subject: 6x8 Shed Building Guide [print this page] Not everyone needs a garden shed.But,if you've no more space onyour garage wall for that new leaf rake,if you can't find your pottingtrowel because it fell behind the kids' bikes,and if your car has that forlorn,neglected look since the brand-new snow thrower moved in last fall,it's time to face the undeniable truth;your outdoor tools need ahome of their own.
The design of your garden shed can take any form,from a simple lean-to to a large free-standing building.Ours occupies a modest 6 x 8-ft.area;enough for a variety of tools,but not so large that it dominates a backyard landscape.The straightforward design is easy to expand upto about 8 x 12 ft.to suit your storage needs.Before you begin work,contact your local building codes office and find out about necessarypermits or other requirements for this type of building.
Our shed uses standard framing techniques and materials.It'ssheathed with 1/2-in.C/D plywood and sided with 1 x 6 tongue-and-groove cedar boards.The exterior trim is rough-sawn cedar.
In most cases,a shed of this size will not require an elaboratefoundation;it's fine to simply rest the structure on four corner blocksthat sit on the ground.Some excavation is inevitable to provide a leveland firm base,but there's really no need to dig below the frost line.Ifthe building settles unevenly,simply jack up a low corner and placecedar shims between the corner block and floor framing.We used 7-1/2x 12 x 16-in.solid concrete blocks at the corners."
To bring light into our shed,we installed 24 x 32-in.barn-sash windows.If you can't find these stocked by a local supplier,something similar canusually be ordered.
