Sub $150 tool shed

[SupremePossum]

As you know from my other thread, I am building a 12 x 16 shed. But, I also wanted a much smaller shed for hand tools. Got this on Amazon for $129 with free shipping. Its 5x3 (ish)

Quality is decent for the price, I don't think I could have built it out of wood for cheaper. Some fastener choices were poor so I improvised with what I had on had (Sheet metal screws etc)

I did accidently bent the thin metal header above the door by accident during assembly so I'll either reach out to them to see if there is any way to get a spare, or just put some little "Tool shed" sign over it so you can't tell

Poured a small concrete slab for it, which was a pain in the butt. The first few bags mixed well, but the final 1 almost seemed like it didn't have enough cement in it. Bleed was crazy even though I mixed it with the correct amount of water. In the end when it was clear it wasn't setting up well, I dumped a bunch of mortar mix I had on hand, which then gave me some cream to work with to actually finish the top. Overall came okay, lucky it will never be seen anyway

Ground was hard as a rock, so I never bothered to dig down. Just threw some spare rebar I had on hand in there. Shed is attached to the slab with concrete anchors

 

[cptbarkey]

Really nice. How many bags would you say?

 

[SupremePossum]

Really nice. How many bags would you say?

6 x 80lb bags and 4 x 60lb bags. I already had some on hand

There was quite a big dip there on the left so that probably added up to quite a few. I wish I could have dug down a little and put some crushed rock down and saved on concrete, but the shovel didn't want to go in! Figured if its that compacted, probably less work and better overall to just pour on top

 

[VTECOverRated]

Just for some notes as I do work in the concrete industry for large high rises/towers, etc.

For that slab I wouldn't have bothered to use rebar, since its not needing to carry any serious weight, the better bet would have been to split it in half with a waterproof material foam pad as an expansion joint filler. Thus you would have less strain across the pad and not need any rebar at all.

Did you use high pressure concrete by the way?

I would have also done the bottom wider along the perimeter (maybe 3") spreading the load away from directly underneath the pad.

For context, I built this 3 years ago right before the virus, and it is double layered rebar but the table and pad are both split, but rebar is going through the table, into the block, and into the pad that is 12" thick and then pilled down into the granite bellow. The oven alone tipped over a bobcat if weight is a reference. Whole thing took one whole pallet (50 bags x 80lb) of high pressure concrete.

 

[SupremePossum]

The rebar was more just to get it out of my garage to be honest, it was off-cuts I had laying around

It was standard bagged 4000PSI concrete, just the cheap Quikrete yellow bags, I think it should be alright, the shed itself is very very light. It was easy to just pick it up and place it on there

When you say the bottom wider, do you mean make the slab itself wider?

 

[SupremePossum]

We need Pizza Pictures!

 

[dlundblad]

What is one bad butt generator. Liquid cooled I am guessing? How many kilowatts?

 

[VTECOverRated]

We need Pizza Pictures!

Here is a pizza and a roast we did. Yum.

Here is the site we ordered the oven from. Took 8 months with all the 2020 supply chain bs.

Authentic Pizza Ovens - Wood Fired Pizza Ovens for Sale

Unlock the true flavors of Italy with Authentic Pizza Ovens. Our premium wood-fired pizza ovens allow you to craft artisanal, restaurant-quality pizzas in the comfort of your own home. Experience the magic of crispy crusts, veggies, breads, meats. Explore our range of ovens and start your...

authenticpizzaovens.com

 

[VTECOverRated]

The rebar was more just to get it out of my garage to be honest, it was off-cuts I had laying around

It was standard bagged 4000PSI concrete, just the cheap Quikrete yellow bags, I think it should be alright, the shed itself is very very light. It was easy to just pick it up and place it on there

When you say the bottom wider, do you mean make the slab itself wider?

Like this. It helps offset the load from the hard edge. If there is a soil compaction issue you want to spread load over a wider surface area. You can create these edges using a 1x1 around the perimeter, or depending how deep you go, the proportion should increase exponentially. So lets say you want to use a 1x1 (which is actually a 1.5x1.5) then your slab is 3-4" deep. If your slab is 6" deep then use a 2x4, and so on.

