Advice on Planning Garage Sim Build

[nasonjo]

I just moved into my new house and I have a 24' deep x 26' wide garage. The garage has 11' ceilings and a beam centered at 10'-3". I had them install high lift doors in preparation for the simulator so those sit at 9'-8" high. I have plenty of room to swing my driver. I am looking to put a simulator in there but am having trouble finding something that meets the wife's requirements. She wants something that looks nice and retractable so it wont take up a ton of room when installed. I am looking for something that can wall mount also as I want it up against the back wall of my garage.

I am also wondering what width is best for a screen, as well as side wall protection/overhead. I don't want errant shots hitting the windows or steel beam (which is drywalled). I am a 15 handicap, so the poor shots happen from time to time..

Can anyone give me some build advice for design? Mainly where I can find quality wall mounted retractable screens for front and side walls, advice on width and side wall protection, and what to do about overhead protection?

Also thinking about Mevo + as I am a lefty but all my golf buddies are right handed. Will I have enough space for that in a 24' deep garage?

Garage picture attached.

[Will]

16'x9' Sports Screen with a 14' wide impact screen. The images are standard 3840x2160 ratio (16/9) to keep monitor and projector images native.

A 14' wide screen has 30% less screen area, therefore it requires 30% less lumens to have equal screen brightness as a 16' screen.
http://www.displaywars.com/220,4-inc...92,8-inch-16x9

I use an 8000 lumen, 4k, laser projector, and couldn't justify the image issues with the larger screen. While my ceiling height is 10'8", I needed the extra space above the ceiling protection to allow it to deflect and slow high iron shots. Pixel density is still pretty good at 14' wide image and ball at around 11' when you display at 3840x2160.

The side curtains are angled from 16' wide near the player to 14' wide at the impact screen. The overlap removes the need to secure the side screens from the impact screen. The small gap contains errant shots and isn't an issue, but it can allow a ball to dribble through.

You don't have to secure the impact screen to the ground. Use a ball bungee and attach it to the bottom rod on the sportsscreen. The weight of the rod and mass of the two screens will hold it steady.

There are so many good designs on this website and I hope others can give you feedback on their experiences with the larger screens. I drew everything on sketchup and spec'd out hardware to meet my goals. I made my system at the end of 2019 and have only upgraded a few items in the last year, mostly decorative and lighting.

[nasonjo]

Thank you guys for the info! I hope a few more people chime in but I will also poke around the forums to see different builds. I want it to look clean/nice when setup and put away because that’s the only way I will get my wife on board, which I am fine with.

What are you guys doing for heat? I have a 24x26 garage with 11’ ceiling height. R-19 in the walls for insulation. Live in the Northeast. Was thinking of doing a 24k btu mini split. I did some load calcs and I should be ok for that on the average winter days. Just wondering what other people are using, if anything.

[kolky]

My garage is 26x26 with 9'6" ceiling. I put in a 24K DIY Mr Cool mini split. I love it. The indoor unit is super quiet but what impresses me the most is how quiet the outdoor condenser is. You can barely hear it running right next to it. I have not had to use it for heat yet (its still hot here in St. Louis) but it works great for cooling so I expect it will work great for heating as well.

You mentioned your wall insulation but do you have ceiling insulation? That will be the most important. Unfortunately I was only able to squeeze R21 in my ceiling as I have attic storage above.