Over the course of years, the term man cave has drastically evolved and can now stand for several different things. For instance, in the past, it would have been impossible to imagine a man cave without a bar (a lot of people still adhere to this principle), yet, nowadays people seem to find entertainment system to be far more important. Sure, there are some elements that are always (or almost always) present in a man cave, yet, the majority of elements, trends and principles in a man cave are completely arbitrary. With that in mind and without further ado, here are several ways in which you can redesign your garage in order to make it into a man cave.
1. Prepare the room
In order to start this transformation, you need to understand one thing. A garage is not just another room in the house, it’s a completely different object that’s merely within the complex. Its flooring is made to be resistant to oil spillage and tire marks, while not a lot of effort is put into wall insulation or sound-proofing of the place. Moreover, other than the light, it’s highly unlikely that there’s much of a power grid within the place (maybe a socket or two). This last part is particularly inconvenient due to the fact that you need to install the above-discussed entertainment system
So, you need to start this journey by properly preparing the roof. You can always begin by cleaning the place up, laying a subfloor, framing walls and insulating them as well as doing some electrical works. Other than this, you should also do drywall and some paint job around the place and while this might not be that complex, it’s still an effort and time-consuming. To avoid this, as well as to ensure that your work is properly done, you could also outsource this garage conversion.
2. Making a home theater
Let’s face it, if you’re inclined to do men-stuff with your friends, you can always go outdoors. In reality, the majority of activities here will take place in front of the screen, which means that you need to invest quite a bit of effort in order to make this as epic as possible. We’re not just talking about finding a big screen. We’re talking about finding a really, really big screen, as well as someone to perform reliable TV installation (wall mounting) with something of these proportions. You also need to find an audio system that goes with it. You should look for at least a 5.1 or a 7.1 system (depending on the size and layout of your garage). Once you get these two issues out of the wall, all you have to do is choose adequate seating and there you have it.
3. Making a bar
Previously, we’ve mentioned that a lot of man caves still have a bar. Well, even if you don’t intend to use it, there’s really no downside of having one just so that it can add to the overall theme. The only reason against it would be the fact that such a thing might turn out to be costly. That is unless you gather your crew and decide to turn this into a DIY project. You can go for anything from things that are as simple and modest as wooden palette bar, all the way to the most complex of carpentry projects. It’s really up to you.
4. Something extra
The last thing you need is to add something extra, that one feature that will make your man cave unlike any other (at least any other that you’ve been to). One fun idea would be to install a table tennis table somewhere in the room. You can also look for a pool table, a pinball machine or table soccer. Some even go as far as to install a basketball hoop within the room. This last part is particularly handy, seeing as how it serves as a wall accessory even if it’s not being used.
Conclusion
The last thing you need to understand is the fact that you’re the one who gets to decide a definition of a man cave. This means that if you just want to install a large screen and get a console, then so be it. However, with so much potential within your reach, it would be a proper shame not to explore all your options.