Projects

Small garden shed build

5 Comments

03/08/2015

This summer while we were away on Vacation our trailer was stolen. Although it was locked under the front stairs, it was not completely out of sight. So we’ve  decided to build a small garden shed that can be locked. 

curved shed trusses in jig

2×3″ spacers allow the stringers to keep the curve
I came across the bow or gothic roofed shed idea from reading up on boatbuilding and the different ways people set up their boat sheds. This approach appears to be one of the most material efficient and light and as such keeps the costs down.

This will help us store bikes out of sight and locked. I am enjoying the build and may decide to make a smaller greenhouse build as well for on of my raised beds in the garden.

I ripped 1×6′ boards in half to creat 12′ long 1×3 stringers that are separated by 4″ 1×3 spacers every 16″ along the length of the curve. I then add a drop of PL polyurethane glue and tie it together with 5″ x 1/4″ galvanized carriage bolts.

 

4 1/2″ long bolts would have been better but i could not find them

15/08/2015

Update:

I’ve completed all the trusses and was able to move them from the boat shed workshop to my yard to see how they will fit.

 

the cargo bicycle loaded with eight curvy trusses

Update: 29/08/2015

I got a coop pickup truck to go pick up the plywood 3/4″ t&g fir flooring.

 

the footing blocks are in and the joists are all level.
Now it is time to wrap the perimeter in galvanized mesh wire to make sure no mouse/rat/raccoon/squirrel/skunk can get under there and make a home.

30/09/2015

My wife says that Google’s system prefers active blog post that get updated rather than always posting new ones. So with this little project I’m experimenting with adding addendums.

Things are moving along well, I’ve started to put up the trusses last weekend.


10/10/2015 update

We had a huge Pineapple Express low pressure system bring down 75mm of rain today. But since Saturday is my only free day of the week to get ahead I braved the rain and started screwing down the roofing panels.

 

the lower 4′ are a course of galvanized roof sheeting

the upper section are Suntuff corrugated polycarbonate roof panels
I managed to get the whole lower course done before lunch and the do six of the eight upper panels. Tomorrow I hope to finish the last two upper panels and figure out a flashing solution for the peak section.

11/10/2015

More progress this morning I finished the roof panels and got the lumber for the end walls.

 

all the trusses are now covered and protected from the rain

I just have to cap the ridge and finish the end walls.

 

shed seen from above

21/02/2016

I’ve finished the end walls and started doing the siding. One side will be cedar shingles and the other will have galvanized corrugated steel.

finished the door siding with cedar shingles, the variation of light and dark shingles is because the box i got had a mix of yellow and red cedar which is pretty unique.

5 thoughts on “Small garden shed build”

  1. I stumbled on your page. I love the open web rafters. I loved the way you packed them on your bike. My son designed a new market booth for his business and together took us a week to do. Great project. We made the cover from a big sail from my father’s sailboat. We have a big old wooden sailboat rotting in our yard. If you want ,I can take some pics if there is any hardware you want, it is free. It hurts me to see it rot. I am a farmer and do not like sailing, sorry. here is his design page. Again, I enjoyed looking through your work, thanks for posting, near Ottawa. george wright
    https://rodneywrightdesign.com/

    Reply

    1. Hi George, sorry for the late reply, the whole COVID19 crisis has derailed some of my life and checking for comments on the blog is one of those things I dropped. I love the way your son adapted the sail and the booth design. It has great visual appeal and differenciates well from the other booth tents. I’d love to know if you have any old boat parts that would be given a new home to continue to fulfill their purpose. I’ve really enjoyed re-purposing recycled wood and materials when possible. so far that has been neighbourhood cherry for the cleats and other fairleads and reclaimed mahogany for the thwart and other smaller parts like the rowlock risers.
      Gwendal

      Reply

    1. The spacers are glued and screwed and so they hold the two stringers in place and keep the curve. It is a similar principle when you laminate multiple thin layers of wood around a curve.

      Reply

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