A friend of mine built me a 24 x 24 garage on my property last summer. For me it's just big enough. I almost went 16 x 20 and then 20 x 20 and boy am I glad I went bigger. Block foundation, 2x4 walls, rafters, asphalt shingles, and siding to match the house. I do electrical work so that part I took care of myself, along with insulating the walls and hanging and painting 1/2" plywood last fall. He set up the mason so I don't know what the guy charged but the floor is 4" thick and the only cracks I've seen are within all the control cuts, which is right where they should be. The finish is nice but they didn't cut all the lines as straight as I would have liked. I put Cure and Seal on the concrete within 24 hours of the pour and it took months for all the green to turn light gray. I was really surprised at how long it took to fully cure. That stuff had a real strong odor but it went down like glue in the heat of the summer and I'm glad I did it. There's a bit of a sheen to it now which I wanted but it's not as glossy as pure sealer. Some of you guys have floors like mirrors which I think looks great and would like in my attached garage some day. I also went with the fiberglass in the mix so you can see it at the surface. I figure it gives a little traction when it's wet so that doesn't bother me, especially since this is just an overgrown shed for the tractor,
chipper, splitter, mower, tiller, wheelbarrows, snowblower, etc.
I think you're smart to consider some measure of covering your firewood. In hindsight I would have put a modest overhang off the back wall to cover the woodpile I have back there now. Instead I put down about a foot of gravel and stone dust inside a frame of pressure treated lumber the same width as the garage and six feet deep. I stacked it six feet tall and left about two feet between the pile and the back wall, so there's a ton of wood there but I had to cover it all with tarps. It looks fine but you can't beat an actual roof over it. You gotta check out some of these guys' ideas for storing firewood before you go too far. You might see something you like.
I understand the excitement. I still can't believe how nice it is to have an enclosed storage/shop building near the house with power and shelter from the elements year round. Good luck and post some photos once you get started.
