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Looking for plans for building my own shed

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  • Jun 6th, 2012 8:32 am
Newbie
Aug 8, 2010
66 posts
24 upvotes
Ottawa

Looking for plans for building my own shed

Hopefuly someone can help me here. I'm an avid DIYer and would like to build a garden/storage shed for my backyard. I need something bigger(maybe 16x10 or so) and would like to build it myself so it reduces cost. It should also be more sturdy than those plastic or aluminum sheds you see in stores that sell at huge prices.

I'm looking for some type of booklet or site that would give me different plans that would list materials and a quick step by step procedure on putting this together. i've got my own tools so it should save me some money in the long run. Anyone have any idea where I can get something like this in stores or online? Free or not......
14 replies
Deal Addict
Mar 12, 2008
1655 posts
209 upvotes
Toronto
i helped a buddy build a 16x10 shed placed on deck blocks (to keep the cost down) and he still spent 1200 without shingles just fyi.

the plans attached would be alot more lol.

basically you can use 2x4''s for the walls/roof(its a small area). 2x6's for the floor. Go up to 2x6's on the roof if you want to be able to walk on it and feel safe (the 2x4's were a bit wobbly untill we got sheeting on.

use pressure treated if you want it to last on any surface thats not protected by shingles / sideing. ( floor boards / supports. )

to save money we used the blueboard from rona for the sheeting vs pressure treated since its covered
Deal Expert
User avatar
Oct 6, 2010
15881 posts
10565 upvotes
Toronto
redzone wrote:
the plans attached would be alot more lol.

:) Not really if you subtract the concret slab, cedar and the fancy posts. But hey, the shed is supposed to be the mancave. Hence, gotta be great.
Deal Addict
Aug 1, 2005
1705 posts
61 upvotes
Windsor
Don't forget to look into whether you need a permit as it's over 10m^3
Newbie
Aug 8, 2010
66 posts
24 upvotes
Ottawa
redzone wrote: i helped a buddy build a 16x10 shed placed on deck blocks (to keep the cost down) and he still spent 1200 without shingles just fyi.

the plans attached would be alot more lol.

basically you can use 2x4''s for the walls/roof(its a small area). 2x6's for the floor. Go up to 2x6's on the roof if you want to be able to walk on it and feel safe (the 2x4's were a bit wobbly untill we got sheeting on.

use pressure treated if you want it to last on any surface thats not protected by shingles / sideing. ( floor boards / supports. )

to save money we used the blueboard from rona for the sheeting vs pressure treated since its covered

Yeah i'm looking to do something like that myself. I will need a construction permit as well and I am aware of this. The attached plans woould def. cost more but I may be able to dumb it down to something a little simpler. I also am in need of double doors on it so I can drive my lawn mower in and out, that's why it needs to be bigger than normal. My garage is getting wayyyy too full of junk I can no longer park my car in there and need to free up the space before winter :o
Deal Expert
Oct 6, 2005
16872 posts
2557 upvotes
Brainstew88 wrote: Hopefuly someone can help me here. I'm an avid DIYer and would like to build a garden/storage shed for my backyard. I need something bigger(maybe 16x10 or so) and would like to build it myself so it reduces cost. It should also be more sturdy than those plastic or aluminum sheds you see in stores that sell at huge prices.
Resin sheds are more durable than metal or wood sheds.

In Richmond Hill, if your shed exceeds something like 100 or 120 square feet, a permit is required. Best to check your city bylaws.
Deal Addict
Mar 21, 2006
4478 posts
478 upvotes
Burlington, Ontario
Are you sure you are going to save money doing it yourself?

I'm a very handy person, I work in the construction industry and I built my own shed, but it also took me 5 months. Why? Because I did not have the time to dedicate to it to finish it.
I also built it 100% by myself excluding the shingles, so I didn't have any help to keep me going.

Just make sure you have the time to dedicate to the job.

If you hire someone, you hire them to complete the job, so it's going to get done.
Audio - Video - Data - Security - This is what I do
Sr. Member
Mar 6, 2007
950 posts
62 upvotes
BuildingHomes wrote: Are you sure you are going to save money doing it yourself?

I'm a very handy person, I work in the construction industry and I built my own shed, but it also took me 5 months. Why? Because I did not have the time to dedicate to it to finish it.
I also built it 100% by myself excluding the shingles, so I didn't have any help to keep me going.

