Building a wood shed

[Carl]

Here is the wood shed I put up last week. Took me about four full days. Made it 12x20 and hope to get better than eight cords in it.

Nice roof but where are the sides? It will still get wind driven rain and snow on it. This will be much better than moving tarps.

 

[Carl]

I'd like to build a proper woodshed, but am concerned about getting the support posts correct. The PT 4x4 fence posts in my garden lasted less than 10 years. What is the best way to ensure longer life? Are you direct burying the pressure treated corner posts or are they in a cement footing?

Treated lumber will only last so long, especially in wet ground. The best way to make them last would be to dig a slightly larger hole and put some gravel on the bottom and maybe around the sides. When I set them without concrete I will use a 4x16 solid block split into half per post on the bottom, then set the post on top of that. Where I live it is mostly sand and not much deteroration.

One other point is that the garden needed to be wet and you probaboy watered it. I doubt you will do that with a wood shed and the roof should help keep the ground under it dry most of the time. Go for it as nothing will last forever anyway.

 

[fossil]

Mine's got sides, but not all the way around. I left a 6' x 8' corner without floor or walls to work in. Rick

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/18128/

 

[btj1031]

I was waiting for fossil to show off his new palace

 

[backpack09]

I'd like to build a proper woodshed, but am concerned about getting the support posts correct. The PT 4x4 fence posts in my garden lasted less than 10 years. What is the best way to ensure longer life? Are you direct burying the pressure treated corner posts or are they in a cement footing?

With todays new ACQ treated lumber, not all PT is the same. So you have to check to see if the new posts are rated for ground contact. A lot of the stuff you get at home chepot is not.

 

[fossil]

I was waiting for fossil to show off his new palace

Gimme a break, J-Man...where better to share it with people who can understand & appreciate it? Most folks would just see a dang shed & shrug & say "So what?" (besides, at least I'm on-topic this time). Rick

 

[btj1031]

Rick, just teasing. You've pretty much built the perfect shed, and we would all like to have one. In fact, I think more pictures are due, so we can get a better idea of the materials and how its put together.

 

[begreen]

Good suggestions Carl. We use drip irrigation in the gardens. Only putting water where it's needed. It's pretty dry by the fence line but these were home cheapo PT 4x4s so maybe they weren't rated for ground contact.

For a shed, would it hurt or help to set them in cement? Or what about the truncated pyramid blocks with the hole in top for a bracket?

 

[fossil]

Rick, just teasing. You've pretty much built the perfect shed, and we would all like to have one. In fact, I think more pictures are due, so we can get a better idea of the materials and how its put together.

Yeah, J-Man, I know you were just teasing me. I'll post some more pics when I get some paint & stain on it & start loading it up. Meanwhile, I have to finish up my cover story article for the next issue of The Journal of Modern Trends in Woodsheds. :lol: Rick

 

[stanleyjohn]

Mine's got sides, but not all the way around. I left a 6' x 8' corner without floor or walls to work in. Rick

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/18128/

Thats some shed!Puts mine to shame.My shed is being built more in the line of Firefighter29s shelter!Simple and cheap!!I used 3*5 landscape pressure treated timber,some that my dad gave me when he replaced his picket fence with vinyl.The ones he gave me were in the ground 10 yrs and show no sighs of rot.Half of each hole was backfilled with dirt and cement will be poured on top.

 

[fossil]

I think you're shed's gonna be terrific, SJ, as is fireman's. Shoot, functionally, there'll all just "hard tarps" anyway. There are infinite ways to get the job done. If I'd built my shed without assistance (which was my original plan) it would have taken me quite a while, and probably not turned out so nicely. I wanted it to be "presentable" because of where it's sited on the property. When you come in the driveway and park right in front of the house, the woodshed's pretty much right there before your eyes. I greatly appreciated the carpenters' availability and skills to turn out a nice product (believe me, I'll pay for it :grrr: ) Press on, SJ, and show us pics when your beauty's done & loaded up for the winter. Rick

 

[Carl]

Good suggestions Carl. We use drip irrigation in the gardens. Only putting water where it's needed. It's pretty dry by the fence line but these were home cheapo PT 4x4s so maybe they weren't rated for ground contact.

For a shed, would it hurt or help to set them in cement? Or what about the truncated pyramid blocks with the hole in top for a bracket?

Either method would work. The cement makes a more solid foundation. If you are not putting anything on the sides I would use the cement to help hold the frame a little more solid. Cement absorbs water so it wouldn't be any damper or less without it. If you use cement you will want to pour a small pad first or still use a block on the bottom for the post to sit on, then pour the cement around them. Another method that works well is to dig the hole, get the posts ready, pour the hole full of cement and let it sit up just a little, then insert the posts into the cement and brace them plumb till the cement finishes setting up. You will want batten boards with string for this method so you know exactly where the posts need to come out of the ground at. A little more tricky than one post at a time but much faster if you get it set up right. If you use this method don't push the post all the waythrough the cememt so they have a little cement under them. The small angle braces just below the roof on the one posted will help stabalize the structure with no sides also. Lots of methods and madness will get the job done. Depends on how much you want to spend and time to build.

30+ years ago when I was a kid I built a one car garage with an attached leantoo woodshed. Didn't figure it would last more than 10 years and it is still standing today. Checked it for plumb and it is still right on. Instead of removing it and building a new pole barn I decided to put a new roof on it and vinly siding for a lot less than a new one. The posts it was built of were gotten by a poor kid with no money (on unimployment compensation) from the swamp and were tamerack. Not cedar or treated lumber but still fine today in our sandy soil.

