12 x16 storage shed

[Kennygee]

I am going to be building a 12x16 x 8 storage shed at the house in the next couple of weeks ,weather permitting. I have a couple of questions and opinions needed as to construction of foundation . I am not going to be pouring a concrete slab.
I am considering the following types.
#1 4x4 PT with 6X6 with joist clips, these will be 12' on 2 ft centers
#2 2x6 14 ga . Galv . on 2ft centers 12' with the 16' being 2" receiver channel
#3 2x4 C perlin red iron in 2" receiver channel red iron 14Ga. These will all be sitting on concrete blocks either the formed type with channel for 2x4 or the solid ones if I go with the 4x4

I am going to use 26 ga on the outside on 2x4 horizontal 2' OC walls and roof, what I need is whether to use a house wrap, tyvek Lowes or Hardie on top of trusses and walls before wrap . I am going to insulate inside walls with fiberglass batten and close with 7/16 plywood on Ceiling and walls .
For the door I am leaning towards a French style steel outward opening 3.0 door ,giving a 60" opening with both doors open. I am also considering a 5' roll up door but am not sure about it ability to be weather proof.

As long as this will last 20 years at the most the BOSS will be happy Thanks Kenny. This will be in Texas on the outskirts of Dallas. And I might even consider adding a window AC, unit.

I will be storing the usual lawn mowers , chain saws and other assorted valuable items. I have 3-4x8 shelving units going in also a table saw on casters and a floor drill press. Thanks Kenny

 

[Carl_NH]

The concrete block base every 4' makes sense, but for the base I would build a 2x8 or 2x10 PT box frame with double headers around the outside then 2x8 12' 16" O/C for the floor.

Finish the floor with 3/4 Plywood then build your 2x4 walls on top of the base.

Then some means of keeping the critters from underneath - like a wire mesh around the base might be a good idea too.

 

[Kennygee]

Carl_NH That's an idea i had not thought about. Do You think I will need to use joist hangers on the 12' cross members? The nail gun I have ,a Hitachi does not have a guide for nailing into joist hangers. If I go that route I will use "cats" every 4' to help stabalize the cross members.
As for the wire The weed eater will probably tear it up and the string as well! Might go with a PT to real close to ground level.
What do You think about the house wrap? any experience using any of that material?

 

[sld]

Around here you just level a pad and add gravel. The shed is built on 4x4 runners with 3/4 ply floors.

Normal 2x4 stud wall with hardi plank and these things last a long time. Your choice of roof.

You could wrap it or just caulk the inside. With 24" on center wall studs (or even 16"), that is not much caulking.

 

[Carl_NH]

As sld says make a pad with say concrete block every 4' around perimeter - maybe dig them into the soil and make them level, then spread gravel to the tops of the block on the entire pad and tamp down.

Then build your box frame on the top - joist hangers are cheap - you need around 20 or so and it takes maybe 2-3 minutes to install with a hammer and nails.

Build the 2x4 walls on top of the deck, and 7/16" OSB, then hardi plank siding. House wrap is optional IMO for a shed and as sld says caulk the few seams you have. Most of the air infiltration will come at the roof rafter to wall point and around windows and doors.

I would suggest you go to your local HD or Lowes or a place that sells sheds and see how they are built (and price them out too) as they build in quantity and may be a cost effective option.

 

[s219]

I had a summer job for several years building sheds, and we had three types of floors, depending on the load.

Entry level was 2x4 joists spaced 12" on 2x4 skids. 3/4" plywood. A 12' wide would have had 4 skids (first ones are 12" in from side so the blocks would be hid underneath). That was plenty strong for garden tractors, riding mowers, etc. Blocks were placed every 4 feet.

Next up was 2x6 joists, spaced 12". 3/4" plywood. Strong enough for a SCUT.

Finally we had a mix of 2x8 and 2x6 framing, the 2x8 on edges with a ledge board to support 2x6 inside joists. Used 3/4" plywood floor. Would double the plywood to two layers (crossing other direction) as an upgrade. That was strong enough to handle cars and larger tractors.

The skids were almost always 2x4, but could be upgraded to 4x4 as needed -- which might have been desirable mainly for site work, since we prefabbed the sheds and delivered them on a truck. For a challenging site, the 4x4 skids took a lot more abuse and were easier to block up.

So think about what loads you need to support.

We never used brackets to hold the skids to the joists. They were nailed on directly (either through-nail or toe-nail). Once the shed is in place and loaded up, the skids will never move.

 

[sld]

Mine doesn't even have the OSB, just 4 x 8 hardi-board for siding. A good trick I learned is to make your stud walls 3 1/2 inches short of the top of your hardi-plank. This extra 3 1/2 inches gets 2 nails thru the hardi-plank into your rafters. This helps a bunch in keeping your roof from getting blown off. The overhang is simply the OSB roof over hanging with a 2x4 cedar nailed to the under side. The only bad thing is it's only about 4 inches all around. Sometimes I wish I had more.

Mine is about 8 years old and hasn't moved or settled a bit. It is ready for another paint job though.

 

[Kennygee]

Thanks guy' for all the info. I think I will go with double 2x8s for the 16' and double 2x8 on the first cross members then 2x6- 2' OC for the rest. The reason for the doubling is when nailing down walls will be going into more than just 3/4"plywood. For the exterior I am going to use 26ga. Sheet metal with a 40 yr guarantee on the color.roof as well.I am also going to be installing rain gutters dumping into a french drain system I already have. I will just have to remember to make sure I end up with 16'x12' exterior so I don't have to order extra metal!! Still not sure about the door ,I am going to price the double french style tomorrow. 68 degrees out side today, hope it stays this way for another 4 days while I am off work!!

 

[Thomas]

If you planning on electric bx shield coat something in that line protection from critter chewing.

 

[two_bit_score]

Sounds like a nice project. Good luck and hope the weather holds out in your favor. Looking forward to some pics of it along the way!