Use Straightforward Backyard Shed Plans And Make Your Shed Construction Project An Enjoyable One

Use Straightforward Backyard Shed Plans And Make Your Shed Construction Project An Enjoyable One

Using straightforward backyard shed plans will help you keep your shed project on course and within budget. You only have so much time and money to invest in a project such as building a shed made of wood in your backyard. So why not use proven backyard shed plans to ensure this will happen.

Youre not sure of what type of shed you want to build in your backyard, but using proven outdoor shed plans will help you make this choice. There are a number of shed designs to choose from. Some of the most popular ones are the gable roof shed and pent shed styles. These are the least problematic designs to build and yet still complement most house designs. There are more complicated designs to choose from such as the clerestory and gambrel roof shed designs, but these are better left to a more experienced builder. Of course building the least complicated type of shed still requires proven backyard shed plans, especially if you are new to building such a structure. It would be very frustrating getting half way through the building process and finding out you have to start over again because you relied on your own limited knowledge or on an inferior plan.

A good plan will cover all aspects of the building process. Such areas will include the foundation and roof. There are several roof designs that you can employee depending on the type of shed you wish to construct. The purpose of your shed and the climatic conditions of the area you live in will help determine the type of roof you construct.

Two commonly used foundation designs are the skid and concrete foundations. There are a number of differences between these two designs. The concrete foundation is permanent while the skid foundation is mobile. The concrete foundation is the most sturdy of the two but is the more costly one to build. Since it cannot be moved, choosing the correct location to build your shed is very important.

The skid foundation allows for the shed to be relocated after its completion. It is also easier to build than the slab foundation. The design consists of two or more wooden beams laid out on a flat piece of ground. The ground is covered in gravel allowing for proper drainage underneath the structure.

Building your shed requires knowledge of how to build its various components. Proven backyard shed plans will guide you step by step making your shed construction project a successful and enjoyable experience.

Visit: www.myshedplans.com

Use Straightforward Backyard Shed Plans And Make Your Shed Construction Project An Enjoyable One

Kids cant fall off one side of the deck!

Kids cant fall off one side of the deck!

Lots accomplished. Sarah and the boys came yesterday and left tonight - fun to have some company:


They say it was only 66 for a high today, but as you can see from this picture it felt a LOT warmer than that. We didnt have shorts for the boys, so they made themselves comfortable. And as you can also see from this picture, our cable rail installation has begun. VERY simple. Heres what were working with:


Thats the cable (11 cables for each side of the deck), the self-tightening fasteners, washers and nuts, and decorative caps. Each cable has a bare end (which you insert through the fastener) and a threaded end (on which you fasten a nut):






Couldnt be easier. We actually screwed up and fastened one of the locking guys on too soon, and didnt have enough cable for the other end. We thought we were out of luck, but we called customer service anyway, and the very nice folks said a straw will usually release the locking teeth, and sure enough it did. I finished it up after everybody left, and heres a night vision picture of the almost final product (I still need to cut off all the excess cable):


I finished cutting and sanding and staining all the remaining cedar, so as long as the weather gods keep smiling on me Ill keep working outside and hopefully finish the deck railing and cable and the cedar panels tomorrow. The rest of the drywall (for the ceiling) is coming tomorrow, so thats next on the list...


Kids cant fall off one side of the deck!

One Step at a Time

One Step at a Time

This actually wasnt so hard. Used construction adhesive and my finish nailer (which is a little tricky, you have to get the angle and location just right to replicate the effect you get from a floor gun). One of the things that really hit home doing this whole house project has been how much each phase of construction depends on how well the last thing was done. Imperfect joists mean imperfect boards on the deck and lumpy drywall on the ceiling; poorly hung drywall means sloppy seams when you mud and tape; stringers on the stairs that dont perfectly match mean risers that have gaps where they meet the treads. But you make do.

The risers here are actually just two 4" boards of bamboo, with the top board ripped to size. The treads came from the manufacturer in 6 lengths that I cut to size. I was able to get them all to sit cleanly enough that we wont need to trim out the stairs. (John at Res4 was hoping I could do the landing that way too, but Im not that good...) Caulking should hide all the gaps. (Ive got a LOT of caulking to do; havent done any of the cleanup on the trim yet, and lots of places outside could stand to be caulked as well.)










