Compact storage shed€¦ · materials long before you plan to build. Frame the whole shed on your...

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Compact storage shed

PROJECT PLAN

Copyright ©2005 Home Service Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction, in any manner, is prohibited. The Family Handyman, Handy Hints and Great Goofs are registeredtrademarks of RD Publications, Inc. Ask Handyman, Handyman Garage, How a House Works, Re.Do, Re.Mod, TFH Reports, The Home Improvement Authority, Using Tools, Woodworks, Word-less Workshop, Workshop Tips, You Can Fix It, You Can Grow It are trademarks of RD Publications, Inc.

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34 JUNE 2006 THE FAMILY HANDYMAN

Pack a lot of yard gear into thissmall shell, and do it with styleby Gary Wentz

iSHEDSized for

small spaces

Easy-accesstool locker

in back

storageCOMPACT


2 Cut the truss parts and assemble them with 1/2-in. plywood gussets and 1-1/4-in. screws. Screw 1/2-in. spacers to the bottom chord on the main truss.

1Frame the walls and floor following Figures A and B. Cover the floor with 3/4-in.plywood, the walls with cement panels and the divider wall with pegboard.

storage shed

you need a home for allyour garden tools and

supplies but have limited yard space, thissmall shed is a perfect storage solution.With its 6 x 6-ft. footprint and classicGeorgian styling, it fits into tight spotsand adds charm to any back yard. The“front room” (53 x 65 in.) provides plen-ty of space for shelves and even a smallpotting bench, while the double door onthe back of the shed creates a spaciouseasy-access tool locker. For easy care, wechose low-maintenance siding and trimmaterials that hold paint and resist rotbetter than wood.

Tools, time and moneyWe engineered this shed for easy, modularconstruction; you can build the majorparts in your driveway and assemble themon site. While this isn’t a complex project,it does require basic building skills. We’llshow you how to assemble the frame, butwe won’t show you all the finish detailslike how to hang doors or shingle theroof.

You’ll need a drill, a circular saw, amiter saw and a router. Although notabsolutely essential, a table saw will makethe project go much easier and faster. Wealso recommend a compressor and an air-powered brad nailer for faster, better triminstallation. Plan to spend two weekendsbuilding the shed and another day or twopainting. The total materials bill for ourshed was about $1,300. If you opt for ablank wall on the back of the shed ratherthan a double door and a tool locker,you’ll save about $200.

Preconstruction planningCall your city building department to findout whether you need a permit to buildthis 36-sq.-ft. shed. Also ask about anyrestrictions on where you can place theshed. If you plan to build near the edge ofyour lot, for example, you may have tohire a surveyor to locate your propertylines. You can build this shed on a site thatslopes as much as 6 in. over 6 ft. But ifyour site is steeper, consider building alow retaining wall to create a level site. Tofind some of the shed materials—espe-

cially the fiber cement panels and com-posite trim boards—you’ll probably haveto call local lumberyards or special-orderthrough a home center. Special orders cantake six weeks to arrive, so choose yourmaterials long before you plan to build.

Frame the whole shed on your drivewayFraming the floor and walls is the fastestpart of this project. Before you get started,select your prehung front door so youknow the dimensions of the rough open-

ing needed in the front wall. We chose a36-in. door that required a 38 x 82-1/2-in.rough opening. Your door may requireslightly different dimensions. The bigopening at the back of the shed will easilyaccept two 30-in.-wide prehung doors.