Just make sure you have the time to dedicate to the job.

If you hire someone, you hire them to complete the job, so it's going to get done.

^^ Definitely agree with this!

I find that doing things myself generally doesn't save me much money. But, in the end, I do end up with a lot more satisfaction. And I tend to think that most of us will either do a barely minimal job, or just way over-spec it. The first won't last as long as a pre-fab or pro done job, while the second means a lot more money is spent than what may be "needed" (but it's a nice to have).

I want to build my own shed too, but something like this is going to be a huge amount of work. I'm budgeting about $2k for a 10x13 shed next year for materials, bin rental (have an existing shed I want to replace), etc. Tools will be minimal since I have most of the tools already. And I'm expecting it to take 6-8 weeks.

If you need a shed sooner than later, and at a known cost, it makes far more sense to buy a kit or hire someone to make it. I consider most home projects to be a hobby. But if you're still keen, it definitely helps to do this with someone else and make sure that they are committed to helping. It'll make things go a lot faster!

If you have a riding mower, maybe it'd help you along if you hire out the creation of the concrete base. My brother-in-law has it done like that. After the base is done - with 2 bodies, sufficient and appropriate tools and a good work ethic, you may be able to get a basic rectangular shed, simple slanted roof, and double doors done in a couple of long days.
Deal Addict
Dec 10, 2008
1728 posts
658 upvotes
Kitchener
I might build the body of the shed... but buy pre-made or have someone make the roof trusses...
Deal Addict
User avatar
Aug 5, 2003
2696 posts
592 upvotes
North York
PhuFighter wrote: And I'm expecting it to take 6-8 weeks.

If you need a shed sooner than later, and at a known cost, it makes far more sense to buy a kit or hire someone to make it.
:eek:
That's a long time.

I built and painted a 6'*8' shed in a weekend. If you had a helper and knew what you wanted to build (ie. a rough plan) I could see it being done in a day quite easily, add another day if you are doing a concrete base, I used deck blocks on patio stones with a pressure treated floor.
Deal Addict
Apr 13, 2003
3284 posts
70 upvotes
BuildingHomes wrote: Are you sure you are going to save money doing it yourself?

I'm a very handy person, I work in the construction industry and I built my own shed, but it also took me 5 months. Why? Because I did not have the time to dedicate to it to finish it.
I also built it 100% by myself excluding the shingles, so I didn't have any help to keep me going.

Just make sure you have the time to dedicate to the job.

If you hire someone, you hire them to complete the job, so it's going to get done.

I agree with this, too
I ended up getting mine built by the Mennonites. They used lumber the mill themselves which is way better than the stuff you buy here. For the price I paid, it would be hard to save much doing it myself
Sr. Member
Mar 6, 2007
950 posts
62 upvotes
cliff wrote: :eek:
That's a long time.

I built and painted a 6'*8' shed in a weekend. If you had a helper and knew what you wanted to build (ie. a rough plan) I could see it being done in a day quite easily, add another day if you are doing a concrete base, I used deck blocks on patio stones with a pressure treated floor.

Oh, I have an existing metal shed that I need to remove. And I *KNOW* there's all sorts of garbage under neath there. So it'll be a weekend removing everything from the shed to the garage and slowly disassembling the old shed. I don't particularly want to cut myself. And cleaning up the worksite, prepping it. I expect that is an entire weekend. And I will be doing other things like walking the dog, the regular chores, etc. Weekend #2 is prepping the site again, setting up forms. Weekend #3 will be nothing but putting the concrete into the forms. I imagine it'll be the 4th weekend before I start framing. And 2 more weekends to actually finish the rest. Mind you, we're talking 4-6 hour work days only, not 12 hours. And I likely won't get any help until framing starts. I believe that I am fairly realistic in my timelines for a quality job. Of course, being the summer, the odds of me getting 6 consecutive weekends of nothing to do, no bbq's or parties to attend, is pretty much nil. I think I mentioned that having 2 people and going like gangbusters it should be possible to do it pretty fast :) But that won't be me! :)
Jr. Member
User avatar
Mar 25, 2011
186 posts
22 upvotes
new_vr wrote: I agree with this, too
I ended up getting mine built by the Mennonites. They used lumber the mill themselves which is way better than the stuff you buy here. For the price I paid, it would be hard to save much doing it myself


I don't suppose the Mennonites have a website?? :razz: I really like this option.

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