A Guide To Building Your Garden Shed

To a married man, a shed can be his haven, his fortress of solitude, a place to escape the stresses of daily life, but to most it’s just somewhere you put the lawnmower. If you are looking to build one you can either build it from scratch yourself or buy a pre-built assembly pack, but if you can’t build one then you don’t deserve it in the first place!

Your first step is to choose a location, its best not to stuff it up against the hedge but don’t be stupid and put it in the middle of your garden. Mark out an area just larger than the size of the shed on the ground. Although you won’t need to build foundations, a hard standing is quite important to keep the shed sturdy. Begin by stripping the topsoil of your marked area and pour a couple of inches of sand which will compress over time. Then place a series of paving slabs onto the area, hammer them down with a rubber mallet and use a spirit level to make sure they are level.

If you already know what a shed is supposed to look like you can go ahead and design that yourself, it can be as big or as small as you want but remember that larger structures need more support. Build each panel with a diagonal support beam for strength and to avoid twisting and warping.

Your base can be made up of flat planks but to protect it from dampness you should apply an additional coat of wood preservative. Position the base centrally on the hard standing and consider the location of the door.

You might need a hand erecting the first wall, unless you can find something to balance it against, then nail the bottom of the wall to the floor and position the adjacent wall and securely join the corners.

Your roof can be of any design but remember that it will drain water so do not position the lowest point above the door, which would be an error. You will need to waterproof your roof which is commonly done by using felt; this can be securely fastened to the roof of the shed but will need replacing every few years.

Use preservatives to treat all the wood so it will cope with weather and moisture many wood paints are pre-mixed with treatments. Finally, watertight your shed with silicone around all the internal joints.

Fit a sturdy door that won’t be blown open with the wind or broken in to easily, depending on the size of the shed and your budget you may want to include windows but these aren’t vital. Now just enjoy it, use it to escape life and all its troubles or just store stuff in it, whatever.

You can get your materials for a shed from any decent hardwood suppliers and there is a variety of hardwood and softwood timber you can use.

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August 21 2010 | Gardening | No Comments »