Need your advice, sorry, another woodshead post.

[SKIN052]

This thing is essentially finished just a few things left to do. The location that it is in gets a great deal of wind, good for drying but I am debating on how to finish the front and back. For the front I was going to add 2 more sheets of lattice on each end and leave the middle open, but should I sheet up the back completely? BTW it measures roughly 12 x 8 with the roof going from approx 8' down to 7' in the back. Should hold approx 5 cord. Back to the question at hand, how would you finish the front and back?

 

[Pallet Pete]

This thing is essentially finished just a few things left to do. The location that it is in gets a great deal of wind, good for drying but I am debating on how to finish the front and back. For the front I was going to add 2 more sheets of lattice on each end and leave the middle open, but should I sheet up the back completely? BTW it measures roughly 12 x 8 with the roof going from approx 8' down to 7' in the back. Should hold approx 5 cord. Back to the question at hand, how would you finish the front and back?

Nice job it looks great !

If your after looks then yes sheet it up. If your after drying I wouldn't bother sheeting the back or front of it just let the air through to dry. My shed has a back to it but it's pallet slats so I didn't cover the back or front it drys fantastic because the air can free flow through it. Personally I think neat stacked wood looks beautiful.

Pete

 

[raybonz]

Your shelter look great! I would be concerned with the floor strength with many hardwoods weighing in around 2 ton per cord that is a lot of weight with that span.. To me it looks like you are relying on the nails that go into the 4x4 posts to support all that weight. Maybe you should consider a support that go directly from the horizontal beams directly to the concrete pads? Hard to explain in English .. I had to beef my shelter up so the joists had direct support as the rafters starting ripping out when I was loading oak into the shelter, a very scary moment! Now I have a center support and now end support direct to the ground now on the joists. Doing this now is far easier and safer.

Ray

 

[PapaDave]

Nice looking shed.
You could just finish the back with more lattice, and leave the front open.
Depending on orientation to weather, the front won't get much in the way of snow/rain.
If I can offer a suggestion, I'd at least double up on the front "header". Looks to be a 2x4, and you'll end up with a sagging roof pretty soon on a 12' span.
Don't worry about posting MORE threads about woodsheds. I think we'll be ok with that.

 

[muncybob]

My shed faces south and is fully open. No problem with rain getting in. The floor boards look to be far enough apart that you could twist an ankle? My floor is pallets and I filled in the gaps between boards to avoid injury. There are still gaps for air flow but they are very narrow. Good luck finishing up, nothing like admiring a new shed after the first "fill up"!

 

[SKIN052]

Your shelter look great! I would be concerned with the floor strength with many hardwoods weighing in around 2 ton per cord that is a lot of weight with that span.. To me it looks like you are relying on the nails that go into the 4x4 posts to support all that weight. Maybe you should consider a support that go directly from the horizontal beams directly to the concrete pads? Hard to explain in English .. I had to beef my shelter up so the joists had direct support as the rafters starting ripping out when I was loading oak into the shelter, a very scary moment! Now I have a center support and now end support direct to the ground now on the joists. Doing this now is far easier and safer.

Ray

Good point and done, I shimmed in some 2 x 4 and solved that issue as well as adding a few more supports through the middle. As for the weight issue, the only hard wood I have is Birch.

 

[raybonz]

Good point and done, I shimmed in some 2 x 4 and solved that issue as well as adding a few more supports through the middle. As for the weight issue, the only hard wood I have is Birch.

Even Birch when wet will be heavy so I am glad that you added support now rather than after loading like I did.. Best to overbuild than under build! Wish I'd realized the ramifications of what I had done prior to loading the shelter and then scrambling to avert disaster..

Ray

 

[bogydave]

Are you going to cover the floor? Looks like a ankle twisting, leg breaker if you trip or stumble.
(I always look at the safety side of things, I don't heal as fast as I used too.)
You can always slide in some concrete block to help support the bottom if needed.
no real need to cover it more than it is unless you want to for looks.
I think it looks great, you'll be able to see the wood in it
The supports you added to the middle should really help if you get allot of snow & help with row stability when stacking that high.
Great pictures & a great looking shed.
This it "the wood shed", more topics about wood sheds is what it's all about

 

[Gasifier]

Nice work 052. That shed looks great man.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Some great suggestions have been given. I too would leave it open. All it needs is a bit more support and some paint.

 

[glennm]

I mentioned the floor in the other post. I made a very similar shed to this, my floor was heavier and lagged to the posts. When we got it half full a couple of floor joists broke. It was a huge drag to remove all the wood and fix it! I ended up pouring concrete footings every 3 ft. No problem now. I also left mine open on the back so I can remove wood from the front or rear. As you can see in the photo -- I have a wall in the centre so we can remove one side at a time. That adds stability -- did I mention? -- I hate re-stacking !!

 

[SKIN052]

glenm, we must be distant brothers! very nice! Well I am a cord and half or so in and so far no sag, but will continue to add more support.​

​

 

[glennm]

Well Bro, it sure looks good. Fill her up and enjoy no snow on your dry wood next winter!