Frame the 6 x 6-ft. floor from pressure-treated 2x6s as shown in Figure A.Whenever you fasten treated lumber, besure to use nails or screws that are rated towithstand the corrosive chemicals in thelumber (check the fastener packaging).Use pressure-treated 2x4s for the bottomplates of the walls. Cut the plates to the

Iff

i

FRONTWALL

CEMENTPANEL

PEGBOARDWALL

3/4" PLYWOODFLOOR

HALFTRUSS

SPACER

GUSSET

MAINTRUSS

THE FAMILY HANDYMAN JUNE 2006 37

1-1/2" x 1-1/2" ANGLE BRACKET

4-7/8" CORNER BOARD

5-1/4" CROWN MOLDING

3-1/2" SIDE CASING

1/2" MDO PLYWOOD SOFFIT

1/2" PLYWOOD GUSSET

3/4" COVE

3/4" TREATED PLYWOOD FLOOR

1/4" PEGBOARD

1/2" PLYWOOD ROOF SHEATHING2x4 SOFFIT BACKER

2x4 RUNG

2x4 TIE PLATE

2x4 TOP PLATE

2x4 TREATED BOTTOM PLATE

2x6 TREATED SLEEPERS

2' x 8'

4' x 8'

6'

6'

2x6 TREATED JOIST

2x4 STUD

2x4 SPOKE

2x4 SOFFIT BACKER

2x4 “L” HEADER

24"

24"

65"

38"

53"

15-1/2"

4-1/2"

3-1/4"22-1/4"

3-1/2" x 6" SPACER

12"

12"

3"

3" MIN.

7"

7"

13-1/2"

16-1/2" x 8'

3-1/2" x 8'

11-3/4"

ASPHALT SHINGLES

30" PREHUNG DOOR

2" FASCIA RAIL

2" BATTEN

FIBER CEMENT PANEL

1x6 FASCIA

1x6 CORNER BOARD

4" BAND

ASTRAGAL

HEAD CASING

36" PREHUNG DOOR

5 1/2"

ALL STUDS 94" LONG

PEGBOARD3" x 83" PLYWOOD TRIMMER

BOTTOM CHORD 12' 3"

BOTTOM CHORD 72-1/4"

20° MITER

20° MITERS

10"

76-7/8"

78-1/4"

4-1/2"

7"

7"

12"

Figure A Shed

Figure BFloor plan and wall layout

Figure D Half truss

Figure CMain truss

1-1/2" x 1-1/2" ANGLE BRACKET

4-7/8" CORNER BOARD

5-1/4" CROWN MOLDING

3-1/2" SIDE CASING

1/2" MDO PLYWOOD SOFFIT

1/2" PLYWOOD GUSSET

3/4" COVE

3/4" TREATED PLYWOOD FLOOR

1/4" PEGBOARD

1/2" PLYWOOD ROOF SHEATHING2x4 SOFFIT BACKER

2x4 RUNG

2x4 TIE PLATE

2x4 TOP PLATE

2x4 TREATED BOTTOM PLATE

2x6 TREATED SLEEPERS

2' x 8'

4' x 8'

6'

6'

2x6 TREATED JOIST

2x4 STUD

2x4 SPOKE

2x4 SOFFIT BACKER

2x4 “L” HEADER

24"

24"

65"

38"

53"

15-1/2"

4-1/2"

3-1/4"22-1/4"

3-1/2" x 6" SPACER

12"

12"

3"

3" MIN.

7"

7"

13-1/2"

16-1/2" x 8'

3-1/2" x 8'

11-3/4"

ASPHALT SHINGLES

30" PREHUNG DOOR

2" FASCIA RAIL

2" BATTEN

FIBER CEMENT PANEL

1x6 FASCIA

1x6 CORNER BOARD

4" BAND

ASTRAGAL

HEAD CASING

36" PREHUNG DOOR

5 1/2"

ALL STUDS 94" LONG

PEGBOARD3" x 83" PLYWOOD TRIMMER

BOTTOM CHORD 12' 3"

BOTTOM CHORD 72-1/4"

20° MITER

20° MITERS

10"

76-7/8"

78-1/4"

4-1/2"

7"

7"

12" PLYWOOD GUSSETSALL 1/2" THICK.