 

[SupremePossum]

Here is a pizza and a roast we did. Yum.

Here is the site we ordered the oven from. Took 8 months with all the 2020 supply chain bs.

Authentic Pizza Ovens - Wood Fired Pizza Ovens for Sale

Unlock the true flavors of Italy with Authentic Pizza Ovens. Our premium wood-fired pizza ovens allow you to craft artisanal, restaurant-quality pizzas in the comfort of your own home. Experience the magic of crispy crusts, veggies, breads, meats. Explore our range of ovens and start your...

authenticpizzaovens.com

Looks fantastic!

What is one bad butt generator. Liquid cooled I am guessing? How many kilowatts?

27kw on LP and 25kw on NG like this. 1800RPM Liquid Cooled, 2.4L Mitsubishi motor. Generac just discontinued them in favor of a 3600RPM genset

Glad I bought when I did

Like this. It helps offset the load from the hard edge. If there is a soil compaction issue you want to spread load over a wider surface area. You can create these edges using a 1x1 around the perimeter, or depending how deep you go, the proportion should increase exponentially. So lets say you want to use a 1x1 (which is actually a 1.5x1.5) then your slab is 3-4" deep. If your slab is 6" deep then use a 2x4, and so on.

Good info, next time I do a slab I'll think of using that trick

 

[SupremePossum]

Now the question is, do I put a little light in the shed? There are lights around but its not super bright in the shed. I could go with some 12v solar rechargeable cheap thing, or just get power from the garage right there and do 120v

As you can see, the light is behind me in the image so its not idea. Another thing I thought about is putting some 4 inch recessed lights in the soffit of the garage, on a switch, which would make the whole area lighter when needed. Could be handy for other things too.

 

[VTECOverRated]

Now the question is, do I put a little light in the shed? There are lights around but its not super bright in the shed. I could go with some 12v solar rechargeable cheap thing, or just get power from the garage right there and do 120v

View attachment 184904

As you can see, the light is behind me in the image so its not idea. Another thing I thought about is putting some 4 inch recessed lights in the soffit of the garage, on a switch, which would make the whole area lighter when needed. Could be handy for other things too.

I bought solar lights from amazon. Look it up, but there are plenty of different kinds, easy to install using a simple screw. They stay charged 24/7 with a solar panel integrated into the LED light.
Kind of like this https://www.amazon.com/oulac-Lights...1698146134&sprefix=solar+light,aps,108&sr=8-7

 

[cptbarkey]

I like the above idea.

Also there are cheap push led lights you can paste nearby, click on click off by hand.

 

[VTECOverRated]

I like the above idea.

Also there are cheap push led lights you can paste nearby, click on click off by hand.

That too.

Just when you drill a hole to pass through the wire from the solar panel, epoxy the hole, and I would recommend you use the solar panel to charge a small li-ion battery and then power the light. Plenty of cool ways to run this, but I think something like a small 5w panel should be plenty.

 

[SupremePossum]

If I go the solar panel route, I'll just route it down and under the roof so I don't have to drill

Its a shame really, I have a 400w panel spare from the roof install... Of course its not a 12v panel

 

[VTECOverRated]

If I go the solar panel route, I'll just route it down and under the roof so I don't have to drill

Its a shame really, I have a 400w panel spare from the roof install... Of course its not a 12v panel

Must be nice and sunny in texas to do a solar roof. Out here I did the math and its not worth it one bit.
The more digging I did the more I realized that because I built my home to be extra efficient, my power bill in peak winter doesn't exceed 300$ running 2x 5 ton ac/heat pumps, lights, ovens, cooking equipment, and etc for 5000sqft+, that and using a wood fireplace with heat dissipation because I have enough wood to last several life times.

What is your year round efficiency? 1/2 of the time its too dark so curious how much you get out of it on a bad day.

 

[SupremePossum]

Just wanted to update this thread to say the shed is holding up fine, some minor rust on the hinges, nothing to complain about