NFR Storage Sheds

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SteelHeadDave

SteelHeadDave

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I’m looking to get a new shed at my house this spring and I’m looking for any suggestions on brands, builders etc. I have a pretty small house and unfortunately no garage so the bigger the better as long as it stays at or slightly below the 200 sq ft mark. I’m looking for something sturdy and weather resistant. Not interested in plastic or metal. This will essentially be my garage so to speak.

There seems to be a lot of cheap, slap em up options out there and I don’t want to invest in something that is not going to hold up to the damp PNW.

Im open to any and all suggestions or recommendations you might have including particular companies, builders, DIY kits or plans.

Thanks,
Dave
 
Have you thought about just pouring a slab, and framing and building your own?
Pretty easy, you can go as high or low quality as you want, and will probably be cheaper than those kits.
 
I have and that is certainly an option but I also view it as somewhat of a challenge as I’m not an experienced builder. It does sound like a fun project though. This caught my attention while looking at DIY plans. It’s fancy and probably more than what I need as far as bells and whistles but it’s pretty dreamy IMO. Also looks to be one hell of a project 😂

www.etsy.com

The camphouse Shed Build Plans Digital Download - Etsy

This Patterns & Blueprints item by ShopNationStore has 1415 favorites from Etsy shoppers. Ships from United States. Listed on Jul 2, 2024
www.etsy.com www.etsy.com
 
There are dozens of pre built sheds available with dozens of options that can be dropped of anywhere you want, hell theres 2 differnt sellers along hw 2 east of Monroe.
 
One advantage of building your own is you can make it the exact size you want.
 
You don't even HAVE to pour a slab if you don't want to bother.
 
I'm always a fan of building myself. It's my go to.

But why have a shed when you can have a house....thats probably lower quality than a shed lol.
Cool concept. They show up in a box, and pop out to larger size.

Besides Amazon is a local business, right?

Im not recommending. Just a cool and quick concept i guess. Million options.

 
Josh said:
You don't even HAVE to pour a slab if you don't want to bother.
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In some jurisdictions, pouring a slab makes it a permanent structure, limiting you to 200 square feet. Best to get get one built on skids and set on piers in that case. Check your local codes, setbacks and ADU regulations before moving forward to be safe.
 
Dave - I read this post last night and wondered how you were going to get a car into a 200 SF "shed" (I saw the word garage and that stuck in my mind). My friend Herb has assembled six or seven "kit" sheds, four on his property up in the wet hills of Hood Canal's North Shore. They've been there for years. I think one plus for his sheds is they have steel roofs that shed needles and leaves in the rain. They're unheated, uninsulated and serve as sleeping quarters for family members. He also assembled one in the Aeneas Valley, snow country.

Good luck.

Ps. A friend of mine has a kit cabin that looks somewhat like the link you posted, he built it up in the mountains near the Chewuck River. It's very nice.
 
Priced out 10 x 12 sheds in 2008 for our West Salem hills home, didn't like the quality for what were 5K 'raw' sheds, so had a licensed carpenter/handyman build the shell for 6K.
Being in a HOA, had to match the house with Hardiboard siding, same roof shingles, paint, etc. Designed it 'modern shed' style, all materials upgraded vs a big box shed. The concrete was already in place, behind fence RV pad. Once shelled, ran a 20 amp circuit for lighting and power, sheetrocked it and laid down industrial carpet. When we sold the property had to declare it as a non-permitted structure...buyer could have cared less.
 
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I'm old and lazy. Had a 10X12 barnstyle TuffShed barnstyle installed in the backyard last summer on top of a compacted level crushed rock slab. Also had a 220 electrical panel split into two 110 circuits installed.

The Tuffsheds from the mfg have upgraded features compared to the Tuffsheds sold at the big box stores, and are assembled by Tuffshed on site (took one day)...which was critical because there's no way to get a pre-assembled shed into our backyard. Pricey, but I don't feel like doing a big project these days.

The pieces came pre-painted with premium Glidden paint, and were painted with another coat on site after assembly. The shingles were GAF premium quality, and just happened to match the GAF architectural roof on our house.

It's a very sturdy wooden shed, 16" centered 2x4 studs, with a galvanized steel base and an aluminized interior coating that does a remarkably good job of keeping it cooler in the summer and easy to warm up when I want to use it in the winter.

The workbenches, shelves and tools all have wheels so it's easy to move stuff around, and the two 110 circuits let me have heat while running tools. I don't like to do extensive wood cutting inside the shed with table or chop saws because of sawdust, but it's simple to move them outside for that stuff.

TuffShed often has 'sample' models available for sale at considerable discounts at their regional fabrication plants if you have a building site they can deliver the fully assembled shed.

I have to say that TuffShed has a finely honed selection and delivery process...kept us continually in the loop, and did EXACTLY what they promised to do....which in my experience is fairly unusual in the contractor world.

If you buy or have a shed built/delivered be sure to spend some time on the internet learning about the intricacies of shed foundations. An inept foundation can quickly ruin a well-constructed shed.

As previously mentioned, make sure you check out your local building codes for required setbacks, and dimensions that trigger inspection permits. I had the shed's underground electrical service installed by a licensed contractor and inspected.

I'm always a bit amazed by the number of sheds I see built right against fences, which is generally an obvious code violation and makes maintenance difficult.
 
