Build thread: My first wood shed.

[OHutton]

So after getting a lot of help and good ideas from you guys regarding my wood shed build, I finally jumped in and started. Below is where I netted out on my design. Soon after I started a few minor things changed, but overall the design and concept is pretty much the same. The main difference is all of the braces are flipped. My friend said it would be stronger, but I'm a little skeptical at how much of a difference it really will make. I think I like the look of it the other way because it makes the design a little busy at the top near the header. I can still change it since it's shorter the other way. I dunno. I haven't decided yet... They are also now flush with the 2x4s above them so the cedar siding will have another point of attachment.

Overall, it's definitely overbuilt for where it is and what it needs to do, but I guess it's better than the opposite! This thing is rock freaking solid. I may mount a pull up bar on it just because I can. If we ever move, I'm definitely taking it with me! It should last a long long time.

The concept:

Getting it laid out:

Framing it up:

The overhang on the roof is definitely larger than in my plans which brings it out of code since the footprint (which in Chico includes the roof overhang) now is over 120sf. If I ever get inspected, I'll just cut the rafters and make the overhang smaller until it's in code. I don't think anybody will ever bother me about it, but it'll be an easy fix if it needs to happen.

View from the front sidewalk:

Tomorrow I'll finish getting the roof framed up and attack the siding.

I think I may plant some sort of small shrub or tree in front so it's a little less of an eyesore from the street. I also may stain it which I think will help it recede a bit. I don't want everybody drooling over my woodpile as they walk by...or maybe I do.

One question I wanted to ask...Is there a good alternative to filling it with gravel? I was thinking about doing extra large bark. The location is very protected from wind and so whats inside will never really get wet. I'm just thinking gravel will eventually get spread around and kicked outside, etc. It might be nicer to have something which will decompose if it gets scattered around. Also, should we ever move—not that we plan to any time soon—it would be much easier to deal with bark or something else than trying to shovel out gravel. Just spread the bark around and viola! Problem solved and looks fine.

 

[drz1050]

Tucked in a corner like that... do you have decent air movement back there? The shed is looking great so far! I want to build something similar once the snow melts here...

 

[sepulvd]

You can put pallets
Allows air travel

 

[drz1050]

Bark will hold moisture... the idea behind gravel is for something the water can just drain through... As the other guy said, pallets work well and are free... or you can use cinder blocks too.

Did you end up using those fence post spikes for the supports?

 

[sepulvd]

Yep like DRZ ssid bark will most likely help rot the whole bottom row of your stack not good

 

[OHutton]

Ok, so no bark.

Yeah I'm tucked in the corner, but it'll be dry as a bone back there with the roof on and literally almost zero wind. You can see how sheltered it is from the wind if you look closely at the pics. Most of our wind comes from the south and that redwood tree and neighbors house is directly south.

I don't plan to season back there. I'll season during the summers and load seasoned wood in once it's ready in the fall.

 

[sepulvd]

Sounds good man. Wind is always a good thing in my eyes but since your not seasoning your wood in the shed your good

 

[OHutton]

Here's the thing about pallets. I hate them. I don't want to be playing pallet tetris in there, pulling nails, cutting them down, etc. Inevitable they never fit right and you can't get a full floor to ceiling wall to wall stack in there. Seems like a pain in to deal with. I'll just do gravel.

 

[OHutton]

Thanks for all the response. I honestly thought bark was the answer, but it makes sense.

 

[drz1050]

If you have a 7-11 or a Wawa or likewise (convenience stores) close by, you might be able to get a bunch of free milk crates... those would raise the height a bit, but you don't have to worry about rot or gravel rolling around then.

 

[OHutton]

If you have a 7-11 or a Wawa or likewise (convenience stores) close by, you might be able to get a bunch of free milk crates... those would raise the height a bit, but you don't have to worry about rot or gravel rolling around then.

Hmm. That's an interesting idea. I'll keep my eyes peeled.

I'll probably just wind up going with the gravel if I don't find an alternative in a couple days because I'm so ready to get wood in this thing. I can't wait. My back yard is going to look so much nicer. I keep telling my neighbors. "I promise, it won't look like a wood here forever."

 

[OHutton]

Sounds good man. Wind is always a good thing in my eyes but since your not seasoning your wood in the shed your good

I would have loved to get this thing in the wind, but this is literally the only place I can put the shed comfortably on my property. Our lot is just over 1/10th of an acre, so space is at a premium, unfortunately.

 

[Oldman47]

You might find lava rock easier to deal with than ordinary gravel in your part of the country. It is nice and light and can be obtained in large sizes.

 

[OHutton]

You might find lava rock easier to deal with than ordinary gravel in your part of the country. It is nice and light and can be obtained in large sizes.

That's a helLAVA good idea. I have seen that stuff around. If I recall it's a bit sharp. Do you think it would mess up the garden cloth I was going to put under it to control weeds and help contain the gravel?

 

[firefighterjake]

Are those oranges in the tree overhead?

 

[Montanalocal]

Underneath my outdoor stacks I throw down cull cedar fence boards. They are cheap, work well, and I think they will last a long time.

 

[OHutton]

Are those oranges in the tree overhead?

Yep, those are NorCal drought stricken oranges. We have another established orange tree on the far side of the yard as well as a grapefruit tree on the other side of the pictured orange tree. All of them have fruit about 1/3–1/2 of normal size. The grapefruit has fared a little better. We didn't think we needed to irrigate them since they're so old, but apparently you do. They didn't seem stressed over the summer or else I would have watered them. I've been a real tightwad when it comes to water use—just trying to do my part, etc.

The funny thing is, we don't even really eat the oranges. I just bag them up and hang them from the fence on the backside of our alley. They're always gone within an hour or so. Now if they were those satsuma mandarins I think I'd be living under that tree.

 

[Typ0]

That looks nice. How much wood do you figure it to hold? Have you figured the cost?

 

[OHutton]

That looks nice. How much wood do you figure it to hold? Have you figured the cost?

According to my calc if I stack floor to ceiling, about 4.25 cords. The goal was 4. Cost so far about $450, but I haven't tallied all of my receipts. Should be closer to $525 when all is said and done.

A friend of mine said she had a ton of old barn wood which I found out about only after I already bought my siding and ripped it down on the table saw into the widths that I wanted. The lumber yard had a sale on some really nice 7/8" x 12" x 16' cedar boards so I went for it. Anyway, free barn siding would have saved me about $125 and had a lot of character to boot. Bummer!

 

[sepulvd]

What are the dimensions

 

[OHutton]

What are the dimensions

12x7 footprint. 8' tall at the front, 7' tall at the rear to the rafters but that doesn't include the yet to be determined floor surface which will go in there. I may do some pavers or even three 4x6 stall mats and call it good. Still thinking about options.

 

[OHutton]

Some progress shots.

All that's left is to finish the roof, figure out what I'm going to do for the floor, and then load her up!

 

[DougA]

That looks very similar to what I built in design. I used pallets (skids) on the floor and the sides, then found a used garage door for the front. I have a few factories nearby with unlimited skids so finding ones that looked perfect and fit was pretty easy. I ended up building 3 side by side that were 100 sq ft each as our bylaws permit 100 sq ft max without a building permit. As long as the structures don't touch, I'm good. I was trying to keep my costs at $100. per shed but it got a bit above that.

I'm out in the country so appearance was not the top of my list, $$ was.

 

[Oldman47]

That is coming along nicely. What are you using for the roof? Corrugated roofing perhaps?

 

[OHutton]

That is coming along nicely. What are you using for the roof? Corrugated roofing perhaps?

Thanks! And yep—corrugated metal.