One Step at a Time

How do get money when you run out and no one will give you anymore

How do get money when you run out and no one will give you anymore

When we decided to do this, we knew we were going to borrow some undetermined amount of money to supplement the proceeds we had from the sale of our apartment. We didnt know exactly how much or when we would need it. A year ago credit was still VERY easy to come by, even for someone like me who hasnt had a regular W2 for awhile. We have some other assets and very good credit, and so when I called around and talked to some mortgage brokers I was satisfied that wed have no problem.

Fast forward to the late spring, when its time to actually borrow the money, and things were getting much tighter. If Id waited another couple of weeks we might have really been in a pickle. It worked out fine in the end, but nobodys lending me another penny for awhile. So if we get really desperate we can always try this - a genius plan by a poor young grad student who bought her very own villa in Italy and managed to get other people to pay for almost the whole thing.


How do get money when you run out and no one will give you anymore

How to Build a Wooden Shed in Just One Weekend

How to Build a Wooden Shed in Just One Weekend

So you have all of this stuff (like tools) thats piling up in a corner of your garage. You cant get rid of it - its IMPORTANT! Its gotta go somewhere so a wooden shed is the perfect solution. Heres a quick overview of how you do it in two days (lets assume youve picked up the materials youll need from the local supply store).

Day 1 - Foundation and Framing

The first thing youll need to do is prepare the site. It doesnt have to be level, in fact its better if the ground is slightly pitched down towards the back of the shed for water runoff. Remove any large rocks and/or debris. Because this is a one weekend project, youll have to build the shed with a wood floor instead of a concrete one. If you really want to have a concrete foundation, this will stretch the project into another week to allow for drying. But building a wood (or skid) floor is not only faster, its easier, less expensive and even somewhat portable. For this shed, use cinder (or patio) blocks to set the floor on. Make sure the blocks are level.

Now, lets get started on the actual building. Once you have the first floor joist cut, use it as a template for the rest - its way easier and faster. Heres another tip, for strength, use deck screws instead of nails. A power drill makes screwing boards together very quick work. Nail on the plywood subflooring by staggering the boards (much like bricks). You dont want four corners of four different pieces of plywood to end up in the middle of your shed.

Building the walls is pretty much the same process as building the skid for the floor. If you want any windows on the shed, frame them accordingly. To cover the sides, use T1-11 plywood. T1-11 has vertical grooves cut into it to give the appearance of tongue and groove siding but since it comes in sheets, the amount of time to put on the siding is cut way down. Take one of the wall frames and place the T1-11 on top (outside facing down). Now nail the siding to the frame. If possible, buy, borrow or rent a router to use to trim the siding to the studs all the way around the walls. Once you have the walls put together, you can now attach them to the floor. Use temporary braces to hold the walls up until you have them screwed together. Make sure you use a level to plumb the walls (they should be perfectly vertical). This is a good place to stop for the day.

Day 2 - Roof, Door and Trim

Youll start today off by building the trusses. Simply follow the plans and assemble all the pieces of the first truss. Dont nail this together yet. If the pieces all fit correctly together, take each piece and use as a template for each of the corresponding pieces of the remaining trusses. Now you can screw (or nail) the trusses together and attach them to the top of the shed walls. Next, cut and nail plywood sheets for the roof. Just like a house, for installing asphalt shingles, you will first have to put down tar paper (roofing felt). Make sure you start from the bottom and overlap each row going up. For the top ridge, use a couple of layers for strength. To apply the shingles, offset the seams and work from the bottom up like you did with the tar paper. For the ridge cap, cut down a length of shingle (they come in a line of three) into a single shingle and nail them along the top. Dont forget to overlap these as well.

You should use a door on your shed that is prefabricated which will save you a huge amount of time since all you need to do is attach it with hinges. You will want to finish off the door with trim.

Visit: www.myshedplans.com

How to Build a Wooden Shed in Just One Weekend