Building a new woodshed

[tomf]

Our old woodshed was not very well made, it was nailed to the trees around it, I would have never done that. The roof caved in just as I was about to fill it up, I am a bit behind, as I had to find and replace the carburetor on the wood splinter.
I decided to do it right and make one that will last. I made it similar to a pole barn only the poles are on cement and not in the ground. The shed is 20 feet wide. I made it so the barn doors slide past each other so I can open one side to work. I also made it 10 feet tall so I can load wood with the tractor bucket. I have a few days of work left, paint it, put on the metal roof, it has tar paper for now and place hardware at the bottom of the doors. Then of course comes filling it up.

[imafan26]

Looks good. I have stuff stored all over the yard and my garage. I would like a shed, but I would probably fill that up too.

[Gary350]

Wow that looks nice. Are you going to put plastic or something on the ground to keep the wood out of the dirt so termites are not attracted to it?

I built a storage shed 8x16 about 30 years ago it was up on cement blocks it was high enough in 6 places to push a lawn mower under there to keep it out of the rain. It took 15 years for the block to sink into the ground we get a lot of rain in TN. I jacked the shed up put more blocks under it now another 15 years later the shed is setting on the ground.

[Allyn]

Nice job!

[Taiji]

Wow that looks nice. Are you going to put plastic or something on the ground to keep the wood out of the dirt so termites are not attracted to it?

I built a storage shed 8x16 about 30 years ago it was up on cement blocks it was high enough in 6 places to push a lawn mower under there to keep it out of the rain. It took 15 years for the block to sink into the ground we get a lot of rain in TN. I jacked the shed up put more blocks under it now another 15 years later the shed is setting on the ground.

I don't know if that was meant to be funny or not, but just visualizing it seems so funny! The incredible sinking shed!

[digitS']

Here's something a little funny.

My parents owned land with several acres of forest. Across the road, family friends owned another 40 acres of farmland. I was a young guy, just through a divorce, working on farms in the neighborhood, with those acres to farm, as well. I decided to move out into the forested part.

The first couple of weeks, I slept under a Douglas fir tree while I built a woodshed. I had a woodstove to cook on. As soon as the roof was finished, I moved a bed under it, the stove sitting out front.

My older brother found out what I was up to and decided that I needed to go into the livestock business. He showed up with 6 hens and a rooster for me ..!

There I was, a single guy in a bed - sharing a woodshed with 7 chickens ...

You should know that I built my next building, a log barn, in like a record 3 weeks! I forget the size but it wasn't very big. I moved the bed and stove into the loft.

Steve

[Taiji]

That is funny! But, now that I think about it, I might rather share a bed/shed with some nice chickens than with some people I know!

Did you ever wake up with an egg next to you and say "did I do that?"

This makes me realize I need a small tool storage shed. I leave my stuff everywhere like Imafan says. I have a lot of old pallets laying around that I think I can use for that purpose. But, they are so heavy and I'd like it to be somewhat portable.

[digitS']

No. It wasn't a nice strong building like Tom's but the chickens had 1/3, and a pen on the east side.

The other 2/3rds was first for me, then for firewood plus my outdoor food storage locker.

Outbuildings are fun to build. I once knew an old fellow with many, including 2 guesthouses. Those were so comfortable and charming. He was an inspiration for my efforts although I couldn't match his good work.

Steve

[tomf]

I am goint to put more gravel down to make the floor higer than the area around it, that will be good enough. It has been so stormy that I have not got the metal roof on yet. It is a good thing I did get the tar paper down.

[rainbowgardener]

Beautiful! I need to do something like that on a smaller scale, next spring, for a chicken coop. It needs to have nesting boxes inside it.

I am still trying to figure out if it is worth it to build it vs buying one. Depends on the cost of the wood... If the cost of the wood is close to what I can buy the ready made one for, not worth it.

[Allyn]

Beautiful! I need to do something like that on a smaller scale, next spring, for a chicken coop. It needs to have nesting boxes inside it.

I am still trying to figure out if it is worth it to build it vs buying one. Depends on the cost of the wood... If the cost of the wood is close to what I can buy the ready made one for, not worth it.

The premade coops are pretty crappy and very small. (Whatever number of chickens it says it will hold, divide that number in half for real world). You can get a coop for less than the price of wood, but for the price of the wood, you'll build one that's so much sturdier and appropriately sized for the number of chickens you want. (And don't forget to factor in chicken math.)


If you really don't want to build, get a premade shed and convert it to a coop. It'll be big enough and much sturdier than one of those dollhouse chicken coops.

[rainbowgardener]

Good advice Allyn! I've been reading reviews on ready made chicken coops and they pretty universally say the same thing -- too small and flimsy, made of very thin wood.

Converting a shed sounds like a good idea! I hadn't thought of that one.

[digitS']

Over time and in different locations, I have built 4 chicken coops. I moved in from the country acreage so these were for backyard flocks. The last coop, I built nearly 20 years ago so that it might fit in the back of a pickup. Of course, it hasn't gone anywhere .

It isn't difficult to build some version of a shed, although I don't necessarily recommend making one in the shape of a pickup camper. A small flock also doesn't require something as substantial as what Tom has built for several cords of firewood.

Seven pound hens can sort themselves out and get around in enclosed space fairly well. Ventilation is important. An attractive little structure is nice. But, build a coop so that you are comfortable making use it!

Have we successfully hijacked this woodshed thread ? Tom?

Steve

[tomf]

No a post thet leads to more is a good one. I figure the shed I am making will hold 10 cords of wood if full.