the huntrods zone - personal

New Shed, April 2016

You can click on any small image to see an enlarged photo.

 

Before 2015-12-25

The day after we discovered a large tree had fallen on the metal 8x10 shed.

old shed 2016
 

After 2016-04-26

The new wooden 9x11 shed.

new shed 2016
 

THE BEGINNING - A Tree Falls... 2015-12-24

A day or two ago a very large fir tree decided to fall over. It decided to hit the metal garden shed on it's way down. Due to the fact the tree had a double top fairly near the ground, two trunks fell rather than one. The larger trunk fell and hit the ground first in front of the metal garden shed, taking out a Diadora Cedar in the process. The smaller trunk fell and dropped on top of the front of the garden shed, but was prevented from totally squashing the shed by the second (larger) trunk. Still, it smushed the shed pretty good. Fortunately, the shed contents were not damaged. However, the dors were bent badly and the roof and sides sprung also pretty badly.

Once the tree was removed and cut up, I was able to get into the shed and have a good look at the damage. The doors are pretty much toast. The roof is buckled and leaking for the front half. The sides are sprung in various places as well.

The conclusion I have come to is that it would take more work to repair the shed than it would to replace it.

I paid $350 for the Canadian Tire Spacemaker 10x8 shed in 2013. It currently costs pennies under $500. It's not worth $500. Therefore, I conclude that I might as well build a wooded 2x4 shed on the pad in place of a metal shed.

 

New Years & Planning Begins 2016-01-23

Today I decided that I would not be able to rebuild the metal garden shed while it was full of "stuff". I started around lunch time by first moving the cut logs from the fallen tree away from the shed doors. In the end I gathered all the cut logs into one area near where the Arbutis was smushed.

Once the wood was cleared, I opened the shed and found the John Deere lawn tractor/mower was quite wet from rain penetrating the roof. I moved the lawn tractor to the rear/side of the house and covered it with a tarp. I also moved Stan's gas lawnmower and the push lawnmower into the glass shop along with the garden tools. The John Deere lawn trailer and the wheelbarrow I moved to behind the house. Finally, I moved the pottery kiln onto Linda's garden wagon/cart and stored it in the garage.

There's still some plant pots, metal stakes, bamboo stakes and a plastic bin holding more pots in the shed, but these are fine for now.

I now need to measure the pad and design the shed, then obtain the lumber.

I figure the new shed will be 2x4 construction, with pressure treated sills and hardi-board siding. The roof will be traditional pitched roof with siding and asphalt shingles just like the house and storage shed. The doors will be either a single or double outward swinging door, perhaps similar to the storage shed. It should look a lot like the storage shed when complete.

 

2016-01-25

I measured the concrete pad today. It is 9ft x 11ft. If I build the new shed 9x11, that's almost 25% larger than an 8x10 shed assuming 8ft high. The metal shed was not 8ft high, so even an 8x10 would be larger than the current metal shed.

However, I think it's better to cover the entire concrete pad with building, because leaving the 6in lip as with the metal shed invites water to pool on the concrete and run into the shed - or at least keep the bottom of the walls damp.

So the plan is now to build a 9ft by 11ft shed with 8ft walls and a normal pitched roof, shingled with asphalt shingles. The structure will be all 2x4 studs with pressure treated sill studs. Sheathing will be the same hardi-board as on the storage shed and glass shop.

The roof peak will be on the 11ft side. For a standard 4:12 pitch with a length of 5.5 ft, the overall rise will be 22in.

 

2016-02-20

I had a good look at the shed today and began taking it apart. I looked at the build instructions for information, then started by removing the roof in the reverse of the build.

 

2016-02-21

Today I removed the doors from the shed as well as the roof beams and gables.

 

2016-02-22

Today I completed dismantling the shed by taking down the walls and then stacking everything by the garage. I then swept the pad. It's now ready for a new build.

Overall, the shed is in decent shape, but there are damaged panels that would never really be restored to original shape. The door header is badly damaged and the front gables are not only bent but torn, which would require significant alteration to repair. Although the shed *could* be repaired, it would take quite a bit of work. My gut feeling at the moment is that it would be much simpler to just build a new wooded shed, as originally planned. Besides, on a wood shed the walls can be 6ft high and can contain shelves without much difficulty.

 

April - Building Begins... 2016-04-01

Time to start the new shed build. Today I went to Home Depot and purchased the pressure treated 2x4s for the pad, plus all the required 2x4 framing (including rafters), the OSB for the roof and the 4x8 smart board (hardy board) exterior panels. I also bought 10 bundles of shingles, figuring I might also re-shingle the glass shop roof.

