After I got tired of having to dig through a pile of stuff to find a spade or a hammer or last year's seeds, I finally decided to build our very own outdoor garden shed.
I also find that my tools get rusty and old so quickly sitting on the back porch since we live not too far from the coast.
So I got myself a set of garden sheds plans and set to work.
I didn't realize initially just how much I needed to take into account to build this type of backyard storage space.
I soon found I had to get a permit and the local building codes.
But once I had the blue prints that issue was soon out the way.
The challenge came when I had to now get all the parts and start putting the plan into action.
Thankfully my plans had detailed drawings so I could see what the eventual plan was, but not only that I knew what I had to do at each part of the construction.
First I priced cut materials against wood that wasn't cut and then got a quote from the local lumber yard for how much it would cost to cut the wood for me.
I didn't have those type of tools or time so would be happy if someone could do it for me.
It turned out to be about 10% cheaper to get the wood cut as against buying it already cut from the hardware store.
I also bought more expensive pressure treated wood because I knew that cheap stuff would rot quickly.
Our humid climate increases the speed of rotting even more.
I think anyone should go for this option if they want a structure that will last.
The instructions for foundations and putting up the walls were fairly easy to follow and I didn't have trouble with that part.
The roof was a bit more complex since I bought plans that included roof venting because of the heat factor.
If you live in a hot area, make sure your plans show you how to do this.
But if you are in a cold area, and experience snow, then make sure you don't build a flat roof pitch.
I would consider something like a gable roof with steep sides to help the snow run off.
At least you won't have to climb onto the roof and scoop it off.
I also built my own shed door and have a big fat lock on it.
There is a tendency for people to steel around here and if that's the case where you are, be sure to make the entrance secure.
I was really chuffed with the storage shed.
I also built it a bit bigger to store our bikes in, and since we have moved everything in, there is a lot of space left over for extra's.
I can even do a bit of woodworking from within there.