Buy a shed or build a shed

StoneHeartFarm · Apr 15, 2003

Rogue,

The local "Big L Lumberyard" just put out their 2003 barn and house kit catalog. A 20x24 loafing barn kit is around $1,500.00. With the upgrade to plywood siding it's around $1,600.00. (Running from memory here.) These kits aren't too hard to put together, and you might find a friend with experience who could help you do it. I know a couple of people that have put up some pretty good sized barns by themselves in a few weekends.

Steve

boustany · Apr 15, 2003

Your biggest cost will be a slab, likely. I will build in future vs buying a kit because at least I'll know how its going to work out. My steel building kit (quonset hut) was a complete disaster, and I'll never recommend those.

Right now, I'm planning to build a 24 x 40' barn with attic storage. I figure it'll cost me a bit over $20K canadian, about 1/2 that is the slab, $7K erecting the trusses and doing the roof (its too time consuming to do that alone. I'll keep a diary.

There are also plenty of free plans around, too.

techman · Apr 15, 2003

rogue:

Let me throw in my 2 cents. I needed a new shed last year to fit the new BX22. I looked to buy, to make life easy, but couldn't get the 8'x8' doors I wanted to clear the ROPS.

I ended up building a 16'x20'. Hip roof (I think, barn style), with 10' at the peak. For the foundation, I used PT 6x6's set on level ground and stone. The 6x6 are in a grid. I filled the spaces between the 6x6 with stone, leveled. On top is 1/2" OSB. Sounds weak, but I used it in the old shed (15 years ago). The stone gives the support and the board the nice surface. It holds the BX no problem. It is much cheaper than concrete, and in the locale, it is not considered a fixed structure, so it is not taxable.

The side walls are T1-11. Framing is 2x4 for the walls and 2x6 for the roof. Doors are 2 4x8 sheets of T1-11.

Overall took about 2 months of after work time, including razing the old shed. Total cost was under $ 1100. This was about 1/2 the price for a better shed.

paul

techman · Apr 15, 2003

rogue:

A shot inside

paul

r0GuE · Apr 16, 2003

Re: re build or buy a shed

Heated! Wouldn't that be nice!
I don't want to think about heat on the nicest day of the year though.... I am in denial.... There isn't ever going to be another winter... the beast will not return! /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

knucklehead · Apr 16, 2003

Re: re build or buy a shed

Hi, rogue

I pretty much echo what others have said, especially the encouragement from W-Harv. You can do it, and you'll get exactly what you want, better constructed, probably cheaper for the same design, and all that experience, too. If you can keep your existing shed up while you do the work, you can take your time and not feel rushed by the need to get your stuff back under cover.

What I would add to all this advice is ask yourself what you are going to do with the shed - in the simplest terms, is it going to be a workshop or a big closet? If a closet, you don't need wiring or anything, maybe just some windows up high in the eaves (or translucent roof panels) for light. My impression is the prefab units are mostly closets. If you go with one of those for a workshop, you'll probably beef it up, add shelves and benches, wire it, etc., so I would rather build from scratch and get what I wanted.

I'm on the fence about floors. After seeing pictures of rbargeron's lift in his big shop, I started dreaming about concrete. There's a lot of small lumber mills turning out rough stock around here. A lot of sheds use full 1" floor boards over joists 16" on center, or even 2" stock for heavier floors. They last forever. I've got 1" rough spruce culls in the ground as raised beds, painted with mixed up leftover latex house paint, for over 6 years and no rot yet. Laid as a floor on joists under a roof, wood should last just fine, especially in the spots where you inadvertently "treat" it with various lubricants and solvents. I might use planed stock on the floor of a workshop to make it easier on the hide when you got down on the floor.

NIXON · Apr 16, 2003

Rogue,
Since We're practically neighbors , let me know what you decide to build (personally I'd build my own) . I'll give you a hand if you need it . If you decide Prefab/kit ... Look at Busy beaver (in New Castle ) I bought one of their sheds when I first moved here . 12x20 for about 1100 bucks . It even survived a move . If you call and repeatedly get a busy signal... I'm online at TBN /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif John 724 637 0085

Anonymous Poster · Apr 17, 2003

When I moved into my new house... no garage. so, for temporary I wanted to put up a small shed. To make a long story short... I got a canceled order 12x20 'shed' for the price of a 10x12. I did not want a cememt slab floor since this was going to be temporary. When the pole barn goes up, I am not sure if I will tear this down or move it. So, I built it on a wood foundation. But, dont go with the store fab floors. Thin wood and expensive. I built mine for 1/2 the price. Oh, I got the 'shed' kit at Lowes. Very nice and complete kit, minus shingles. So, it all depends on what you want/need. Look into local laws/ordinances as far as how large you can go with a wood floor.

Ken H.

riptides · Apr 17, 2003

You be surprized what you can do with four or six 4X4's and
a slew of 2X8X8's and some T-1-11.

I did three of them, each one better than the last.

Each one lasted over 6 years before I either tore them down
or relocated them in error because of real barn plans.

I think the last one was 12X24X12 for under 300.00 dollars.

Yep.

Doing the final one now.

-Mike Z. /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif