Small Shed Build

[innocentimod]

Hi to all.

Although new to posting/joining I have been lurking around for some time admiring the various workshop/shed builds I have come across and this has inspired me to start on one myself and am hoping to obtain some guidance and assistance from you all.

With the lovely weather we are having at the moment it may be some time before I get the project going, but in the meantime I intend to start on the planning stages.

Therefore, even with my limited knowledge I know that I have to start at the bottom and with this in mind I shall start on the base.

My base will be around 150 – 200 ft from my garden gate and about another 50 feet from the drive so a concrete slab is out of the question (unless anyone knows of an extremely cheap concrete pumping firm in the Essex area!

I intend to go with a plinth foundation and my plan was as follows:

1. Clear vegetation and level as much as possible
2. Use whacker plate to compress soil
3. Place membrane down to reduce weed growth
4. Lay sleepers at start of site on a level bedding
5. Stake sleepers into soil
6. Cover entire site with (MOT type 1/Pea shingle??)
(the other three sides have concrete gravel boards in place)
7. Lay concrete paving slabs in 3 rows of three for the plinths
8. Cement a foundation block onto slab
9. Place DPC on top of foundation block
10. Construct 4 base sections (was thinking 8x2’s??)
11. Coach bolt all 4 together
12. Outside perimeter wall will be doubled.
13. Fix joist hangers
14. Lay floor joists (again thinking 8x2’s?)

As new I know I cannot post any pictures yet, so shall try to explain – The area I’ve got to work on is around 27 x 20 feet, of which I intend to use 23 x 16.5 feet which should give me a nice size shed.

Not a woodworker myself I shall not be having any large equipment in there, just a bar (essential), tv, stereo. Will be used in the summer for entertaining/bbq’s etc and also somewhere where my little one can play/chill when older!

As explained, this is just in the designing/planning stages at the moment so want to just concentrate in getting the base right.

Appreciate any comments/views and hope to be able to post pics soon.

Rob

 

[OLD]

Have you access to help to barrow concrete lets say two or three barrows on the go and one other rough levelling you can shift a lot in 20 mins and you can clean up and utilise the shuttering/levelling board in the construction.This works for me every time then set in the wet concrete some threaded rods to hold down the wall base plate

 

[Dibs-h]

Concrete pumping - I used a firm that charges about £150 per hour. They have a truck equipped with with a pump made\supplied by

http://www.transcrete.co.uk/contacts.htm

Would be worth giving Transcrete a ring and asking who has their gear in your neck of the woods.

Failing that try searching for

"concrete pumping"

in Yell.

Canvey Concrete Pumping Concrete - Pumping
Tel: 01268 692808| 20, Surig Road, Canvey Island, Essex SS8 9EP

has similar equipment and charges around £250 (cash) for the pump hire and labour. I paid £150 but that's London weighting allowance in your case! :wink:

 

[innocentimod]

Many thanks for the contacts but still seems quite a bit (i'm a bit of a skinflint!) ;-)

Hoping that the block and pad will be sufficient, especially on a compacted gravel base of about 3 inches.

Also if concrete base was the option then I would have to dig out about 4 tree stumps/roots - the pad method gets around that as well.

Appreciate your comments though and they wont be dismissed fully

Rob

 

[OLD]

'i'm a bit of a skinflint' Price up your proposals with tons of ballast etc and 8x2 then look at concrete and hire of hand winch to remove stumps .

 

[innocentimod]

OLD - that makes good sense. Thanks for input.