5Dig two trenches 6 in. deep and fill them with pea gravel. Then level treated 2x6sleepers over the gravel and set the floor on the sleepers.

dimensions shown in Figure B. Then cut20 wall studs to 94 in. and assemble thefour walls. Also frame the small headerwall (14 in. x 65 in.) that fits above theback doors.

Before you sheathe the floor and wallframes, take corner-to-corner diagonalmeasurements to make sure each frame issquare. Fasten 3/4-in. treated plywood tothe floor frame with 1-5/8-in. screws. Alsoscrew pegboard to the interior pegboardwall. Nail cement panels to the front andsidewalls (Photo 1). Position the cementpanels flush with the bottom plate, not thetop plate (the wall frames are 1 in. tallerthan the cement panels). The two side-walls have identical framing, but be sureto attach the sheathing so the right andleft sides mirror each other. The cementpanels on the front wall overhang theframing by 3 in.

A complex roof made simpleA typical pyramid roof requires lots ofcompound angle cuts and endless trips upa ladder to test-fit all the tricky parts. Notthis one. There are no compound anglesor complex calculations at all. Andground-level construction means fasterprogress with less strain.

Build the main truss and two half truss-es first (Photo 2). Choose the straightest2x4s you can find for these parts. Figures

C and D show the dimensions and angles.Your angle cuts don’t have to be perfect;the gussets will make the trusses plentystrong even if the parts don’t fit tightly.

Join the three trusses with two hub gus-sets (Photo 3) made from plywood leftover from the floor. The “rungs” that fitbetween the trusses have 45-degree bevelcuts on both ends. You can tilt the shoe ofyour circular saw to cut bevels or use amiter saw. In order to create a square roofframe, all four lower rungs must be thesame length. Cut them to 103-1/8 in., setthem all in place to check the fit and thentrim them all by the same amount untilthey fit identically between the trusses.

With the lower rungs in place, insert thespokes (Photo 4). One end of each spokehas a double bevel cut; make a 45-degreebevel from one side, then flip the 2x4 overand cut from the other side. This forms a

4Fasten the upper rungs between the trusses with 2-1/2-in. screws. Position theouter edge of the rungs flush with the tops of the trusses.

storage shed

3 Screw half trusses to the main truss and tie them together with 9 x 21-in. hubgussets and 2-1/2-in. screws. Trim the main truss to form a pyramid.

MAINTRUSS

GUSSET

UPPER RUNG

SPOKE

LOWER RUNG

HALFTRUSS

HUBGUSSET

32"

32"

SLEEPER

FLOOR

PEA GRAVEL


8Screw 16-ft. 2x4s to the

shed to form a ramp. Position yourstepladders beforeyou slide the roofframe up the rampand onto the shed.Center the roofframe and fasten the trusses at eachcorner with a pair of angle brackets.Install 2x4s to provide nailing backers for the soffit.

7Set the rear header on 1/2-in. plywood trimmers and screw it into place frominside. Nail on overlapping tie plates to lock the walls together.

6Anchor the walls to the floor with 3-in. screws. Start with a sidewall, then addthe front wall, followed by the pegboard wall and the other sidewall.

90-degree point that fits into the cornerwhere the main truss and half truss meet.To complete the roof frame, install theupper rungs (Photo 4).

Assemble the shed on siteThe shed floor rests on a simple founda-tion: 2x6 pressure-treated “sleepers” laidon a bed of pea gravel. Dig two paralleltrenches about 10 in. wide, 6 in. deep andcentered 6 ft. apart. The trenches can runparallel to the sidewalls or the front andback walls of the shed. Fill the trencheswith pea gravel. Lay the 6-ft.-long sleeperson the gravel. Using a level, determinewhich sleeper is higher (Photo 5). Levelthe higher sleeper along its length byadding or removing small amounts ofgravel. Then add a little gravel under theother sleeper to make it level with the first.On a sloped site, one end of a sleeper maysit below grade while the other rests abovethe surrounding soil. You can also screwextra layers of 2x6 over the sleepers tocompensate for a sloped site. We addedtwo extra layers to both of our sleepers.That raised the shed and allowed us toslope the surrounding soil away from theshed. Set the floor on the sleepers so thatthe joists span the space between thesleepers. At each corner, drive a 3-in. screwat an angle through the floor frame intothe sleepers.