The plan as outlined on 2016-1-25 suggested a 9x11 shed with 8' walls and standard slope roof with peak on the longer side. The only change to the plan now that I'm about to build it is that the walls will be 6 ft. high, not 8 ft. as that is just a bit too tall. The 10x24 shed is only 6ft high and it's fine. I will change how the rafters are constructed to allow for more headroom (no bottom board from side to side).

 

2016-04-03

Today I cut all the 2x4s to length for the stud walls and plates.

 

2016-04-04

I sent Linda to Home Hardware to buy 2.5in nails for the pneumatic nailer while I prepared the PT studs and readied for wall assembly.

Once she returned I started building the stud walls, starting with the two 6x9 foot side walls, then the back 6x11 wall. Once the three walls were build, using a 2x2 for support I raised the walls and fastened them together. I then built the front wall which is also 11ft wide but has a 5ft door in the center. I then raised it and joined it to the structure. Now all four walls were up, and I repositioned the 2x2's to brace the walls.

I had some trouble tightening the anchor bolts, so will have to do something about that.

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2016-04-05

Today I cut all the 2x4s for the rafters. I also checked the shed for trueness and it was good.

 

2016-04-06

Today I built a template for the rafter assembly, then built the six required rafters. Once built, I installed the first two with Linda's assistance. With two up, it was relatively easy to install the remaining rafters.

Careful checking showed the rafters were true and straight, so I cut the OSB panels to 6'3" (for overhang) and to 3'3". On each side there is a 4 ft wide sheet and a 2ft wide sheet to make the 6ft of the rafter length. I started by installing the 4x6 sheets to the peak of the roof with Linda's assistance, then the 4x3 sheets. Finally I finished by installing the 2ft wide sheets and the roof was ready for tar paper.

Checking, it turns out I only had 20ft of tar paper and I need 40ft, so I need to buy a roll.

I attended to the issue of the concrete fasteners by taking a 2in hole saw (without center bit) and drilled out the lower wall plate to allow access to the anchor bolts. This will work very well.

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2016-04-07

I installed the three 4x8 sheets of smart panel (hardy board) on the lower walls. Then cut the lower 4x3 panels (3) and 4x1 (2) panels with my Ridgid 18v skillsaw. Once cut I installed them on the shed. After lunch I went to Home Hardware to get a roll of roofing paper plus more PL premium and also bought 2 more smart panels plus 5 1x6x12' boards for trim.

Once home I cut the new panels into two 4x3 panels and one 4x1 panel, then trimmed them to 26in. I finally cut 3 remaining 4x8 sheets to 26in width. Once all the panels were cut I installed them with Linda's assistance.

All smart panel installs were done by putting PL premium on the studs, then placing the panel and using the pneumatic nailer with 2in finishing nails to secure it.

By supper time the shed siding was complete.

After supper I used a wrench and vice grips to remove the concrete fastener nuts and add a lock washer, then tightened them back up using the wrench (19mm) and vice grips to keep the bolt from spinning. It worked.

At this point the shed requires roofing tar paper and shingles, gable end wood, trim wood (corners and rafter ends and door trim) and a door. Linda and I agree that painted plywood would work well for the door and gables. I need to see if 6in trim is OK or if I should buy some 4in trim for the rafter ends.

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2016-04-08

I started the day by cutting two of the 12ft 1x6 boards to 9ft for a trim board on the rafter ends. Then I cut the remaining 1x6 boards to 6ft. I cut 4 of them to 20degrees to match the rafters as front and back trim pieces. I realized I required one sheet of plywood for the gable ends as well as two more 1x6 boards.

Before I left for Home Hardware, I fastened the 9ft boards to the ends of the rafters with PL premium and 2" finishing nails.

After returning from Home Hardware (Ladysmith) where they also cut the 4x8 plywood into two 2x8 boards (it was 3/8 standard plywood, not G1S), I cut the two new 1x6 boards to 6ft. At this time Bill returned so I borrowed his pneumatic roof nailer (no nails).

I set up my bandsaw and ripped the 6ft 1x6 boards into to 2.5in boards for trim. It was great using the bandsaw and it did a fantastic job. It was also a lot of fun to do.

I then laid out my template for the gable pieces - 5.5 ft on the bottom, 27.25 in to the top and 3.5in on the smaller end of the triangle. As the plywood was only 24in wide, the apex of the triangle would be truncated, but this would be covered by trim. To speed up the process and make both halves equal, I fastened the two 2x8 plywood pieces to 2x4's on both ends with screws. I then laid out the cut line and cut two boards at once with my Ridgid 18v skillsaw. I do love that saw! I then reset the boards for the second set of gable ends and cut them.

Once all the cutting was complete, I started fastening the gable ends with PL premium and 2" finishing nails. This worked out very well. I then fastened the rafter cut trim pieces over the gable ends and then fastened the corner trim pieces all using PL premium and 2" finishing nails.

After supper Linda and I installed the tar paper on the roof. I really hate my staple gun. It's the second worst staple gun I've ever owned (the first was sledge hammered into scrap many years ago).

 

2016-04-09

The first thing was a trip to Home Hardware for some pneumatic roof nailer nails. Once home, I cut six shingles into starter strips and applied them to the roof, starting with the road side. Then, starting at the bottom on each side, I attached the shingles to the roof until it overlapped the peak, trimming end shingles as I used them. I was going to cut singles into roof cap, but my test section cracked when bent. I plan on checking out the purpose-sold cap shingles tomorrow, or else heating and bending the ones I have into a cap.

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2016-04-10

After a great morning dive in Maple Bay, I stopped off at the Duncan Home Depot to view the GAF ridge cap shingles. They looked really good, so I bought a pack of them and came home. After rinsing the dive gear, I took the ridge cap shingles and fastened them to the roof. They look great, and now the roof is done. The color is "shakewood" which is a nice light brown that matches all the other shingles on the property pretty well. Finally I returned the roofing nailer to Bill with a full clip of nails.

 

2016-04-11

I created a cardboard template for the rafter end detail for the front and back of the shed. It will be cut using the bandsaw from 1x6 board.

 

2016-04-12

It's been cold and rainy the past few days, but I decided to cut the door 2x2 frame, but after cutting found one piece had a terrible split, so I need to get another 2x2 before I can continue. I also measured and cut the spacers, but checking in the doorway indicated that it's about 1/4 inch too big, meaning the spacers need to be cut down. I don't know why this should be given my measurements, so will re-check before cutting anything.

While fitting the door parts it started to rain more, so I put the MG back in the garage and called it a day.

Inside I put the smaller 7tpi belt on my bandsaw, adjusted the guides, and then marked the cardboard template on a piece of 1x6. I cut out the blanks and then cut the four shapes out for the four corners pieces. Finally I sanded them with my new 18V Ridgid orbital sander.

 

2016-04-13

All I did today is purchase the needed 2x2 for the door frame and a couple of angle pieces to make a lock for the door. It's too cold to work outside right now.

 

2016-04-14

Today I cut the new 2x2 to 6ft and then checked all 2x2 components in the door frame. I need to remove 1/8in from each horizontal piece, so that was done and after rechecking the fit is exact and tight. A square also shows the doors are square. I decided to cut off 1/8in more to give 1/4in between doors. This was done and rechecked and all is well. I then cut two more horizontal spacers for each door to give support and strength. After marking all the pieces, I decided to cut 1/4in off the 6ft vertical pieces to allow a small gap between door and concrete floor.

After this I got out the table saw and used it to rip the leftover 2ft sections of hardy board to an exact dimension to ensure a straight edge after the freehand cutting of the panels for the walls. With an edge defined, I trimmed off most of the tongue to allow the panel sections to be butted up on the doors and still give a nice groove.

I now need to build the frames and cut and attach the panels. I am considering getting a frame clamp to ensure 90deg corners and must check out my panel cutter as the table saw won't cut panels to more than 24in and the doors are 26 3/4in.

 

2016-04-15

Heat pump failed (no heat, otherwise OK) starting Monday afternoon (Apr 4). When it became obvious that we weren't getting heat by Wednesday (20C on all levels) I called the supplier. Today (Friday) was the day the tech came… and found very low refrigerant levels. Leak detection discovered the lower head coil has a pretty bad leak. A replacement coil has been ordered and should be installed by next Fri (Apr 22). Still, that pretty much consumed my day.

When not dealing with heat pump, I found and examined the panel cutter I built for the table saw some years ago. The mitre guides are far too short for cutting hardy board into widths for the doors, so I redesigned it. I will have to go to Metal Supermarket for some 3/4 x 3/8 in aluminum bar to fit the mitre slots. I think I'll get some larger angle iron cut as well to make a square frame jig. I called them today to ensure they have what I require. I also removed the old wooden mitre guides from the panel cutter so I can attach new ones later.

 

2016-04-16

Today I headed out to the Metal Supermarket and got 4 lengths of 3/4 x 3/8 aluminum bar cut to 4ft for my mitre guides. I got four for future projects as this stuff is just too cool! I also got some 3in aluminum angle iron cut to 2in lengths to make my frame jig. Tomorrow after my dive I'll head to Cdn Tire for a large tie-down strap and ratchet for the jig.

The metal mitre guides will be drilled and tapped so they can be attached to the panel cutter frame using machine screws.

We also discussed a new plan… use the existing large shed doors on the new shed and build only larger doors for the existing shed when I expand the opening to hold the MGB. The new opening will be between 5.5ft and 6ft so new doors of up to 3ft wide. These will use almost all of my current remainders of hardy board, so it's better to try and build only one set of doors. I'll reframe the existing shed for a new opening, then build the new doors. I'll then remove the old doors and cut the new opening before installing the new doors. The old doors will go to the new smaller shed.

 

2016-04-17

Today after my dive I went to Canadian Tire and bought a frame strap plus two 14ft strap clamps to create the large size frame clamp for door frames.

 

2016-04-19

Today I installed the trim pieces for the ends of the outer rafters using PL premium and 2in nails. They look really good.

I removed one door from the larger shed to test-fit it on the new shed, and discovered it's a good 6in too short. It is not worth trying to adapt these doors, so I will be building new doors for both sheds. If I don't have enough smart panel for two doors, I'll use plywood for the new doors on the older shed.

Finally today I went to Home Hardware and purchased some machine screws (8/32 x 3/4 in) and a tap so I can make the panel cutter.

 

2016-04-20

Today was warm and sunny, perfect for a big day of work. I started by marking, then drilling and tapping the two 4ft sections of aluminum bar for the panel jig. I then attached the bars to the plywood frame of the jig with 8x32 machine screws which were countersunk into the panel and gave it a test. It worked perfectly. I also used my aluminum angles and the strap clamps to mock up the first door. They too worked perfectly.

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With Linda's help I cut the first panel section from left over smart board, and cut a further 5 panels for both doors. I then glued and screwed the first door frame and then glued and nailed the panels to the door to provide rigidity. Once that was complete I did the same for the second door. Finally I cut two small (6.5in) section of panel for the very top of the door and attached them to complete both doors.

Checking the hinges, I decided that 3.5in hinges aren't large enough so will exchange them for 4in hinges tomorrow.

new shed 2016
 

2016-04-21

Today I started by exchanging the 3.5in hinges for 4in hinges, for a net cost of $-1. Sweet!

Once home I used my hinge template and Wayne A's router to mount the hinges to both doors. After lunch I did a test fit on both doors and marked the hinges, then used the template and router to mount the doors. The second door required a bit of chisel work to mateperfectly, but when complete both doors fit and work perfectly. Both swing outward. I did need to use my block plane to make some very minor adjustments to the street side door to ensure a smooth fit in the center, but it was done quickly.

Testing my lock design, it didn't work - at least not without a lot of chiseling. So I returned the angle pieces and bought a proper hasp log and some bolts to attach it. Just before supper I attached the hasp lock with the bolts and now the shed locks.

After supper I moved the larger items from the garage and glass shop to the shed before locking it for the night. These included the aluminum ladder, the garden cart (both new to the shed), the larger yard tools (shovels & rakes), the wheelbarrow and lawn tractor trailer, and various other items. So far all fits perfectly.

I will need to add shelves and fasten the trailer to the wall, but that can wait for another day.

What remains is some additional trim, especially around the doors, and painting of the gable and trim. As "Yan" would say, "it's getting pretty done".

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2016-04-22

Today the heat pump was getting fixed.

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After the failed coil was replaced and the lower inner head back on the wall I took time to cut some short trim pieces from smart panel to cover the gap at the top of the doors. I cut them to match the top of the doors. After gluing and nailing them, they look pretty good.

There is still a few more 1x3 or 1x2 trim board to cut and install on the doors, and painting to be done, but the main work on the new shed is now complete.

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2016-04-25

Today I went to Home Hardware and purchased the paint for the shed (walnut solid stain and white exterior trim paint) plus four 1x2 boards for trim below the gables. I also bought a new chainsaw chain and 2x2 boards for the older shed doors.

 

2016-04-26

I started this morning by painting the gables with the walnut stain. It took two coats. I measured and cut the 1x2 boards for trim, then glued and nailed them in place. Finally I painted the pine trim white, again taking two coats.

I checked the doors and one was sticking a bit, so I used my block plane to remove some material until they didn't stick.

With the painting done, the shed is now complete.

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