In Planning a Shed, Form -- and Everything Else -- Follows Function
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Q: DEAR TIM: I need storage-shed plans because the clutter in my garage has become unbearable. What should I be looking for? Is it necessary to have detailed plans if I am going to do the work myself? How would you construct the shed to be both easy to build and long-lasting? -- Johanna C., Woodbury, N.J.
A: DEAR JOHANNA: Three years ago, I took back my garage for my vehicles. When I first moved into my home, we could easily park my truck and our car in the spacious garage. But over time, we accumulated too much stuff, which forced the cars outside. When I showed my wife a set of shed plans that matched our Queen Anne Victorian home in every detail, her only question was, "How soon can you have it completed?"
The first thing you should consider when looking for plans for a woodshed, garden shed or any storage outbuilding is function, not form or looks. In other words, you need to make sure that the building is going to be big enough for the things you need to store. You can make the outside of any storage shed have any style you desire.
The most basic component of your shed plan is the two-dimensional floor plan. This tells you how long and wide your shed will be. All too often, people think a storage shed is large enough when they see it on paper or pre-built in a home-center parking lot, but they find out otherwise when they start to cram their things into the building.
To ensure that your new shed will be large enough, take the things you want to put in it and lay them out on your driveway or lawn. Arrange them in a way you would like to see them in the shed. Be sure there is enough room around the items so you can get to each thing without having to crawl over other things.
If you make a mistake and make your shed too small, you will be grouchy every time you have to pull out three or four things to get to something way back in the shed.
The plans' extent of needed detail depends on what your local zoning and building department requires. Some communities have strict rules on how a shed must look, the size of the building in relation to the size of your home and even which direction doors must face. Visit your local government offices to discover what guidelines you must follow before you purchase shed plans or even draw your own.
It is a good idea to have detailed storage shed plans even if you plan to build it yourself. Well-thought-out plans minimize waste. The plans will help you produce an accurate material list so you buy only as much material as you need. This is a green-building practice all should follow no matter what the project might be.
For ease of construction, you should probably lean toward using wood. Masonry storage sheds require a unique skill set, as does working with metal, but many people already have the simple tools to cut and assemble wood.
The floor of the shed can be made just like a wood deck that hugs the ground. Use treated lumber for the support posts, floor joists and the actual floor. You can buy treated plywood. This is what I have in my shed, and I never have to worry about driving my wet or snow-encrusted tractor into the shed.
Tim Carter can be contacted via his Web site, http:/
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