REARHEADER

TIEPLATE

PLYWOODTRIMMER

JUST DROPPEDIN FROM KRYPTON

SOFFITBACKERS

storage shed


9Sheathe the roof with 1/2-in. plywood. Cut each piece 3 in. extra long, nail it inplace and cut off the excess. Temporary support blocks help position the ply-

wood as you nail it.

Stand the walls and set the roof You’ll need a helper to carry and stand upthe walls. Set one of the sidewalls in placeand screw it to the floor every 2 ft.Position the bottom plate (not the cementsheathing) flush with the outer edge ofthe floor. Use a level to make sure the rearend of the wall is plumb and brace it witha 2x4 (Photo 6). Position the front walland screw it to the floor. Then drive 1-5/8-in. screws through the overhangingfront sheathing to tie the front and side-walls together. Add the pegboard wallnext, followed by the other sidewall andfinally the rear header wall. Make sure allthe walls are plumb, and nail tie platesover the walls (Photo 7).

To safely set the 160-lb. roof frame intoplace, you’ll need two helpers, twostepladders and a ramp made from a pairof 16-ft.-long 2x4s. Secure each 2x4 withthree 3-in. screws and brace them near themiddle with a horizontal 2x4. Then sim-ply slide the roof frame up the ramp andonto the shed (Photo 8). Center the roofframe so that all four lower rungs are thesame distance (16-1/2 in.) from and par-allel to the walls. Fasten the roof framewith metal angle brackets and install sof-

5-1/4"-WIDE CROWN MOLDING

15"-WIDE MDO SOFFIT

1/2" CDX PLYWOOD

3/4" COVE MOLDING

3/8" COVE

1/4" ROUND-OVERS

TIE PLATE

TOP PLATE

94" STUD

SOFFIT BACKER

2"-WIDE FASCIA RAIL

5-1/2"-WIDE FASCIA

2-1/2"

4"-WIDE BAND

1"-WIDE ASTRAGAL

METAL DRIP EDGE

storage shed

“Fiber cement” siding is basicallycement reinforced with cellulosefibers. We chose it because it’sdurable, affordable and rot-proof,but especially because it holds paintlonger than most other exteriormaterials. Exactly how much longerdepends on a variety of factors, butbuilders have told us of cases wherepaint on fiber cement lasted twiceas long as paint on nearby wood.

Fiber cement is most common ina plank form that’s used for lap sid-ing. But it’s also available in 4 x 8-ft.sheets (3/16 in. thick) with texturedor smooth surfaces (we used thesmooth). Some home centers andlumberyards stock the sheet mate-rial; others have to special-order it

(about $30 per sheet). Working with fiber cement is a

lot like using other sheet materials.Pick up a brochure where you buythe panels or go to the manufactur-er’s Web site for specific instruc-tions. You have to leave 1/8-in.spaces between sheets, for exam-ple. When nailing, place nails atleast 3/8 in. from edges and 2 in.from corners. Although pros usespecial blades to cut fiber cement,you can cut it with a standard car-bide circular saw blade. Cuttingwhips up a thick cloud of nastydust, so a dust mask is mandatory.

Two suppliers of fiber cement siding are www.james-hardie.comand www.certainteed.com.

Low-maintenance cement panels

SUPPORTBLOCK

Figure EFascia and crown details


10Nail and glue the corner boards in place. Install thenarrower side first, making sure it’s flush with the

corner. Then add the full-width piece.

