ShedBuilder’s Outdoor Storage Sheds

No doubt adding a shed increases the value of your property. No doubt it makes it look better. No doubt one outdoor shed will be a very useful addition.

Is it really no doubt?

Plan The Shed Location

Location is one of the most important factors that you need to consider. Your outdoor storage shed should not stand in the way to your home, neither it should get the best piece of land that could be used to grow interesting vegetables. You will probably want the shed to be in the sight from your home, but some people prefer to put it in some garden corner.

When planning the location, draw your entire yard with all the trees, buildings and accessories. This is vitally important if you are buying a new house and the garden is not yet arranged. The shed should not disturb the growth of the trees, should not throw shadow on your flowers and so on. A lot of things to think about - that’s why you better draw the entire garden on paper or using a landscape design program.

Plan The Shed Size

Don’t shoot for the largest possible shed. It may look tempting to have a shed almost as large as your house is, but there are many disadvantages. The large sheds are a lot more expensive, take valuable space from your garden and may require a lot of support.

Plan the shed size accordingly to your specific needs. It’s recommended again to make a sketch of what you are going to arrange inside and how. This will help you figure out the exact size you need. If you don’t plan to make the shed fit to live in, but are going to use it only as a storage, pick a narrow and tall design.

Think About The Shed Type

Once you figure out the location and size, decide on the shed material. We have an article discussing deeply the different shed designs and types. It’s recommended that you read it to understand the complexity regarding the different types of outdoor storage sheds.

Just don’t forget that selecting the right design and material comes after you have planned the location and size, not before that. Most people first choose a specific shed and then plan where and how to place it. This is more impulsive way of acting and rare has good practical outcome.

Is it time to place an outdoor shed in your garden? Don’t be in a rush to get the first one before you learn more about the different types of outdoor storage sheds. The main characteristics of the sheds depend on the material used, the shape of the shed and how much “finished” it is.

The Different Shed Materials

The factor which probably has the most importance for the outdoor storage shed’s quality is the material used for building it. If the shed is built with low quality materials chances are it will be of low quality too.

The metal outdoor storage sheds are cheap and robust but rare look as good as the timber sheds. The later are more expensive, but are very beautiful and are excellent for green houses. There are many outdoor sheds made of plastic or fibreglass. In most cases they combine the positives of the metal sheds and wooden ones.

Sometimes you can see sheds made of bricks, panels, rammed earth or even straw.

Types Of Sheds Depending On The Purpose

The outdoor garden sheds may have different purpose. Most people just want to store tools and stuff inside, that’s why we most often call them storage sheds.
However, you could want your shed to serve your kids as a green house or a house for games. Many other people use the sheds as a green office.

The purpose of the shed often will determine the material and the shape as well. If you want to use the building just to store things, you can go with cheap and tall metal shed. If your target is a green house or office, then wooden will be best.

Shed Kits, Shed Plans And Finished Sheds

I have written about this before. Most people don’t purchase ready sheds because there is not enough variety, transportation is harder and the price is higher. That’s why the most preferred way for buying outdoor storage sheds is as shed kits.

The kits require some work on your side. Usually it’s going to take few days to build a shed by using a kit. But the huge advantage to select between many models of sheds and buy even overseas is well worth it.

Some enthusiasts like to build shed entirely on their own. They just buy shed plans and materials and start working. Building a shed this way can be a long process if you have no experience with do it yourself projects. For someone who knows what they are doing it’s a one week work in most cases. If you choose this route, I can recommend this online shed plans store, because they have good variety and decent prices.

Getting a shed is not a big deal and you don’t need to spend months planning. But at least you should make sure that you know about the different types of outdoor storage sheds before going further and purchasing or building one.

Can you design and build a shed from scratch?

Sure, you can. Hopefully you have experience in architecture design, because you will need to create good sketches of the shed. Then you’ll have to print them out and start your work.

While designing your shed you should have in mind its size, the space in your yard, the cost of actual building, the materials that will be used and that the final look should match the look of your house and around. When you are the shed designer, everything is in your hands, so you take all the risks.

Can you at least use a ready design?

Of course, and that’s what I recommend you, unless you are an architect. You can purchase paper plans or download shed plans online for a small amount of money - usually $20 - $40. There is a great choice of plans available so you should not worry about not finding the one that is right for you.

Building a shed with a plan has the advantage that you are building some proven design. You don’t have to worry if the walls and the door will match. This is probably the most cost effective way to build outdoor storage sheds - you should skip the plan purchase only if designing yourself is something you enjoy.

Doing it easier - using a shed kit

Building a shed with shed plans is fool proof in the sense that you can’t go wrong if you follow the plan. But it’s quite time consuming and requires hard work.

If your reasons to want to build a shed yourself are less about cost saving and more about not being able to find the right outdoor shed design, then buying a shed kit is the best option for you. Why is that? Mostly because there are thousands of shed kits stores available online and they can ship you your kit in a matter of days.

One of the greatest advantages of using a kit is that building a shed with it is easy - you can finish it in 2-3 days. At the same time you’ll have much better choice compared to when you want to purchase a ready garden shed and you’ll pay less.

If you want to build a shed yourself, don’t be scared. The above three options allow everyone do it depending on their experience level. Just go ahead, estimate your skills and start work!