Many people who contact our team of professional garage suite builders in Calgary wonder if their sloped lot can accommodate a laneway home. The short answer is YES, it’s very possible. However, it’s important we go into more detail about how a sloped lot can make your backyard suite project more challenging – and usually more expensive as a result – compared to building on a flat property.

As Calgary’s premier garage suite builders, we have the experience, tools, and expertise to make your next project a huge success. Give us a call to get a 100% FREE consultation today – and in the meantime, enjoy our latest tips on garage suite builds with elevation changes in Calgary below.

#1 – Retaining Walls

First and foremost, if you have a sloped lot in Calgary and are looking to build a backyard suite, it is likely that you’ll need a retaining wall. These walls are designed to hold back soil, prevent erosion, and water and ice seepage into your suite. By extending the foundation wall upwards past the lot grade to serve as a retaining wall, your suite’s structure is well protected from the elements.

Scenario #1 – If your lot slopes downward from the front to the back lane, your garage suite will be at a lower grade than the main house. Hence, your suite will likely protrude into the sloped ground towards the house. If that’s the case, the foundation wall will be extended upwards, acting as a retaining wall for the build. Extending the foundation wall can cost a few thousand to several thousand dollars, depending on the concrete required.

Scenario #2 – If your lot slopes downward from the back lane to the front, your garage suite’s ground-level and foundation will be higher than the main house. If so, you may need to extend your foundation wall upward to meet your suite’s design at grade on the higher end of the lot, requiring more concrete. Once again, this could cost a few thousand to several thousand dollars, depending on the volume of concrete needed.

#2 – Sewer Lift Station

At Garage Suites, we often connect the sewer and water utility lines to the main house stack to save our clients money, versus connecting directly to the city (which can be very expensive). Hence, if your lot has a slope where the suite’s sewer lines will be lower than where the house sewage stack is, you may need a lift station.

A lift station pumps sewage from the suite up and into the main house sewer stack for drainage to the main city lines. Depending on the make and model, these pumps can cost a few thousand to five thousand or more.

With Calgary’s varying terrain, lift stations are found in many residential homes across the city. Ask our project managers on site if they think your home will need one of these handy devices.

#3 – Weeping Tile

If you are looking to build a garage suite on an alleyway lower than the main house and the lot’s gradient is steep to a point where the water table is high, you may need weeping tile installed on the suite.

Weeping tile is a drainage system installed around a home’s foundation to collect and divert groundwater away from the structure, preventing water from accumulating and potentially causing damage to the building.

Please note that we haven’t seen this often, where the water table is so high that weeping tile is required for garage suite construction in Calgary. We install weeping tiles on infill builds in Calgary, but have yet to do so for a suite; however, it is more likely when building laneway homes on sloped lots, depending on the elevation change and gradient type.

#4 – Additional Demolition & Excavation

Homeowners with sloped lots looking to build a laneway house should be prepared to spend extra on demolishing any existing structures, especially if they are concrete. In many instances, Calgary communities like Dalhousie, Collingwood, and Parkdale feature properties where the original garages were built using concrete to act as retaining walls. Demo of concrete garages will incur a premium charge for hauling and disposal.

Additionally, demolition may also be more challenging on sloped lots depending on the design of your backyard suite. If a significant volume of dirt must be removed, the build will also incur an extra demo premium charge. Thankfully, our company has an in-house excavation team, so we can keep these costs down for you as much as possible versus other companies who may use third-party excavators.

Note: Every sloped lot may have unique challenges regarding backyard suite construction. That’s why we do a complete analysis on each lot in its entirety to discover these challenges and make sure you, the homeowner, is fully aware of the costs involved.

Questions about Building on a Sloped Lot?

contact garage suites Calgary today

Want to know how much a garage suite in Calgary will cost for your property? Give us a call anytime at 403-797-4918 or send us an email at [email protected], and we’ll be happy to discuss your potential project.

We are looking forward to connecting with you!