3/8" COVE

3/8" COVE

3/8" ROUND-OVERS

3/8" ROUND-OVER

3/8" ROUND-OVER

1/4" ROUND-OVER

1/4" DOORJAMB REVEAL

FRIEZE 5-1/2" x 42-1/2"

1" x 43-3/4"

2-3/8" x 46"

1-3/4" x 44-3/4"

1-1/4" x 43-3/4"

2"

12"

SIDE CASING3-1/2" x 81"

5-1/2"4-7/8"

Figure FCorner boards

storage shed

fit backers (Photo 8) before you sheathethe roof with 1/2-in. plywood (Photo 9).

Elegant trim from plain boardsMost of the trim on our shed is madefrom a “composite” material that standsup to Mother Nature better than wood(see Editor’s Note, p. 46). We used pinewood moldings only where they’re shel-tered from sun and rain. The compositeboards we used are 5/8 in. thick and comein the same widths as standard woodboards. In a few cases we used theseboards “as is.” But we dressed up most ofthe trim parts with a router. The routerwork adds only a couple of hours to theproject and creates a much more elegantlook. You’ll need three router bits to shapethe trim boards: a 1/4-in. round-over, a3/8-in. round-over and a 3/8-in. cove bit.Figures E and F provide the specifics.Here are some other details:n Install the fascia and fascia rails first

(Figure E). Then shingle the roof. Weused asphalt shingles. Be sure to installmetal drip edge over the fascia.

n Composite trim must be butted at cor-ners, not mitered, since miter jointsoften open over time.

n For soffit material, we used 1/2-in.MDO (medium density overlay), whichis plywood with a tough resin coating.MDO is available at some home centersand lumberyards ($45 per 4 x 8-ft.sheet). You could also use plywood orfiber cement soffit board.

n For the crown molding under the sof-fits, we used a large (5-1/4-in.) coveprofile (Figure E). To get molding thatwide, you may have to visit a lumber-yard or special-order from a home center.

n Corner boards hide nail heads and theedges of the cement panels (Photo 10).To hide the cement panel joints andother nails, nail and glue two 2-in.-widebattens over the studs on each sidewall.

Doors and casingWe chose a classic six-panel door for thefront of our shed and trimmed it withelaborate casing. To make the side casings,just rip your trim material to 3-1/2 in.

3/8" COVE

3/8" COVE

3/8" ROUND-OVERS

3/8" ROUND-OVER

3/8" ROUND-OVER

1/4" ROUND-OVER

1/4" DOORJAMB REVEAL

FRIEZE 5-1/2" x 42-1/2"

1" x 43-3/4"

2-3/8" x 46"

1-3/4" x 44-3/4"

1-1/4" x 43-3/4"

2"

12"

SIDE CASING3-1/2" x 81"

5-1/2"4-7/8"

Figure G Door trim

(The lengths of your trim components may differ)

11Nail and glue the moldings tothe frieze board one at a time.

Then fasten the head casing above thedoor with construction adhesive andbrad nails.

CORNERBOARD

FRIEZE

5-1/4" CROWN

can’t install them until the doors are inplace. Don’t round over the edges of theseback corner boards. To complete the back-door casing, install a composite 1x6 abovethe doors.

Primer and caulk for a lasting paint jobPrime the wood and fiber cement withhigh-quality acrylic primer. The compos-ite trim is factory-primed, but you’ll haveto prime any exposed cut ends and all therouted profiles. Be sure to prime the bot-tom ends of the corner boards and battensso they don’t absorb moisture. The primerwill raise wood fibers in the exposed com-posite, leaving a rough surface. Removethese “whiskers” by lightly sanding with100-grit sandpaper.

Careful, thorough caulking is essentialfor a lasting paint job because it preventsmoisture from penetrating the cementpanels and trim. Fill all the nail holes andseal any gaps between and along the trimparts with acrylic caulk. Also caulk thetwo short cement panel joints above thedoor. After the caulk cures, apply twocoats of high-quality acrylic paint.

