Do you want to know how to build a garden shed? Of course, you do! As you might already know, a garden shed (building a shed in your garden from plans) serves many purposes.
Having a shed allows you to have a mini wood crafting shop or garden repotting spot. On the other hand, it is excellent in keeping your items safe from any extreme weather conditions.
And in case you built it nicely, it can enhance the overall beauty of your property – it also raises your property’s value. Because of those simple but excellent reasons, take note of the following tips below.
How to Build a Garden Shed on the Right Spot
Before you prepare any construction material from scratch, it is best that you choose the location of your future garden shed first. It is preferable that you think of how to build a garden shed over a place where good drainage is accessible. Moreover, it would be nice if the location will not be far away from your house.
Once you find a good location, take a quick glance of your local building laws and codes to prevent any problems with the government. But do not worry too much since your shed will be a detached structure. It is common that rules that govern constructing this building type are not strict.
Remember; you will waste your time and money once you violate building codes, so do not attempt to skip this step.
DIY Shed Plans are Your Keys to Build the Perfect Shed
If you are a total newbie when it comes to construction, it is imperative that you use readymade DIY shed plans. You can download these plans from the internet. Construction professionals have created most of them while hobbyists own a minority.
One of the benefits you can gain from DIY shed plans is the details they have. You will not need to think about the materials and the measurements you need, and all you will do is follow the plan. Thankfully, many designs are available for you to use.
By the way, you might need to pay for some of the designs that professional architects and builders designed. Fortunately, even if that is the case, some of these are plans are free to download.
Outdoor Shed Plans: The Preferred Type
For your project, it is best that you choose among the many outdoor shed plans on the internet. Of course, if you are going to store some harmful chemicals on your shed, like gasoline, herbicides, and pesticides, an outdoor shed is an obvious choice. However, if you are going to convert it to a workshop instead, the indoor type is better, which does not have many downloadable plans online.
Typically, you can categorize outdoor sheds into five types according to the construction material that you will use. These materials are metal, asbestos, vinyl-sided, wooden, and plastic. Each of the materials has its own disadvantages and advantages.
Also, the material you will choose will change the difficulty of the construction, and the total price you will need to spend.
How to Build a Storage Shed Safely and Efficiently by Preparing First
Fundamentally, the plan will include instructions on how to build a storage shed together with the type and price of the materials that you will need. Create a hard copy of it by printing the plan. In addition, you need to prepare some power tools for the construction project.
Some of those tools are framing hammer, hand tamper, ladder, roofing staple, carpenter’s level, power circular saw, and nails. Certainly, you will also need to wear some safety gears like work gloves, safety goggles, hardhat, metal-soled boots, and a decent overall. Get these things ready even before you shop for the materials you will use.
You will most likely go out to the hardware store once since you might already know the things you do not have, which you badly need for your construction project.
Garden Shed Plans and Laying Your Shed’s Foundation
Just like any buildings, your garden shed construction must start at its floor. It is very typical for garden shed plans to instruct you to dig a shallow space for your shed’s foundation. Commonly, you might need to create a 4-inch high space.
To make sure that drainage will not be a problem, you will need to fill the space with compacted gravel. After placing them, compact and level them further. Use your carpenter’s level and hand tamper for this task.
Some plans use a combination of bags of gravel and concrete blocks for the shed’s foundation. Choose whatever your chosen plan tells you. However, deviate from it and use pure gravel if the soil below your shed is very loose, which is very uncommon.
Shed Building Plans and You
After building the foundation, the rest is up to your shed building plans. Unfortunately, no guide can cover all the construction processes of different materials. However, if you chose the wooden type, it is best to select pressure treated wood materials like cedar or pine wood since they are excellent for garden sheds and withstanding adverse weather changes.
On the other hand, if you bought the building plan, it is possible that you can buy a pre-constructed kit with it. The kit will reduce your building time a lot. And all you need is to assemble it – just like Legos.
Build Your Own Shed: Last Words and Some Notes
The prime rule that you should follow when you build your own shed is to organize your workplace always. Tool and material hazards like scraps of wood and nails are the most common reason DIY hobbyists are injured. Also, it is imperative that you wear goggles – the dust power saws emit can hurt your eyes and might even cause you to commit troubles with these tools.
On the other hand, you might want to paint your shed afterwards. After all, a good exterior finish you build is always worth it. Also, make sure that all electrical wirings and cables are placed underground and insulated properly – never hesitate to call an electrician for help in case you have no idea on how to do that.
Anyway, you should now know the basics on how to build a garden shed, so good luck on building one; make sure that you will follow all the precautions mentioned here.