 

[tfdchief]

Gorgeous shed. I too am worried about the floor. I don't think it is going to hold the weight. Let us know how it holds up (pics of the final floor before loading up) for future shed builders. I would add diagonal braces on the posts under the floor out on the high end, both directions. The lattice won't resist very well the square sides and ends from becoming parallelograms

 

[firefighterjake]

Leave it open . . . or put up lattice. It's six of one, half dozen the other . . . I don't think the lattice would impede the air flow that much . . . it may help block some snow . . . on the other hand, having it a bit open may allow you to access the wood from the rear easier.

I am more concerned (like others) about the floor . . . the gaps if left as they could easily lead to a twisted ankle . . . and this really should be beefed up. Far better to over build than to under-build. I think I ended up bracing my floor with rocks and/or cinder blocks every 3 feet or so . . .

 

[SKIN052]

Alright just over a cord and a half in and i am seeing sag. 2 options. Put a double 2 x 6 down the middle, or option 2, take out the floor, any real need for a floor? HELP!

 

[bogydave]

I like the option to take out the floor. Save work & have room for 1/2 cord more wood.
I semi-leveled the ground front to back, but left the slope from left to right, laid down old carpet & landscape plastic, then pallets.
Wood is still off the ground & air can circulate underneath. The right side section is higher & holds a little more wood.


Use the floor lumber to build another roof section, double your shed size (bigger is better)

 

[firefighterjake]

I personally like having an actual floor in my woodshed . . . but honestly I'm not sure just adding another 2 x 6 will cut it.

 

[lukem]

I think you're going to need to beef that floor up. At a minimum, use bolts to attach the joists and band board to the posts, not nails. Might need a beam (doubled up 2x8) to provide center support for the joists too.

 

[SKIN052]

The band boards "outside edges are attached to the 4 x 4 with lag bolts and supported down to the concrete blocks with 2 x 4, no issues there. The outer portion seems fine but the middle is the issue.

The plan is going to be three 2 x 6 laminated together down the middle, bottle jack to get it in to place and then held up with 4 x 4 posts sitting on concrete.

The only way I seem to learn is through trail and error. O well, life goes on. Fishing season is approaching and I rushed this one a little too much. Will take pics after the support is in place.

 

[midwestcoast]

Shed looks nice!
I think you could beef-up that floor without too much more $ spent.
As it is now you don't have a proper beam taking weight from the joists and the joist span is too long. To fix that I would do 2 things: (1) Add a beam (doubled 2x6 or 2x8) under the joists in the middle of the span. It could rest directly on concrete pads (leveled patio stone?) on the high side & on top of new posts on the low side, with a galvanized bracket on the top of the post to hold the beam in place.
(2) Beef up your rim-beams (the 2x6 that all the joists are attached to) by doubling the 2x6's AND re-do the post attachments. Add a concrete pad to the middle post or better yet give each rim-beam 2 posts with pads. Cut the center posts so the beam sits directly on the post and use galvanized brackets between the posts & beams. At the corners you should attach the Rim-Beam with lag bolts drilled & bolted through the post & both 2x6's.
If the joists start pulling away from the Rim-beam you could add joist hangers to them, but with a new beam in the middle you probably won't need that.

You will have an awesome shed in the end!

(edit). sounds like you're on to most this stuff, so good luck. I'd still double that Rim-Beam (Band-board) and add posts on concrete mid-span. You'll already have it jacked-up anyway.

 

[raybonz]

I like the option to leave the sides open for most of the year myself. What I did was affix heavy duty tarps at the top that I roll down in the Fall and secure the bottoms with double bungee cords at the bottom before burning season then roll them up and secure them up top for about 8 months to maximize airflow and sun during the off season. I like the looks of the lattice and you could always add the tarps to keep the snow and rain to a minimum during burning season..

Ray

 

[brogsie]

Great job on the shed. Is it solid when you push on the side?
The cross bracing looks a little small. Don't want the wind blowing that beauty over.

 

[glennm]

I was faced with exactly the same problem. I cribbed up some footings perpendicular to the floor joists 3ft on center, went to the home building store and filled them up with pre mixed concrete. Problem solved and it worked perfectly. Remember, a cord of hardwood could be 5000 lbs. in my case, the shed holds 6 cords. That is way too much for a deck type structure. Easy to fix before you fill it up! Now that it's done I sleep all night!

 

[Gasifier]

Question. Could you rig it somehow so that you could leave all sides completely open spring until fall? Then easily attach the lattice for the winter season to two or three sides. Better airflow for drying for six months, then keeping it dry when it is close to burn time. I built a detached garage for my riding mower, lots of kids stuff, and wanted it to be strong enough for my future tractor. Now my Kubota 3710 with loader and backhoe. It has no concrete. All wood floor. I placed pieces of pressure treated wood for piers under every other floor joist, one third of the way in. There were also piers around the perimeter. Plenty strong enough for a lot of stuff. Building material, riding mower, kids toys, and the Kubota.