Art Direction • MARCIA WRIGHT ROEPKEPhotography • BILL ZUEHLKETechnical Art • FRANK ROHRBACH III

storage shed

wide and rout both edges with a round-over bit. Install the side casings so theyproject 1/4 in. above the doorjamb open-ing. Your side casings may be slightlylonger or shorter than the length listed inFigure G.

Photo 11 shows how to assemble thehead casing that fits over the side casings.The five parts that make up the head cas-ing may also be longer or shorter than thelengths listed in Figure G. To determinethe correct lengths, measure across theside casings from the outer edge on oneto the outer edge of the other. For ours,that measurement was 42-1/2 in. If yourmeasurement is more or less, just add orsubtract from the length measurementsgiven in Figure G.

For the tool locker on the back of theshed, we bought two simple prehung 30-in. steel doors: a left-hand swing and aright (about $100 each). We pulled thefactory-installed trim off the doors andscrewed the jambs together to form adouble door. To stiffen the assembly, wescrewed a 4-in.-wide strip of 1/2-in. ply-wood across the top of the jambs. Thenwe installed our double door backward,so it swings out rather than inward (see p. 35).

The corner boards on the back side ofthe shed act as the door casing, so you

One day a few years ago, my locallumberyard did me a huge favor: Itran out of the redwood boards I hadalways used for trim. The only alter-native was a “composite” madefrom “wood fiber and resin.” Saw-dust mixed with glue sounded like arecipe for problems, but I gave it atry and haven’t used wood trimboards since.

Composite trim looks better afterit’s installed and keeps its goodlooks longer than wood. Everyboard is straight and free of imper-fections like knots or splits. It does-n’t chip or splinter when you cut orrout it. It holds paint longer thanwood and resists rot better than

most “rot-resist-ant” woods. As abonus, compositecosts less than good-quality wood boards (about$13 for a 16-ft. 1x6).

Composites aren’t perfect; they’reheavy and floppy, so they’re moredifficult to install solo. Cutting orrouting churns up a thick, powderydust cloud, so I always wear a dustmask and do my cutting outdoors.The material is harder than woodand difficult to nail by hand.Manufacturers recommend using aframing nailer or predrilling andhand nailing. Predrilling is slow andframing nails leave big, ugly nail

heads tocover up. So I

use a brad naileralong with plenty of

exterior-grade con-struction adhesive. Brads

alone don’t have enoughholding power, but they hold thetrim in place until the adhesive sets.

Composite trim is available atlumberyards and some home cen-ters. The composite we chose forthis shed is PrimeTrim(www.gp.com/build). Another wide-ly available product is MiraTec(www.cmicompany.com).

Materials ListITEM QTY.

2x6 x 12' treated 4

2x4 x 8' (2 treated, 28 untreated) 30

2x4 x 10' 6

2x4 x 12' 4

2x4 x 14' 1

2x4 x 16' 2

3/4" treated plywood 2

1/2" CDX plywood 5

MDO plywood 2

1x6 x 16' composite trim 14

4 x 8' fiber cement panels 5

10' metal drip edge 4

30" doors 2

36" door 1

Doorknobs 3

1 square of shingles

30' of ridge shingles

Construction adhesive 4 tubes

Acrylic caulk 2 tubes

L-brackets 8

3" exterior screws 1 lb.

2-1/2" exterior screws 1 lb.



8d galvanized nails 5 lbs.

16d galvanized nails 5 lbs.

1" roofing nails 5 lbs.

1-1/4" brads

1-3/4" brads

Pea gravel (50-lb. bags) 10

The 22-in.-tall copper roof finial is available at www.weathervanesofmaine.com, (207) 548-0050. Item No. 702, $125 plus shipping.


Editor’s Note: Hooked on composite trim

Compact storage shed€¦ · materials long before you plan to build. Frame the whole shed on your...

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