Shed. Any advice?

[guest288]

Maybe moving soon from an adjacent garage with power and lighting to an isolated garage with nothing.
My thoughts are to erect a shed/workshop type jobbie at the bottom of the garden and to run power down there (Im a sparx so no probs there)
Was wondering if anyone else had built a workshop/shed and where they got it from or any other ideas they want to offer?

[guest7]

If you can saw and nail then build your own. Piece of piss and way cheaper than buying one.

My last one doubled up as a garage and had a concrete slab and a three course brick wall at the base, but a base made up of bearers on concrete slabs (overlaid with strand board sheet) is fine if it's only being used as a workshop.

Timber frame construction (check out sheds at your garden centre for post and rafter sizes) clad in shiplap is a good solid way of making walls.

Strand board again for the roof, overlaid with felt.

Ask around for old windows and a door, you'll be amazed at how many good double-glazed units are laying unwanted in peoples' back gardens.

That's a general outline, happy to sketch in more details as and when needed.
GC

[guest7]

Sorry, assumed that you wanted a wood shed. If you want something more substantial then that's easy enough if you have the time. Just look at the quality of blockwork on some building sites and you will see that it's not hard to build something of an equal standard, if not better.

My first workshop was blockbuilt with a slate roof, 25' x 10'. I did the whole thing from the footings up using a rubbish cement mixer from Wickes. Groundwork was the biggest hassle so I just dug down to firm ground, dug a bit more and laid foundations reinforced with steel bar. After that it was a case of laying a course or so each night after work (I built it in the summer so light nights).

I got all my info from the excllent 'Building Construction Handbook' (see HERE on Amazon)

In retropect I was a idiot not to get planning permission and not involving planning control and if I was doing it again I would make sure it was fully legal. As it was I built it over-regs with bigger section rafters, etc. so that if they ever caught up with me then they couldn't say it was substandard.

As it happened, the buyer of my house obviously liked the workshop so despite it not being on the plans she and her solicitor didn't bring it up as a problem. In the end she converted it into an office with a little bathroom (I guess it's actually a guest room and she is avoiding any planning hassles  )

GC

[guest288]

I was thinking wooden initially- I built a curved brick bbq with lights n all but it took ages to get right. I like the idea of brick footings though to lift the structure a foot or so off the ground.

[guest7]

Yeah, the brick base was good and looked lovely. It also kept the wooden parts of the structure well above the wet ground.

I'll let you into a secret though. As I was using gash timber for the frame, taken from the huge pile of discarded bike crates at my local dealer, I had to find a way to make up for the fact that none of the lengths was longer than 6'. Three courses of bricks meant that I could use 6' lengths and still have some headroom 

Me cheap? 

GC

[johnr]

we're looking at moving house to one with no garage, but a huuuuuuuge back garden. im going to get a big wooden shed as its simple, quick, and requires no messing with planning folks.
the local open prison (hmp kirkham) has a workshop that makes, amongst other things, the best put together garden sheds ive eve seen. propper joiner built strong thich walled a framed roof sheds. my mate bought one the other year and it was a belter. it cost him just shy of 2 grand, but its 25 foot long and 12 foot wide. it has reinforced walls with t+g outside, and an extra thick reinforced floor. i bet it would probably cost me over a grand to buy the materials!!

[Steve Lake]

Funny innit!.......this is the year I have to build a workshop/toolstore/woodstore...
and i'm thinking along Grahams lines of concrete base, proper footings, with dwarf wall (3 or 4 courses) timber uprights into steel sockets embedded in floor, shiplap on outside, with norfolk pantile roof ('cos i've got about a 1000 stacked up somewhere) probably 30' x 20' with a 1/3 open on one side (wood store) and the remaining 2/3 as workshop/tool store. it'll be 100' from the house so will run SWA cable out from consumer unit in garage for power....might try to copy Andy and have solar power too. not sure what i should line the workshop with, but once lined i will use all the polystyrene bits that i have saved up (everithing we have delivered at work is covered in loads of the stuff) to fill the cavity.
Planning permission........I think you only need building regs for non residential structures ...spose i'd better check.....maybe

[guest18]

We got a new shed/garage the other year built by "Saltire Stables", just an inch in each direction under the size where you need planning permission  it's big enough to get the Landrover in and still have room to work with shelving round three sides out of four. Also have a half loft for extra storage, concrete floor and a single layer of brickwork that it sits on. As Pat will confirm however... it's *BIG*!  lol

So my best suggestion is contact local firms who build wooden stables for quotes if you are going to buy one... 

[andy230]

might try to copy Andy and have solar power too.

I have more than I can use just now!!   Both batteries are full, all solar.  So in fact all of yesterday, the panel wasn't doing anything, and I had no more batteries to charge. 

So I decided to use it up!  My invertor wasn't up to the job of making a cup of tea in the garage (kettle must be > 1kW...?), but I did fancy the idea of dragging one of the (2) batteries upstairs, with the inverter, to power the telly, or a lamp or similar for the evening as this really would be free, off-grid, clean power. 

However, I didn't.  But I decided to stay late in the garage with the lights blazing!  Should have put shades on   

cheers

a

[squirrelciv]

As Pat will confirm however... it's *BIG*!  lol

Oh lordy, yes indeed. This is one serious shed Don't wish to exaggerate too much, but Smudge keeps route maps by the shed door for any visitors. Aparently Lord Lucan's in their somewhere

[johnr]

as for power to remote sheds, wel as well aas solar and possibly even wind power(using a bank of batterys charged by the turbine) ive got a cheap b+q generator, its a two stroke 800 watt unit, that cost the princely sum of 35 quid brand new!! in the local warehouse the other week, the had a four stroke single(thumper powered!!) 1kw genny for well under a hundred quid!!

and whats the size limit for a wooden shed without planning consent then?

[andy230]

wind power(using a bank of batterys charged by the turbine)

John, got any pics of this??  I am considering scaling up to a domestic project (long term!)

Did you build the turbine or buy it??

cheers

a

[guest40]

Get the biggest you can afford!

[tecnofobe*123]

hi guys, my first post.
i,m a brickie, keep it 5m from house, under 3m high(flat roof) or 4m high(pitch roof) then no planning needed, straight off a 100mm thick con slab and you'll be fine.

[johnr]

i thought there was still a requirement for it to be a certain proportion in sq meterage of the footprint size of the house. im looking at getting 2 x 20 foot by 12 foot cabins when we get the new house. i fancy a storeroom and a seperate workshop!