A view of my start on this project. The woodshed isn't shown as it is on the other side of the building but I will post a picture of it when I get it sided in maybe a month or so. The roof is redone now and I took a week of evenings off to build another small woodshed near our brats cooking machine so we would have dry wood for the fires.
(broken image removed)

Here is a somewhat view of the woodshed side off the small garage. It is 18 feet long and 12 feet wide with a three foot isleway along the side next to the garage. Built 4 foot sliding barn doors on each end for a walk through and these are left open during the summer for ventilation. Full of wood now.
(broken image removed)

 

[RedRanger]

I'd like to build a proper woodshed, but am concerned about getting the support posts correct. The PT 4x4 fence posts in my garden lasted less than 10 years. What is the best way to ensure longer life? Are you direct burying the pressure treated corner posts or are they in a cement footing?

I have 3 woodsheds, oldest being 11 years. Just buried the red cedar posts in the ground that I cut off my acreage. still no rot. Those PT posts are not that good cause when you cut into them you will see that the treatment only penetrates less than a 1/16 of an inch. If you have some cedar logs laying about BG, might try using those.

Basically, I just sink them in about a foot, then start to build the roof and walls. Don`t particulary care if its square either-(not gonna live in them). Then any old scrap lumber from the dumpsters gets laid right on the dirt for the floor. Only real money I spend is for the reject 2x4s and the tarp for the roof. eg-a 8x8 with sloped roof 7ft at the front and sloped to 6ft at the back only costs me about $60 to build. Can you hear those squeaks? I`m cheap :cheese:

 

[N/A N/A]

Here is the wood shed I put up last week. Took me about four full days. Made it 12x20 and hope to get better than eight cords in it.

Nice roof but where are the sides? It will still get wind driven rain and snow on it. This will be much better than moving tarps.

Still got to put the sides on. Have not decided what I am going to use. I think I am going to put up lattice on the sides. You would be surprised how well it will keep the weather out but let air pass through. I just used a post hole digger to drill into the dirt for the posts. Dumped a little concrete in the hole, set the posts plum using furring strips. Then just dumped dry concrete mix in the holes to fill them up the rest of the way. You dont need to add water to the mix if your putting it in the ground. It will draw any moisture from the ground to set up. Was fast and worked well.

 

[N/A N/A]

Fire - I like that alot. Thats exactly what I need. Did you take out a permit to put that up?

I plead the 5th...sorry

 

[aandabooks]

Here's my woodshed that I got done in early April.

Total cost of $354. 4x4 GT posts two feet deep in concrete. 8x24 overall size with a 8ft. front sloping to 6ft. in the back. 10ft. steel on the roof. It will hold 10.5 cords.

Here are a couple of the piles that are being split and put under cover now. Just for reference that is a 10ft. trailer.

 

[N/A N/A]

Wow! very nice aandabooks. I like how you made your roof. New wood stove, new wood shed, its like I am wishing away this summer before it even started!

 

[fossil]

I was waiting for fossil to show off his new palace

J-Man, I've decided to refer to it as the Taj Malog. ;-) Rick

 

[cwayne]

aandabooks,

How did you attach the roof to the structure? It looks great. Nice job.

Chris

 

[Carl]

Here's my woodshed that I got done in early April.

Total cost of $354. 4x4 GT posts two feet deep in concrete. 8x24 overall size with a 8ft. front sloping to 6ft. in the back. 10ft. steel on the roof. It will hold 10.5 cords.

Here are a couple of the piles that are being split and put under cover now. Just for reference that is a 10ft. trailer.

That makes a nice woodshed. By the time you get all that wood split and stacked it should be more than full. Looks like the neighbor may have some standing firewood in his yard.

 

[aandabooks]

aandabooks,

How did you attach the roof to the structure? It looks great. Nice job.

Chris

The 2x6 are put on the crossing 2x6 and are screwed in from the top down. Every 4th rafter is against the 4x4 and is lag bolted in. The whole roof is tied together with 6 runs of crossing 2x4s and then the steel roofing is screwed down to the crossing 2x4s in 24 places per 3x10 sheet.

 

[BrotherBart]

aandabooks,

How did you attach the roof to the structure? It looks great. Nice job.

Chris

The 2x6 are put on the crossing 2x6 and are screwed in from the top down. Every 4th rafter is against the 4x4 and is lag bolted in. The whole roof is tied together with 6 runs of crossing 2x4s and then the steel roofing is screwed down to the crossing 2x4s in 24 places per 3x10 sheet.

Don't ya wish your house was built that strong?

 

[stanleyjohn]

I got alittle behind due to the recent rain here so today i hope to get alot more done and take another pic.I will be starting before 9 this mourning before this ugly heat and humid day takes its toll on me.

 

[fossil]

...I will be starting before 9 this mourning...

Be careful, sj, we don't want to be mourning you. :lol: Rick

 

[stanleyjohn]

Thanks for the concern fossil!I just finished up for the day and the last few hours were brutal!!The pickets on the sides will be adjusted later,just a few screws holding them in.The roof is just about done!will add more roofing nails later and do the trim around the edges when its a cooler time.Sunday I'm planning on pouring cement into the holes.Hopefully ill have all the sides done next week.