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I bought a premade "Amish" shed for our house in Vermont. I have a 14' dory and got a 16' long shed with barn doors, and I was very glad to be able to keep my boat in there during the winter.I didn't pour a slab, but had a contractor build a base with RR ties and fill it with crushed rock. That gave it a level foundation and provided good drainage.
 
Dave,

Evan had a shed built at his house last year that is about the size you're limited to. Check that out somewhere on this site. At 200 sq ft, a DIY is pretty easy and straight forward. Do you want it on a concrete slab? Or posts and piers? Dirt or gravel floor? A 10' x 20' could give you a smallish one car garage with storage on the sides and end for smallish stuff. Another thought is that with 200 sq ft, you might be able to build a large overhang on one side to store some things outside but out of the rain.
 
As a DIYer I have lots of experience and capabilities.

I built a wood shed years ago. I choose to not use a kit because the walls were not tall enough - 6' and the door height was 5'. I am 6'4" and there was no way I was going to bonk my head every time I went in. Kit walls were 24" on center and I wanted 16" on center. It was easy and quick to design a configuration so that it would fit my needs. It was within county specs for size and height so no permit required. But a couple of years later it did appear on my county assessment and I was taxed on it. How did they know? I found out later the septic tank pumping business reports the structures because it reduces the area available for a backup septic field. BTW - if you build it on pier blocks you might end up with a family of racoons living under it. Please do not ask how I know...

This fall I built a steel 2-car carport using a kit from Versatube. It is 20' x 18'. The kit was complete and easy to get the pieces out. I spec'd it out to withstand 110mph winds and 30lbs of snow per square foot. Also made sure it was below the 10' height requirement and 10' away from other structures. (exceeds all county requirements). The instructions were simple but lacking. Youtube videos showed it was easy to do too. Versatube says it is DIY. Waaay harder than I ever envisioned. Making and keeping it square was ridiculous. It had to be square and level due to interlocking roof panels. Over 1700 self tapping screws ---> OMG!. Had to be a tall contortionist to get some of the screws in on the roof. Weighed over 1500 pounds. It was like working out at the gym everyday for hours. I will never build one as a DIY again. The building department in the county I live in sucks. So I built it without a permit and will ask for forgiveness later if I have to...

My family and I love the finished products. They do exactly what was needed. I contemplated running power to them but decided against it due to county coordination. I ended up getting battery powered, motion detection, outdoor security cameras. I hooked them up to my security system with wifi. When activated picture/video sent to my system. The lights are bright. The rechargeable batteries last about 3 months before recharging is necessary. Best decision I have made in a long, long time.

Edited to correct specs on carport.
 
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RCF said:
As a DIYer I have lots of experience and capabilities.

I built a wood shed years ago. I choose to not use a kit because the walls were not tall enough - 6' and the door height was 5'. I am 6'4" and there was no way I was going to bonk my head every time I went in. Kit walls were 24" on center and I wanted 16" on center. It was easy and quick to design a configuration so that it would fit my needs. It was within county specs for size and height so no permit required. But a couple of years later it did appear on my county assessment and I was taxed on it. How did they know? I found out later the septic tank pumping business reports the structures because it reduces the area available for a backup septic field. BTW - if you build it on pier blocks you might end up with a family of racoons living under it. Please do not ask how I know...

This fall I built a steel 2-car carport using a kit from Versatube. It is 20' x 18'. The kit was complete and easy to get the pieces out. I spec'd it out to withstand 105mph winds and 3' of snow per square foot. Also made sure it was below the 10' height requirement and 10' away from other structures. (exceeds all county requirements). The instructions were simple but lacking. Youtube videos showed it was easy to do too. Versatube says it is DIY. Waaay harder than I ever envisioned. Making and keeping it square was ridiculous. It had to be square and level due to interlocking roof panels. Over 1700 self tapping screws ---> OMG!. Had to be a tall contortionist to get some of the screws in on the roof. Weighed over 1500 pounds. It was like working out at the gym everyday for hours. I will never build one as a DIY again. The building department in the county I live in sucks. So I built it without a permit and will ask for forgiveness later if I have to...

My family and I love the finished products. They do exactly what was needed. I contemplated running power to them but decided against it due to county coordination. I ended up getting battery powered, motion detection, outdoor security cameras. I hooked them up to my security system with wifi. When activated picture/video sent to my system. The lights are bright. The rechargeable batteries last about 3 months before recharging is necessary. Best decision I have made in a long, long time.
Click to expand...
Not as bad as the family of skunks I had to trap and relocate that were living under my daughter's crawlspace!
 
There's a guy out here that buys and sells 'sheds' of all different kinds. He has had 'sheds' set up as full kitchens. Wired and plumbed, inspected and very nicely done. Others are more basic, shop type stuff.
The turnover for him is really fast, never knew how much demand there was for them.
 
Mossback said:
There's a guy out here that buys and sells 'sheds' of all different kinds. He has had 'sheds' set up as full kitchens. Wired and plumbed, inspected and very nicely done. Others are more basic, shop type stuff.
The turnover for him is really fast, never knew how much demand there was for them.
Click to expand...
To a certain extent I think it's a co-evolution with storage facility expansion to meet demand for incredible quantities of crap we acquire in this age of affluence.

I've got neighbors with huge houses equipped with four car garages that can't fit a vehicle inside any of them because they are stacked high with the detritus of modern life. You know...valuable stuff like old Happy Meal toys, Beanie Babies, and pants that don't fit anymore.
 
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Agree...
You can spend 6-12k once and store the stuff you don't use close to home, or 250 a month forever.
 
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