight, a metal parking garage needs lighter foundations, reducing site preparation costs. Steel is highly flexible in terms of design, allowing for more innovation. Steel parking structures can be recycled endlessly without compromising on strength and durability. Structural steel requires low maintenance and minimal repairs.

While the initial cost of setting up a steel garage is high, the long-term savings in maintenance and durability make it an affordable choice for others. Steel parking garages are highly resistant to fires and extreme weather conditions, including earthquakes and hurricanes. It has a wind tolerance of up to 180 miles an hour and can bear a snow load of up to 80 lbs per sq. ft.

Steel parking structures can have several customizations to make them more modern and aesthetically pleasing, with a sleek appearance, colors, and styles. We offer regular, boxed eave, and vertical roof panels to fit all needs and budgets.

Wood

Though wood might come across as aesthetically pleasing, it is prone to rot, warping, and pest damage. This increases the cost of frequent repairs and replacements. With steel parking structures, you don’t have to worry about panels and frames being affected by changing weather conditions.

The construction speed of wood parking garages is about twice that of a metal parking garage building. Moreover, wood has a lower strength-to-weight ratio. It is majorly limited to smaller structures. They are inflexible and have limitations in terms of height and span. They require high maintenance, majorly due to their likeliness to being affected by weather and pests. They are highly vulnerable to fire, weather conditions, moisture, and pests.

Concrete

While concrete structures are durable, they are also susceptible to cracks over time and require regular maintenance. A concrete parking garage building will take longer to construct because of on-site casting. While they are very strong, concrete structures are heavier and take longer to construct strong foundations. All this increases overall costs and demands time.

Unlike steel, concrete parking structures require regular maintenance, especially to prevent as well as repair cracks. The initial cost is lower; however, the long-term maintenance expenses are comparatively higher. While they resist most elements, concrete parking garages are vulnerable to seismic activity. They are likely to degrade in cases of widespread fires.

Why Steel Is A Smart Choice For Parking Garage Building?

Faster Construction Speed

Steel takes less time and manpower during the assembling process. So, you can start using a metal garage early. This is especially beneficial if you are installing a commercial garage. Moreover, the installation is quick if you choose to install a prefab parking garage. Metal structures offer higher longevity with minimal upkeep compared to a wooden or concrete garage space.

Superior Properties Of Steel

Steel is a non-porous and dense material. It does not absorb water or moisture content from air or external surroundings. You don’t have to spend cash on frequent replacements. Not only that, steel is anti-fungal and does not harbor termite colonies to live or breed. It prolongs the structural integrity of your metal parking structure. Generally, metal is a non-combustible material, and with proper fire-coating like intumescent or vermiculite can withstand fire outbreaks for up to four hours.

Multiple Customization Options

Modern steel buildings have multiple options for personalizing according to homeowners’ needs and preferences. These features make it easy to accommodate every individual’s needs. Here are some common customizable options.

Adding A Lean-To: These are permanent metal awnings that provide shaded outdoor space for a patio or storage of garden tools.

Color Choice: At Viking Metal Garages, we offer over 12 colors to match your brand-new metal parking garage with an existing building for a cohesive look. You can even pick a classic, timeless color such as white, sandstone, or black.

Roof Style: Regular and horizontal [also called boxed-eave] metal roofs are suitable for smaller to medium-sized structures in a moderate climatic zone, whereas vertical roofs are ideal for harsh weather and a large steel parking garage building.

Steel Frame: We have two frame choices – 12 and 14 gauge. The 14-gauge is ideal for residential use, but you can choose 12-gauge steel for extra security against high-speed winds and commercial use.

Sidewall Panel: The horizontal panels have an aesthetic, traditional look, while the vertical corrugated panels offer a modern, sleek appeal.

Foundation: With steel, you can choose an asphalt or concrete base. We recommend a concrete slab as it offers more durability and is low maintenance. Also, you can easily renovate it into a secondary unit without spending tons in the future.

Doors & Windows: You can add open-door frames, roll-up or sliding doors, etc., to your garage for individual vehicles. If you opt for storage, we highly recommend adding a walk-in door for convenience. When adding doors and windows, try matching the style with your home to increase curb appeal.

Cost Effectiveness Of Steel

A turnkey steel building will cost between $25 and $45 per square foot. This includes foundation [concrete slab], raw material, delivery, and installation.

The exact price will depend on design elements, size, type of project, and location. Look for metal parking garages for sale online or on a metal building dealer’s website for offers. A sturdy metal garage increases home value and boosts your property’s resale value. When pitched to the right buyer, you can expect a return value of up to 85%. Isn’t that a “steel” deal?

Steel Garage As A Sustainable Building

Steel is 100% recyclable and 98% recycled. Over 90% of the water that goes into steel production is returned to source cleaner. So, less material ends up in the landfill. Steel reduces your land footprint, and by the end of its life, you can dismantle it and sell it to any nearest scrapyard for some cash.

With steel garages, you don’t have to worry about toxic VOCs leaking into the interior. Steel buildings provide a healthy environment and promote well-being.

How To Design A Parking Garage With Steel?

To efficiently design a parking garage, careful planning and proper consideration of several factors are required to achieve optimal functionality and safety. Steel parking structures can easily be designed for efficient use and low energy bills.

Here are a few things you can do to ensure your metal parking structure works the best for you.

• Choose a location that is convenient and has good drainage.
• Ensure that you are complying with all zoning regulations and secure a permit before construction.
• Design a layout for space optimization depending on the purpose of building the parking garage building.
• Select the right material for the garage to ensure it is safe and durable. It should also have a high load-bearing capacity in case of heavy vehicles.
• The parking garages should be designed with proper lighting. You can incorporate various natural lighting features, such as ridge vents or windows, to reduce dependency on artificial light sources.
• For your safety, ensure that a surveillance system, such as CCTV cameras and emergency call stations, is in place.
• Along with using fire-resistant material, there should also be fire alarms and sprinklers to avoid damage.
• Proper ventilation and reflective roofing or insulation should be installed to control the temperature inside the parking garages. This will reduce your energy bill and help the HAVC system work effectively.
• Buy a prefab parking garage to reduce construction time and labor costs.
• In the case of a multi-car parking garage, ensure proper door set-up for easy maneuver.
• Depending on the space you have to work with, make a firm decision on whether you want the garage to be street-facing or side-entry.
• Install technological integrations for automated doors and EV car chargers.

Strength You Can Trust, From Viking Metal Garages

In the past decade, various materials were used to build parking garages, but metal garage structures have slowly started to emerge as a low-maintenance alternative. Whether in terms of sturdiness, durability, or environmental factors, metal parking garages are ideal when compared to wood or concrete structures. To understand the installation process for these garages and efficiently build them, contact Viking Metal Garages at (704)-741-1587 today and get your free quote!

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